An example of the scam
Unemployed and substitute teachers desperate to secure permanent work are being targeted in a sophisticated recruitment scam in which fraudsters impersonate Western Cape Education Department (WCED) officials and school principals before demanding thousands of rand for non-existent teaching posts.
The WCED has issued a fresh warning after several schools recently reported incidents involving WhatsApp messages sent to teachers, falsely informing them that they had been selected as preferred candidates for permanent positions.
In some cases, scammers have allegedly gone as far as using the names and photographs of real school principals or education officials to make the messages appear legitimate.
WCED spokesperson Bronagh Hammond said recipients were typically told that a permanent post had become available at a particular school and that they had been identified as the preferred candidate.
