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Expat oil and gas workers warned of training scam
| Published: | 1 Sep at 6 PM |
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Expat workers in the highly lucrative oil and gas industry are being warned about UK-based online fraudsters offering full training and jobs on the North Sea Rigs.
The high salaries paid to workers in the harsh conditions of the North Sea oil rigs attract many expats as well as British workers with experience in other locations. The Aberdeen office of the UK’s Trading Standards Office is warning that a scam involving courses leading to the necessary qualifications and jobs is being offered by online companies such as First Oil Energy.
The bogus online company has already scammed a number of victims, offering courses at low prices and hiking the costs to over £1,000 once the victim has signed up. Fees include the promise of high-salaried jobs on the North Sea oil rigs for those who pass the course.
The firm’s website, cloned from genuine company sites, fools applicants into thinking the online training offered will lead to high-paying positions once they'v gained the qualifications required.. According to an Aberdeen Trading Standards spokesperson, there are no such jobs and the online training is sub-standard in the industry.
First Oil Energy operates just one of several similar online scams aimed at those needing certification to work on the North Sea rigs. Trading Standards advice before sending any payment is to check online with ‘whois’ to determine when the website was set up and the domain name registered, as most of the scam sites are very recent.
Reputable course providers and actual recruitment firms can be found on the official industry training portal OPITO’s web site. The many leading oil and gas companies based out of Aberdeen only use official sites and known recruitment firms to advertise jobs or training courses.
The high salaries paid to workers in the harsh conditions of the North Sea oil rigs attract many expats as well as British workers with experience in other locations. The Aberdeen office of the UK’s Trading Standards Office is warning that a scam involving courses leading to the necessary qualifications and jobs is being offered by online companies such as First Oil Energy.
The bogus online company has already scammed a number of victims, offering courses at low prices and hiking the costs to over £1,000 once the victim has signed up. Fees include the promise of high-salaried jobs on the North Sea oil rigs for those who pass the course.
The firm’s website, cloned from genuine company sites, fools applicants into thinking the online training offered will lead to high-paying positions once they'v gained the qualifications required.. According to an Aberdeen Trading Standards spokesperson, there are no such jobs and the online training is sub-standard in the industry.
First Oil Energy operates just one of several similar online scams aimed at those needing certification to work on the North Sea rigs. Trading Standards advice before sending any payment is to check online with ‘whois’ to determine when the website was set up and the domain name registered, as most of the scam sites are very recent.
Reputable course providers and actual recruitment firms can be found on the official industry training portal OPITO’s web site. The many leading oil and gas companies based out of Aberdeen only use official sites and known recruitment firms to advertise jobs or training courses.
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