The rapid expansion of internet services and social media in Pakistan has allowed millions of jobseekers to search directly for opportunities abroad. However, it has also fuelled the spread of fake job advertisements, leading to online fraud, exploitation, and even human trafficking. Tackling online recruitment scams requires not only proactive monitoring of recruitment practices, but also strong international collaboration between countries of origin, transit, and destination.
Pakistan’s internet and social media boom has opened new doors for jobseekers, both domestically and abroad. A quick online search for “foreign jobs for Pakistanis” or “work abroad opportunities for Pakistanis” yields millions of results: glossy job announcements, Facebook pages promising urgent hiring, Instagram posts advertising attractive offers, and WhatsApp groups overflowing with supposed vacancies. At first glance, the digital space appears full of opportunity, but a closer look reveals a troubling reality. Many of these listings are unverifiable, misleading, or outright fraudulent, exposing potential migrants to online scams, abuse, and trafficking. Drawing on recent ICMPD findings, this commentary shows how the online job market – often the first stop for aspiring migrants – has become a hotspot for exploitation, where misinformation and false hope thrive in an under-regulated digital space.
Fraudulent job advertisements in Pakistan: A fertile ground
Pakistan is among the world’s top countries for outgoing labour migration, supported by institutional infrastructure that promotes and regulates overseas placements. According to the Bureau of Emigration & Overseas Employment (BEOE), between 2011 and 2024 nearly nine million Pakistani workers left the country, the vast majority heading to Gulf countries. Recruitment for foreign work is primarily mediated by registered private intermediaries known as Overseas Employment Promoters (OEPs), who facilitate the matching of Pakistani jobseekers with international employers.
While the BEOE manages and continuously verifies these licenses to protect job seekers, fake agents operate alongside them. A combination of high demand for overseas work, limited legal migration opportunities for certain destinations, structural gaps in formal recruitment channels, and low awareness among jobseekers about legitimate processes has created space for unlicensed recruitment agents to thrive. In some cases, the distinction between fake and real agents may also be blurred, depending on the degree of informality of their operations.
In this context, fast-moving and under-regulated digital platforms have become convenient tools for unlicensed agents to operate in the shadows, reach large audiences, and evade accountability. According to the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority, as of 2024, about 142 million Pakistanis (57% of the population) use the internet, with widespread access to social media. This connectivity, while enhancing opportunities, has also exposed many vulnerable jobseekers to cybercrime, including fraud, migrant smuggling, and human trafficking. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) reported that in 2022, 115 out of 187 forensic analysis requests received by the Cybercrime Cell of the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) in Pakistan were related to migrant smuggling and human trafficking.
While usually not advertised as job opportunities, online advertisements for smuggling, often branded as “dunki”, promise shortcuts to Europe or Southeast Asia. Marketed as quick and safe, these ads attempt to entice people to migrate through irregular channels without disclosing the risks or legitimacy of the routes. While some people may knowingly opt into these services, many are deceived along the way, leading to exploitation, and in some cases, trafficking.
What we know about fraudulent job advertisements
Similarly, what may begin with a promising job opportunity can quickly spiral into deception and exploitation. Across digital platforms like Facebook, WhatsApp, Instagram, TikTok, and Telegram, aspiring Pakistani migrants are targeted by two other major types of cyber-enabled crimes.
The first is related to a classic job scam: job ads are crafted to appeal to young, low-income, and semi-skilled workers – though even educated professionals may be duped by polished, legitimate-looking ads – mostly for positions in construction, hospitality, or domestic work abroad. The goal of these online job scams is simple: extract as much money as possible before the victim catches on.
Once jobseekers show interest, they are asked to share personal details such as CVs, ID documents, and photos. Sometimes, scammers skip formalities altogether and send a fake offer letter within hours. Believing they have secured a job, victims are then pressured to pay “processing fees” for medical tests, visa stamping, or travel documents. In some cases, they even receive counterfeit visas and flight tickets, only to discover too late that the job never existed. While such scams, including document fraud, are common offline as well, digital spaces makes them cheaper, lower-risk, and more lucrative for fraudsters, who can operate with a layer of anonymity.
A notable example is the so-called “done base visa”, which is often used as a vehicle for fraud. These services are initially perceived as trustworthy because applicants pay only upon issuance and delivery of the visa. Fraudulent agents further present the process as legal, fast, and reliable. In practice, however, applicants are frequently asked for downpayments or fees for services and documents that are often fabricated. Many applicants see their visa applications rejected, and some might even be flagged or banned from applying again if embassies detect inconsistencies. Those who do receive a visa often end up with tourist or visit visas that do not qualify them for the promised employment. As a result, they may unwittingly overstay their visa, fall into irregular status in the destination country, and face the risk of deportation.
More dangerous than fake job offers alone are cases of the second type, where fraudulent agents lure jobseekers abroad to exploit them or extort their families. While such incidents also occur offline, online platforms have facilitated these nefarious schemes. Victims, convinced they have landed real jobs, can end up trapped in forced labour, scam call centres, criminal rackets, or sexual exploitation. In extreme cases, especially in the Gulf, some are coerced into smuggling drugs and face the terrifying risk of execution if caught.
A recent trend has involved low-educated and low-skilled Pakistani workers seeking employment in Southeast Asia, particularly Malaysia, Thailand, Myanmar, and Cambodia. Agents promise jobs, usually in the construction, service, or agricultural sectors, arrange travel, and collect passports and fees. Instead of providing legitimate travel documents, however, applicants are often only given tourist or visit visas. Once abroad, they may inadvertently fall into irregular status, exposing them to exploitation by local employers, detention by authorities, or deportation.
Current challenges in identifying and circumscribing the problem
Several factors contribute to the widespread prevalence of cyber-enabled migration scams in Pakistan, one of the most pressing being the challenge of correctly identifying and distinguishing the offences committed. While the difference between fraud, smuggling, and trafficking is clear in theory, in practice these categories may be hard to disentangle from the perspective of countries of origin. This makes detection and prosecution extremely difficult.
Fraudulent advertisements are especially problematic, as they closely mimic legitimate ones, often disappear quickly, and are difficult to block. It is also hard to determine whether a given ad is intended solely to defraud or whether it is part of a trafficking scheme or other form of severe exploitation. These challenges are compounded by the constantly evolving digital tactics of criminals, who adapt quickly to policy changes. Moreover, the full scope of exploitation or trafficking usually becomes evident only once a migrant has reached the destination, further complicating detection and intervention.
Another challenge lies in the lack of accurate, accessible information for aspiring migrants. Many jobseekers, especially from rural or low-income backgrounds, are unfamiliar with the official process for overseas employment. Unlicensed and fraudulent OEPs – often operating in rural areas where oversight is less stringent – exploit this knowledge gap, deceiving jobseekers and heightening their vulnerability. Further muddying the waters is the fact that even registered OEPs sometimes fail to comply with the BEOE’s advertising guidelines. As a result, legitimate and fraudulent recruiters can appear indistinguishable, blurring the boundaries between formal and informal recruitment. Jobseekers are left to navigate a complex and confusing digital job market with limited awareness of the warning signs of online fraud.
At the same time, the digital platforms hosting these scams – such as social media networks, messaging apps, and classified websites – often have limited moderation, allowing fraudulent content to circulate unchecked. Regulating these platforms poses unique challenges. Many operate internationally, making it difficult for national authorities to enforce country-specific rules or ensure compliance with local laws. There is often a disconnect between the speed at which online recruitment scams evolve and the capacity of regulatory frameworks to respond. This combination of weak oversight, rapid digital growth, and information asymmetry creates an ideal environment for scammers to thrive, leaving jobseekers exposed and authorities struggling to keep pace.
Strengthening responses to digital recruitment scams
The proliferation of online fraudulent job advertisements has potential implications not only for aspiring migrants but also for labour migration systems more broadly. Victims are often lured by the relatively low fees requested, which reduce suspicion and make detection by law enforcement less likely. To further boost the credibility and appeal of their ads, fraudsters even exploit newly signed labour mobility partnerships, advertising supposed opportunities in these countries. At a systemic level, such schemes increase the risk of irregular journeys and stays and undermine safe, regular labour migration pathways.
An effective response requires strong political will, coordinated action across institutions and borders, and widespread awareness-raising efforts among jobseekers. In countries of origin, promoting safe and regular migration while safeguarding workers’ rights and protections is critical. This can be supported through the continuous evaluation and fine-tuning of the legal framework, including by formalising the role of subagents, extending licensing requirements to education consultants and travel agents, and regularly monitoring their activities.
At the same time, bilateral and multilateral cooperation with countries of destination, particularly in the Gulf, Southeast Asia, and the EU, should be deepened. This includes not only expanding regular labour migration pathways but also strengthening information sharing and mechanisms to identify and prosecute exploitation and trafficking cases. To effectively counter criminal networks, joint task forces combining expertise in cybercrime, migration, telecommunications, and financial intelligence are needed at both national and international levels to monitor evolving modus operandi and prosecute digital recruitment scams. Similarly, partnerships with social media companies can help ensure that fraudulent content is swiftly removed from the internet. Finally, awareness campaigns must target remote and migration-prone areas, while also being institutionalised in school curricula and national labour migration policies.
Marco Mogiani is Researcher at ICMPD. His current research intersects border, migration, and citizenship studies, focusing on irregular migration, migration management, and migration aspirations and decision-making processes.
Ayesha Qaisrani is Researcher at ICMPD. Her recent research focuses on seasonal labour migration, migration decision-making, and diaspora engagement.
This commentary was produced in the framework of the project Preventing Fraudulent Job Advertisements and Cyber Activity as a Facilitator of Irregular Migration and Trafficking in Human Beings (FJA-PAK), funded by the Norwegian Directorate of Immigration and implemented by ICMPD in Pakistan between January and December 2025.
Opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors alone.