IN SHORT: Quickmart employs thousands of people in Kenya, but this viral graphic advertising hundreds of opportunities at the supermarket is from fraudsters out to prey on desperate job seekers.
A graphic circulating on Facebook claims that Quickmart, a supermarket chain in Kenya, is hiring.
“Retail management solutions (RMS) in partnership with SPECIFIC, on behalf of QUICKMART SUPERMARKET are seeking for interested applicants for the posts listed below. This is due to the opening of twenty new shops country-wide,” it reads, in part.
According to the ad, the supermarket is looking to hire 140 cashiers, 80 chefs, 40 drivers, 200 cleaners, 60 security officers, 100 casual off-loaders, 60 CCTV personnel and 320 line attendants.
The graphic has been posted here, here, here, here, here and here.
But is it legit? We checked.
Signs of scam
Quickmart has stated a number of times that all available job opportunities are advertised on its website and official social media pages.
But the graphic does not appear on the supermarket's website or its verified accounts on Facebook and Twitter (the platform now known as “X” after rebranding in July 2023). This is the first sign of a scam.
The graphic asks applicants to send their documents to the email address [email protected]. But the official email address of the supermarket, published on its website, is [email protected]. It’s unlikely that a large company would use a Gmail email address for official business or recruitment.
Other users have posted the graphic, replacing the suspicious email address with a cell phone number. But this is not the number listed by the supermarket on its website.
Another clue that the Facebook ads are a scam is that none of the posts appear in the career section of the company’s website.
The graphic asks users to pay KSh675 for “food handler’s certificate”. But in response to a customer enquiring about another fake job on Facebook, the supermarket advised applicants to ignore posts that include application charges.
On 19 July, the supermarked stamped the poster “fake” and cautioned social media users against being conned.
“Don't get tricked! Stay on the safe side by confirming any job adverts by calling us on 0717904904 or checking our website http://quickmart.co.ke,” it tweeted.
For more tips on how to stay safe on social media, see Africa Check’s guide to Facebook scams and how to spot them.
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