Beware of online identity theft while searching and applying for a job. Even the government has recently issued warnings regarding criminals taking advantage of vulnerable job seekers during these high rate unemployment periods. There have been recent reports of criminals posing as potential employers and requesting more personal information from candidates such as social security number and date of birth leading to job seeker identity theft. Many people fall victim to this scam because they think the request is legitimate, and the information is needed for a background check or other hiring requirement.