{"id":"sec-col-internship-check-scam","audience":"college","category":"security","track":"security","technique":"grounding","title":"Check a remote internship offer against the career center guide","free":false,"task":"You got a remote internship offer by email. Check it against the career center's 4 scam signs: exactly 4 numbered lines in the guide's order, each starting 'Present' or 'Not present', with a quote from the email when present. Then a last line starting 'Next step:' from the guide. Plain text, under 110 words.","materialLabel":"The offer and the career center guide (attached to your prompt automatically)","material":"From: Talent Team <hr@brightwave-analytics-careers.example.net>\nSubject: Congratulations! Remote Data Intern offer\n\nHi Sam,\n\nAfter reviewing your resume on CampusJobs, we are pleased to offer you a Remote Data Intern role, $28/hour, 15 hours/week. No interview needed!\n\nTo set up your home office, we will mail you a check for $2,400. Please deposit it, keep $200 for your time, and send the remaining $2,200 to our equipment vendor through a payment app within 48 hours so your laptop can ship.\n\nWelcome aboard!\nBrightwave Analytics HR\n\n---\nCareer Center guide - \"Job scam warning signs\"\n1. An offer with no interview or video call.\n2. A check you must deposit and then send part of the money to someone else.\n3. Pressure to act within hours or a day or two.\n4. Asking for your Social Security number or bank login before you've signed an offer letter.\nNext step: Don't deposit anything. Forward the email to careers@westbrook.example.edu and check the employer in the CampusJobs verified list.","rules":[{"type":"numberedItems","count":4},{"type":"plainText"},{"type":"maxWords","max":110}],"mistakes":[{"title":"A general scam explainer","why":"The AI lists every job scam sign it knows.","fix":"Say: \"One line per guide sign, in the guide's order.\"","checks":["r0","numberedItems"]},{"title":"Saying everything is present","why":"The AI assumes all four signs apply.","fix":"Add: \"Mark Not present when the email doesn't show it.\"","checks":["r1"]},{"title":"Its own next step","why":"The AI says 'report it to the FTC' instead of the guide's step.","fix":"Ask: \"End with Next step: from the guide.\"","checks":["r2"]},{"title":"Trusting the AI to count words","why":"AI is bad at counting. Ask for \"under 110 words\" and it often lands well over.","fix":"Ask for less than the limit and cap each line: \"each line under 15 words, under 85 words total.\"","checks":["maxWords"]},{"title":"Letting markdown in","why":"AI adds bold and headings by default, and in your notes they show up as stray symbols.","fix":"Add: \"Plain text only, no bold, no headings.\"","checks":["plainText"]}],"promptHints":[{"label":"Uses the guide","patterns":["guide","career center","warning sign"]},{"label":"Gives the labels","patterns":["present","not present"]},{"label":"Asks for quotes","patterns":["quote","proof","evidence"]},{"label":"Says exactly how many","patterns":["\\b4\\b.{0,25}(line|sign|item)","exactly (4|four)"]},{"label":"Asks for plain text","patterns":["plain","no bold","no markdown","no formatting","no headings"]}],"hint":"Checking a scam against a trusted list works best item by item. Give the AI the guide as the test, ask for quotes, and let 'not present' be an answer.","rubricLabels":["The 4 lines follow the guide's order and each starts with exactly 'Present' or 'Not present'","Signs 1, 2 and 3 are Present with quotes (for example 'No interview needed', 'deposit it... send the remaining $2,200', 'within 48 hours'), and sign 4 is Not present","The last line starts 'Next step:' and says don't deposit anything, forward to careers@westbrook.example.edu and check the CampusJobs verified list"]}