Philippine officials in Rome issued an advisory to warn aspiring overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) against fake email offers for various jobs in Italy. Apparently, the bogus email promises various employment opportunities supposedly for the reconstruction project of L'Aquila in Italy.

A 6.2-magnitude earthquake caused great damage to L'Aquila, a mountainous city in Italy last April 2009. This natural calamity claimed the lives of over 260 people and left 28,000 homeless.

Apparently, this sad event is now being used by unscrupulous individuals to tricked overseas jobseekers. They do this by sending a bogus email that may seem authentic for some because they claimed to be from the "Ministry of Development, Public Works and Housing Reconstruction of Earthquake Affected Cities Program."

The reconstruction project that would provide many job opportunities is supposedly under the Auspices of World Rehabilitation Program (WRP) and Italian Freedom Corps (IFC). The Philippine Embassy in Rome also informed that the swindlers use the email address projecto_laquila@rome.com and the office address "Via Sicilia 162/C."

The Philippine Embassy said in a news release posted on the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) website, "There is no Committee for the Reconstruction of L'Aquila at the Ministry's official address in Via Sicilia 162/C cited in the email, and the Italian Ministry of Development Public Works and Housing does not correspond to any Italian office."

Also, there is no registered project involving an alleged Housing Reconstruction of Earthquake Affected Cities Program, either in L'Aquila or Rome, and there is no WRP or IFC accredited with the Ministry, nor operating or registered in Italy," it added.

The following are the jobs that the bogus email is offering: mechanical engineers, truck drivers, machinery operators, metal workers, plumbers, carpenters, electrically engineers/electricians, nurses/dispensers/clinic staff, helpers, brick layers, technical experts, data entry clerk, first aid attendant, quantity surveyor, cooks/chefs/stewards, interpreters, and legal advisers.

The Ministry has already informed the Italian police about this email job scam.