I have been consistently encountering a pattern of recruiter interaction for several years on a regular basis, about 20 times in total.
It starts with a specific, detailed request, dispatched through a professional networking site:
R: Hi, your profile is very interesting, since you have experience with tech X. A client of mine, a large snake oil manufacturer in your city is looking for an X developer. They offer free backrubs, a complementary leguan and a competitive salary of up to 100 colored paper rectangles. What is your number, when can I call you?
Me: Hi, thank you but I am not interested in working with tech X, for the last 5 years I have been working with tech Y and Z and I am only interested in positions where I can continue working with either Y or Z.
R: No problem. I have also many open positions requiring Y and Z. What is your number, when can I call you?
Me: Sounds good, please send me the details of the most relevant positions requiring Y first, and if I am interested, I will gladly chat with you.
After this, they do not respond at all and I am puzzled.
If they do have relevant positions, sharing the details on the same level as the initial offer should be helpful for both of us.
If they do not have relevant positions, why do they lie to schedule a call and waste their time which I assume could be spent more efficiently?
It feels like a scam but I cannot figure out what the recruiters are supposed to gain from it? Do they intend to talk about the original role I have refused or do they intend to use my contact data somehow? But they already can contact me… It just does not compute. I assumed this was an aberration, but this pattern keeps reoccurring.
The recruiters are employed at different companies and the advertised roles are at different companies in different countries. I am based in Germany, the recruiters are based in Germany, UK and Switzerland.