Leaving the military is one of life’s biggest transitions; you swap body armour for a suit, squaddies for Slack stand ups, and discover that “zero dark thirty” is not when your new boss expects you at your desk; it’s 9:00 a.m.,(don’t use the 24 hour clock, it confuses them), with a latte.
But there’s a growing risk many don’t see coming: the digital minefield of job hunting in Civvy Street, especially under the looming shadow of the UK’s Online Safety Act.
Wait… what? How does a law meant to protect our kids from seedy TikToks and Instasluts affect veterans hunting for work? Let me go on one of my meanders…
From Serving our Queen (now King) and Country… to Serving the Algorithm
Forces leavers are told the world is their oyster. “You’ve got transferable skills!” they’re promised. Leadership. Teamwork. Problem-solving under pressure. All true. Then they step online to look for jobs and reality hits harder than a drill sergeant’s morning wake up call. The internet doesn’t see discipline and experience; a lot of the sites where service leavers are advised to go only sees data to be scraped, exploited, and (sometimes) scammed.
Fake recruiters, dodgy job boards, and “veteran-friendly employers” that are about as friendly as a trench foot outbreak, all circling like digital vultures.
Enter the Online Safety Act…Well, Kind Of
The Online Safety Act was designed to clean up the internet, protect kids, crack down on illegal content, and force platforms to stop turning a blind eye. Noble goals which we all support.
But veterans? Yeah… they weren’t exactly front and center in the drafting sessions.; and here’s the problem: veterans leaving service are uniquely vulnerable online.
Why Are Veterans at Risk?
-
Trust and camaraderie run deep.
Military life builds a natural trust in systems, processes, and people. In Civvy Street, this can translate into falling for “recruitment agencies” that look official but are anything but. -
Data exposure.
Many veterans may unknowingly overshare online. Details of service history, locations, or skills that sound innocuous, but in the wrong hands? Cybercriminal gold: ripe stories and photos for romance scams, or worse. -
Desperation meets exploitation.
Some veterans need work fast: family to support, homes to keep. Bad actors know this and target veterans with fake job offers, bogus training schemes, or “security roles” that are basically private militia ads dressed up in branding. Some even have their CPT funds exploited – I am told that some training charges are made to fit this pot of money.
What the Online Safety Act Should Do
The Act will hopefully be effective at making platforms remove harmful content (eventually) and police illegal activity. But what about the grey areas?
-
Fake veteran recruiters offering “exclusive” jobs for a fee?
-
Phishing scams disguised as ex-forces job boards?
-
Predatory companies that specifically seek out veterans because they know their vulnerability?
- Vanity awards for bravery or start up ex forces business?
Right now, much of that falls through the cracks.
Why Veterans Deserve Specific Protection
Serving your country shouldn’t mean you’re fair game for online exploitation the moment you take off your uniform. If we genuinely care about Veterans, the Online Safety Act or any future regulation in this area should consider the following:
✅ Force platforms to verify “veteran-friendly” recruiters.
✅ Penalize job boards and social media sites that allow fake employment scams targeting service leavers.
✅ Create a clear, fast reporting mechanism for veterans who encounter scams online, with actual follow-up.
✅ Educate veterans before they leave service about the risks, because what’s second nature to Gen Z isn’t always obvious to someone who’s been repeatedly offline in Country X and Y.
Civvy Street is Weird
No one preps veterans for just how weird some parts of civilian work life can be:
-
Office politics make basic training look polite.
-
Civilians panic if the printer jams.
-
Someone will seriously schedule a meeting to plan another meeting.
Add the constant risk of being scammed online to that chaos, and it’s no wonder some veterans wonder if they were safer in camp where the only daily risk was chef’s scrambled eggs.
We Owe our Veterans Better
Veterans aren’t looking for special treatment, just our suppport as they rebuild careers, families, and futures when they leave the forces. They protected us, the least we can do is make sure job hunting doesn’t feel like walking through another minefield, digital or otherwise. The Online Safety Act may not have been written with veterans in mind, but maybe it’s time someone remembered them and this is something we can all do.
Because if anyone deserves a safe passage into civilian life, it’s the people who spent years keeping the rest of us safe.
Photo by Kasturi Roy
