Anastasia Pleasant thought she'd found a dream job working remotely.

Pleasant found a job opening online at Indeed.com, a legitimate job posting website that says it removes tens of millions of job listings each month that do not meet its quality guidelines.

The posting was for an executive assistant at a company supposedly called Guaranteed Finance Pro.

"And like I told you, I worked in journalism and I just I can't believe this happened to me," Pleasant said.

They offered to hire Pleasant right away — no interview required, which she thought was odd.

"And they said on the phone that this is a legitimate job and then emailed me, 'this is a legitimate job.' So I thought, 'well, OK, let's just go for it,'" Pleasant said.

Her supposed boss sent a check for $500 to buy supplies, but then he asked her to wire some payments to software vendors, which he said he would reimburse.

"So that should have been the first red flag that I ignored. And after that then they were sending me more checks and asking me to deposit them," Pleasant said.

Pleasant kept depositing the company’s checks, but her boss also kept asking her to wire money to more vendors.

Within days, Guaranteed Finance Pro’s checks started bouncing.

A panicked Pleasant learned her checking and savings accounts were empty, and she had a negative $25,000 balance.

Her boss texted back, “Be calm okay, do not panic.”

"And they just kept lying. And one of the checks that I have, they sent me a check for $34,000 to make up for everything. But then that bounced," Pleasant said.

Pleasant reported the scam to the Martin County Sheriff’s Office, the State Attorney General and the FBI.

No one answered the company phone, the website had no information and Pleasant's money has vanished.

"I feel really stupid and embarrassed and I don't want that to happen to anybody else," she said.

Indeed released the following statement:

"Indeed puts job seekers at the heart of everything we do. We have a dedicated search quality team who goes to extraordinary lengths deploying a variety of techniques to assess the suitability and validity of job listings. Indeed removes tens of millions of job listings each month that do not meet our quality guidelines. In addition, Indeed will not do business with an employer if their job listings do not pass our stringent quality guidelines. We encourage job seekers to report any suspicious job advertisements to us, or if they feel it necessary, to make a report to the police. We encourage all job seekers to review our Guidelines for a Safe Job Search."

What will the job market look like in 2022? It's no surprise — experts say flexibility will continue to be the key to success.

"What you are going to find is that there are going to be continuing fluctuations at various companies around the country," said Lisa Rowan, a consumer finance expert at Forbes Advisor. "You're going to have maybe some COVID hotspots where you might have to shift back to that remote environment."

The biggest opportunity for employment will continue to be hospitality and leisure fields. However, experts are seeing more jobs pop up as "remote."

"So if you're someone who worked in a customer-facing job, say, retail or one of those leisure positions, you might be able to work in customer service and work from home, online," Rowan said. "So, we're seeing a lot of shift there, too, but so much of it is in those services that we've been relying on since the pandemic changed our lifestyles."

Ultimately, prepare to see a lot of fluctuations at various companies around the country — meaning that plenty of job title changes and streamlining may be on the way.

CHICAGO — If you're stressing about having to return back to the office, you’re not alone.

Recent studies show a large percentage of people don’t want to return to the office full time.

"I've got two young kids and pets, and I'm able to kind of take more time with them in the morning,” said Stephanie Bossmeyer, a human resources director who has been working from home the past year. "I can't believe the amount of time that I spent going to and from work."

Bossmeyer is fortunate. Her company is not pressuring employees to return to the workplace in the near future.

“It's been pretty successful, to be honest, and I think a lot of people feel that way,” said Bossmeyer.

As more people get vaccinated, the prospect of life returning to normal is exciting. While some employers are starting to consider having staff move back into the office, it’s something many teleworkers may be dreading.

“Any belief that we're returning back to normal is probably misplaced,” said Shelly Rauvola, an associate professor of organizational psychology at DePaul University in Chicago.

Rauvola specializes in health and well-being in the workplace.

“I think there's the argument to be made that individuals might be more productive in a place where they're really comfortable," explained Rauvola. "They might be more productive if they get to work different work hours."

Whether it’s the stress and cost of commuting or the loss of flexibility, more Americans are finding their stride in working from home.

“I often feel more productive,” said Bossmeyer. “Sometimes, I think you forget to kind of log out and kind of go home. But I do appreciate the flexibility.”

Late last year, more than half of the workers surveyed said they would want to work from home even after the coronavirus outbreak ended. Now, that number has grown.

A recent Harvard Business School survey of remote workers found 81% of workers prefer a hybrid schedule post-pandemic or not going back at all. Just 18% said they would want to go back to the office full time. Meanwhile, worried about company culture, some 70% of employers say they want people back in the workplace.

What the ideal post-pandemic work-life will look like is still uncertain, but experts agree flexibility may be the key.

“I think that there should be a push to try to adapt work to fit the worker because ultimately, that's what's going to make for sustainable employability,” said Rauvola. "That's what's going to make for a happier, healthier, and more productive society.”