what to respond to recruiter?

[YeDancer]

So I am looking for a new job.
I got a phone call yesterday that I struggled to hear as the guy was mumbling.
From what I could make out, he had a job he wanted me to interview for, and start on Monday, that is related to what I want to do, paying £45,000 and is permanent.
Now the money sounds great, and the permanent contract sounds great.
BUT, I've never heard of either this man, his recruitment agency, or the employer. I don't recall ever giving him my number, my CV, or applying for the position.
Indeed the vacancy on their website says "no agencies" so why is this recruitment agency contacting me?
The job, whilst good pay etc, is too strategic and is a bit more than what I am capable of. I don't want a high stress position, even if the money is great.
So....how do I say not only 'thanks but no thanks' but 'how the fuck did you get my details' etc?
Advice on wording appreciated. Is this a GDPR issue if this guy is contacting me out of the blue? Could he have gotten my details off LinkedIn? Although my mobile number and email are not on there.
DH says this is what recruitment agencies do.
DM says its dodgy as fuck, a scam, etc.
I have signed up to all sorts of recruitment websites though and my CV is on them, maybe that is it? Although I never expected to be phoned yesterday, invited to interview, and to start on Monday. I feel totally unprepared and I also don't think the job sounds right for me.
Its been a long time since I've been job searching. is this normal?
YABU - this is normal
YANBU - it is not normal / dodgy

ps, I meant I've signed up to Indeed etc, not actual recruitment agencies.

I don't see why you wouldn't contact the recruitment agency to ask them about how they got your details and sounding them out? Surely there's some middle ground between making no enquiries and declining what would be a good offer. Obviously don't hand them your bank details but I don't see what the scam is in going to an interview.

So....how do I say not only 'thanks but no thanks' but 'how the fuck did you get my details' etc?

Literally like that.
Maybe leave out the fuck😁

Check with the company? You dont need to give your name

you sound a bit negative.
while it's wise to be cautious, if looking for a job why not push all doors until they are immovable.
go for the interview, it's good experience even if you're not sure about the job.
take someone with you, to ensure safety, if you are unsure.
do some checks on the company, and location of the interview.
as for not being capable, you know women tend to under-estimate their abilities, whereas men tend to the opposite, often inflating/ignoring qualifications.
go for it as if you are an actor, playing the part of someone going for an interview.
take the job if offered; you know it's easier to get a job when in employment...
good luck.

Contact the published email address for the recruitment agency he was from, ask how they got your details, and ask for a full person specification to enable you to prepare for interview. You don't actually have to go for the interview but their answer and/or job spec should either reassure you or confirm your bad feeling.

When is the interview, by the way? I agree that it seems strange to be given an interview for a £45,000 job with five days to go until the start date, rather than being invited to apply. It suggests either that they haven't had many applicants or that their HR department is terrible at getting things done.

But he’s clearly got your details from indeed? You’ve uploaded your cv which I’m going to presume has your contact information on and as soon as it’s on there it’s instantly accessible to any recruitment company.

The starting the job Monday for £45k that you don’t want to do is fairly easy to respond to surely - just say no thank you?

They’ll have got your CV from a site like Indeed. I used to work in recruitment and the first thing I’d do every morning would be to check for any decent candidates matching my roles that had uploaded their CV and then call them before another recruiter did.

I agree, you sound quite negative to someone potentially offering you an opportunity.

My phone number isn't on any CV, just my email address.
It is all new to me.
The job is my area of expertise but too high a level for me. I would struggle. I am currently employed FTC but the job before that caused me a breakdown so I don't want anything too stressful this time around.
Job is also with a legal firm. I have no legal experience . Its not a law job but asks for legal knowledge. Also talking about finance, statistics, data etc. That's not my skills either.
For the record, I'm not against being contacted, I would just prefer more preparation and to know who is contacting me.

What happens a lot is the recruiter will find the job online advertised by the company. Then send a CV speculatively to the company in the hope that they'll agree to work with them.

It's highly unlikely that a 45k job would have such a simple and quick process.

Can you call the recruiter back and find out a bit more detail?

Then if you're still not happy contact the company with your CV and explain what has happened.

Be aware though they may discount you from the process out of fear the recruiter will try to claim a fee for you.

Have you Googled the recruitment agency? Did any pages come up from people warning to stay away? If you still have his number, Google that too.

Ignore it if you're not interested.

Sign up with actual agencies relevant to your field not Indeed.

Are your details on LinkedIn? Your company website? Easy enough to find with a small amount of digging.

Ok, I put the mobile number through 'who called me' and there's several comments about being called in the middle of the night and a whole list of times the number has been looked up.
I looked up the recruitment agency and there's no one with this recruiter's name on their list of staff.
As I said, I don't mind being contacted, I just prefer to know who is contacting me and have a bit more notice/preparation.
I'm also disabled so a short notice interview is no good for me in terms of arranging adjustments and that's another reason I don't like random contact. I prefer to be contacted by those who know my needs and can accommodate them.

I think it sounds dodgy. What if you turned up at an address and it went horribly wrong.

I do a lot of research before attending an interview.

From everything you've said something just does not feel right to me.

Can you not phone the recruitment agency you looked up (just the general number) and ask?

I tried contacting the recruitment agency, and its ringing out. There's no address or email address but each team member has a LinkedIn profile. There are three team members. The manager graduated in 2018, and the others in 2020. The recruitment agency was established in 2021. Each member of staff has a non-British name and surname. The guy who called me is not mentioned on their site. I'm increasingly thinking they weren't representing the employer at all.

No they'll be chancing their luck. Send your Cv to the employer, apply directly. Don't mention the agency

It’s dodgy as fuck.

I had a similar experience a few months ago when an actual company emailed and texted me wanting to invite me for an immediate interview as they were so keen to have me work for them. I actually contacted them back, said yes to the interview as it was initially a group interview, and then they sent me all this stuff about how for the interview you would be required to wear certain clothes, and makeup, and how you had to have your camera switched on, and so on and so on.

Then it went on to say that there would be a presentation first and then a group exercise. It had all the hallmarks of an MLM but when I googled employee reviews for the company they were a legit company but the reviews were awful and essentially warned people never to work for them.

I emailed them back, told them that I had no inclination to ever have any dealings with them ever again, that I would be reporting them to indeed for misusing their platform for such purposes, and to not reply as I would be blocking their correspondence from then on.

I then reported them to indeed and their membership of the platform was revoked.

If the google of the number is coming up with dodgy allegations then I would take that as a sign and just not contact them again.

If the company they are claiming to represent is legit though I might be inclined to ring them to ask whether they’re aware that this dodgy outfit is claiming to represent them. Because if not then these people could impact on the company’s reputation as well.