I was given a very large number of very low value shares. The company was about 60 people iirc and I think the hr guy said well we won't IPO soon but when we do, these shares might be worth a lot! Companies often aim for shares to be worth 10, 20, 50 dollars at IPO! Something like that. But it's obviously just vague pep talk. They also sometimes say everyone is there to make the world a better place...

It would be a scam if they promised you 0.2% of the company but then it was diluted to 0.1%. and nobody prevents you from asking i think. Otherwise it's no more a scam than a lottery ticket commercial showing the guy who won a Ferrari.