Freelancers adding contact information in proposals

[e_luneborg]

I'd like to flag or report freelancers who add contact information to their proposals. How do I do that? Do I really have to go to the freelancer's profile to do that? Shouldn't there be an option to do this when reviewing the proposals? 

[VladimirG · Accepted solution]

Hi Eve,

Thanks for working within and helping us keep our platform safe. The option to flag suspicious behavior is available on job posts, freelancer profiles and Portfolios, and Upwork Messages. This option isn't available on proposals as you mentioned. I checked and found a proposal that I believe you're referring to. You can send a flag via the freelancer's profile and include a screenshot of the contact information the freelancer shared. In this case, you can also send me a private message just to confirm we're looking at the same proposal and I can process the report on my end.

I'll share your feedback with our team but at the moment we don't have plans to include the flagging option on proposals.

[e_luneborg]

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Vladimir G wrote:

Hi Eve,

Thanks for working within and helping us keep our platform safe. The option to flag suspicious behavior is available on job posts, freelancer profiles and Portfolios, and Upwork Messages. This option isn't available on proposals as you mentioned. I checked and found a proposal that I believe you're referring to. You can send a flag via the freelancer's profile and include a screenshot of the contact information the freelancer shared. In this case, you can also send me a private message just to confirm we're looking at the same proposal and I can process the report on my end.

I'll share your feedback with our team but at the moment we don't have plans to include the flagging option on proposals.

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Okay. Then I won't be bothered to report freelancers like this. I'm happy to if it's easy and can be done with a click of a button, but I'm not going to bother to do all that extra stuff just to do that. Copying the freelancers profile link, opening that up in a new window and taking a screenshot of the contact information to attach it while flagging the profile is just a bit too much hassle and not something I'm willing to spend time on. 

I do think reporting profiles from the proposal stage would be beneficial though, as that's where I at least see most t&c violations. At least, it could be added as an option where one declines a candidate so that one could also leave a note or something. I've had freelancers in proposals asking to get paid outside of Upwork, adding contact information, and also found me on LinkedIn to hassle me there before I even start interviewing them. However, I'm not going to bother to report all of these freelancers before Upwork makes that easy for me to do. 

[m_terrazas]

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Eve L wrote:

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Vladimir G wrote:

Hi Eve,

Thanks for working within and helping us keep our platform safe. The option to flag suspicious behavior is available on job posts, freelancer profiles and Portfolios, and Upwork Messages. This option isn't available on proposals as you mentioned. I checked and found a proposal that I believe you're referring to. You can send a flag via the freelancer's profile and include a screenshot of the contact information the freelancer shared. In this case, you can also send me a private message just to confirm we're looking at the same proposal and I can process the report on my end.

I'll share your feedback with our team but at the moment we don't have plans to include the flagging option on proposals.

---

Okay. Then I won't be bothered to report freelancers like this. I'm happy to if it's easy and can be done with a click of a button, but I'm not going to bother to do all that extra stuff just to do that. Copying the freelancers profile link, opening that up in a new window and taking a screenshot of the contact information to attach it while flagging the profile is just a bit too much hassle and not something I'm willing to spend time on. 

I do think reporting profiles from the proposal stage would be beneficial though, as that's where I at least see most t&c violations. At least, it could be added as an option where one declines a candidate so that one could also leave a note or something. I've had freelancers in proposals asking to get paid outside of Upwork, adding contact information, and also found me on LinkedIn to hassle me there before I even start interviewing them. However, I'm not going to bother to report all of these freelancers before Upwork makes that easy for me to do. 

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+ 1000 for this.

Upwork, you have to keep that in mind.
I think it is clear that many people here are willing to help with "those profiles", but you have to make it easy, not make it cumbersome, don't you think?

[VladimirG]

Hi Eve,

We appreciate the insight and experience you've shared with us. I'll definitely share your feedback with our team and we'll consider different options for improving the clients' experience when it comes to flagging potential TOS violations in proposals. 

[jr-translation]

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Vladimir G wrote:

Hi Eve,

We appreciate the insight and experience you've shared with us. I'll definitely share your feedback with our team and we'll consider different options for improving the clients' experience when it comes to flagging potential TOS violations in proposals. 

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I get proposals saying: If you are interested in my offer please contact me on WhatsApp at this number (XXX) for further negotiations. 
Could you just add another line here, to make it easier to report:

[jr-translation]

Any news on this? How hard can it be to add one more option to the drop down menu?
I have freelancers that have send me their details more than once and I am sure I am not the only frustrated client.

[a_lipsey]

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Jennifer R wrote:

Any news on this? How hard can it be to add one more option to the drop down menu?
I have freelancers that have send me their details more than once and I am sure I am not the only frustrated client.

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I also have freelancers sending me their contact info. I agree it's too much trouble to report because you have to click through so many places. 

[LuiggiR]

Hi Jennifer,

I'm afraid that we currently have no news regarding the implementation of this. I will go ahead and share your feedback with the team once again for consideration. 

Thank you,

[m_terrazas]

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Luiggi R wrote:

Hi Jennifer,

I'm afraid that we currently have no news regarding the implementation of this. I will go ahead and share your feedback with the team once again for consideration. 

Thank you,

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We are all interested in flagging freelancers who try to cheat, and clients are the ones who can best do it since they receive the proposals and can see so many things that are wrong ..., contact information, requests to leave Upwork, etc. ..
How is it possible that flagging is not provided from the proposal?
You can flag any profile, flag any job, flag chat conversations, but you can't flag a proposal.
I can't understand it.

[jr-translation]

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Luiggi R wrote:

Hi Jennifer,

I'm afraid that we currently have no news regarding the implementation of this. I will go ahead and share your feedback with the team once again for consideration. 

Thank you,

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Could you also add the request to add the option to flag spam proposals? I am wasting time just by looking archiving absolutely useless proposal. If I post a job for a certain language and am only looking for native speakers, everyone who is not is spamming me and I get too many of these proposals.

[roberty1y]

I've no experience of this, but I know it's very easy to flag job postings, which I do all the time. Couldn't Upwork make the process just as simple when it comes to flagging proposals that violate ToS? 

BTW, freelancers who include contact info in their proposals must be a scammer's dream come true.

[prestonhunter]

If Upwork started 3-month suspensions of the accounts of any freelancer who was reported by clients for having sent their contact info like this...

It wouldn't hurt.

And maybe word would get around that this is a risky way to operate.

[jr-translation]

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Preston H wrote:

If Upwork started 3-month suspensions of the accounts of any freelancer who was reported by clients for having sent their contact info like this...

It wouldn't hurt.

And maybe word would get around that this is a risky way to operate.

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I have been suggesting that for a while. Not only for sending contact information but also other ToS violations. After all it would be for their own good as well.

I would also limit feedback removal by refund to once every three months and 16 successful contracts.

[m_terrazas]

I'm back to this old thread because someone gave me an upvote.
It is 2 years old. Question, Upwork and clients, has this been implemented?

[48f850a0]

I really doubt it, they keep saying they are sending the feedback to the team but the only changes the team makes is removing important features on the Mobile app, making text unnecessarily too big and ofcus their dear connects business. I really doubt they did anything on this or would add any suggested feature, if it doesn't add to the purse in some way or make things difficult for people