possible fraud victim

3ed62880 · ‎05-19-2023

I wanted some people to review an audiobook and I sent some promotion codes to them by email. They in turn decided to threaten to trash my audiobooks if I do not do contact with them after I sent the promotion codes. I failed to stay on the site and went off site.

I do not know what to do

Jason

**Edited for Community Guidelines**

attorneysergei · ‎05-19-2023

I'm sorry to hear about your situation. It sounds like you're dealing with some challenging circumstances. Here are a few steps you might consider:

Report to Upwork: If you found these individuals through Upwork, it's crucial to report the situation to them. Upwork has guidelines and protocols in place to handle such situations and can take action if their rules have been violated.
Gather Evidence: Document all interactions you've had with these individuals. This includes emails, messages, and any other form of communication where the threats were made.
Legal Action: Depending on the severity of the threat and potential damage to your business, you may consider seeking legal advice. This is particularly relevant if the threats made are in violation of the law.
Do Not Respond to Threats: Responding to or negotiating with someone who is making threats may encourage more threatening behavior. It is usually recommended to cease communication and involve the appropriate authorities or platforms.
Report to Audiobook Platform: If these promotional codes were for an audiobook platform such as Audible, report the situation to them as well. They may have their own procedures for dealing with such situations and could potentially invalidate the promo codes or block the users from leaving reviews.

Remember, your safety and security are of the utmost importance. It's critical to handle this situation in a calm, careful, and legal manner.

iwan-spillebeen · ‎05-20-2023

From their post is sounds like there is no contract: "if I do not do contact with them after I sent the promotion codes" I.e. the OP is in violation of the TOS by communicating with freelancers off platform before a contract has been started, none of the steps you describe will help with this. And since there is no contract, there is nothing UpWork can and will do in this case.

In effect, the freelancers, even though also in violation of TOS by giving out their contact details before contract, would be right to request a contract prior to starting any work.

It also sounds, unverified, that the OP is looking for paid reviews, which is against TOS of many sites, so again there are likely no steps he can take with a positive outcome for him.

lysis10 · ‎05-20-2023

Sergei T wrote:
I'm sorry to hear about your situation. It sounds like you're dealing with some challenging circumstances. Here are a few steps you might consider:
Report to Upwork: If you found these individuals through Upwork, it's crucial to report the situation to them. Upwork has guidelines and protocols in place to handle such situations and can take action if their rules have been violated.
Gather Evidence: Document all interactions you've had with these individuals. This includes emails, messages, and any other form of communication where the threats were made.
Legal Action: Depending on the severity of the threat and potential damage to your business, you may consider seeking legal advice. This is particularly relevant if the threats made are in violation of the law.
Do Not Respond to Threats: Responding to or negotiating with someone who is making threats may encourage more threatening behavior. It is usually recommended to cease communication and involve the appropriate authorities or platforms.
Report to Audiobook Platform: If these promotional codes were for an audiobook platform such as Audible, report the situation to them as well. They may have their own procedures for dealing with such situations and could potentially invalidate the promo codes or block the users from leaving reviews.
Remember, your safety and security are of the utmost importance. It's critical to handle this situation in a calm, careful, and legal manner.

lol ChatGPT gives some awful advice for Upwork issues that's for sure.

prestonhunter · ‎05-19-2023

re: "I failed to stay on the site and went off site."

Do not communicate with any freelancers on Upwork before an official Upwork contract has been established.

This includes NOT emailing freelancers promotion codes.

By communicating with those people before a contract was in place, you violated Upwork ToS.

Also, it sounds like you are talking about hiring freelancers to pay them to write reviews of your book. I strongly advise you to learn more about Upwork's policies regarding this.

It may be helpful to you know that this topic has come up in the past, and there are many regular Forum participants who strongly oppose all jobs related to paid reviews. Upwork has wording in their ToS that proscribes jobs which violate the policies of other sites. And Upwork officially supports Amazon.com and has stated policies prohibiting jobs that violate Amazon.com's prohibitions against paid reviews.

In no way am I saying that your job violated any Upwork rules. I don't know enough about what you're trying to accomplish. I'm just advising you to learn more. Do a search on this topic within the Forum.