Careful of a Scam for Product Analyst position

[jp-saunders]

**Edited for Community Guidelines**

I went through a text message interview with this guy after he reviewed my proposal. He interviewed me and said I got the job. Then he started asking for personal information so he could have his HR department send me an employment contract.

He says he is "responsible for supervising the company's hiring process, from recruiting, interviewing, and hiring new staff." for **Edited for Community Guidelines**Was established in 1981 in Houston, TX under the name **Edited for Community Guidelines**He shared that “In 1993, **Edited for Community Guidelines** became the sole owner and founded **Edited for Community Guidelines** and that they "specialize in multifamily construction.”

However,  what I found out is that  **Edited for Community Guidelines**was founded in 2003, and NOT 1981. Is based in Birmingham Al, and NOT Houston Texas. **Edited for Community Guidelines** specialize in commercial and industrial construction, and NOT residential. 

There is a **Edited for Community Guidelines**, is listed on linkedin as owner of **Edited for Community Guidelines**based out of Katy Texas, was founded in 1980. However, he is a Employee Benefits Consultant who is listed on a different website, with a different profile picture as a "Financial Advisor" out of Houston.

When I asked for hin to validate the company and contact information, he instantly blocked me. 

I have reported this as a scam. I am unsure to what extent his goal is but for sure this is not a ligitment job offering so be careful.

[jp-saunders]

I also contacted  **Edited for Community Guidelines** and his assitant shared he not associated with this post or the construction company, and I contacted **Edited for Community Guidelines** who shared they are not associated with **Edited for Community Guidelines**or the posting.

[jp-saunders]

The forum editor editing out of my post the names associaed with the scam doesnt help other people avoid the scam - all I can say is double check everything in these offer bc there are scammers here. The irony in my story is the work of an  Product Analyst is to do their research, so it was a foolish move to try to scam people that do that job.

[LuiggiR]

Hi John,

I'm very sorry to learn about your experience; thank you for sharing this with us and being cautious. I want to clarify that I had to edit the names of individuals and companies you shared in your post, as publicly including these in an accusation of wrongdoing isn't allowed per the Community Guidelines. 

A real client will never ask you to give them money to start working, cash a check for them, work for free, or provide your personal information. I have forwarded your report to the relevant team, and they've taken down this job as it was in violation of the Terms of Service. Action has also been taken on the client's account. In the future, whenever you encounter these situations, you can report them using the available flagging options so the team can investigate further. Please take some time to read through this article for more information on how you can stay safe on Upwork.

[701df7b0]

**Edited for Community Guidelines**

His listing is still active. He contacted me yesterday.

[58563b7a]

I talked to him today regarding the same post Nisha P. mentioned (**Edited for Community Guidelines**). Was skeptical of the whole process because it was so unusual and saw all the discrepancies when I looked into the company and people.  

[f1c7621e]

I was also contacted (**Edited for Community Guidelines**).  I didn't flag it since he didn't ask for my personal data, but he took 5-10 minutes between questions and answers in a chat interview, and the only substantive answer he gave me about the role looked like it came from ChatGPT.

[jp-saunders]

It is disheartening to discover that despite previous reports (as the business owner shared being contacted by two other individuals), and subsequent to my own report, others are still falling victim to this individual's scams. I would expect that the Upwork team would promptly address this user and their activities. Their email and banking verification process should tell them who this person is. Cybercrime constitutes a genuine offense, and as such, there should be accountability on the part of site owners who fail to take action against those engaging in such illicit activities to ensure the safety of their members. It is becasue of this that I havent used the Upwork site since and am hesitant to now do so again. The time, effort and stress caused by this has been considerably taxing.

[2297e2bc]

Just went through similar deal last week with  a "Colorist for my Movie" offer. I am reporting him too!

The name used was Johnathan-from a town I never heard of in good old USA!

A week of message interview, then an address request to send me an SSD drive, then he needed my text because the address I gave him, on purpose, was bogus.

I never gave Upworks or bank information  - Wheeewwwww!

Just P_sses me off that I wasted a week with this fool, and too had "promises" of much work and a contract.