IP related issues

artselena · ‎12-29-2021

Hello Community!

My question is related to one of the recent freelancer's posts I saw in social media - person is living in the central part of my country claimed that after changing internet provider Upwork permanently blocked user's account which lasted for several years, becaus IP detected the person was living in the Kremia, which is currently under restrictions, but person's actual location was near our capital city, so it was due to internet provider settings, not actual location of the particular person.

I find this information disturbing as I do travel around my country and abroad and I do change internet providers due to it.
So how to secure profile against such situations if they are fair enough to be true? Shoul I manually check which location IP provider assigns each time during traveling before connectin to Upwork? Or how does it work?? And also why platform is penalizein people who live in the resticted areas, considering not all can leave them and people are still can be profecionals providing good services? Please clarify.

Looking forward to hearing your thoughts and clarifications.

Best regards,
Elena

prestonhunter · ‎12-29-2021

I am sorry that you are facing difficulties.

This is more accurately described as "Crimea issues," rather than "IP issues."

Upwork is not the "IP police."

Generally speaking, Upwork does not care what a person's IP address is.

But Upwork is trying to comply with federal guidelines which prohibit doing business with Crimea.

read more here:

https://support.upwork.com/hc/en-us/articles/211067778-Eligibility-to-Join-and-Use-Upwork

These policies were put into place by the federal government (not Upwork) after Russia invaded and annexed the Crimea region of the Ukraine by force. (Or "liberated" the Crimea region from illegal Ukrainian occupation, to describe the events from the official Russian perspective.) Regardless of one's personal opinion about what happened, I can assure you that nobody at Upwork has anything against the people who live in and around the Crimea region. This isn't personal.

artselena · ‎12-29-2021

Hi Preston!

Thank you for the reply!

But I still can't understand then why is the person who has nothing to do with Crimea, changed the provider and got blocked for it. Any clarifications regarding it?

prestonhunter · ‎12-29-2021

Why is some random person on social media complaining about something?

That random person on social media could be telling the truth. He could be distorting things.

But there are about 200 countries in the world and there are countless Internet service providers, all of which have IP address ranges, and then Upwork's technical people are asked to block access to a specific region, which borders on regions that shouldn't be blocked...

It is a challenging task and I don't believe it can be done perfectly even with the best intentions.

artselena · ‎12-29-2021

Well yes, but it sounded like a scream for help rather from that person.

I understand your arguments, but still feel insecure and will probably check my location when chenging network. As even here I just checked - it detects me not accurate, though I'm standing still for past few months.

But anyway if the case from the network was fair, I belive platform needs to provide some communiucation before blocking people for any reason.

tlbp · ‎12-29-2021

Elena M wrote:
Hi Preston!

Thank you for the reply!
But I still can't understand then why is the person who has nothing to do with Crimea, changed the provider and got blocked for it. Any clarifications regarding it?

I would guess that because of the number of freelancer logins that must be processed and the importance of compliance with US laws, Upwork has automated the process of flagging IPs. If the IP being used is associated with a prohibited region, everyone using that IP will be blocked. Upwork could review the physical location of each person who appeals. But that would be inefficient and not cost-effective. Plus, there is the risk of error. It is far better to lose one freelancer than to bring down the wrath of the US government.
I think you have the correct strategy. If you are traveling near prohibited zones, make sure you are not using an IP that will cause Upwork to think you are working in that zone.

artselena · ‎12-29-2021

Hi Tonya!

Thank you for your explanation! It is very informatiove!

As a freelancer I would hope they could implement change to block access to the platform from the restricted region rather than block random freelancers...