It's a SCAM!

[bonghanoydesiree]

There was a scam attempt  from this client **edited for Community Guidelines** last night after i was instructed to connect via Hangouts IM for an online interview.  They asked for my complete name, age and adress then proceeded to the interview. After a series of questions the client confirmed i was hired and introduced me to these softwares .

Myob business essentials software 2015, US Patent Single, Users Pack simply accounting 2015,Apple Final Cut Express 3.5 HD Upgrade,Norton Ghost 9.0,Microsoft Office XP 2016 Standard Upgrade,Peach tree Premium Accounting 2016.

Said i need to purchase all of them to get started ASAP and that i have to get them from the company's certified vendor, means of payment acceptable by the vendor agent is via /Money Gram. The Cost is $150 but i will be reimbursed along with my first weekly paycheck next week. 

I have read about the same scenario on the internet and declined the offer. Told the client i know it's a scam.  

[mwiggenhorn · Accepted solution]

Good job catching this!  BTW, they don't need to know either your address or age.  Be sure to report this jerk to Upwork as well.

[bonghanoydesiree]

Already flagged the job post as inappropriate. Thanks!

[kyshandra93]

So I do not understand this scam, who makes the money? the website that sells the MYOB software?

[e09ea9e4]

How do you report this because I believe I’m being scammed in the same way, I found a job posting for a data entry clerk on Facebook and they set me up to messaging and a message interview and gave me a bunch of software to install .

[tinker_bell3]

Hi Selena, 

If you see a job or a profile that seems suspicious, you can report it to us using the flagging option. You can read more on this help article and also, please check out Tips to avoid questionable jobs. You might also want to check out the information here to learn more about staying safe on Upwork. 

[petra_r]

Selena O wrote:
How do you report this because I believe I’m being scammed in the same way.

---

You are posting on Upwork. Upwork has nothing to do with Facebook.

When you see something you need to report on Facebook, it is Facebook you need to report it to.

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Joanne Marie wrote: If you see a job or a profile that seems suspicious, you can report it to us using the flagging option. . 

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She's not using Upwork. This happened on Facebook, as she said.

[aiyana0]

I suggest reporting them to better business bureau. If they send you any
checks DO NOT attempt to deposit them! They will try it have it bounced
from your account in order to get money from you.

[prestonhunter]

re: "I suggest reporting them to better business bureau. If they send you any checks DO NOT attempt to deposit them! They will try it have it bounced from your account in order to get money from you."

You can't report them to the Better Business Bureau.

You don't know who they are. They provided fake names.

The BBB knows that the fake check scammers use real company names. They are not going to do anything if you try to contact them about this.

[petra_r]

 They will try it have it bounced

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They won't "try to have it bounced" - its is a fake check so of course it will bounce. What else could a fake check do?

I suggest reporting them to better business bureau..

---

Who would you report? Anonymous scammers sitting in an Internet cafe the other side of the world? 

[aocumen]

Hi Desiree, 

I edited your post because it violated the Upwork Community Guidelines. Just the same, thank you for reporting the job post, and flagging it as inappropriate. Please continue reporting clients who violate the Upwork Terms of Service to ensure that there are only quality and honest jobs for our freelancers. We will also continue doing the same!

Avery

[bonghanoydesiree]

Hi Avery, thank you for editing my post. It was my first time posting in the Upwork Community. I'll make sure to take note of the quidelines. 

[chirag-hirpara]

hello mam , 

i also did face this kind of examples i did complete interview yesterday and they said me to buy some software from their vendor so im thinking about that what to do next about this. help me .

thank you

[aocumen]

I'm sorry to learn about your experience, Chirag.

I would suggest to stop communicating with this client as these types of jobs are usually associated with scams. In addition to that, please also note that clients are not allowed to request for free test work. In the future, please flag these clients job post as inappropriate so that the team can review and take action as they see fit. 

[jedlickalinda]

Dear Avery:

I am new to upwork and I was contacted by a woman that posted a data entry job.  I sent in a proposal and was accepted.  I had the interview today, but as it went on, I decided to call the company they reported to work for and was told it is a scam.  This is extremely disheartening since I have been out of work for 7 months and thought this would be the perfect opportunity for me. I just wanted to let you know. If you would like to know what company they said they worked for I can let you know,  as well as the person who contacted me I do not want to violate terms of service. 

Thank you 

Linda Jedlicka

Thank you

[prestonhunter]

re: "I decided to call the company they reported to work for"

Please do not do that.
Scammers use the names of companies and employees the find ANYWHERE on the Internet. The company name they provided you could have been ANY company.

Don't call those companies or employees. It just wastes your time and it wastes theirs.

If you encounter a scammer, then you should report it to Upwork.

Use the "Flag as inappropriate" button link in the upper right hand corner of the job post screen.

When you flag a job post as inappropriate, there is an option to indicate that it is a scam. There is a text box into which you may enter the name of the company they claimed to be and add other details.

[jedlickalinda]

I am sorry I didn't know I shouldn't do this. I didn't know it was a scam,
the interview seemed okay, it was not until afterwards that certain things
they said caused me to pause and check. Thank you for the information

[ellensoffice]

I am experiencing the same thing. The scammer took down the job posting, so there is nothing to flag as inappropriate.

[pauldomz01]

Hi is this company called **edited for Community Guidelines**? Because they have been chatting to me right now 😞

[aocumen]

Hi Paul, 

I highly recommend that you read up on the "Safety First!" section of the freelancer resources we have compiled, and these tips for avoiding questionable jobs for more information about working safely through Upwork.

If this client raises a red flag, you have the option of stopping any form of communication with them. Please also flag the job post as inappropriate so that it goes to the team's queue and it can be investigated further.

[aiyana0]

Hey Linda, unfortunately I've experienced the same as well. I was contacted on fiverr by a so called legit company called the **Edited for Community Guidelines**". I did the interview this morning, and after four mintues I was supoosedly hired. I've been out of work for a while as well so when I saw opportunity I thought I would take it. Although I did think it was a bit odd and unprofessional that I had to be contacted through Google Hangouts. Recently I've been acepted by two different job proposals on Upwork as a virtual assistant, but now I'm starting to question everything conisdering I don't know whats real or not. The interview I was invited to earlier suddenly crossed my mind so I decided to do some research on it. At this point I can say I am very distarught seeing all these posts about these types of things being a scam. Especially considering the need for work I am in. I'm so glad I looked into it for more information. Although I'm still confused because I saw real reviews for the company, but it's likely they could be using another's company information. Anyway hopefully you find a decent company. Good luck. 

[f3aaafd8]

I am speaking with someone now. They are not asking for me to spend my money though. They said they will provide to tools, including equipment & software to scan & inventory the equipment used.

What was the company & the names so I will know if they are legitimate? Thank you.

[petra_r]

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Amanda M wrote:

 They said they will provide to tools, including equipment & software to scan & inventory the equipment used.

.

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They want to send you a fake check.

One of the oldest, dumbest scams on the web. The name of the company is irrelevant, it's not the scammer's name, they use the name of genuine companies.

[jedlickalinda]

**Edited for community guidelines** was the company and when I called them they told me they were
sorry but it was a scam. So **Edited for community guidelines** was used by this scammer as well

[aiyana0]

Yes they tell you they’ll provide you with tools and then eventually
they’ll ask for you address and send a fake check. Also you can tell if
it’s a scam because usually they don’t do interviews, and they either email
you or message you off hangouts. Also if you go back and check usually they
delete their job posts so you can’t find them. I’ve tried to report stuff
like this before but every time it happened they had already deleted the
job posts so I could never find them, and yes they do use real company
names but it’s not the company itself they are just using those companies
as a cover. If you are lucky enough to find out whose doing it there is a
company you can report to and they will save those people on file or if
someone’s reported them before they’ll already have them on file. So I
suggest taking it up that way.

[melissaleellen]

I just got a SCAM kinda like this today! It seems like that is all I have been getting since I merged over to Upwork from Elance. I got another SCAM just like this one last week! Its really annoying

[colettelewis]

Melissa,

Elance was never exempt from any of the scams that can be found on Upwork.

However, it scored with its extremely efficient reporting system - sadly lacking on Upwork.

[asad0072013]

ok .. same here .. This job posting is similar and asking for me to work outside upwork

[vladag]

Hi Dewan,

Please note that the job post you're referring to has been already cancelled and the client removed from the platform by our team. Please stop communicating with the two clients you recently communicated with, make sure only to work and accept payment through Upwork and review these safety tips.

[sue216]

Well, it is March, 2017 and they are still up to the same old scam. I, too, was approached through Upworks. Exact same scenario too. I am in contact with them right now through Hangouts.

Anyone have any idea how we can help the FCC catch these people?

I can't believe anyone would actually fall for this, but apparently it happens all too often. I would like to be able to help put them in jail. LOL

[kochubei_valeria]

Hi Susan,

The job and the client's account you are referring to have already been removed from Upwork because they were violating ToS. 

[prestonhunter]

re: "Anyone have any idea how we can help the FCC catch these people?"

The FCC can't do anything about these people.

The FCC is a U.S. agency and the perpetrators do not live in the U.S.

The way to stop the scammers is to train newbie freelancers on Upwork to not participate in the scams. Otherwise, the scammers will always be with us.

I really do believe this is true. Because the scammers NEVER contact me. They're just doing what they do for money. They know there is no money to be made from somebody with my level of experience. So they do NOT waste their time contacting me. Ever.

If scammers found that trying their scams on Upwork freelancers NEVER worked, and they NEVER made money here, then they would go away.

So Upwork either institutes training. Or it accepts scammers. Those are the two choices.

[jcullinan]

The third choice is that Upwork does a better job screening out the scamming clients. They're really pretty obvious once one recognizes the hallmarks.

Client accounts with no payment verification should not be allowed to post a job looking for multiple freelancers, or to send invites to freelancers. That would limit quite a lot of the usual suspects.

[kat303]

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@Jess C wrote:

The third choice is that Upwork does a better job screening out the scamming clients. They're really pretty obvious once one recognizes the hallmarks.

Most of the scams take place off site, usually Google Hangouts. Upwork can't check on anything offsite. Even on site, Upwork can't monitor every single message between a client and freelancer. Since freelancing is your business it is up to you to know what to look for and to be prepared for. It's also up to you to notify Upwork of any scam messages taking place between the client and yourself.

Client accounts with no payment verification should not be allowed to post a job looking for multiple freelancers, or to send invites to freelancers. That would limit quite a lot of the usual suspects.

Again, freelancers need to be responsible for their freelancing Business. I've worked with a few clients who were new and did not have any verification on their accounts. All you have to do at that point is not to start working until their account is verified and escrow is Fully funded for the job or milestones (as they come up). It's never been a problem for me. No verification/escrow no work.

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[jcullinan]

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@Kathy T wrote:

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@Jess C wrote:

The third choice is that Upwork does a better job screening out the scamming clients. They're really pretty obvious once one recognizes the hallmarks.

Most of the scams take place off site, usually Google Hangouts. Upwork can't check on anything offsite. Even on site, Upwork can't monitor every single message between a client and freelancer. Since freelancing is your business it is up to you to know what to look for and to be prepared for. It's also up to you to notify Upwork of any scam messages taking place between the client and yourself.

Client accounts with no payment verification should not be allowed to post a job looking for multiple freelancers, or to send invites to freelancers. That would limit quite a lot of the usual suspects.

Again, freelancers need to be responsible for their freelancing Business. I've worked with a few clients who were new and did not have any verification on their accounts. All you have to do at that point is not to start working until their account is verified and escrow is Fully funded for the job or milestones (as they come up). It's never been a problem for me. No verification/escrow no work.

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Yes, of course, freelancers need to be responsible for their own business, but Upwork can do more to make the platform a place that freelancers and clients can both have more confidence in. The half-dozen scams I just reported this morning all had these hallmarks: brand new account, no payment verification, looking for multiple freelancers, sent out at least 10 invites, job description consisting of the definition of graphic designer or logo designer copied right from Upwork's own "tooltips." There's no reason Upwork couldn't screen these out.

[jamesseligman]

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@Preston H wrote:

The way to stop the scammers is to train newbie freelancers on Upwork to not participate in the scams. Otherwise, the scammers will always be with us.

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Agreed, the scam works; that's why they keep doing it. 

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@Preston H wrote:

Because the scammers NEVER contact me. They're just doing what they do for money. They know there is no money to be made from somebody with my level of experience. So they do NOT waste their time contacting me. Ever.

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Even when I was brand new here, I never received any scam offers/invites. But I would know how to spot it from a mile away. 

Maybe before getting a new freelancer profile approved, along with the video verification that they have to watch a video or webinar on how to spot a scam and explain the most common one. It really does blow me away how many post are here on the form about the scam and people keep falling for it. 

[8osfksxoum]

I have been searching since early yesterday morning and I finally found my answer.  My situation is almost completely the same, "word for word" but with the difference that they will send me a check to buy the equipment I need to work with.

I have not signed anything and have not given out any personal information such as social security number, or bank account number.  

Too many red flags have bugged me all night and I was right to trust my gut instincts. 

I was so anxious to get this position, I let them pull me off of the Upwork platform and now I know that's the #1 red flag. 

I hope everyone has a safe and productive day (the right way).

[kochubei_valeria]

Hi Monna,

We'll have the client you are referring to checked by the team. Please review this post and hopefully it'll help you avoid similar jobs in the future.

[8osfksxoum]

Thank you,  Valeria K

I have read the post you mentioned and thank you.  

I'm just happy that inner voice kept after me that something wasn't right. 

[mila03]

Can you please help me, I have got the same job proposal and we talked through Google Hangouts, which was not odd for me, since I already have clients and we use that platform. I googled the software they asked me to buy and found out that it is a scam. Can you please help me? I have flagged the proposal as inapropriate. Is there anything else I can do? I don't want other persons to be scammed.