Possible job - Excited but terrified!!!

[9861d067]

Hiiiii!

I think I've possibly landed my first job!  Everything so far has been through Upwork!  I filled out a questionnaire that had Upwork at the top of the questionnaire and I sent it back.  Now, I'm being asked for Name, address, etc. saying it's for the employment letter.  Am I on the right track?  I sure hope so!

Thanks!

[g_vasilevski]

Hi Pamela,

I would like to clarify that communicating outside of Upwork before an official contract is formed, is not allowed and it is in violation of our TOS. 
To learn more about how to protect yourself and about getting started on Upwork, check out our resources here. Thank you.

[prestonhunter]

re: "I filled out a questionnaire that had Upwork at the top of the questionnaire and I sent it back. Now, I'm being asked for Name, address, etc. saying it's for the employment letter. Am I on the right track? I sure hope so!"

Pamela:
That's not a real client.

That's a scammer.

He is trying to steal your money or personal identity info, or both.

Sorry.

Did this "client" contact you out of the blue, or was it in response to you sending a job proposal?

[9861d067]

Response to me submitting a proposal!

[2e395a62]

Hi!

Sorry to say so and cool down your enthusiasm a bit but it sounds weird. You are a freelancer, not an employee (unless you agreed with the client that he wants to hire you as a full-time or part-time employee, not a freelancer) - there is no need for anyone to know your whereabouts, etc. I would suspect it is a scam. So sorry, I know the thrill of landing the first job here. I hope I am wrong but follow the Terms of Service and do not disclose any info allowing anyone to identify you.   

PS. Sorry Preston, we clicked submit simultaneously 🙂

[9861d067]

Thank you!  So disappointing!

[martina_plaschka]

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Pamela B wrote:

Thank you!  So disappointing!

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I don't know what the job posting was, obviously, but I suspect that something in the language encouraged newbies to apply. Stay away from those. Make your profile shine and go for serious jobs. 

[9861d067]

I thought I was submitting to a serious job!

[martina_plaschka]

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Pamela B wrote:

I thought I was submitting to a serious job!

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A few hundred proposals later, you'll know the difference!

[roberty1y]

It takes a lot of proposals - maybe 50 to 100 - to get your first job. Unfortunately, it takes far less to meet your first scammer. You've just done so. Take care and good luck.

[9861d067]

Thank you!

[martina_plaschka]

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Pamela B wrote:

Hiiiii!

I think I've possibly landed my first job!  Everything so far has been through Upwork!  I filled out a questionnaire that had Upwork at the top of the questionnaire and I sent it back.  Now, I'm being asked for Name, address, etc. saying it's for the employment letter.  Am I on the right track?  I sure hope so!

Thanks!

---

No, this is not a real job. Good that you asked here first. You are a target for a fake check scam because you are in the US and have no upwork work history. But on top of that, your profile needs a lot of improvement if you want to find success as a writer. Your name is not a great headline for an overview. Nobody will search specifically to hire a Pamela, right? I must admit, I'm pretty unforgiving when somebody claims to be a writer but fails to dazzle me with their words. So, before you do anything else, work some more on your profile. 

[9861d067]

As I stated, I am new to the site, so I still have some things to polish up!  Also, I do not claim to be a writer, I am!

Thank you for your comments though; I'm sure I can find something positive in the message as it relates to Upwork.

[martina_plaschka]

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Pamela B wrote:

As I stated, I am new to the site, so I still have some things to polish up!  Also, I do not claim to be a writer, I am!

Thank you for your comments though; I'm sure I can find something positive in the message as it relates to Upwork.

---

Ok. Lose the greeting, a client can only see the first 2 lines of your profile before deciding to open or skip. Make them count. Add many examples of your work to your portfolio. A potential client wants to see proof of your skills before hiring you. And again, your headline(s) should be meaningful and SEO-friendly, related to your skills and services you provide. 

[pgiambalvo]

So sorry to hear this happened to you. Can I ask what was the job title you applied for? Don't include the link or client info, just the title of the post. I'm curious so that I and other freelancers can be wary of them and know what to look out for. And writers rule! Although we are often treated like poop.

[petra_r]

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Peter G wrote: Can I ask what was the job title you applied for? Don't include the link or client info, just the title of the post

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Please don't ask her to violate community guidelines! It is completely pointless anyway because those scammers copy legitimate titles and change them all the time, so there is absolutely no point posting them.

The job post will be long gone by now anyway.

[pgiambalvo]

I'm not asking her to violate community guidelines and you know it. I just asked for the job title and no other information. That is in no way a violation. Is this a violation if I post these words?: Video Editor Wanted, Coding Expert Needed, SEO Rockstar Required  And it's not pointless, it's valuable and necessary so that we freelancers can protect one another and never violate the ToS.

[petra_r]

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Peter G wrote:

I'm not asking her to violate community guidelines

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Posting the job title would be a violation.

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Peter G wrote:

 Is this a violation if I post these words?: Video Editor Wanted, Coding Expert Needed, SEO Rockstar Required  

---

How would that be helpful when the vast majority of the job posts with those job titles would be perfectly harmless? 

[pgiambalvo]

I think it would be helpful as I've found the scammers use the same job titles over and over along with similar language in the descriptions. So, if you put them both together and start recognizing the similarities, bingo -- it's probably a scam! So be extra careful! And I notice you didn't address the issue of me asking her to violate community standards as you incorrectly alleged in you first response. And here are some of the ones I see over and over again every day that prove to be scams. How do I know that? Because when I apply to them, I get a message back asking me to contact them off of Upwork! Then I flag them and Upwork takes them down so that no one else is lured into their devious trap of deception! Notice any similarities among these job titles? I sure do.

**Edited for Community Guidelines**

[kochubei_valeria]

Hi Peter,

I appreciate your concern and willingness to help talent who are new to Upwork avoid questionable jobs and problematic clients. However, please note that identifying any persons, Upwork talent (by naming them or sharing their profile links) or client (by naming or sharing links to their job postings) in an accusation of misconduct isn't allowed in this Community. We would also hate for legitimate jobs and clients to be confused with problematic ones simply based on the job title. 

Upwork team will continue improving our automatic and manual processes to detect suspicious behavior as soon as possible and take action against the accounts involved. We also encourage Upwork users to check out the resources we've compiled below to help them work safely and avoid violating Upwork TOS:

Stay safe online: what you need to know

Tips to Avoid Questionable Jobs

Protecting Against Malware

Trust & Safety Help Articles

Resources to Help Keep Your Information Safe 

[pgiambalvo]

Hi Valeria, I do know that "identifying any persons, Upwork talent (by naming them or sharing their profile links) or client (by naming or sharing links to their job postings) is not allowed. That's not what I did or asked the original poster to do. I merely asked her to share the JOB TITLE, not a link, or a client's name. I don't believe it could be a violation in any way for her to say, "They were looking for a Writer, or Coder, etc. Am I wrong? If so, please advise. Thanks.

[pgiambalvo]

And oh, Valeria, what about me just posting job categories that the scammers seem to favor posting in? Would that be allowed? Because I see that the actual job titles I posted (minus any links or client info, or even job descriptions) were removed for community guidelines.  I apologize if I unknowingly broke the rules by mentioning common job titles scammers use and won't do it again.

[tlbp · Accepted solution]

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Pamela B wrote:

Hiiiii!

I think I've possibly landed my first job!  Everything so far has been through Upwork!  I filled out a questionnaire that had Upwork at the top of the questionnaire and I sent it back.  Now, I'm being asked for Name, address, etc. saying it's for the employment letter.  Am I on the right track?  I sure hope so!

Thanks!

---

I think the scammers are just faking corporate logos to draw you in. Keep every single communication on Upwork until they offer you a contract. No click-throughs to forms or apps. And, don't provide information beyond your Upwork profile (except additional writing samples or discussions of your experience). 

[9861d067]

Thank you for clarity!

[allpurposewriter]

It goes without saying that a writer's profile should be written well, if not flawlessly.  You might peruse other profiles and see how other writers present themselves. You'll catch on. A plus for enthusiasm. 

[prestonhunter]

I totally agree with Anthony.

I could not care less about how poorly an artist writes. I just look at their portfolio anyway.

But if you call yourself a writer?

You better bring your “A game.”

On your profile page.

In your portfolio pieces.

And in your Forum posts if you are asking for help getting started on Upwork.