Protecting against Scams

[ttediting2020]

There has got to be a way to protect against the multiple scam jobs I've come across. I've only been on Upwork for a little over a week and have already come across at least 3 scams. They're always marked as payment unverified. I doubt all of the payment unverifieds are scams, but it would be nice if Upwork would force job posters to verify their payment methods before posting. I'm getting really sick of getting invites to bogus companies. 

[AleksandarD]

Hi Tabitha,

When you submit a proposal for a job the Upwork system lets you know if the client has an unverified billing method. You don’t have to avoid these clients, but you should know that you cannot get paid until the client successfully completes billing method verification. It is up to you to decide if beginning work before that is done is worth the risk. Please note that even if you have an hourly contract, you are not yet covered under the Upwork Hourly Protection when the client doesn’t have a verified payment method.

Please note that you can always report any suspicious user activity by following the steps outlined in this help article or you can send me a private message with more information and I'll send a report to the team for investigation.

I suggest checking out this post for more tips on how to avoid questionable jobs.

Thank you.

[tlbp]

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Tabitha T wrote:

There has got to be a way to protect against the multiple scam jobs I've come across. I've only been on Upwork for a little over a week and have already come across at least 3 scams. They're always marked as payment unverified. I doubt all of the payment unverifieds are scams, but it would be nice if Upwork would force job posters to verify their payment methods before posting. I'm getting really sick of getting invites to bogus companies. 

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A bogus company would just enter a credit card number or some other account number to verify their payment and still scam you. Scammers aren't going to give up. When they get blocked, they just come up with a new route. 

[prestonhunter]

Tabitha, you will soon be able recognize scams immediately.

And once you gain experience, they stop sending you invites.

I never experience scammers on Upwork.

You can look forward to that.

[gilbert-phyllis]

Lack of payment verification simply means the client hasn't hired on UW before. Forcing prospective clients to verify their payment before they even know whether or not they want to hire a FL would simply drive them away. None of us would benefit from that or any other measure that adds friction to the client experience. 

As Tonya said, there's no way for UW to completely eliminate scammers or "protect" FLs from the annoyance of brushing up against them. They target you because you're new. Once you have a track record here, they'll leave you alone. I haven't gotten an invitation from a scammer in years. 

This is a global platform filled with high-caliber professionals and lowlife scammers, knowledgeable experts and clueless wannabes. UW has some processes in place but each of us ultimately has to take responsibility for our own security and profitability.