Another Scam job posting.

[Preston H]

re: "Please take screenshots of the clients' requests and report these incidents directly to Customer Support."

Upwork:

Please provide a way to report fraudulent clients' requests that does not involve submitted a "help desk" ticket to Customer Support.

If I see that a client is acting fraudulently, I want to report it to make the Upwork marketplace better for everybody. But I don't need support. I don't need a support ticket associated with my account.

And I don't want to spend a lot of time doing something that should be doable using a streamlined process.

[Kerrin J]

I agree with you 100%!

[Kerrin J]

Yet again another employer job posting this time from **Edited for Community Guidelines** is a scam. Wanting my bank information, personal information etc. Prior to this another scam came from **Edited for Community Guidelines**. Both wanted to interview on google Hangouts. Majority of employers use Business Skype to conduct interviews. I went and flagged the jobs and I contacted both **Edited for Community Guidelines**coperations about the fraudelent job postings. 

I have worked in banking, HR, and I am here to tell you if anyone asks you during an interview about your bank information without sending you a hiring packet or specific details about your home office requirements be very aware. NEVER accept a CHECK especially a large check from an unknown employer without doing your research to make sure the job is valid. NO employer is going to ask you to send a cashiers check for equipment purposes and make you send it over night. This is a common scam I have seen with my own eyes when I worked in banking. Most is a phishing expedition to obtain your info. NEVER give your personal BANK information to ANYONE online.  

I am very upset with Upwork not screening the employers. This is becoming very alarming and concerning. I am very tempted to remove my profile due to the consistant scams. I am sure Upwork has allowed many people to be employed; however, you need to do a better job of screening your clients. You need to make it easier for us Freelancers to immediatly report scams.

[Valeria K]

Hi Kerrin,

I'll follow up with the appropriate team about your report and make sure actions are taken about the job. 

Also, let me use this opportunity to encourage you to improve your profile and expand your overview with more information about what you do and your experience. I am sure, you'll notice that once you do that, you will stop receiving many suspicious invitations and will attract more professional clients.

Check this video out for some ideas.

[Kerrin J]

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@Valeria K wrote:

Hi Kerrin,

I'll follow up with the appropriate team about your report and make sure actions are taken about the job. 

Also, let me use this opportunity to encourage you to improve your profile and expand your overview with more information about what you do and your experience. I am sure, you'll notice that once you do that, you will stop receiving many suspicious invitations and will attract more professional clients.

Check this video out for some ideas.

---

Thank you Valeria,

I am puzzled how can my profile be improved to attract better clients? These jobs I found in the search engine and appeared to be actual job postings. What makes me extremely upset is not only did I waste my time but I had to phish them out during the bogus interview process. This is no different for one of the many things I did when I worked for the bank. 

I can honestly say if it was not for my background in banking, fraud, and scam senerios I probably would have went for it. As a business owner I would be mortified if someone used my company name for fraudulent activity to scam people. Especially for HR recruiting and the interview process there are certain things you do not ask for until the job has been offered & a hiring packet has been issued for the potential employee/contractor to review.

I really do not know what is meant by profile improvement or how that would change anything. If you have suggestions please let me know. I am all ears.

Thank you again for your response,

Kerrin

[Preston H]

Kerrin:

For one thing, it doesn't look like you have any portfolio items.

For another thing, you list among your skills: "data entry."

That is a big "scammer bait" item.

[Christy A]

Kerrin,

Data entry and customer service skill sets seem to be the go-to profiles that these scammers hit.  One possible solution would be for you change your headline to something much more specific that doesn't highlight either of those problem categories.  

Second, your profile overview is very vague.  It helps if you can include very targeted solutions that you will offer your potential clients.  Maybe mention specific software you're adept at using, the field(s) you're most experienced in.. that sort of thing.

Edited to add:  What Preston said, too.

Good luck!

[Kerrin J]

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@Christy A wrote:

Kerrin,

Data entry and customer service skill sets seem to be the go-to profiles that these scammers hit.  One possible solution would be for you change your headline to something much more specific that doesn't highlight either of those problem categories.  

Second, your profile overview is very vague.  It helps if you can include very targeted solutions that you will offer your potential clients.  Maybe mention specific software you're adept at using, the field(s) you're most experienced in.. that sort of thing.

Edited to add:  What Preston said, too.

Good luck!

---

Christy thank you for the suggestion. I have never had any issue on any other site with any of the items I have listed including my resume which is very direct of my software use. If customer service and data entry is a problem entry for attracting scammers on this site then honestly the site should do something about that. 

As far as a profolio I could load all of my graphics that I have done, but I am not interested in graphic design, I already have plenty of client work for that. I am interested in customer service opportunities. In order to showcase customer service skills that is a bit different. Usually done during the interview process via phone or skype. I think that Upwork is not the place for me since customer service seems to be a problem catagory on Upwork. That is what I am looking to do and what I specialize in. 

[Preston H]

Any type of skill can be highlighted in a portfolio, including customer service.

Customer service reps can write descriptions of things they have done in the past, such as projects, or even descriptions of particular issues they have solved. Specific companies can be named. This can be done in a way that does not conflict with anybody's privacy.

You could even write up a description of how you would handle an especially difficult hypothetical customer service situation.

It might seem unusual, but I like to see portfolio items for all kinds of contractors. The number of portfolio items a contractor has (not the items themselves) is one of the few items that shows up in a condensed summary line seen by clients. Just having portfolio items can help you stand out. If they're top quality, clients can be very impressed.

[Robert Marshall K]

Recently I received an invitation for a job that seemed too good to be true. The client claimed to be a major grocery company and wanted me to order payroll checks and other supplies for them. I was able to find a listing for the telephone number and several people outside of Upwork had complained about scams.

I reported it to CS and they promptly removed the "client." Unfortunately, it would be hard to stop all these sorts of scams without making the platform very unwieldy. Upwork gives good advice about using caution when reviewing invitations, especially those "too good to be true."