Scam Job Post?

[#1]

I applied for a job on the Upwork platform.

**Edited for Community Guidelines**

I was excited when the client reached out so quickly. But they sent a check for me to cash to pay for equipment. And when I asked about pay rates as related to Upwork, they said this would not go through the Upwork platform but that I'd be working as a contractor. This is a scam, right? Please help!!

[#2]

Hi RJ F.,

It looks like a scam, Don't go outside UpWork no matter who calls you and Do not share any of your personal contact information. It's not safe. Also, it's against the UpWork rules.

Scammers target freshers and post jobs where they get more proposals. For example Data Entry Jobs, Typing Jobs etc. Be careful if you do this kind of jobs.

Some Important Links:

Check this Expert talk

Identifying & Avoiding Scams : https://community.upwork.com/t5/Videos/Identifying-amp-Avoiding-Scams/ta-p/1088711

Check out these articles:

Staying Safe on Upwork

https://support.upwork.com/hc/en-us/articles/211067668-Staying-Safe-on-Upwork

Top Red Flags for Scams

https://community.upwork.com/t5/Community-Blog/Top-Red-Flags-for-Scams-From-Community-Member-Wes-C/b...

[#3]

It is a scam. Any time a client wants you to go outside of Upwork for anything before a contract is in place, it is a scam. Even talking to a client before a contract is a scam, and it can cost you your Upwork account because it is a violation of the Terms of Service.

Stop talking to this person immediately, and have no further contact with them. The check they sent you is completely worthless. I hope you didn't buy anything for them.

Read all the information Vijayakamur posted. Then read everything you can about working with clients. Never ignore your intuition, gut feeling, spidey sense, etc. If it seems like something is off, trust your feeling. If it seems too good to be true, it is. Learn about fixed price and hourly tracked hours and precisely how to use them.

You have to protect yourself because no one, including Upwork, will do it for you.

[#4]

Definitely a scam. It is a modern version of the fake check scam. That check would bounce, you would be on the hook for the cost of the equipment, and the equipment does not exist because the company they tell you to buy from actually belongs to them.