Today I dont know if I just got scammed by a client or by upwork or by both? Help me!

[#1]

So there was this client who hired me to do a voice over job about a month ago. Everything went well, the contract was 350$, so after upwork fee 20% (70$), I had 280$ in my account. Well, isnt that completed? I got my job done and I got paid and I also paid 20% charge to upwork fee. Now, this morning, I recieved an email from Upwork telling me that, the client of this contract had their bank reverse back their payment, so Upwork is freezing my balance and asked me to pay them back 350$ or else my balance will be frozen and they will pull the fund out of my available balance. This means that, even after I completed the job and ended the contract, I still risk getting scammed? Not only do I have to pay back for my job, but I also have to pay full price 350$? How about the 70$(20%) that they deducted from then? So, I got scammed by the client 350$, then 70$ more from upwork? Is this a joke or something?

**Edited for Community Guidelines**

[#2]

Generally speaking - not directed at the OP...

Money and anonymity are a breeding ground for a scammer.  I think many new freelancers get "blinded" by the prospects of controlling their own income limited only by their initiative.  Its easy to get tunnel vision when someone wants to hit the ground running, only to be scooped up by a scammer whose sole purpose in life is to deceive others.  It can happen to anyone.  Look at Bernie Madoff - he scammed other wealthy individuals - many of those individuals are well-educated and very competent (you don't get wealthy by making poor financial choices).   

[#3]

Bernie Madoff didn't get rich by making good financial choices, he got rich by scamming people. 

Why was he successful scamming, among others, rich and powerful people? In one word: entitlement. They didn't doubt that through him, they had access to crazy returns that were far from anything the market was paying. They didn't doubt that they belonged to an exclusive club that could access returns that were not available to the common people. Mix that with greed, and you have what it takes to fall for an advance fee scam like the copy/paste stuff we see so often.  

[#4]

Please do not be discouraged,  SokSambath. Take it as a lesson learned and move on.

What you have experienced might actually help you to avoid a bigger scam in the future.  Your post might also help so many freelancers in the world as well. Thank you.

[#5]

Hello everyone,

A number of comments have been already removed or edited because they were in violation of Community Guidelines and this thread has now been closed. Please, be mindful of the Community Guidelines and be respectful toward other users when posting.