Upwork loophole that cause the scam

[#1]

I got a job That the client need Pubg UC and the Client had a Verified payment method with 5 star rating and 10k$ plus earning and blue tick. so i accepted and Gave it UC worth of 2500$ and he approved the payment and it was in my Pending balance. and Today it got automatically refunded. i had used the real money to buy PUBG UC for the Client because client had a verified payment method and appeared very trusted

**Edited for Community Guidelines**

[#2]

Yes, you were scammed. Sorry to hear that.

Thank you for reporting this.

[#3]

That client has only been a 'member' since March 5, 2022 - which was the FIRST 'red flag' that it was a scammer.  2nd, there is no 'glitch' in Upwork that caused you to get scammed:  Upwork makes it VERY clear that you should be suspicious of ANY job that requires you to BUY something or PAY something to the client.

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

https://community.upwork.com/t5/New-to-Upwork/List-of-red-flags-for-scams/m-p/1017044

There is no upwork "loophole".  There is nothing in Upwork's information that guarantees everybody with 5 stars and a verified payment method will not scam you.  Again, the RED FLAG was a client that just joined Upwork 2 days ago asking you to 'buy' them something or send them money.   There is NO legitimate JOB here on Upwork where you are asked to do nothing but 'buy' something for somebody else.  That's not a job. That's a scam.

Also, please know that UW allows almost ANYTHING as a 'verified payment method' for a client, including stolen or dead credit cards, etc. "pre-paid" credit cards that can just "run out" of money mid-contract, etc.

[#4]

OK so verified payment means nothing? why it is appeard as blue tick and confuse Sellers to trust the buyer? and why it allowed to release money?

[#5]

I never said "verified payment" means nothing.  However,  by itself , it means absolutely nothing.  'Verified payment method' does not guarantee you will be paid. However, a client absolutely cannot pay you on Upwork until they have a verified payment method setup.

A  "tick"....by itself, means absolutely nothing. 

Seeing "Upwork Plus Client" means absolutely nothing:  Upwork gives every brand  'new' client that status for free, for a month I believe, to make them feel 'special' and stand out in the job list. It means nothing.   However, "Enterprise Client" DOES mean something" (You'll find out what that is later.)

Those items are there as pieces of information you can use to help determine if you want to speak with the potential 'client'.   They can be part of the information you assess before contacting a client or 'interviewing' them, but those pieces of information alone should NOT lead you to immediately say "Yeah, I can TRUST this client."  

You also have to read the client's job post and history all the way through and apply Common Sense.

Based on what you showed me, these are the QUESTIONS I would immediately ask:

Does it sound REASONABLE that somebody that just joined Upwork 2 days ago, has already 'hired' 28 people and spent over "$10k" in under 2 days?  No, it does not.

Does it sound REASONABLE that a 'client' that has been on the platform only 2 days already has 'closed' out enough contracts to have 13 "near perfect" reviews? No, it does not.

Does it make sense that this client is asking you to 'buy' something he/she could easily buy themselves? No, it does not.  Now, why would they do that?  Think about it.

Does it make sense that 5 people were already 'hired' to the same job you were looking at, and the client has 'invited' 8 more people to apply....to the same job?   No, it does not.  Now, why would they do that?  Does it make sense that client just keeps "hiring" more and more people for the same job?  Think about it.

Have you ever heard of anybody earning a legitimate living by 'buying' in-game currency, gift cards, crypto, etc for complete strangers on the other side of the globe?   I have never heard of anybody earning a  living doing that, and I personally would probably steer clear of anybody engaged in those types of 'transactions', because it's basically a scam - at best or  money laundering - at worst.  Either way, it's not something anybody would 'brag' about on their resume. 

Did you bother to look at the client's 'History' to see what other jobs they had posted and what they had hired other freelancers for?   I'm guessing they had a bunch of posts just like this one, scamming people under multiple job postings.  Have you heard of any legitimate company that does nothing but 'hire' people to buy in-game currency?   I haven't

There is no 'loophole' in Upwork.  Upwork supplies information about the client which it is your responsibility to use along with Common Sense to determine on your own if the client is trustworthy and worth your time.  

Nobody can 'guarantee' safety, on Upwork, or anywhere else in the world.  It is your job as a business person to look for warning signs and make decisions in your best interest.

I can give you one tip: If you aren't watching your money, I can promise you that somebody else is.  Somebody else always is.  Just learn from the mistake and good luck

[#6]

i understand everything else. but if it's not a loop hole then what is it that he paid then funded and then released the money and ended the contract and money appeared in my pending?

[#7]

That usually means that he or she used a FAKE payment method - like a stolen credit card number, a depleted "pre paid" card,  a 'hacked' paypal account, etc.  Lots of scammers on here use a stolen credit card or a "pre paid" card with no money on it.  Upwork's system can't detect that it's stolen or bogus until they try to 'charge' something against the card, in this case, the 'pay' you were due.  When the card gets charged, either the credit card issuer, bank, or legitimate owner of the credit card 'flags' the charge as a fraudulent transaction.  That means the 'charge' gets 'reversed' back to Upwork, who in turn, has to take back your 'pay'.  If it's someting like an 'empty' pre-paid card or a hacked paypal account the 'client' is using, the charge will just 'bounce', causing the same result for you.   Either way, Upwork is not going to take money out of their pocket to pay you the money you lost.  Some freelancers have actually had their UW accounts go into a 'negative' balance because of this, meaning they OWE UW money.

Also, sending ANY type of payment, money, or compensation outside of Upwork (either by you or by the client) is a Terms of Service violation that can get you kicked off the platform.   In general, if you ever have to "pay" someting to the client to "get paid" by the client, you should assume you are not going to get paid at all.

[#8]

and He scamaed almost 15 people and 10k$ he spent and upwork allowed all that? why upwork take heavy feeses if they can't even provide basic check and balance

[#9]

This breaks my heart. It's unfortunate that Upwork is a platform in which such scams are able to be so repeatedly successful. They've been aware of these Pubg UC scams for a long time yet are unable to prevent them from being posted.

[#10]

And they also allow the fake person to get blue tick of verified payment 

[#11]

What I find heartbreaking...well, maybe not heartbreaking, maybe more like gobsmacking...is Upwork is a platform where so many FLs are willing to participate in the online equivalent of this: A stranger walks up to you and says, "If you'll go in that store over there and buy iPhone (or two or half a dozen) and bring it to me across the street, I'll write you a check for the cost plus a bonus." That's essentially what this scam amounts to. 

[#12]

How did they fund Escrow and paid the freelancers? Did they use real money to fund it and just request a refund?

[#13]

Yes he paid me and the amount displayed in my Pending payments after the contract ended for 2 days and toady it automatically refunded no reason at all. and it was the **bleep**ty part of upwork that they allowd to fund the escrow and then released the payment and aftet 2 days they automatically refunded 

[#14]

Yes he paid me and the amount displayed in my Pending payments after the contract ended for 2 days and toady it automatically refunded no reason at all

[#15]

Yes and Clearly the Upwork system was sleeping while he was Funding and releasing payments 

[#16]

---

Abdul R wrote:

Yes he paid me and the amount displayed in my Pending payments after the contract ended for 2 days and toady it automatically refunded no reason at all

---

That is not true, there is a reason. The client never paid. Upwork doesn't have the money and will also not get a fee. 

[#17]

See the image that i got paid the contract ended he releaaed payment from escrow and it was in my pending balance for 2 days

[#18]

You were the only reel loophole because you violated the ToS:

3. PROHIBITED SITE USES

Certain uses of the Services are not allowed.

You may not use, or encourage, promote, facilitate, instruct, induce, or otherwise influence or cause others: (1) to use the Services for any activities that violate applicable law or for any other fraudulent or harmful purpose or (2) to transmit, store, display, distribute or otherwise make available content that is illegal, fraudulent or harmful to others.

3.1 EXAMPLES OF PROHIBITED USES OF THE SITE

The following are examples of uses that are prohibited on or when using the Services:..

• [...]
• Requesting or providing services that primarily concern making purchases on behalf of another, including the purchase of cryptocurrency or NFTs;

[#19]

so we spend months reading all the guidelines? it was So obvious that a person had 10k$ spend verified payment He paid and ended the project and still He have some way to scam upwork system??? if his payment method doesn't have funds then how he funded the escrow ? and how he released payment and how the payme t appeared in my pending balance ? 

[#20]

A: Upwork is a plattform to provide services, not to sell goods.

B: By sending a client in-game money you violated the bid about "no money transfer outside Upwork".

Instead of accepting the job 5! times, you should have reported it. This one is really all on you.

[#21]

i asked that what if i have done some totally TOS compatible project? He could still have supplied and released the money and it could be refunded just like that. what's the answer to that?

[#22]

It sounds like you have a lot to learn.

You can either hire someone to explain to you how too use Upwork correctly, ask here, or do some serious research yourself.

[#23]

re: "so we spend months reading all the guidelines?"

You don't need to spend any time at all reading Upwork ToS or guidelines.

Most people don't read this material.

You just need to be willing to take your lumps if you get bit.

Now that you have gone through this, you are never going to fall for this same scam again.

[#24]

In this way Anyone can do this of he know the trick. Give a project take the output fund and release the money and after 2 days it automatically refunded. then why we trust Upwork? even if we can get scam after payment is paid by ending contract ?

[#25]

Yes.