client asks for security fee in advance to start a project for freelancer.

[qureshi_shafiq]

Hy, if client asks for security fee to pan in advance to start project than do I need to pay or deposit any fee regarding securty fee. 

[prestonhunter]

That is not a real client. That is just a scammer who wants to steal your money. Click on "Flag as inappropriate" to report him and get your connects back.

There is no such thing as a "security fee" paid to clients.

Clients pay money to freelancers.

Freelancers don't pay clients.

[6e2360df]

He ask me in email

[BojanS]

Hi Khaoula,

Could you please send me a PM with more information about your report? I’ll check it and escalate accordingly.

Thank you.

[6e2360df]

Hello . Where i could send you pic

[JoanneP]

Hi Khaoula,

You can click on my name to send me a PM. 

[f7610183]

Hi Joanne
i had a client message to to conatct him on telegram 

**Edited for Community Guidelines**

also he asked for a security fee

**Edited for Community Guidelines**

can u look into it

-Talha Zulfiqar(member)

[759e32fa]

Hi Talha,

Thank you for reaching out to us. I checked this for you and shared your report with our team. Please note that we discourage communicating outside Upwork when a contract hasn't started yet to protect you from possible scams. Kindly check our Community member, Wes's post about top red flags for scams to get insights on what to avoid. Also if you encounter any suspicious activities, you can report them to us so we can investigate.

[976fd981]

One person just messaged me in telegram and when I asked if we could make any contracts in upwork, he replied "we work independent"

[9d27eb9d]

Hello, Am Mary and i have the same problem l of a client who contacted me on telegram and asking for the security fee before i proceed to work for them.

Would you mind helping?

[759e32fa]

Hi Mary,

Thank you for reaching out to us. Please know that communicating outside Upwork prior to a contract starting is a violation of our Terms of Service and your account could get suspended for this.

Please utilize our Message Center in order to protect yourself from scams. Additionally, you can send us a flag if you encounter any suspicious user activity so we can investigate.

[sofia2008]

Communicating outside of Upwork before having a contract in place is a violation of Terms of Service you agreed to when you signed up. Following that basic rule can prevent you from falling for most common scams.

[a3f4df6c]

Hi, can I also send you a message regarding this security fee? I am doubting about this scheme.

[colettelewis]

Report this person. It's a scam, not a job.  

[deepakahirwar100]

Dear Team,

The mentioned screenshot is of the same people who are doing frauds on UPWORKS.

This people are asking for securuty fees. Seems fraud...

**Edited for community guidelines**

Please take strict action against them.

[jr-translation]

Did you contact Mr Lee?

[BojanS]

Thank you for flagging this for us, Deepak.

I’ve escalated this report to the correct team for their review and the project has already been taken down because it was in violation of Upwork TOS and action has been taken on the client account. If you see a violation of the Upwork Terms of Service, we encourage you to use the Report Suspicious User Activity feature.

[69f6c488]

Hi Bojan,

I received one just now too **Edited for Community Guidelines**

They asked me to reach out to them via Telegram where they gave me a PDF file "contract". The job description on the contract says it's for a logo design/photoshop editor even though their job posting is for typing. On the contract, they are also asking for security fee before they give you the project which they will reimburse after the project is done. They say the fee is "to ensure data security".

They have similar job postings about typing documents too.

[m_terrazas]

---

Joyce C wrote:

Hi Bojan,

I received one just now too:   **Edited for Community Guidelines**

They asked me to reach out to them via Telegram where they gave me a PDF file "contract". The job description on the contract says it's for a logo design/photoshop editor even though their job posting is for typing. On the contract, they are also asking for security fee before they give you the project which they will reimburse after the project is done. They say the fee is "to ensure data security".

They have similar job postings about typing documents too.

---

One more time. If you follow the TOS and do not communicate outside of Upwork (Telegram, mail, Whatsapp, etc...) BEFORE you have an established contract with Upwork, you will be safe in most cases.
Read the TOS you claimed to have read and information about scams in the forums.

[2275f892]

I almost got scammed like this, luckily I found out more information before transferring the money to him.
he asked a lot of things via telegram that ended up asking for a security fee before doing work.

[PradeepH]

Hi Restu,

Thank you for your message. I am sorry to hear about your experience with the client. Please check out this post for more tips on how to avoid questionable jobs and please use the flag option found on each job post or message anytime you’d like to report a violation.

Thank you

Pradeep

[1989ea81]

Hello, Maria.

I also experienced the same situation as yours. They asked me to message them on Telegram if I'm interested in the job they posted. I messaged them and even sent them my CV. After some discussions, he send a pdf file with project details which I saw that the freelancer needs to pay a certain amount as an "Insurance Fee" and will be refunded after the completion of the first project. 

[sofia2008]

Communicating outside Upwork before a contract is in place is a violation of Terms of Services you agreed to when you signed up. Please review here Upwork Legal Center

[pgiambalvo]

Clients asking you to contact them off of Upwork before a contract has been set up is a violation of the ToS, but largely unenforceable by Upwork.

[sofia2008]

This is true, but clients like that don't care about their account on Upwork.

Any freelancer who cares about its account still has to comply to ToS.

[pgiambalvo]

Of course they do. Too bad so many are unaware of this and  are asked violate it by responding to scammers who can easily set up accounts here because of little or no verification simply by opening up a new account after having having their posts removed that should be able to be blocked from appearing in our feeds before we even see them.

[m_terrazas]

---

Krizia B wrote:

Hello, Maria.

I also experienced the same situation as yours. They asked me to message them on Telegram if I'm interested in the job they posted. I messaged them and even sent them my CV. After some discussions, he send a pdf file with project details which I saw that the freelancer needs to pay a certain amount as an "Insurance Fee" and will be refunded after the completion of the first project. 

---

I'm afraid you've misunderstood me.
That hasn't happened to me.
If you had followed the ToS, it wouldn't have happened to you either.

[franc_valentin]

I experienced exactly the same today. Glad I made some research first

[LuiggiR]

Hi Joyce,

Thanks for bringing this to our attention. I'll go ahead and forward your report for the team to review and take action as per our processes. If you see a violation of the Upwork Terms of Service, we encourage you to report it.

[19be923a]

hello Bojan do we have like a disclaimer note to provide to avoid this matter 

just got one today asking for 60USD Security  fee. But i ignored it . 

[prestonhunter]

re: "do we have like a disclaimer note to provide to avoid this matter. just got one today asking for 60USD Security  fee. But i ignored it ."

You don't need a note.

If someone asks you for a security fee, don't send a note. Don't say no. Stop communicating immediately.

Use the "Flag as inappropriate" link option on the job posting page. That's it.

[5ef919e4]

I just received a work and they are asking for a security fee.

[NikolaS]

Hi Malachi,

Thank you for reaching out to us and bringing this to our attention. I shared your report with our team for further investigation and appropriate actions will be taken according to our internal processes.

Please know that a real client will never ask you to give them money to start working, cash a check for them, work for free, or provide your personal information. Sharing contact information before a contract has started is against Upwork's Terms of Service and all communications prior to the contract starting must take place on Upwork. I also encourage you to let us know if a TOS violation has happened by using the Flag as Inappropriate option throughout the platform. You can learn more about user reporting here.

You may want to check this post and this help article to help you stay safe on Upwork. 

[2fd01d63]

Hi Nikola,

I have a similar experience with them and have already flagged them. Is there a way to get back my Connects? Can you provide the steps? I just started here in Upwork for my career growth with you but it seems I have used them with these scams 😭

[sofia2008]

If you want to use Upwork for career growth, you need to take some time to learn how the platform works and about the Terms of Service you agreed to. Communicating outside Upwork before a contract is in place, agreeing to receive payment outside of Upwork, or paying an amount to a client outside of Upwork are all violations of Upwork's Terms of service and can result in an account suspension. Learning as you go is not the best strategy. You need to prepare, and resume sending proposals when you are more familiarized.

[aa9632e4]

Hello, If the client ask me to contact their manager in telegram.. it's that scam? We all know upwork have chatbox for client and employee.

[rekasesh]

Telegram chats, paying security deposit, buying stuff for client to start the job are some of the ongoing scams on this platform.

Any communication request outside Upwork chat or Upwork's zoom setup is probably by a scammer or someone looking for free work.

If it's a genuine client, remind them , and they won't insist on using outside platform for messages or payments 

If the "client" goes silent, thank your stars that you escaped a fake one! 

[m_terrazas]

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

[757e46cf]

Me too.  **Edited for Community Guidelines** is name of the client

[petra_r]

---

Helena T wrote:
Me too.  **Edited for Community Guidelines** is name of the client

---

No, it isn't. Scammers don't use their real names.

If you don't violate Upwork's Terms of Service by communicating with a prospective client outside of Upwork (which is strictly forbidden) before you are hired, you are quite safe from the vast majority of scams...