First timer with Upwork and I encountered a scammer :(

[forleria]

This is so discouraging. I saw posts here and the story lines are exactly the same. This guy **Edited for Community Guidelines** posted a job about hiring Remote Translator. He told me to send the hiring manager an email. I was instructed to continue the interview on Google Hangouts. 

The person did paint a pretty picture about $25/hr, I can work anytime I want, benefits after 4 weeks (what?). It got suspicious when she said they would send me funds for the equipments for my 'mini office' and she would need me online again when she tells me to deposit a virtual check into my bank account. I am glad I stopped there and called the company they claimed was hiring. 
**Edited for Community Guidelines** (the legit company) verified it's a scammer and told me to forward them all the information. 

[lysis10]

All noobs get hit with this but you can tell who read the terms when they go on Meetings to talk to the guy. My sis got hit with them her first day and said "sooooo I guess I understand why you said no communication or payments off Upwork."

[forleria]

Lesson learnt 😞 

[AndreaG]

Hi Flora,

I'm sorry to hear you encountered this kind of behavior in the marketplace. As Jennifer pointed out, communications outside of Upwork before a contract is in place are against the TOS. We find that when users communicate outside of Upwork there is an increased risk of fraud, scam, and other harmful behaviors. When communications (and work) stay on our platform we can better track, verify, and help address any issues that emerge, and as a result, the potential for these behaviors to cause harm decreases dramatically. 

To learn more about staying safe on Upwork, click here. I will also go ahead and flag this job post to the team for a review, and they will take appropriate action as per our processes. If you see a violation of the Upwork Terms of Service, we encourage you to report it. You can find how to do this here.

Thanks!