Fraud/Scam Job Postings

[#1]

How can I report a client after they’ve deleted the job listing? And how can I get back connects lost to scams? I’m new to this platform and have submitted proposals for 4 jobs and so far 2 of them are fraudulent. I thought this was a legitimate site, but what is my recourse for the connects I lost to these and why are there so many fake job postings?

[#2]

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Megan M wrote:
How can I report a client after they’ve deleted the job listing? And how can I get back connects lost to scams? I’m new to this platform and have submitted proposals for 4 jobs and so far 2 of them are fraudulent. I thought this was a legitimate site, but what is my recourse for the connects I lost to these and why are there so many fake job postings?

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If the job was taken down as a TOS violation, that means that somebody already reported it, so there's no need to do anything further. You'll get your connects back automatically.

It's unfortunate, but there's an especially high number of scammers on the site at the moment, probably because there are lots of new freelancers who make good targets. It's hard to tell that they're scams until the "client" actually starts interviewing people.

[#3]

I'm sorry to learn about your experience, Megan. 

I checked the two jobs you are referring to and can see in your Connects History page that it has already been credited back to your account. 

I would like to note that we do have teams and systems that help identify red flags if a user or a job post is fraudulent. However, I would like to clarify that there are cases where we are unable to foresee a violation based on a client's job post itself or their initial communications with the freelancer. We usually receive flags when the interview stage has already commenced, where the client explicitly communicates this (ToS violation) with a freelancer. In cases like these, the teams involved take action immediately against the client's job post and account based on the report.

Since you are new, you may want to read up on the "Safety First!" section of the freelancer resources we have compiled, and these tips for avoiding questionable jobs for more information about working safely through Upwork.