How does Upwork prevent theft?

[nativegentleman]

I'm new to Upwork.
Since our clients must first approve our work before we are payed; it's possible that if they are using a phone they can screenshot my work without paying. Or is it my own job to prevent theft.?

[prestonhunter · Accepted solution]

If you are worried about this, just properly use hourly contracts. Then this is not an issue.

For fixed-piece contracts, you are right, that a client can try to steal your work in a variety of ways.

So start small. No more than an hour or two of work for the first contract with a new fixed-price client.

Then, if the client shows she can be trusted, you can agree to increasingly large contracts. If the client is a thief or otherwise can't be trusted, then you have not done so much work. Less to lose.

re: "it's possible that if they are using a phone they can screenshot my work without paying."

I assure you that there are far more ways, and far worse ways, than that for a client to steal from you.

But keep in mind that as fixed-price freelancers, we don't do any work until the client's credit card has ALREADY been charged for the work ahead of time, and the money is in escrow.

The money is INTENDED to go to the freelancer. And there is no button that the client can click to simply get it back automatically. The intention of the escrow system is that the client can't get that money back unless the freelancer agrees to send it back.

There are a few more details to the whole system, but basically it IS set up as a way to minimize the client's ability to steal from the freelancer, and vice versa.

[nativegentleman]

If you are a freelancer living and based outside of America have you been able to recieve payment for your work done?

[AveryO]

Hi Jade, 

I looked into your account and can confirm that you did not have any contract with any of the clients you sent a proposal to. On Upwork, we always recommend for freelancers not to start working unless the client sent an offer to the freelancer, the freelancer accepted the offer, the contract is showing as an active contract on the freelancer's My Jobs page, and the client's payment method is verified. These are minimum requirements for a freelancer to be eligible for Payment Protection.

Also, 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.