Hello, I encountered a scam of purchasing domain names on behalf of others.

[42d704b6]

This is the client's link **Edited for Community Guidelines**

He paid $450 in advance and asked me to buy two domain names for him. Later I found a similar scam in the community. Please help me terminate the transaction and refund my 60 connections. Thank you.

**Edited for Community Guidelines**

[NikolaS · Accepted solution]

Hi Qi, 

Thank you for reaching out to us. I shared your report with our team so that they can look into this further and take appropriate actions. 

[sarah3434]

Hey I'm facing same issue, I'm hired by someone on hourly basis nd he's asking me to buy domain for him. he's paid bonus of $450 to me . but I'm afraid he's a scammer.  so I didn't buy his domain but I'm still having a contract live with him . how can i end contract with him without getting bad review from his side?

[JoanneP]

Hi Sarah,

Both the client and freelancer have the option to end a contract. You can end it yourself or request the client to end it. You may want to discuss it with your client first so that the contract is ended amicably.

If you are suspicious about the job, you can flag it so our team can review it and take appropriate action. It would also be best to visit these articles for more information on how you can keep in line with Upwork's Terms of Service when engaging on the website:

• The new starter's guide to being safe and successful on Upwork
• Get to know each other before a contract
• Keeping your contact information safe

You may also want to read up on this Community article and these articles for more information about working safely through Upwork.

[s_top]

I encountered the same scam today.
I applied to a job posting, "Seeking an Experienced WordPress Website Developer for a Comprehensive Business Website Project". The client messaged me and after some discussion about the project he sent me a contract which I accepted. Then the client sent a $450 bonus so I could purchase a domain name for him.
He wanted this done immediately and when I refused to do it until the money had cleared he cancelled the contract.
I see that the job posting is still up on Upwork. I wasted 8 connects on this. I hope Upwork has some kind of refund option for scams like this.

[s_top]

Oh great, now the **bleep** left a one star review on my profile!

[sarah3434]

that's what I'm scared he might leave a bad review on profile if i end contract. I'm trapped what to do i need help

[sarah3434]

same issue here 

[sarah3434]

it's a new scam nd a bad one the domain he asked me to buy cost $400 

[sarah3434]

I'm also hired by someone on hourly basis , he sent me invite himself  nd he has paid me $450 bonus to buy domain on his behalf.

i didn't buy because my gut feeling said there's something fishy.

i wonder how to get rid of his contract with me without getting negative feedback from him.

[s_top]

Here is my update regarding this case, maybe that helps.
Once the client cancelled the contract I left a review on his profile, explaining what had happened.
I also reported the job listing right away as a scam. The job posting was cancelled later the same day.

I did get back the connects that I have spent on applying to this job but the bad review is still listed on my profile.
It's wrong that a client can leave a review for a job that has been cancelled. Upwork needs to fix this.