New sellers on Fiverr are often surprised by the high volume of inbox queries they receive, only to be disappointed when they discover many are from scammers. This frustrating introduction to a platform full of opportunity is a challenge, but Fiverr works hard to detect and remove these accounts as quickly as possible.
If you’re a new seller on Fiverr, then you are a target of scammers. They’re relying on you not being familiar with Fiverr’s Terms of Service and how it works to scam you. The only defense is vigilance and remembering a key phrase: If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is!
Fiverr Scams in 2024 Are Sophisticated
In this article, I’m going to tell you about the most common Fiverr scams in 2024 so you can protect yourself. If you’re new to freelancing on Fiverr, then you may not have the well-developed sixth sense that more experienced sellers do. This is normal, since your gut reaction needs more experience of bad situations to activate your own super power.
Until then, here is a list of things that should push up a red flag right away. Ignore the signs at your peril: the scammers aren’t just after your money, but also your personal data. I’ve included screenshots throughout so you can see examples of what to look out for. As you’ll soon realize, anything on Fiverr related to Telegram and “funny writing” is definitely a scam!
Fiverr Scam #1: Weird Job Requests
You can get almost anything done on Fiverr by a variety of sellers who usually specialize in one or two things. If you’re a writer, you should immediately be suspicious of messages asking you if you provide another service, such as data entry.
Scammers often use generic templates to send messages out to multiple sellers. The lack of specific questioning relevant to your offer is a tip-off that something’s not quite right.
Fiverr Scam #2: Mo’ Money, Mo’ Problems
One thing we can all do with more of is money. Scammers love to use our natural-born greed as a way to get us to respond. More often than not, that generic template spam for data entry will come with a ludicrously high payout.
If the pay looks too good to be true, then it is. It’s simply a promise to get you hooked into the scam and waiting for a pile of cash that will never come.
Fiverr Scam #3: Funky Usernames
Usernames can also be a good indicator of whether someone is serious or a scammer. Scammers often have strangely generic usernames with long strings of numbers after them, whereas people have a tendency to use their real name, brand name, or get creative.
This isn’t definite proof of a scammer, but it’s something to look out for. The longer you’re on Fiverr, the more you’ll notice how some types of usernames stick out. If you’re getting any other red flags, this is another potential consideration.
Fiverr Scam #4: Leaving the Platform
Fiverr, of course, doesn’t want scammers on its platform. So if you get a data entry job paying $3,000 for a week’s work but you need to go off-platform to do it…
…it’s a scam.
Going off-platform is also a violation of Fiverr’s Terms of Service. However, a lot of (serious) buyers don’t realize this. You’ll need to judge whether you’re dealing with a real buyer or a scammer here. Either way, keep it all on platform.
Fiverr Scam #4: Inconsistent Time Zones
Fiverr shows you the location and time zone of everyone who uses the platform. It’s a neat little feature that actually has a lot of practical use. While it’s easy to change the location with a VPN, the time zone isn’t so easy to fix.
I’ve seen countless buyers who have their location in one place and their time zone in another. This isn’t a definitive red flag, but another one to take into consideration if you’re already feeling uneasy: is this person with awful English who claims to be in the USA… lying?
Fiverr Scam #5: Crappy Profiles
You’re looking for reviews, profile pictures, and anything else that indicates that you’re dealing with a real person. Scammers often have brand-new profiles, no profile pictures, and no reviews.
So can new buyers.
Again, this is another check that you can use to confirm your suspicions if someone is behaving strangely.
Fiverr Scam#6: Links to “Fiverr”
In the past few months, there was a spate of Fiverr clones. While it looks like Fiverr has caught them, scammers have evolved. If a buyer sends you the following screenshot that says “Enter the seller’s email address to receive a payment link and additional action instructions”, this is ? a scam. The scammer will also usually send an image to “prove” that their request is legit.
The text may also be copy-pasted, reading something like: “Hi I would like to purchase your gig but I have been asked for your еmаіі аddrеss can I have it?”
It is not legit. None of this is legit, no matter how legit it all looks. Did you notice how “email” was spelled wrong in the request? These are the tiny, easy-to-miss clues that give the game away if you’re not familiar with how Fiverr payments actually work.
While it isn’t possible to inspect and change elements on mobile browsers, this screenshot has probably been doctored in Photoshop or another image editing tool. Some sellers have reported that the “buyers” who use this scamming method are not new buyers and have established accounts.
Put together, this can be a very convincing and dangerous scam. If anyone sends you the following screenshot or something similar to it, report it to the Fiverr Customer Support team immediately.
(Sorry about the enormous screenshot – it gets very blurry when I shrink it…)
2024 is also seeing a disturbing increase in sophisticated scams that clone the Fiverr website. Usually, this fake Fiverr site will ask sellers to provide sensitive information to continue with an order. That could be your credit card details, your national identification number, or something else you don’t want scammers to get their hands on.
Always check links before clicking on them. More importantly, do not assume that because the word “Fiverr” is in a link that it is a legitimate one.
Fiverr Scam #7: Fake Fiverr “Chatbots”
Another new scamming trend for 2024 is people pretending to be a chatbot. The chatbot typically directs you to share sensitive information or visit a fake version of the Fiverr website.
This is never Fiverr. Even if the username has the word “Fiverr” in it. You can see an example of this in the message below. Remember what I said about generic usernames with long strings of numbers after them? This is a classic example.
Fiverr Scam #8: Fiverr QR codes
QR codes are also used by scammers on Fiverr in 2024, often in combination with fake chatbots and fake websites. Like I said, this is a very sophisticated scam! Everything will look official at first glance, but it is not. In the image above, you’ll notice that that “QR” is not in the same font as the rest of the message. This is to avoid Fiverr detecting the message – and it’s likely that the QR was introduced to get around linking restrictions.
If you’re new to Fiverr, then these scammers will may send you a QR message hoping to trick you into verifying with them instead of Fiverr.
If you get a message from Fiverr in your Fiverr inbox, you must be on red alert for a scam. The safest thing to do is ignore the message and report it to Fiverr’s Customer Support team. It’s fine to quickly respond to a message to keep your metrics up, but do not do anything that might compromise your safety.
Signs of a Potential Scammer to Watch Out For
This section deals with “red flags” or less obvious signs of a scammer. They’re also not 100% proof of a scam, but something to consider when reading through your inbox messages. They can also indicate a potentially troublesome (legitimate) buyer, so it’s worth being very judgemental here if you want to preserve your Success Score and other metrics!
Spelling Words Wrong
Fiverr automatically detects certain words that could indicate that someone wants to violate their Terms of Service. You might see “$kype” (Skype), for example. These changes to the spelling mean that Fiverr’s systems won’t detect the violations, allowing scammers to weave their web around you.
Of course, bad spelling may just be bad spelling or poor English. Look at the wider context of the message before deciding what to do next. If someone isn’t a native speaker of English, that doesn’t make them a scammer – just someone struggling to communicate well.
Scammers Often Have Vague Answers
Most buyers, when you ask them for more information about their project and needs, are happy to tell you. Scammers, on the other hand, will try to rush you to do what they want, often telling you all your questions will be answered after doing it.
There are also buyers who are middlemen. These people may not know a lot of about the project that someone else is paying them to complete, which means they may not know the answers.
Charity Messages
These messages usually come with some form of sad story about the person’s difficulties and your need to help them. On Fiverr, that could be sending them money or it could be creating an Upwork (or any other) account for them using your personal details. If your alarm bells didn’t ring, the danger is in the “personal details” bit. Don’t be a victim of identity fraud!
In general, you’ll want to avoid working with charity cases even if they’re not a scammer and they just want your work on a heavy discount – these buyers can be the worst on Fiverr.
Fiverr Scam #9: Make an Upwork Account for Someone Else
This scam is an older scam that can still happen sometimes. Typically, you’ll be asked to look at an attached document which will have a message similar to the following:
Doing this opens you up to identity fraud and a permanent account ban from Upwork and Fiverr. The scammers will use your name and your identity to scam other people, leaving you to deal with any legal problems from their actions. It’s not worth it – and you’ll never see your “share” of their profits.
Fiverr Scam #10: Fake Check Scam
This scam takes a few different forms, but it always involves the promise of a large, longer-term, easy job. Details are not discussed on Fiverr but on another platform. This could be Telegram or it could be an “interview” website. Below is an example of what a message can look like:
Sometimes, you may be asked to pay to start the job – it might be an administrative fee or something else. It is never legitimate, and you will never get any work from it.
The fake check scam is not a sophisticated one – it’s an old one that existed long before Fiverr. Like the Fiverr to Upwork scam, this is another one that can give you legal trouble, since you may be sending the checks on behalf of the scammer. If you’re not mailing the checks but receiving them, you can expect troublesome check payments in your near future.
Scam #11: Fake Fiverr Employees and Jobs
Have you received a message from a “Fiverr employee” who told you that you could make money writing 5-star reviews for other sellers on Fiverr? These employees claim that Fiverr offers “boosting” services for sellers who want to improve their services.
These scammers operate a little differently to Fiverr inbox scammers, as they will typically approach people away from Fiverr using social media and WhatsApp. They can act as if this is a real “job opportunity” where you need to send a resume. You will also be asked to transfer money before starting your job. If that wasn’t enough, it also has a weird pyramid scheme recruitment model built into it.
In other words, you’re getting sucked into the motherlode of Fiverr scams. Fiverr is very strict about fake reviews and will ban accounts that participate in review rings. These scammers come with Fiverr clone websites. The name changes frequently, but Jobcraft and RMT Workshop are two of them.
Fiverr staff do contact sellers from time to time, but never like this. To stay safe, it’s best to send a message to Fiverr’s Customer Support to check that the person contacting you is an actual staff member, especially if you are contacted via social media.
Here is a story from a victim of this Fiverr scam from r/scams.
Tips for Protecting Yourself from Fiverr Scammer
It can be alarming to realize just how many scammers are on Fiverr waiting for new sellers, but the good news is that they are easy enough to avoid when you know the scams and how to spot Fiverr scammers.
Always trust your gut and report scammers to Fiverr’s Customer Support.
- Don’t give anyone your personal data. This includes things like your name, address, passwords, ID, bank account details.
- Be careful when downloading attachments from the inbox. These can be infected with high risk viruses
- Links can also be infected. Always read links carefully before clicking. If it looks like a spam link, don’t click it
- Be cautious of pushy messages. Take your own time to respond to things and think things over; scammers want to rush you through
- If someone “from Fiverr” contacts you through the inbox, be careful; contact Customer Support to verify that they are indeed Fiverr employees
- On a similar note, scammers also use URLS with Fiverr in them — these are rarely legit. Check with Customer Support.
- Be careful of “payment links” to duplicate, fake Fiverr websites (check the URL)
- If a message is written using ????? ???? (of any type), it is 100% a scam, especially if Whatsapp, Telegram, or another app is mentioned.
- Report any suspicious inbox messages to Fiverr so they can investigate and take care of the probem (…for now)
- Never accept or send crypto payments or attach your wallet to any links scammers give you
- Be suspicious of any “job offers” where you will be “part of a team” and have to use a “portal” to get paid
This is by no means a comprehensive list of things to watch out for and avoid; scammers are always changing their tactics. However, if you practice all of this you will be able to avoid all but the most clever of scammers.
Stay Vigilant Against Fiverr Scams in 2024!
Anyone can sign up to Fiverr. Unfortunately, it has become a magnet for scammers. There are many stories on r/Fiverr subreddit of sellers who fell victim to scammers due to their naivety or desperation, making you a lucrative target.
Scammers are not just after free work or your money. They are also looking for valuable private data like your credit card information and social security numbers, which they can sell on the black market, leaving you vulnerable to all kinds of identity fraud. It’s a serious problem, and your ability to detect and protect yourself against scams is your best defense.
Fiverr does everything it can to keep scammers off the platform, but ultimately it’s a game of cat and mouse. Your best bet is to listen to your gut. If something doesn’t feel right, respect your body’s amazing ability to tell when something is wrong and follow it. The few times I have ignored my gut in life, it has always come back to bite me.
Even then, always treat new contacts with some suspicion. Check their profiles and don’t assume that they are “nice people”. While it is a shame we have to do this, a few checks and suspicion could save you a lot of time, money, and stress down the road.
If you have a suspicious inbox message and aren’t sure what to do, let me know in the comments and I’ll try to help!
