Identity Theft

If a company asks for copies of the online freelancer's ID and other documents to "verify identity" (but really wants to steal their identity), the freelancer should take the following steps to prevent or mitigate a probable scam:

Negative Reviews

If a company or the person you are talking to has numerous negative online reviews, the freelancer should take the following steps to prevent or mitigate a probable scam:

Inflated Pay Offer

If a company offers to pay 50% or more of the market rate being offered for the same work by other companies (too good to be true), the freelancer should take the following steps to prevent or mitigate a probable scam:

Malware

If a company attempts to send malware software to the online freelancer to load onto their computer (or side-loads it during an online meeting), the freelancer should take the following steps to prevent or mitigate a probable scam:

Partial Payments

If a company refuses to make partial payments at key milestones when the project is large and will take a long time, the freelancer should take the following steps to prevent or mitigate a probable scam:

No Payments

If a company misses or refuses to make a payment to the online freelancer, the freelancer should take the following steps to prevent or mitigate a probable scam:

Free Work Samples

If a company wants the online freelancer to provide multiple free work samples (not just to test competence), the freelancer should take the following steps to prevent or mitigate a probable scam:

Illegitimate Sales Jobs

If a company wants the online freelancer to participate in a commission-only sales job (no base pay), multi-level marketing, or a guaranteed get rich quick offer, the freelancer should take the following steps to prevent or mitigate a probable scam: