How I Scammed Myself and Other Tales of Woe

[lissa_1]

I am as new to scamming myself as I am to Fiverr. The tale you are about to view should be read with your safety in mind.<br />

It was a dark and stormy day. Never mind that, it's always sunny in Fiverrville, so who cares.

 

I went running to my in box with the glee of a newly promoted level one seller. Upon reading that there was a gig for my content writing; I nearly peed my pants. Screams of, “Squeeeee!” could be heard throughout the cubicle of my life. I read the gig instructions from the Buyer “ I need a review for my website. It was hacked and I lost all my information and reviews...”

 

I then braved my way through the internet portal link to a strange land of newness. Being an ethical (s)word wielding Ninja, I returned to the Village of Fiverrville. I instructed the man from Buyersville that I had never used his advertisement posting service for a land called “The List of Craig.” I then mentioned to him that he should consider running my “Word Ninja*” ad on his site.(he is NOT a Fiverr seller just a buyer) I then returned to the land of newness and realized that the agreement we made for my one time advertisement was not an option. I then gave forth instructions as to the agreement that we had made. That is to say, I gave forth the information I WANTED to give and NOT exactly what was asked for. Deception? No. I did not want to agree to a full monthly service which was was presented.. I figured that were he the sole proprietor of his quaint shop in the villa, he would understand.

 

Well, this is how the story went. The information I gave included: my fiverr name “Lissa”, and the gig info for my fiverr ad. He thanked me kindly and went about his way. I then wrote a review of the interaction that we had and the ease of use of his system and submitted it. An honest review. I hadn't heard back on the ad. Nor did I pay him money. I went online (like closing the gate to the horse barn) after having waited and I found that someone that use to own the domain name was previously selling this service under that name. They had not provided the services. They did however, charge customers around $80 USD per month. (at least some had reported this)

 

My word of caution is this : don't use a service without checking them out first. I learned a lesson and as I just saw that my gig was completed, I am out nothing at the moment. Please BE CAREFUL.

 

To be clear No exchange of money or information was made outside Fiverr. That is a breach of ToS.

 

My gig is not called Word Ninja.

I can neither confirm or deny any affiliation there of. :D

[musiclover]

Your writing style is very captivating, but I think I got lost somewhere within your clever play on words. So I’m a bit confused about what exactly went down with this buyer.

[lissa_1]

Sorry, I got carried away. The buyer wanted a review. I insisted that I use the service before I wrote the review. (only fair) I agreed to pay for a one time ad (which has yet to happen days later) I set up the ad using my fiverr name. I wrote the review about my experience and completed my end of the fiverr transaction. I then found out that he may in fact be a scammer. (very likely) I changed my setting so that if he tries to scam me he should get rejected. PP’s buyer protection does not cover services from what I was told. They were very unhelpful in this instance. I usually find them to be great. The moral of the story is: don’t trust from buyers websites unless you check their reviews first.



Thank you for responding.

[curvalicious]

Reply to @lissa_1: Lissa, I’m sorry for what happened to you. However, I found the way you wove the story, to be enchanting. Are you a fan of RPG/MPRPG or fantasy in general? I am. I just wanted to note, a person can’t always go by reviews, as, some of those have been paid for. Instead, I check the BBB (Better Business Bureau). I prefer to do business with those who are affiliated with them or, at least, don’t have a bad record. There’s also Rip Off Report. I’m sure others will mention ones they know about as well. Hope it works out for you.

[lissa_1]

Thank you @curvacious,



I do play an MMORPG. (shame face) LOL!

Written a fair number of gaming guides for clients as well.



I was trying to be funny and informative. I am trying to maintain a sense of humor over the whole situation. My bigger issue has to do with not being able to cancel a gig. If I had known how to go about cancelling it at the time, (knowing what I know now) I would have. I understand that there is a process of mutual cancellation. I have not yet figured out how to utilize that process however. I plan on looking into it this evening.



Thank you!

[lissa_1]

@vedmak



Thank you. That didn’t come across right. I have taken action on that.



No ToS Violation that I am aware of. No money was exchanged on my part and his went to my Fiverr revenue page. I was merely conducting my business here when I saw a chance to advertise Fiverr and the Fiverr site.



I certainly hope that promoting my writing on Fiverr through other sites is not a breach of ToS.



Of course a letter to CS would be worded in a more professional manner.

[lissa_1]

Oh! I think I see the confusion. I never gave a buyer pp info. I see your point. That’s definitely a nono.

[lissa_1]

Yes vemak,



I did edit the OP. The comment on the semantically misunderstood portion of the post made it clear that it could happen again. It was not meant to be deceptive.

As far as the paypal part goes, I do a lot of business outside Fiverr. I eat at restaurants and buy groceries. I do that frequently and locally. When I walk into an establishment I present them with my financial information… The fact that I would purchase something from someone that I review as a writer is something I can live with.

As for the admin checking my edits. I hope they get the point that I exchanged no information within the Fiverr system that would be against the ToS as far as I can see. I was merely trying to provide one of the services that I offer here. Honestly and with integrity. I can live with the fact that I do my work here with honestly and ethically.