Don’t fall for this copywriting scam!

My Spidey senses should have been tingling from the get-go.

I should have known better.

I’ve been around the block a few times.

But the email seemed so genuine…and the offer seemed too good to be true…

In mid-May of 2025, out of the blue, I received an email from someone who identified themselves as “Karen Gonzalez,” an independent educator who was putting together a webinar and needed two articles written to support the information “she” would share. “Karen” said “she” found me via a Google search. Since I AM a professional freelance copywriter, with a highly optimized website, I didn’t see anything out of the ordinary there. No red flags there.

Well, “her” email address did not exactly match “her” name, but perhaps “her” name had been taken. Tingle-tingle.

A couple of back-and-forths and we had a fully executed contract!

The pay scale was generous at $2400 per 1400-word article. The articles were fully briefed, to the point of including an outline for each. I was allowed to byline the articles and use them for my portfolio. Payment was going to be remitted by one of the webinar sponsors. Payment was going to be by cashier’s check. No red flags there.

Payment was going to be made in full in advance. Tingle-tingle.

Within two weeks said cashier’s check arrived in a USPS Priority Mail envelope. I deposited it electronically via my bank’s mobile app and prepared to write the two articles. The deadline was 30 days away, so very doable. No red flags there.

“She” had been tracking this envelope, updating me that it had been sent and had been delivered. “She” requested proof of deposit and acknowledgement that the funds had been released. I obliged with a screenshot, without divulging any details of my account. No red flags there. After all, it was “her” client’s money.

That was on a Wednesday. At 9:30 Thursday morning (which would have been 6:30 am PST) I received a text message. “She” was sharing “her” alternative mobile number because “she” was “currently facing technical and network issues with her primary number.” Understandable, no red flags there.

“She” went on to say that one of the articles had been cancelled and for me to please check my email and respond at my earliest convenience. I checked my email, in which “she” explained that I needed to immediately refund $2400 of the fee, keeping $100 of it for the purchase of money orders made payable to DE OLIVEIRA COSTA FERNANDO and sent via “FedEx Priority Delivery Overnight Express with signature waiver.” My Spidey senses went to tingling double-time!

A quick visit to my bank launched a fraud investigation. The bank officer suggested I ignore “Karen’s” increasingly aggressive messages until they determined that the cashier’s check was bogus. That took only 24 hours. But during that time “she” was insistent that I “complete the task.”

Once the check was determined to be fraudulent and the money was reversed out of my account, I relished in a sending a dignified, restrained “caught you, bitch” email to “Karen.”  I responded to “her” most recent text with instructions to check “her” email. Then I received the error message from AOL that the account had been disabled. Surprised? No. Tingle-tingle.

My final missive to the elusive “Karen” was: “Apparently you have disabled the fraudulent mailbox as well, so you did not get my message. Your scam has been uncovered, the proper authorities notified, and on the advice of my legal counsel, this notification is the final communication between us.” Aah, peace in my Inbox. And egg on my face…

Being the responsible citizen that I am, and filled with a burning desire to do something, I notified the police in the city where I had been directed to send the money orders that a property in their jurisdiction was functioning as a “drop.”

Then, being the insatiable former journalist that I am, and filled with curiosity, I Googled the “alternative” phone number I had been given — and discovered a blog post from July 2024 on which “Karen” appeared in the comments, pulling the same stunt.

I grimaced at a post in the AWAI Copywriting Insiders Facebook page (to which I belong by virtue of my membership in the American Writers & Artists Institute) describing a similar situation to mine, and a comment further down on that post that another copywriter had fallen prey to the same scam. With my Spidey senses now in overdrive, I thought it prudent to share my story. I come away embarrassed, angry, wiser, but thankfully no poorer. The next unsuspecting writer may not be so fortunate.

I won’t say to never accept a request to conduct work for someone who found you online. After all, that’s why we’re all online, isn’t it? And the networking gurus are all about cold calling… but if several things don’t match up, your Spidey senses should start tingling. For instance, in my case there were:

• A potential client whose email address did not match the name they claimed.
• A client address which, I learned later, did not exist.
• A return address on the Priority Mail envelope which, I learned later, did not exist.
• An authentic-looking Cashier’s Check drawn on a bank, by a different drawee, issued by another party, electronically signed with an unrecognizable signature, remitted by yet another party (whose legitimate business had nothing to do with the proposed client or the subject of their articles), all of which I learned later.
• Frequent, and insistent, communications regarding the payment.
• Finally, a change in communication instructions and a closed mailbox.

How can you protect yourself from such scams?

• You can’t prevent the initial inquiry, but always ask for further identification, which you check out as best as possible. Don’t be afraid to ask for clarification. The earlier in the game you spot inconsistencies, the less time you waste in pursuing the work.
• Never begin any work on any project, whether the client is known to you or not, without a NON-REFUNDABLE 50% deposit. I have never had a legitimate client balk at this.
• If arrangements are made for payment in full before the work is begun (which should be suspect in itself) include a “kill fee.” Yes, that is a moot point if the “client” is paying with a fraudulent check, but it may deter them from continuing their con.
• NEVER refund any fees via money order and never entertain the thought of refunding fees until at least 14 business days have passed, allowing ample time for any checks to clear. Make it a matter of policy and spell that out in your contract.
• ALWAYS approach your financial institution first with your concerns. Do it in person and ask for their assistance. You do not want to be suspected of being a part of the fraud. I was informed that had I not taken the first steps and the fraud had been discovered, the bank would have closed my account immediately.
• BE VIGILANT and be professional in your communications.
• Don’t issue empty threats. If you say you are going to do something or have taken some action, do it. I DID seek legal counsel. I just didn’t reveal that the legal counsel was from my attorney husband. 😉

Stay safe out on that scary networking highway and write on!