rgamts
Poor Freelance Site
Recently, I had my account terminated for "fraudulent activity". At no point did I ever give out my account login details to anyone. My IP address and location have been consistent with the country I entered when I signed up. I was the sole operator of my account too but somehow WritingCreek terminated it for a baseless reason ("fraudulent activity") simply because I asked for help in resetting my withdrawal password - not plagiarism, not unruliness, not late order submission, not poor order quality - "fraudulent activity". It beggars belief since I'm completely innocent of any wrongdoing. The site didn't reply to the 4-5 emails I sent in which I attached verification details, photos, and even the recent orders I handled. I also offered to prove my innocence by jumping on a video call but got no response from support and the writer's department, illustrating once again that they only care about profit and not writers' wellbeing or being equitable in their dealings. The site's order price split is equally unfair: the writer gets 20-25% while they keep 75-80%. I know they try to justify it by claiming they have several professionals working behind the scenes but how else do model freelance sites offer their freelancers better pay while keeping their site reliability and marketing operations running??? The only logical explanation for WritingCreek's continued maintenance of this split is greed - wanting all the profits without proper remuneration for those who do the work. Even a 60-40 split in their favour would be respectable, but no, they want all the money. I've lost count of the number of times a customer would state in the order chat that the order price was about $100 on their side while the price on my side would read $20. And the rules meant I couldn't tell them why the price was so high. Good luck getting STEM pros to sign up while offering comparably laughable rates. The site's only still running just because unlucky but talented third-world grads need to survive in the harsh conditions created by their countries. Awful site, awful management, awful company. PS: WritingCreek only reached out after the first version of this review went up and didn't remediate the situation, claiming it was justified by their "security policies". This ran contrary to the line of action stated by the account manager in an email when the withdrawal password policy was made (verification would be carried out as opposed to straight-up termination) -- an email I referenced when they responded. Basically, they wouldn't have replied to my previous emails if I hadn't reviewed them on a public review site, indicating they only care about saving face publicly. I still maintain I was terminated for no reason. If you're a freelancer, please stay away since you can't rely on them. 26-06-2024: Temporary blockage is a totally different thing from permanent termination. Writingcreek carried out the latter and not the former. It's alright to reference account security, but if at all my account was breached by a malicious third party, they still would have been able to make a withdrawal since all they need is my withdrawal password and my account was still on the site and yet to be permanently deleted. So yeah: I call bulls***t on the reason for the account closure. Writingcreek didn't conduct any investigation because y'all couldn't care less about taking the pains to do so and do not care about your freelancers. They are replaceable serfs in your eyes, working for peanuts first world writers would consider insulting. Not like we didn't already know that. And yeah, just fyi, the order price split is still rubbish.
Response from WritingCreekJun 26, 2024
Dear David, Thank you for sharing your thoughts and concerns about our platform. We understand that our terms of use may not meet everyone's expectations. However, they are an integral part of our commitment to maintaining the highest standards of integrity and security. Security is one of our top priorities, and we continually work to ensure that all accounts are protected against unauthorized access and theft. The email about the withdrawn password indicates “We will have to block the account temporarily to make the investigation”. Our team detected suspicious activity on your account and tried to secure the funds on your balance to protect them from potential fraud. Thus, your account was closed following our strict security policies. As for your balance, the funds were transferred to the payout email provided by you as per our standard payment procedures. Furthermore, our pricing policy reflects the quality of the products we provide and the care we put into our services. In this regard, the commission fees are essential for maintaining and improving the platform. First of all, they help cover the operational costs of running the platform, including server maintenance, security, and customer support. Next, part of the fees is used for marketing and promotion to attract more clients, which can lead to more job opportunities for freelancers. Also, the commission supports the ongoing development of new features and improvements to ensure a better user experience. Thus, they allow us to provide a range of services and benefits to freelancers and clients alike. We hope you found value in our platform after completing 168 orders and achieving the Advanced rank. A vigilante attitude to account security could help to keep it active. Nevertheless, we understand if our terms do not align with your expectations. You have the option to choose a service that better fits your needs. Thank you once again for your feedback. We appreciate your understanding. Regards, Writingcreek.com team