Exposing the Freelance Scam Network: What You Need to Know

If you’re a freelance creative, chances are you’ve already been pinged by one of these messages. Maybe it was Nomilance.org, or Creowrix.org, or Zentryl.org Or maybe it came as a polite email that looked perfectly legitimate at first glance.

These scammers cast a wide net over the creative community, targeting designers, writers, musicians, you name it...but lately they’ve been especially aggressive in the voiceover world, where they know that folks are constantly looking for new clients and opportunities.

The websites look shiny. The emails sound professional. They even namedrop real VO platforms to buy credibility. But behind the curtain, it’s all the same operation: a network of cookie-cutter scam sites designed to funnel you into the oldest trick in the book: the Overpayment Scam.

Not Just One Scam, a Whole Network

At first, it was easy to dismiss sites like Nomilance.org as just another fly-by-night freelancing platform with clumsy English and wild claims (“96 million freelancers” on a brand-new domain). But the deeper we dug, the clearer it became: this wasn’t one random scam, it was an entire assembly line.

We’re talking about dozens of nearly identical websites, all cloned from the same template. Same fake testimonials, same recycled promises, even the same bizarre phrases like “Let’s Talk with US” or, for example, combining a Los Angeles, California phone number, with a business address in New Zealand, and a map that shows they’re in Kuala Lumpur. On some, they didn’t even bother to erase the template’s original brand name, leaving “Olance” plastered across the page.

Why build so many? Because these “Fraud Factories” give the scammers an endless supply of props. As soon as one site gets flagged or ignored, they roll out another. Each new domain looks fresh enough to fool someone who hasn’t seen the others, creating an ongoing conveyor belt of fake credibility.

And for voice actors hungry for direct work, these sites look just believable enough. They see a shiny “new platform” and a professional-sounding outreach email, and suddenly the trap feels like an opportunity. That’s the real danger: the sheer volume of these cookie-cutter scams means there’s always another one ready to catch someone off guard, so that when you get an email from one of them, you’ll think, “Okay, maybe this is real.”

Scammers can churn out these fake “freelance platforms” in hours. Each domain you see above is a separate site, but built from the same copy-and-paste template. And when one gets exposed, another one pops up. The sheer number of clones shows just how cheap, easy, and endless this scam can be.

The Outreach That Hooks You

Here’s a typical first message a voice actor might receive:

“Dear Cindy, I hope this message finds you well. We’re currently preparing for an upcoming English language voiceover project and are in search of experienced talent to bring the script to life with clarity, warmth, and authenticity. After listening to your demos on [name of VO platform here], your vocal tone and professional delivery stood out as a strong match for what we’re aiming to achieve…”

Looks convincing, right? They reference a real casting site. They compliment your work. They speak your language.

Once you reply, they reel you in with details that sound even more official:

“The script is 21,058 words on the fascinating journey of plant evolution from algae to flowering plants… Compensation: $30 per finished minute, about $4,230 in total. We typically pay via bank transfer…”

They pile on fake legitimacy: maybe a confidentiality clause or an NDA, or even a line about banning AI voices (because, of course, this is a serious project). Then they dangle a hefty paycheck.

But notice the cracks:

• The project is suspiciously huge and oddly specific.

• The rate is inflated enough to sound flattering, but not so high you’d immediately call it a scam.

• They push for bank transfers, which make you vulnerable.

• And maybe the biggest tell: it’s extremely unusual for a brand-new “client” you’ve never heard of to simply hand you a major job out of the blue. Scammers count on the fact that many freelancers are hungry for work, and they use that eagerness to bypass your normal skepticism.

And the kicker? There. Is. No. Job.

The Endgame: The Overpayment Scam

Every path eventually leads here. The fake websites and polished emails exist for one reason: to set the stage for the Overpayment Scam.

Here’s how it plays out:

• They “hire” you and send payment.

• The payment is too much (an “error,” they’ll say), or the second part of the project (for which they’ve pre-paid) is canceled.

• They ask you to send back the difference.

• Later, their original payment bounces.

You’re left out of pocket. They disappear.

It’s like they handed you a counterfeit $100 bill for a $20 service, then asked for $80 in change. They walk away with your real $80, you’re left holding worthless paper.

And if you refuse to play along with the overpayment routine? The scammers have a fallback plan. It’s less lucrative for them, but it still keeps you on the hook and can squeeze a few more dollars out of anyone still trying to give them the benefit of the doubt.

This one is often called the ID Card Scam. The pitch goes something like this:

“You’re required to purchase our company’s worker ID card for verification of your bank account details to our payment portal system via bank transfer to enable us to send your payment… The ID card costs $50. We cannot deduct the amount from your payment, and without the ID we cannot make payment. As soon as we receive your ID card, the payment will be sent immediately.”

It sounds bureaucratic, maybe even believable in the heat of the moment. But of course, there’s no payment portal, no job, and no ID card. The only thing that’s real is the $50 you lose the second you send it.

It’s the same pattern, just on a smaller scale: create a fake sense of legitimacy, invent a hurdle you need to clear, and siphon off your money before you realize there was never any work in the first place.

It’s not just one shady website floating around out there. There are dozens of these things, all built from the same template. Different names, same endgame.

Spotting the Red Flags

If you want to shut this down before it gets started, here’s your checklist for this particular version of the scam:

• Domain age: brand new, but claiming millions of users.

• Boilerplate text: “How’s Olance is Different” shows up again and again.

• Bad English: “Let’s Talk with US.”

• Contact inconsistencies: for example, a Los Angeles phone number, a New Zealand business address, and a Gmail account all on one site.

• Stock testimonials: those “happy clients” are the same faces used across dozens of domains.

• Too-good-to-be-true projects: overly large word counts, oddly specific subjects, inflated-but-plausible pay rates.
  

Protecting Yourself

• Look up the domain. If it was registered recently, walk away.

• Google the text in quotes. “Hot Line: 5896” or “How’s Olance is Different” will reveal a trail of clones.

• Reverse-image search testimonials. Spoiler: they’re stock.

• Trust the red flags. If the project seems unusually large, overly complicated, or strangely generous, that’s by design.

• Never refund money until your bank confirms the payment has cleared. Period. In fact, you should NEVER have to send money back to a client (or to someone else on behalf of a client.) That’s EXACTLY how the Overpayment Scam works.

Closing Thoughts

Scammers thrive on looking “just legit enough.” They don’t need everyone to fall for it. They just need a few people to bite before the site goes dark and another clone takes its place.

But once you know the playbook, it stops being mysterious.

The visuals may shift, but the playbook stays the same. The same recycled text. The same fake jobs. The contradictions in their stories. The same Overpayment Scam waiting at the end...you’ll be able to spot these scams no matter how much window dressing they put on the next batch of sites.

So the next time a polished message arrives offering a big project and a too-good-to-be-true budget, remember: you’re not the lucky one they picked. You’re the target they hoped wouldn’t notice the red flags.

And now? You know better.

A Tool to Help You Stay Ahead

Scammers may keep changing domain names and swapping out designs, but the good news is you don’t have to track every single one on your own. I’ve built something called The VO Scam Scanner, a specialized assistant created to help voiceover talent separate real client opportunities from scams before they cause any damage. (You'll need at least a free ChatGPT account to use the scanner.)

Here’s how it works: you paste in the text of an email, DM, or outreach message you’ve received, and the Scam Scanner analyzes it against a library of known scams (and legitimate inquiries). It then gives you a clear assessment, a numeric “likelihood of scam” score, and safe next steps.

All of the research from this article, including the details of these fake freelancing websites, has been loaded into the Scam Scanner, so it will keep protecting you even as new copycat sites appear. But it doesn’t stop there: the Scam Scanner is also trained on other common scams in the VO world, from bogus casting calls to shady “training” offers and phishing attempts.

The scammers may never stop inventing new ways to target talent, but the VO Scam Scanner recognizes the patterns they can’t hide. It’s an extra layer of defense so you can spend less time worrying about red flags, and more time doing the work you love.

The Best Way to Sidestep Scammers Altogether

At the end of the day, the best way to avoid scammers is to never put yourself in their path. That means not waiting around for too-good-to-be-true offers to land in your inbox, but instead building real relationships with clients who actually need your services.

Direct email marketing is one of the most effective ways to do that. When you’re the one reaching out, you’re only contacting vetted, professional prospects, not replying to strangers with fake projects. So you're in control of the conversation, and you'll know that your time and energy are spent on legitimate opportunities.

If you’d like some help getting started, the Email Templates and VoiceMatch™ Custom Emails available here at VoiceoverResources.com are designed to make the process easier. They give you a professional, customizable starting point for your outreach so you can confidently market yourself, attract real clients, and keep scammers out of the picture entirely.