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If you’re a digital artist, especially one working in games or 3D, you’ve probably heard some version of this story from a friend, or lived it yourself. It doesn’t start with a threat or a suspicious link. It starts with someone telling you your work is exactly what they need. The…
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The Hook The email usually opens with flattery and a big number attached to it. In this case, someone claiming to be a “Senior Grant Coordinator” at something called the International Art Institute (or the name of a real foundation) reaches out directly, says she’s reviewed your…
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If you post your art, animations, or short clips on TikTok or Instagram Reels, you’ve probably gotten a message like this: some account with a vague name, a decent follower count, and a profile picture of a logo instead of a person, asking if they can repost your video to their page. Sounds…
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There is a specific scam making the rounds in art communities right now, and it follows a pattern predictable enough that once you know it, you will spot it from a mile away. Here’s how it works. The Hook It usually starts with someone reaching out about a commission. The catch is the price.…
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The Hook It usually starts with flattery. A stranger reaches out, tells you your work is incredible, and says you’re clearly undercharging for it. Then comes the number. Instead of your usual rate for a piece, they offer something way beyond it. Maybe you charge $50 for a headshot and…
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Ugh, I hate crypto. It’s a scammer’s dream, because it’s irreversible and untraceable (somewhat). And anyone with any kind of crypto holdings is under heavy targeting by scammers and phishing attacks. The number of scammers using this tactic has dropped over the years, since most artists have been…
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If you sell physical art or commissions online, you’ve probably had a client ask for something slightly unusual about shipping. Most of the time it’s harmless. Sometimes it’s the opening move of a scam that’s been doing the rounds in art communities for years, and it still…
Read moreIf you’ve been making art long enough to build any kind of public presence, you’ve probably gotten a message that felt a little too good to be true. Maybe they’re offering you free supplies or equipment worth thousands of dollars. Whatever the pitch, there’s a pattern behind…
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If you take commissions online, there’s a scam pattern you’ll probably run into sooner or later. It’s common enough that I think it’s worth breaking down step by step, kind of like debugging a recurring bug. Once you see the pattern, it’s a lot easier to catch it…
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Hook It starts with flattery and a number. A “client” says they’ve been following your art and want to hire you for ongoing work, sometimes as much as two finished pieces a day. That’s a full-time gig, out of nowhere, from a stranger. The rate sounds generous, and it’s…
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The Hook You get a message or email claiming you’ve violated copyright terms, or that your account is about to be suspended. It’s built to feel urgent and official, using logos and formatting copied from the real platform. The Build-Up The message includes a link and a countdown,…
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The Hook A message comes in offering to pay you, often a few hundred dollars, to place a single ad on your page or profile. It might be a paid placement of their product or service, with you demonstrating or holding the product. The number they are offering is usually higher than a real ad…
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The Hook Someone messages you claiming to be a professor or a grad student. They say they came across your art and want to feature it in a class presentation or their thesis. No money is offered here. The flattery is the whole pitch, and for a lot of artists that’s more than enough to get a…
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A lot of the scams targeting artists are about tricking you into accepting payment in a way that gives the scammer an easy way to take the money back later, or that never actually gets you paid at all. Most of this comes down to knowing which payment methods actually protect you and which ones just…
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If you offer commissions online, you’ve probably had someone message you out of nowhere about a piece they “bought” from you. Sometimes it’s real, but sometimes it’s a scam built entirely around getting you to open a file you shouldn’t. Here’s how it…
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If you sell your art online, you’ve probably gotten a message that felt a little too good to be true. Lately, a specific version of that message has been showing up more often, and it’s worth breaking down because it’s designed to look legitimate. The setup usually involves…
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So if you sell your art online, at some point you’re going to get a message that seems too good to pass up. Someone says they want to buy basically your whole stock. Not one painting, all of them. And honestly, when you’ve spent months trying to sell individual pieces one at a time,…
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If you’re an artist with any kind of online presence, you’ve probably gotten a message like this. Someone reaches out, tells you they love your work, and asks if you’d like to be featured in an upcoming art book. It feels great. It feels like the moment you’ve been waiting…
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If you post art online long enough, you’ll eventually get a message from an account with a big following, telling you your work is amazing and offering to feature you to their audience. All you have to do is pay a small fee. It sounds like a good deal. It’s not. It’s a pretty…
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If you sell art commissions online, you’ve probably heard some version of this story, or lived it yourself. It’s called the overpayment scam, and it’s a variation on the old fake check scam that’s been around for decades. The internet just gave it a new coat of paint. It…
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If you’re an artist with any kind of online presence, you’ve probably gotten an email or DM that made you feel like you’d finally made it to the big time. Someone from a gallery says they love your work and want to feature it in an upcoming show. It feels like validation. It feels like…
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