How do you save yourself from fraud clients while working as a freelancer?

If you are a freelancer as me, you would definitely trust your client and work hard to deliver. Maybe this is the point where we often make mistake, as I did. But when the same client steals your work away, it gives you a real bad feeling.  

Here is what happened to me a couple of weeks ago: 

"I was offered a translation job by a client. I was invited to join a call at Skype and was handed over a 30 paged document to start the work with. Rate was finalized and so was the deadline. I worked hard and delivered the job. 

From the very next day, the client stopped showing up nor replied to any of my follow-ups. It lasted for over three months and one day I suddenly saw that piece of work published in a site as a resource. Poor me ! "

But, whatever I did to teach my client a lesson, is even more interesting. Shall be writing about it shortly. 

My mistakes

I did use to take assignments from my clients through social media and Skype, but this is the first time that it happened to me. I am sure I am not doing it again. 

Here are a list of mistakes that I had been making ever since I started engaging with the client:

1. I met, talked, took the assignment through Skype. I never required not made to feel that I was putting my business at risk. 
2. I delivered the work through Skype. Too !
3. I never thought that it is worth checking client's profile and see if I am talking with a real guy. 

There might be frauds running around to find freelancers like me who trust their clients unprofessionally. Even if you track them down, it accounts your time and attention to fight back. So, better be prepared. 

Based on my experiences so far, here are some suggestions that I am listing some precautions that could help you 

1. Fraud clients give you a lot of hints; try read them. If your client asks you for a chat in social media, Skype and also sends you works there, be skeptic. 
2. Get your client exchange emails instead. That helps you quickly figure out if it is the genuine client.
3. Gain Contract do not start without any confirmation in hand. 

Bonus Tip

If there is a task involving Proofreading/writing , first make sure that the document that you receive at hand is not translated using a machine. I have also found a few clients who try to hand you over a document that is machine translated and ask you to review as it is not dearer as translation at the first instance.