Confidentiality breach on ProZ-supported job platform? Persoa que publicou o fío: Katalin Horváth McClure
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It seems that ProZ provides a special platform for outsourcers called "translation center" or "Workspace". Outsourcers can post jobs there and then a notification email goes to ProZ members with a subject line: [Company Name Workspace] -title
I got one of these today for the first time - I am not sure whether the outsourcer selects the recipients. Anyway, I clicked on the link and logged in (you have to use your ProZ login) and I saw the job details, fix rate included, with a green Accept ... See more It seems that ProZ provides a special platform for outsourcers called "translation center" or "Workspace". Outsourcers can post jobs there and then a notification email goes to ProZ members with a subject line: [Company Name Workspace] -title
I got one of these today for the first time - I am not sure whether the outsourcer selects the recipients. Anyway, I clicked on the link and logged in (you have to use your ProZ login) and I saw the job details, fix rate included, with a green Accept button, and a note that the job will be assigned to the first person who accepts it.
The rate was 1/3 of my lowest rate, so I wasn't interested, but I noticed that another translator sent a message to the outsourcer, and it was there for everyone to see. I am not sure the translator, who posted the message knew that the message will be publicly displayed (as opposed to the ProZ job board where your message goes to the job poster in a private email).
This is problematic in itself, because people may be unintentionally disclosing private info, not knowing their message will be posted publicly, but another, and perhaps bigger problem I see is that public messages provide a platform for "reverse auctioning" where people would start underbidding each other. I am very concerned about this, because throughout the years I have been a ProZ member (and I am approaching 20 years) there were numerous discussions about the destructive consequences of such practices. I don't think it has a place on ProZ, even if it is in a "Workspace" of a single outsourcer.
I would like to see ProZ change that part of this "Workspace" platform and make those messages private.
[Edited at 2020-06-13 07:03 GMT] ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Support ticket | Jun 13, 2020 |
I suggest you report this in a support ticket. Please do keep us informed.
| | | | | And many of us would like to ask Proz not to send these spam emails | Jun 13, 2020 |
I also received this email. I have never subscribed, never logged in, never worked and will never via this platform. I blocked these emails, so these emails go to spam. Many of us asked how to be "unsubscribed". Actually it is not a normal unsubscribe, because we never even gave our permissions for Proz to send us these emails.
[Edited at 2020-06-13 16:45 GMT]
| | | | | Support ticket, yes, but also, watch out | Jun 13, 2020 |
I have submitted a support ticket (TKT#637975), but in the meantime I thought it was important to point this out to everyone who may be using that platform and uses the "message" function.
[Edited at 2020-06-13 20:02 GMT]
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| Disconnect between professional translators and translator platform | Jun 14, 2020 |
Katalin Horváth McClure wrote:
I saw the job details, fix rate included, with a green Accept button, and a note that the job will be assigned to the first person who accepts it.
The rate was 1/3 of my lowest rate, so I wasn't interested, but I noticed that another translator sent a message to the outsourcer, and it was there for everyone to see.
I am not sure the translator, who posted the message knew that the message will be publicly displayed (as opposed to the ProZ job board where your message goes to the job poster in a private email). ... people may be unintentionally disclosing private info, not knowing their message will be posted publicly, but another, and perhaps bigger problem I see is that public messages provide a platform for "reverse auctioning" where people would start underbidding each other.
I am very concerned about this, because throughout the years I have been a ProZ member (and I am approaching 20 years) there were numerous discussions about the destructive consequences of such practices. I don't think it has a place on ProZ, even if it is in a "Workspace" of a single outsourcer.
I share your concerns about privacy as well as reverse auctioning/underbidding.
The privacy issue could be solved easily by ProZ.com
However, the systemic phenomenon on this and other translator platforms concerning underbidding is indeed a much more troubling issue which would require a change of the entire business model.
Price has long become one of the most important and, especially on many job boards and even with direct client-translator connections, single most important factor for getting the job, and price ranges demanded by posters on job boards are an open invitation to match or underbid the bottom number of that range, which, if it has been posted as a fixed rate .. as in say 4 US Cents per word ... would at least have received a warning from staff that the demanded price isn't something the vast majority of translators could possibly accept. Some platforms, not this one though, would even pull the job post from the job board.
It's all about the outsourcer/client, not the translator it seems.
Until this business model is changed, and that means the mindsets behind it, underbidding in a most shameful way - my opinion - will continue.
You mentioned you saw a fixed rate at the workspace, so I was wondering if underbidding
and acceptance (by the poster) of this already grossly inadequate rate is indeed possible/permitted .... and I agree it would, since all the applicants see that demanded rate, and of course even more so when everyone sees everybody else's replies to the job poster. In essence however it is simply a continuation of the business model seen on the job board. And the more underbidding occurs, the smaller the offered rate might be next time around.
I am pessimistic as to a change to the better and have been for a while, but I appreciate colleagues bringing such important aspects for all site users to the forefront.
One more note: I expected at least a discount of the membership fee for people not wanting to utilize the job board here. This isn't an option, and thus I remain a non-paying member here. There are no partial-membership options either, and it seems the owners of this site have no interest in changing the status quo. Sad. Just my own thoughts.
Luckily, there are, at least for me, other ways to continue working as a professional translator.
But I hope many colleagues agree that there is a disconnect between professional translators and platforms like this one. This is not what I expect from a translator platform.
[Edited at 2020-06-14 16:09 GMT]
| | | | | Got message from ProZ Support - issue has been fixed | Aug 31, 2021 |
I just got the following response to my Support ticket, submitted 1 year and 3 months ago:
Thanks for your patience. I apologize for the late response to your support request. Please forgive me for not responding sooner.
The issue has been fixed.
I am not sure whether the fix itself took this long, or they fixed it back then and forgot to tell me.
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