Right, let’s talk about this whole ‘Jess’ situation. It wasn’t exactly like on TV, you know, with the dramatic reveals. More like a slow realization that things were just… off. It all started pretty normally, working on a shared online project, just a community thing, nothing major.
We needed someone to handle some specific graphics stuff. This person, ‘Jess’, popped up in the group chat. Seemed knowledgeable, showed some examples – looked decent enough. So, we started coordinating via messages.
Getting Started
First few interactions were fine. Quick replies, seemed eager. I needed some basic assets adjusted. Sent over the files, gave clear instructions. Jess said “no problem, got it”.
Then things got weird. A couple of days passed. I nudged gently. Got a reply saying “Almost done, hit a snag”. Okay, fair enough, happens to everyone. Asked what the snag was, maybe I could help. The answer was super vague. Something about software compatibility. Didn’t make much sense given the task.
Another day goes by. I ask for an update, maybe just see the progress so far. Jess sends back something… completely different. Like, not even related to the original request. The style was off, the content was wrong. Looked like some random template downloaded from somewhere.
Digging In A Bit
At this point, I’m thinking, okay, maybe a misunderstanding? I tried to clarify. Sent screenshots, bullet points, the works. Explained exactly what was needed again. Jess replied “Ah, okay, understand now! Will fix.”
- Tried scheduling a quick voice call to clear things up faster. Jess was always busy. Last minute cancellations, weird excuses.
- Checked the profile again. Pretty bare. The example work shown earlier? Tried a reverse image search. Found it on three different stock photo sites. Uh oh.
- Looked back at the chat history. The way ‘Jess’ typed sometimes changed. Like, different slang, different sentence structure. Sometimes super formal, other times really casual.
It just felt… slippery. Like trying to grab smoke. You couldn’t get a solid hold on who this person was or what they could actually do. It wasn’t one big lie, just lots of small inconsistencies, avoidances, and stuff that didn’t add up.
Moving On
Eventually, I just had to pull the plug. Sent a message saying thanks for the effort, but we were going in a different direction. Didn’t even get much of a response, just an “Okay”.
Was it malicious? Was ‘Jess’ trying to scam us? Hard to say. Maybe just someone way out of their depth, faking it till they make it, using a fake name. Or maybe it was multiple people sharing an account. Who knows? The point is, the whole interaction felt fake. You spend time, you try to communicate, and you realize you’re talking to a ghost, a persona somebody threw together.
It wasn’t some big dramatic catfish story, but it definitely made me more cautious. Wasted a week on that. Now, I tend to push for a quick video call early on, just to see there’s a real person there who can actually talk about what they claim to do. It’s just easier that way.