How to know Fake Online Agencies

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Everyone believes they can spot a fake online agency, yet scammers grow more sophisticated with each passing year.

Madbird, a digital design agency, became the subject of a revealing BBC investigation. The so-called company employed over 50 remote workers, most hired on a commission-only basis within its first six months of operation.

Within months, several new hires discovered that many of their “colleagues” were fabricated profiles. No client projects had ever closed, and the founder had invented his entire online identity. Payments never materialized.

Stories like this highlight why caution is essential when evaluating remote agencies. Below are practical steps to protect yourself from fraudulent operations.

Trust Your Instincts

Be wary of agencies that claim:

• Decades of industry experience
• A full suite of unrelated services
• Guaranteed results in an unrealistically short timeframe
• Round-the-clock customer support
• Below-market pricing

Legitimate agencies specialize in what they do best rather than promising everything to everyone. They set realistic timelines and price their work according to its true value. If an offer feels too good to be true, it almost certainly is. Trust that feeling—there are plenty of reputable agencies to choose from instead.

Verify the Company’s Office Address

Modern scam agencies often display a professional-looking office address on their website. In reality, the location may be nothing more than a residential building or an unused mailing address.

One Madbird employee grew suspicious after checking Google Street View and discovering that the “headquarters” was simply a block of flats. A quick call to a local realtor confirmed the address was purely residential, not a commercial workspace.

Always cross-check any listed address before proceeding.

Run a Reverse Image Search

Impressive portfolio images or employee headshots can easily be stolen from other sites. Perform a reverse Google Image search to verify ownership:

• Visit Google Images on a desktop browser
• Click the camera icon in the search bar
• Upload the image or paste its URL

The results will reveal the original source, other locations where the image appears, and visually similar content. The same technique works for checking employee photos.

Contact Their Clients Directly

Testimonials on a website can be fabricated in minutes using stock photos and invented quotes. Reach out to listed clients via LinkedIn or their own websites to confirm their experience. If no testimonials appear, request references. Authentic agencies happily share success stories; fraudulent ones often cite privacy concerns as an excuse.

Check Domain Authority

Fake agencies typically operate low-quality websites with poor domain authority (DA). Moz’s DA score predicts how likely a site is to rank in search results and reflects the trust search engines place in the domain. A brand-new site usually starts at DA 1, while Facebook sits at 100. Agencies with a DA of 30 or higher are generally more established, though this metric alone does not guarantee legitimacy.

Search engine ranking score

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