Pak e-lancers in a quandary

KARACHI:

Reports emerged this week that Pakistani freelancers on Fiverr were being shown as "unavailable" on the platform, sparking widespread concern and uncertainty among the community. However, investigations by The Express Tribune have revealed mixed reports from different parts of the country.

Pakistani internet users have been experiencing slow internet speeds and issues with sharing messages and attachments on various social media and communications platforms for the past week. This has been further complicated by the ban on X (formerly Twitter) across the country for almost six months, citing "security concerns".

Many have viewed the disruptions in light of the government's recently announced firewall initiative, which has been undergoing trials in phases. However, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has denied that the issue is caused by the firewall. According to telecom industry sources, the trial has been completed, and the network is expected to return to normal within the next two weeks.

During this period, Fiverr has reportedly set the status of some Pakistani freelancers as "unavailable". The platform has also sent emails to freelancers and clients informing them of this decision beforehand. A widely shared screenshot of the message attributed to Fiverr reads; "We understand that there may be internet disruptions in your area that might make it harder to keep your routine going. To make sure any unexpected order delays won't hurt your ratings, we're going ahead and temporarily setting your availability status and Gig(s) as 'unavailable'. Keep in mind that this action will not negatively impact your ratings."

Investigations by The Express Tribune have revealed that the issue is not uniform across the country. Two freelancers confirmed that they were able to take and submit orders during this period. However, they noted that Fiverr often takes such measures when there are chances of internet disruptions in the country.

"There have been several times when Fiverr has taken these kinds of actions. When there is heavy rainfall, urban flooding, bad law and order situations, or a countrywide issue, Fiverr by default writes a line on the profiles of Pakistani freelancers that, 'The user is unavailable due to unforeseen circumstances, however, you can message the user and they will respond when they are available'," said Haroon Ismail, a freelancer.

He added that still there is an option given to the freelancer to change the status to available. "When you open Fiverr, they give you an option to change your status, so if you are available then you can change the status," he added.

Freelancer Rahat Raja from Islamabad shared her frustrating experience with The Express Tribune, stating that she received a notification indicating her account was "unavailable" due to her location. Despite attempts to change her status and use a VPN, she was unable to access her account, resulting in missed deadlines for pending orders and lost opportunities for new ones. This issue has been ongoing, causing her to miss out on numerous orders.

But Sabah Muhammad, another freelancer, said that she was able to successfully deliver her orders without any hitches. Neither freelancer had received any notification from Fiverr similar to the one many social media users had been sharing.

The Express Tribune also reached out to a prospective client of Pakistani freelance services who was based in the United States and Dubai to ascertain whether any disclaimer or advisory was attached to Pakistani freelancers accounts when accessed from overseas IP addresses. The prospective client, who checked multiple accounts, said no such disclaimer was visible. The client also confirmed that Fiverr, as of Wednesday night, did not show Pakistani freelancers' accounts as 'unavailable'.

Meanwhile, according to a Pakistani news outlet, to mitigate the impact of internet disruptions in Pakistan, Fiverr has proactively protected Pakistani freelancers from potential rating drops. The platform temporarily restricted client access to select users' profiles, notifying affected individuals in cities such as Punjab. These notifications clarified that the measure aims to shield freelancers' ratings from unforeseen delays. However, the limited distribution of notifications suggests that Fiverr's safeguard may be targeted towards specific regions or cities, ensuring that freelancers' ratings remain intact during the expected internet outages.

As Pakistani internet users continue to face slow speeds and sharing issues on various platforms, the community is seeking clarity on the matter. Theories suggest VPN use might have triggered erroneous activity flags, while others believe the issue may be related to the government's recently announced firewall initiative.

The situation has left Pakistani freelancers on Fiverr seeking answers and reassurance about their ability to continue offering their services on the platform.