Become oDesk Verified Through the New ID-Verification Process...

Just last week, oDesk announced that freelancers can become “oDesk verified” by participating in the new ID verification process.


If you’ll take a look at its thread in the community forums, it talks about the reasons why you are encouraged to become ID verified and the benefits of becoming verified.

Promoting Trust and Security via Identity Verification
oDesk explains that having your identity verified through this ID verification process promotes trust and security in freelancing marketplaces.

There are literally thousands of freelancer profiles registered on oDesk and there is always that percentage of fake or incomplete profiles lurking around.


To prevent handing the project to suspicious characters on the site, clients can now hand it to an oDesk-verified freelancer who is active and only want to provide the best service to clients.


For oDesk freelancers, your clients can rest assured that working with you is a secure transaction. They’ll know that they really are talking to a “Juan de la Cruz” and that the same Juan de la Cruz will provide the services they need to get their projects done.


Another benefit is getting a quota increase of 5 job applications, which is cool if you’re still in looking for that perfect oDesk project to work on.

How Do You Become oDesk Verified?

The steps are pretty much outlined in this section of the Identity Verification Help page:





You need 3 different types of documents to get verified.
Your portrait photo – you can easily upload this if you already have your oDesk profile picture saved in your computer.
A governemt-issued ID – a passport, a driver’s license, SSS ID, and the like.
A bank statement/credit card statement or a recently issued utility bill not older than 6 months.


All of these documents should have the same name as the one in your user information under your oDesk account, so make sure to check these details first before submitting.

Do You Really Think I Should Become oDesk Verified?

While being oDesk verified is encouraged, it’s completely optional.


This means you can choose not to go through the process of verifying your account and happily stick to your 20 job application quota.


I personally would go through the process if it will save me from being suspected by oDesk for identity fraud. It would be even more awesome if oDesk will give contractors a sort of badge to give clients the heads-up that this guy is ID verified.