This one is personal. Right before recording, Olga caught a scammer actively browsing her website — pulling up old pages buried in the sitemap, not linked anywhere — and within minutes received a fake form submission. One of her clients had already paid money. Wayne has been dealing with this for months.
If you're a Squarespace Circle member and you haven't heard about this yet, here's what's happening: scammers are scraping designer portfolios, pulling client contact information from public sites, and sending emails impersonating Circle members — complete with fake Gmail addresses using your real name. The offers have shifted over time, from SEO packages to site audits, but the mechanics are the same. They find your clients, they use your name, and some of those clients pay.
Squarespace has responded — they've notified Circle members, reached out to customers, and worked with PayPal and Stripe to shut down payment links — but the scam keeps evolving. An FBI case has reportedly been opened by a Circle member in New Hampshire. The emails are still going out.
In this episode Wayne and Olga talk through what they know, what they've done to protect their clients, and what they wish Squarespace would do differently. The practical takeaway: email your clients now, tell them exactly which address you write from, and tell them what you would never offer or ask for. Don't wait for this to land in someone's inbox first.
In this episode: how the scam works and where the client data comes from — fake Gmail addresses and how to spot them — how voice and tone is actually catching scammers out — what Squarespace has done and where their hands are tied — the FBI case — PayPal and Stripe shutting down payment links — why the scam keeps working and what that says about client communication gaps — what to send your clients right now — and why this might push designers off the platform entirely if Squarespace doesn't get more aggressive about it.
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