Community Safety Advisory Regarding Staff Impersonation
To our readers, contributors and friends in the Outdoor Photographer community, it has come to our attention that an individual using the name James Logan has been contacting photographers claiming to be the editor of Outdoor Photographer under the pretense of collaborating on editorial projects. This individual has attempted to gather personal information and collect fees with the promise of future compensation in return.
It’s an unfortunate part of being a notable, regarded publication that attempts at impersonation and exploitation happen from time to time. Something similar happened in 2020 when a fake Instagram account created under my name was used to contact photographers with offers of freelance assignments. We attempted to work with Instagram to remove the fake account but the company prioritized its user numbers over its users’ safety and ultimately didn’t remove the account.
The safety of our community is a top priority for us. Following are guidelines to keep in mind if you receive a communication from someone claiming to represent Outdoor Photographer:
- Outdoor Photographer staff will never request payment of any kind to consider editorial submissions. If you have received a communication from someone claiming to be editorial staff requesting sensitive personal information or any form of payment, please let us know.
- We don’t use personal social media accounts to contact photographers for professional reasons. If you receive a communication through social media from an account with my name or another individual claiming to be Outdoor Photographer staff, it is not authentic.
- From time to time, we may use our official Instagram, Facebook or Twitter accounts (@outdoorphotomag) to contact photographers, but any genuine communication from our staff will include a Madavor Media email address ([email protected]) for follow-up.
In general, if you receive a communication from someone claiming to represent any publication or company with an offer of freelance work, be sure to confirm the identity of the person contacting you. One way to do this is call or write the company through the contact information on its website, or by direct message to its official social media accounts. Never provide sensitive personal information through social media or to unverified email accounts or those using free email services like Gmail.
Please share this information with your friends in the photo community.
–Wes Pitts, Editorial Director
Outdoor Photographer
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