Ask How do freelance platforms deal with clients who post fake jobs just to collect proposal ideas?

[Edward22]

It is frustrating when you spend real time writing a proposal, only to realize the job was never genuine. Some clients post projects just to gather ideas or see how other people would approach their problem, with no real plan to hire anyone. Platforms do have reporting systems for this, but many freelancers feel the response is slow or not strong enough to stop it from happening again. The time lost writing those proposals adds up fast. Have you ever come across a job post that felt like it was only there to steal ideas?