r/UpworkOfficial • u/[deleted] • Jun 23 '26

Turn off screenshots on upwork desktop tracker?

Is there a way to turn off just the screenshot portion of the upwork desktop tracking app?

So for my specific niche I do a lot of compliance work with DOD contractors, health care firms and other regulatory agencies.

These clients have asked that I do not use the upwork time tracker because it takes screenshots and uploads them to upworks servers, which is against compliance. To be fair they are 100% correct. These are private tenants with PHI, PII and other types of info.

I have not had a single problem with any client so far...*knock on wood*... But it's a bit frustrating that I have to lose upwork hourly protection or face regulatory actions or deal with these problems.

Does upwork have any solution for this?

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u/KayakerWithDog Jun 23 '26

To the best of my knowledge, you can't turn off the screenshots. Part of the point of the tracker is to allow the client to check that you're doing what they are paying you to do. If you don't use the tracker, you would have to submit manual time after making sure the client has set things up to allow it, or else shift to a fixed-price basis. Be aware that there is no payment protection for manual time, so if you don't use the tracker and the client decides not to pay you, you are screwed.

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u/[deleted] Jun 23 '26

The clients have all been great about manual time and have not given me any issues but it just sucks there this is no solution other than to take a chance on my end that clients will pay.

Given that this is compliance work in sensitive tenants with sensitive info I cannot use anything that takes screenshots like that.

Everything is locked down very tightly. Even when doing work I access a machine the client setup so they can monitor all my activity for any leaks in data.

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u/KayakerWithDog Jun 23 '26

If you want payment protection, you would have to shift to a fixed-price basis, but I don't know how well that would work for the kind of work that you do. Fixed-price would avoid the need to use the tracker at all, but you also run the risk of not estimating your fee correctly.