In short
- The costliest flags are rights without pay (unlimited or perpetual usage), payment without a date, and any request to hide the ad label.
- Scams share patterns: a fee charged to you, a login link, a request for your OTP or UPI PIN, a mismatched sender domain. Pay nothing and share nothing.
- One flag is a question; two or three together mean pause. A fee, a password request or a demand to remove the label means walk away.
- Disclosure is your risk too: ASCI and consumer-affairs rules put duties on creators as well as brands.
The warning signs of a bad brand deal are a fee charged to you, a request for your password or UPI PIN, no written contract, usage rights with no extra pay, payment with no date and a request to hide the ad label. Most appear in the first few messages. Spot them early and you lose an hour. Miss them and you can lose a month, a Reel you cannot reuse or an account.
This post is the creator's checklist. Brands run the mirror image of it when they vet you; see our vetting checklist. For what fair terms look like, read how to negotiate brand deals, and for the market context, our guide to influencer marketing in India.
One flag, two flags, a walk-away
| Level | What it means | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Ask | A term is unfair or unclear but fixable | Ask for a change, in writing |
| Pause | Two or three flags together, or one you cannot verify | Stop work, verify, and delay your reply |
| Walk | A fee from you, a request for credentials, a request to hide the label | Decline and move on |
The twelve flags
| # | Flag | Why it hurts | What to say or do | Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | A fee charged to you: registration, deposit, verification, shipping | Genuine brands pay creators | "I do not pay to collaborate." Leave | Walk |
| 2 | A request for your password, OTP, UPI PIN or a login link | It is an account or bank takeover | Do not click or share. Report the message | Walk |
| 3 | The sender's domain does not match the brand | A look-alike address or free mail account | Check the official site and call back | Pause |
| 4 | No contract, only chat | You cannot enforce rights or payment | "Please send a contract to sign" | Pause |
| 5 | Unlimited or perpetual usage inside the base fee | You give away rights that have a price | Quote rights as a separate line | Ask |
| 6 | Long, unpaid or open-ended exclusivity | It blocks other deals | Name competitors, shorten, price it | Ask |
| 7 | No payment date, or payment "after performance" | You carry all the risk | A date and a part advance | Ask |
| 8 | A request to hide or remove the ad label | It breaks the rules and you share the risk | Decline | Walk |
| 9 | Claims you cannot back: guaranteed results, health or finance promises | You carry the legal exposure | Change the line in writing | Pause |
| 10 | Betting, gambling or offshore betting promotions | The most-flagged category in ASCI data | Decline | Walk |
| 11 | "Exposure" for a big scope | Exposure does not pay a bill | Quote the scope, offer a smaller one | Ask |
| 12 | Unlimited revisions or access to your account | Free hours, or a lost account | Two rounds; never share access | Ask or Walk |
Rights flags: unpaid usage and perpetual rights
Usage rights decide what a brand can do with your video after it goes live. Published guides price them: a brand repost at +25 to 40 percent of the base fee, usage rights at +30 to 50 percent, and perpetual usage at +80 to 150 percent. All are asking prices, not audited data. See the rates guide.
Words in a contract that should make you stop and read: "in perpetuity", "irrevocable", "all media now known or hereafter devised", "worldwide", "royalty-free" and "including your name, face and voice". The fix is a limited licence with a period, named handles, organic or paid stated, and a separate price for ads.
| If the clause says | Ask for |
|---|---|
| "Perpetual, worldwide, all media" | 30 or 60 days, named handles, renewal price fixed |
| "Brand may edit and re-use" | Approval over re-cuts, or no edits beyond trimming |
| "Use of your likeness and voice" | A separate consent and fee; no AI-generated likeness without both |
| "Exclusivity for the category" | Named competitors only, 30 days |
Our guide to usage rights for influencer content has sample clauses, and the exclusivity clause guide does the same for restrictions.
Payment flags and what to do when it is late
Payment trouble starts in the contract, not the bank. We found no reliable published figure for typical payment days in India, so there is no "normal" to point to. Write a date you can live with, ask for a part advance and tie rights to payment in full.
Warning phrases: "we pay after the campaign performs", "payment after our client pays us" with no outer date, and "payment after approval" when approval has no deadline.
If a payment is late, work up a ladder:
- Day after the due date: a polite reminder with the invoice and the contract clause.
- A week later: a note to a senior contact, copying the person who booked you.
- Written notice: say you will pause further work, and any rights licence if the contract says rights begin on payment, until you are paid.
- A lawyer: if the amount is large and the brand does not respond, take advice on a legal notice.
This is general information, not legal advice. Keep every message, the signed contract, your invoice and proof of delivery. Our guide to TDS 194R and GST on influencer payments explains why a payment may arrive net of TDS.
Disclosure and claims flags
Disclosure is not a brand preference. ASCI requires a clear label whenever there is a material connection, including free products, and says the creator and the advertiser share responsibility. In 2025-26, 97.3 percent of the 1,609 influencer ads ASCI processed needed modification, per its annual complaints report.
Regulators can also reach you. Under the 2022 misleading-advertisement guidelines, described in a PIB release, endorsers can be fined up to ₹10 lakh, and up to ₹50 lakh for subsequent contraventions, and barred from endorsing for up to one year, or three years for repeat offences. The Department of Consumer Affairs' Endorsement Know-hows say not to endorse what you have not used or done due diligence on.
Three claim types need extra care:
- Health. Technical advice needs the qualifications ASCI lists, shown upfront. See health influencer rules.
- Finance. Stock and investment advice needs SEBI registration, with the number shown. See finfluencer rules.
- Betting. ASCI's 2025-26 data put illegal betting at 54 percent of influencer violations. Decline every such offer.
The brief should never ask you to remove the label. Our posts on disclosure hashtags and consumer-affairs endorsement rules show what compliant looks like, and the full rule set is in the ASCI guidelines guide.
Flags inside the brief
A brief can be as risky as a contract. Read it for these:
- A script of claims. "Clinically proven", "100% natural", "guaranteed results" need evidence the brand can show you. ASCI says influencers should satisfy themselves that the advertiser can back its claims. Ask for the proof or change the line.
- A staged customer review. If the brief asks you to pose as an ordinary buyer when you were paid, the post is misleading. Say what you truly think, with the label.
- A comparison with a named rival. You may be drawn into a dispute you have no means to settle.
- "Do not mention it is an ad." This is a request to break the rules; decline.
- Moving goalposts. A brief that changes after you have shot is a payment risk. Agree one round of changes, then a fee for more.
Unpaid test shoots
Some brands ask for three free sample videos "to be considered". Unpaid sample work for a brand is a flag, because you hand over finished content with nothing in writing about who owns it. Offer a paid test instead: one video, a fee, rights limited to evaluation and a clear decision date. Brands that hire UGC creators properly already do this; see our guide on how to find UGC creators, our UGC content creators service and, for your side of it, how to become a UGC creator in India.
Fake brand scams: patterns and a five-minute check
| Pattern | How it looks | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Fee to join | "Pay ₹X to register for the collaboration" or a "refundable deposit" | Refuse. Real brands do not charge creators |
| Login to verify | A link to "verify your account" for the collab | Do not click. It steals the account |
| Payment trick | You are asked to accept a request and enter your UPI PIN to "receive" money | Receiving money never needs a PIN. Refuse |
| Look-alike sender | Free mail address, or the brand's name with an extra letter | Compare with the official site |
| Buy first, reimburse later | You are asked to pay for a product with promised repayment | Refuse |
| Too good to be true | A large fee for a Story from an unknown brand with no website | Verify before replying |
Five-minute check:
- Find the brand's official website and compare its domain with the sender's email.
- Find the brand's official social account and see whether it tags creators.
- Find the named person on LinkedIn at that company.
- Call back on the number listed on the official website, not the one in the message.
- Ask for a contract naming the legal entity, and check its name and address match the website and invoice.
If you have clicked or paid, change your passwords, switch on two-factor login, tell the platform and report the incident on the national cybercrime reporting portal.
Flags in agencies and networks
The same tests apply to agencies and networks. Warning signs include any fee charged to creators, a lock-in with no exit, no named contact, and "we pay when the brand pays" with no outer date. We are an agency, and Influencer Gully earns its fee from brands and charges creators nothing, so hold us to the same checklist. If you want to know whether a manager or an agency fits you, read talent manager vs agency for creators.
What to say when you spot one
| Situation | Message |
|---|---|
| Unclear scope | "Before I quote, could you confirm deliverables, rights, exclusivity, dates and budget?" |
| Rights too wide | "I can license ads for 30 days at ₹[amount]. Perpetual rights are priced separately." |
| No payment date | "Please add the payment date to the contract. I can start once it is signed." |
| Label removal | "I label every collaboration, so I will keep the label." |
| A fee from you | "I do not pay to collaborate. Thank you for your time." |
If you want briefs where the fee, rights and payment date are written down before you say yes, join the Influencer Gully network through the for creators page. We never charge creators.
This is general information, not legal advice.
Sources
- ASCI annual complaints report 2025-26, ASCI (May 2026)
- Guidelines for Prevention of Misleading Advertisements and Endorsements for Misleading Advertisements, 2022 (press release), PIB, Department of Consumer Affairs (10 Jun 2022)
- Endorsement Know-hows! for celebrities, influencers and virtual influencers, PIB, Department of Consumer Affairs (20 Jan 2023)
- ASCI Guidelines for influencer advertising in digital media, ASCI (accessed 31 Oct 2026 (Addendum II dated 6 Mar 2025))
- ASCI update on influencer guidelines for health and financial influencers (press release), ASCI (28 Apr 2025)
- Influencer marketing pricing in India 2026: rate card, usage rights, exclusivity and whitelisting premiums, Indian digital agency guide (low confidence) (20 Apr 2026, updated 16 Sep 2026)
- Instagram brand deal rates in India 2026, Indian brand-deals guide (low confidence) (4 Mar 2026)
Frequently asked questions
What are the biggest red flags in a brand deal?
A fee charged to you, requests for passwords or your UPI PIN, no written contract, unlimited or perpetual usage rights without extra pay, payment with no date, a request to hide the ad label and promotions you cannot back, such as betting or health claims. Any one is a reason to ask questions. Two or three together are a reason to pause.
How can I tell if a brand collaboration is a scam?
Check that the sender's email domain matches the brand's official website, find the named person on LinkedIn, and call back on the number from the brand's own site. Scams usually ask you to pay a fee, click a login link or enter a PIN to receive money. Genuine brands pay you and never need your OTP or password.
Should I ever pay a brand or an agency to collaborate?
No. Brands and agencies earn their fee from advertisers and pay creators. A registration fee, refundable deposit, verification charge or product-shipping fee asked of you is a red flag, and usually a scam. Influencer Gully never charges creators; see our for creators page for how it works.
Is it a red flag if a brand wants perpetual usage rights?
Yes, unless the fee reflects it. Published guides put perpetual usage at +80 to 150 percent of the base fee, against +30 to 50 percent for standard usage rights. Ask for a limited licence with a period, named handles and a separate ad price. Our guide to usage rights shows the wording.
What should I do if a brand does not pay me on time?
Send a written reminder with the invoice and the contract clause, escalate to a senior contact, then give written notice that you will pause further work and any rights licence until payment, if your contract allows it. If that fails, speak to a lawyer. This is general information, not legal advice.
Can a brand ask me to skip the ad label?
It can ask, but you should not agree. ASCI requires a clear label on any post with a material connection, and responsibility is shared between creator and advertiser. The 2022 consumer-affairs guidelines let regulators penalise endorsers as well as brands. See influencer disclosure hashtags for what the label must look like.