Highlighting the line between blackhat and asshat - Marketplace issues

[Deleted member 658642]

I have decided not to link to the BST in question as I’m really not calling out one individual member/sales thread. It’s more about the recent influx of sales threads into the marketplace, which I’m all for. I’m glad threads are getting approved a lot quicker than before but maybe it’s a bit too quick and maybe we’re not considering whether a service should be allowed on BHW along with whether it works.

The entire tone of the advert in this BST is “Use bot traffic to con anyone that’s looking to buy a site”. Softwares that deliver bot traffic to sites have existed on BHW for years but making claims like :

you can quickly sell your website or domain on website marketplaces like Flippa, Sedo, Alter. There are many buyers waiting for you on social media like Facebook groups and Reddit with your Google analytics proof.

sets a bad precedent and does not throw the right kind of light on BHW. If we’re trying to portray BHW as something other than a “hacker/illegal” type of website, this isn’t constructive. We’ve had the discussion on what’s right and what isn’t so many times on BHW but something that explicitly asks you to con someone using stats isn’t right.

I should also mention that anyone with common sense wouldn’t fall for the stats so that’s false advertisement too.

Several clearly “reseller” threads have also popped up these past few days charging exorbitant prices for something as simple as a Vultr/Digital Ocean account (just an example). But that’s a discussion stepping into the “Marketplace quality” zone and can be had some other day.

 

[Diamond Damien]

If it's an issue to post pm me the link the devil is usually in the detail, where we've made a mistake we're happy to put our hands up to it.
We cover what is and isn't accepted in the current marketplace here https://www.blackhatworld.com/seo/the-black-hat-world-marketplace-rules.1295700/ if you see an issue with a thread the correct process would be to report it as outlined in our newbie guide here https://www.blackhatworld.com/seo/how-to-report-a-post.1090216/ then the team will be able to deal quickly.
Thanks
DD

 

[xReminisce]

My only question is
Where does the line get's drawn
Would it been fine if it did not explicitly stating it can be used for defrauding the system?

 

[Deleted member 658642]

If it's an issue to post pm me the link the devil is usually in the detail, where we've made a mistake we're happy to put our hands up to it.
Thanks
DD

Message sent.

My only question is
Where does the line get's drawn
Would it been fine if it did not explicitly stating it can be used for defrauding the system?

True. I wouldn’t be fine with it either way if there’s even the slightest implication that it can be used to defraud anyone. But that’s not for me to decide.

 

[Aleksandar916]

The entire tone of the advert in this BST is “Use bot traffic to con anyone that’s looking to buy a site”. Softwares that deliver bot traffic to sites have existed on BHW for years but making claims like :

I'm with you on this.
It's one thing to trick Google with blackhat techniques to rank beter, but it's a completely different thing to promote services with a goal of selling a website with fake stats, to me this is no different than scam. and I know everyone behind BHW is against that.

I should also mention that anyone with common sense wouldn’t fall for the stats so that’s false advertisement too.

Someone will always bite, and unfortunately it's usually someone from a vulnerable group of people (Dumb people are vulnerable too )

Good call @RushingWind

 

[Diamond Damien]

The line is drawn (basically) around "can it do what it says it can do" and "is it currently legal under UK law"? A more detailed dive into the process can be found here https://www.blackhatworld.com/seo/the-black-hat-world-marketplace-rules.1295700/
specifically "Section 1: Rules & Content Standards Summarised".

I've paused the thread in question and it will be part of a re-review. In future please hit the report button as it will get to the right person much faster.

Asked - Answered - closed.