Can Reddit detect you if you are logging in from a VPN IP address?

So recently, I discovered a free VPN extension for Chrome which lets me choose which country of IP address I can connect to. I then went on Reddit with that VPN connected and I made a new account, then got enough karma to make my upvotes count. I then upvoted a few of my comments and it actually worked! The vote actually counted. Then I disconnected the VPN and went back to my main IP address and on that account, I upvoted my proxied Reddit account and the votes actually counted. So I thought, wow, all it takes is a VPN to use multiple accounts to vote on reddit.

What are the chances Reddit admins will catch me? Does reddit detect you if you are using a VPN?

Yes they can detect BOB's just like any site. However they don't really care (afaik even the admins use VPNs 51st work for security).

However reddit has a very complex algorithm that recognizes shady upvotes and their system automatically downbotes the post if they flag your account

CRT said:

Yes they can detect BOB's just like any site. However they don't really care (afaik even the admins use VPNs 51st work for security).

However reddit has a very complex algorithm that recognizes shady upvotes and their system automatically downbotes the post if they flag your account

Click to expand...

What does BOB stand for?

I have 2 reddit accounts (before I made my 3rd using a proxy); first one with 10k karma I access at home, second one with 3k karma I access at work. I have tried exchanging upvotes to myself several times but Reddit still hasn't caught me to this date yet. I even checked whether they seemed to have inserted downvotes but it seemed like I didn't get downvotes in return except the ones people would've normally tried to cast.

It might be because both my accounts do a fair bit of commenting or something right?

Well it depends. Reddit can detect, as they have amazing spam filters sometimes and some of the bigger subreddits really go fully into it with their auto-mods, but you are able to use a VPN. No one knows fully how much Reddit's bots know though. They can detect manipulation pretty well though, and sometimes you'll have to message mods just to get your links back up and running

jasondenzer said:

What does BOB stand for?

I have 2 reddit accounts (before I made my 3rd using a proxy); first one with 10k karma I access at home, second one with 3k karma I access at work. I have tried exchanging upvotes to myself several times but Reddit still hasn't caught me to this date yet. I even checked whether they seemed to have inserted downvotes but it seemed like I didn't get downvotes in return except the ones people would've normally tried to cast.

It might be because both my accounts do a fair bit of commenting or something right?

Click to expand...

Yes active accounts usually work fine. There is a way to game any system, it's just a lot harder with reddit

avilux said:

Well it depends. Reddit can detect, as they have amazing spam filters sometimes and some of the bigger subreddits really go fully into it with their auto-mods, but you are able to use a VPN. No one knows fully how much Reddit's bots know though. They can detect manipulation pretty well though, and sometimes you'll have to message mods just to get your links back up and running

Click to expand...

I'm not planning to use 100 accounts at once to upvote. I'll use like 10 at most in total and I'll make sure there is a cooldown between each upvote (like 2-3 mins or so) instead of right away. Wouldn't that make you look less spammy? Also, the subreddit I use has like 100k subs and around 1k active users a day so it isn't that big. I've never been accused of manip or have I had any posts/comments removed because of that (using 2 accounts; 1 at home, 1 at work).

CRT said:

Yes active accounts usually work fine. There is a way to game any system, it's just a lot harder with reddit

Click to expand...

Oh ok thanks. How active do you reckon they should be? Like they should comment at least once every few times you upvote right I'm guessing?

So much more to consider than just an IP.