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Crime and Punishment - Guantanamo for spammers?

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Real Estate Agent with HER Realtors

Crime and Punishment - Guantanamo for spammers?

Public stoning for ActiveRain members who plagiarize posts?  (a members only post yesterday)

Tar and feather for the comment spammers who promote themselves or their products on our posts?

On Facebook... do you recognize TIMU? 

TIMU

Edit - Missing commas cause confusion.  Read all about it in the comments!

TIMU is Matt Heaton founder of ActiveRain's newest project.  

TIMU is Matt Heaton's newest project.  Matt Heaton was one of the founders of ActiveRain.  Matt is a member of ActiveRain.   

Understand?  Now back to your regularly scheduled blog post.

TIMU must be doing something right if spammers are trying to use it.  Congrats to Matt and TIMU on the success not the spam.

I have always been amazed at how virtually spam free ActiveRain is.  In comparison to elsewhere.  Personally I am more frustrated with the internal spam than the crazy comment spam from Aliens, or the IDs set up on ActiveRain a "real estate network" that are  travel spam, prom dress spam, packers and movers from India spam.. or movers and packers from India spam etc. 

The comment spammers among us, the fungus among us bothers me most.  Very few of us do it.

My post Ohio College Grads - a carrot for you was written to Ohioans.  

Ohio Information

How can you tell? It says so...  It is not posted to an ActiveRain group where I am looking for "Great post thanks for sharing" comments from ActiveRain members or advertisements from vendors.

The person making a comment is a vendor selling something to real estate agents.  He is not an Ohioan, not that it matters.  A Ohio vendor spamming on my post selling his product would not be welcome either.

The dirtball ActiveRain member started his comment with "Thanks for the info Ill pass along to my Ohio Realtor Partners." 

I guess that is to let me know he is influential.  Ooooh I am impressed, he has Ohio Realtor Partners... great more power to you dirt bag fella. Have you stopped to read the ActiveRain guidelines?  The ActiveRain Guidelines are on the bottom of each and every page and YOU are subject to them same as everyone else.  Notice the guideline about not using another members comments to promote yourself, your product..

It really is just common sense.

Ohio College Grad Post Comment spam

The ActiveRain member's spam comment goes on...

"If you want to see the best FREE realtor tool on the planet let me know..I can help you increase your business for free..."

hmmmm what does that have to do with my post?  Why would a post to Ohio college grads make you want  to try to sell me  your product?

"It is a marketing system using single property websites to attract more listings, more buyers, keep more listings, and increase peoples impression of your tech savy.  I hope to hear from you..you will be sold nothing it is soooo incredible...

Thanks,  "

I used the ActiveRain "Report a Concern" link on the comment.

I don't contact comment spammers and try to reason with them.   I am so done with reasoning with spammers who are members.

Both time I discovered this spam comment (in July and a couple of days ago)  I hoped ActiveRain would tar and feather this member or draw and quarters him... or I thought the firing squad?  No incarceration in Guantanamo is probably more fitting the crime.

Crime and Punishment - Guantanamo for spammers - options 

Vendors you have YOUR ActiveRain blog to sell your product on.  You can do a yellow post (featured sponsored post on ActiveRain) ,  or an ActiveRain sponsored ad.  You have options, lots of options.  The vendor is a Rainmaker, he has an ActiveRain Outside blog too that he is NOT making use of.  Why, why, why would he choose to try to  sell his product to me in a comment on my post?

Posted by

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Information is deemed to be accurate but should be verified to your satisfaction.  Information provided herein is supplied by several sources and is subject to change without notice.  Opinions expressed are solely those of Maureen McCabe.

 


 

Maureen McCabe
HER Realtors - Columbus, OH
Columbus Ohio Real Estate

I finally edited it in the post and decided to just go with itty bitty sentences.  No reasons for any punctuation except the period if you break it all down. 

And hopefully they have a way that the comments  delete on Localism now too.....

Sep 07, 2009 11:51 PM
Joe Pryor
The Virtual Real Estate Team - Oklahoma City, OK
REALTOR® - Oklahoma Investment Properties

I just love the "free" part to many spammer comments. Do they think we are that gullible? Humanitarian spammer is an oxymoron. Okay, leave out the oxy.

Sep 08, 2009 01:51 AM
Home Loan Search.Online
Home Loan Search Online - Newnan, GA

I find it ironic that a post about spam would include a comment spam. Anyway, I don't think Gitmo is the answer as it wouldn't be big enough!

Sep 08, 2009 02:01 AM
Pat Mullikin - KW Milwaukee
Keller Williams Milwaukee - Brookfield, WI

It's impossible to argue with idiots. Never mind the misuse of the English language - that's a given on the web. Just keep reporting.

Sep 08, 2009 02:55 AM
Maureen McCabe
HER Realtors - Columbus, OH
Columbus Ohio Real Estate

EmMee Welcome to ActiveRain.  Isn't that a horrible way for new people to be greeted? I am glad you stuck with us despite the spammers that greet the new people at the door. 

Did you get any from the people who don't say the thing about referrals but send you to their NEWBIE posts.... The Welcome Wagon

Thanks all for the comments.  The comment from the inhouse spammer for the" best  FREE realtor tool on the planet " has been removed from my post...  hope it is gone from the  Localism version too.  Spammer here with the curling iron is gone #29 is gone 

Sep 08, 2009 08:46 AM
Claudette Millette
The Buyers' Counsel - Ashland, MA
Buyer, Broker - Metrowest Mass

Maureen:

I have had these comments appear on my posts.  These interlopers should definitely be dealt with. 

Do the Geneva Convention rules of war apply here?

 

Sep 08, 2009 12:39 PM
Sharon Alters
Coldwell Banker Vanguard Realty - 904-673-2308 - Fleming Island, FL
Realtor - Homes for Sale Fleming Island FL

Maureen, why would anyone want to do business with someone who is annoying them? It just flies in the face of everything we learn about sales tactics. I agree with Sheldon! Does anyone do business with these people?

Sharon

Sep 08, 2009 03:09 PM
Maureen McCabe
HER Realtors - Columbus, OH
Columbus Ohio Real Estate

Claudette I'm not sure Geneva Convention should apply to spammmers. 

I wonder if Matt's TIMU  get's bogus sign ups or if it is spam on existing customer's content.  TIMU is for sports teams, adult and children, so I imagine with under 18 year olds on a site  you would have to be very vigilant or you'd have the team parents up in arms. 

Sharon  I went to look to see if the vendor who called me an ignorant dinosaur had posted since I wrote a post about that comment: Comment Spam on an Open House post

Or I felt like Chuck was using my post to the general public in Central Ohio  was being used to say I was an ignorant  real estate dinosaur. 

He is not posting.  Still comment spamming?  He had done a lot of comment spamming and had his comments visable so I reported lots and lots of them. 

I think anyone who AR has to remove comment spam should lose the right to hide their comments.

Sep 08, 2009 10:27 PM
DriveBuy Technologies
DriveBuy Technologies - Austin, TX

It can always get better, but I think the admins do a great job of putting the kaibosh on spammers, and I'm not brown-nosing, honestly. They are vigilant.

Sep 09, 2009 10:35 AM
Maureen McCabe
HER Realtors - Columbus, OH
Columbus Ohio Real Estate

They are... no problem with AR removing it... the comment spam. Problem is with the spammers especially those who are members leaving it... 

That's why they deserve a trip to Guantanamo.

I was thinking about your comment on BHB and your post about your sales break through when I wrote this not thinking of it in a bad way,  mind you but just thinking about that your comment was NOT.

Not SPAM. 

While I can't 100% remember what your comment was..  it was about sales.... but it was not spam.

You did not say

Thanks for the info.  I got something ....that will attract more listings, more buyers, keep more listings, and increase peoples impression of your tech savy.  I hope to hear from you...  you will be sold nothing it is soooooooooooooo incredible.

Thanks

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sep 09, 2009 10:56 AM
Karen Hurst
RICOASTALLIVING.COM - Warwick, RI
Rhode Island Waterfront!

I wish we could go back to the "old days" when we could delete comments from our own blog...or can we still do it and I am not aware of how to do it? 

Everytime we get a spammer, we have to notify AR to take the comments off.

I do not like to disable commenting, especially if I am writing for a local neighborhood.  I "want" them to comment!!1

Sep 10, 2009 03:42 AM
Maureen McCabe
HER Realtors - Columbus, OH
Columbus Ohio Real Estate

You can delete comments.  Hover right next to the time stamp and number.  You should have a Delete  link.  Next to that (right of delete) is a Report a Concern link.  AR can get their IP and keep them from coming back if you Report a Concern.  

I use Report a Concern if it is not bad spam.  I want AR to be able to fight it.

 

I was turning my comments on and off when we were getting a lot of the  nonsense stuff and I got emails from people about content about a restaurant on my blog..... I thought at first they just did it because they were more comfortable then I realized my comments were turned off.

Sep 10, 2009 04:00 AM
Karen Hurst
RICOASTALLIVING.COM - Warwick, RI
Rhode Island Waterfront!

I do not have a delete link. I hovered over the time stamp and all I got was the date and time, nothing else..

Sep 10, 2009 07:29 AM
Maureen McCabe
HER Realtors - Columbus, OH
Columbus Ohio Real Estate

Using IE?  I don't have a delete link on an ancient computer I occasionally sign onto in the office.  Also I think it is on my phone I can see the links, delete and report a concern but can't click them...

I think everyone should be able to see the links... they are Seattle boys, they use macs  they forget we are PCs and we can not see those oh so important links 

I have  got very, very used to Firefox. 

I just use IE for MLS.  Actually now that I think about it I am not sure I put Firefox on my netbook yet, I don't know if I have looked at AR to see if I have links to Delete and Report a Concern.

Sep 10, 2009 08:55 AM
Karen Hurst
RICOASTALLIVING.COM - Warwick, RI
Rhode Island Waterfront!

Yes, I am using IE...I am going to check my phone and then send an email to AR..thanks:)

Sep 10, 2009 10:00 AM
Maureen McCabe
HER Realtors - Columbus, OH
Columbus Ohio Real Estate

Jeremy's blog

I BELIEVE  this is a snippet from a post Jeremy did of ABOUT IT...  "CATCH THESE RASCALS"  THERE IS ONLY an edit if you are on your own comment....  Delete and Report a Concern if the comment is left  by someone else.

Sep 10, 2009 10:19 AM
Karen Hurst
RICOASTALLIVING.COM - Warwick, RI
Rhode Island Waterfront!

So can you delete my comment here from your own post?

Sep 11, 2009 02:09 AM
Maureen McCabe
HER Realtors - Columbus, OH
Columbus Ohio Real Estate

Nope but I can report a concern for you though and AR will get the IP and delete it. 

Need something reported?

Only on your own comments can you see edit / delete / report a concern.

Only on comments on your own post can you see delete / report a concern

Those of us with magical powers (ie browser is Firefox or on a mac Safari??? ) can see "Report a Concern" on each comment we see and can get 10 points for taking the time to "Report a Concern"

Sep 11, 2009 02:19 AM
Karen Hurst
RICOASTALLIVING.COM - Warwick, RI
Rhode Island Waterfront!

Well I am going to report a concern...:)  I do not get to see "report a concern" on either my comments or my own post.  I do not have any magical powers, wah.

Sep 13, 2009 05:36 AM
Maureen McCabe
HER Realtors - Columbus, OH
Columbus Ohio Real Estate

I just got to report a concern on Ugg Boots....

Sep 14, 2009 01:43 AM