So Many Reasons Why Deutsche Telekom Won't Buy... >>

<< Before Suing Wikipedia, Maybe Do A Wikipedia...

by Mike Masnick

Mon, May 5th 2008 2:35pm

Filed Under:
ecosystem, spam

Companies:
craigslist

Permalink.

Competitors Using Software To Mark Each Other's Craigslist Postings As Spam

from the now-that's-impressive dept

One sign of a successful software company is when an ecosystem starts to build around it. We've seen this with companies like Microsoft, eBay and Google of course. And, while there definitely have been some products built on top of Craigslist, I hadn't realized it had gone so far as to include software that will try to trick Craigslist into deleting a post as spam. As you may know, Craigslist has a little link on each post that allows any reader to "flag as spam." There's an automated system that takes note of these clicks, and if enough such clicks come from enough unique users, the post is automatically pulled off the site. For the most part, this system is both effective and efficient. But, according to the linked article above, there's software out there that will let you "flag as spam" any post you want, sending multiple clicks pretending to come from unique users. It's being used by some companies to maliciously pull down perfectly legitimate posts from competitors. Craigslist says it's constantly tweaking its systems to avoid this kind of thing, but why not have a Wikipedia-style setup, where "deleted" spam posts can be reviewed by folks who can "undelete" the not-spam ones? It can use the same basic system, where if enough people vote that a "spam" post is legit, it goes back online. Or if it's really an issue, then certain posts that get jerked back and forth could finally be "locked" by an admin based on their discretion.

82 Comments | Leave a Comment

If you liked this post, you may also be interested in...

Reader Comments (rss)

(Flattened / Threaded)

Jake, May 5th, 2008 @ 2:57pm

A decent CAPTCHA ought to go most of the way to fixing it, as well as blocking its use with known proxies like Tor.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Anonymous Coward, May 5th, 2008 @ 3:52pm

why don't you code it for them?

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Anonymous Coward, May 5th, 2008 @ 4:05pm

As a user, I hate CAPTCHA's

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Anonymous Coward, May 5th, 2008 @ 4:20pm

While CAPTCHA may be a minor nuisance it is a small price to pay in the war on bot-tards.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
DittoBox, May 5th, 2008 @ 4:27pm

Re:
One man's opinion, but captchas are terrible and inaccessible ways of keeping the bots out. They're also increasingly ineffective and as of late are getting almost completely illegible for humans as well.

The last 5 captchas I've had to deal with I have not been able to use. I'm young, smart and have 20/20 vision. It ain't me.

These things are pure evil.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Joel Coehoorn, May 5th, 2008 @ 4:38pm

Don't underestimate the spam
I think you might underestimate the amount of spam that gets removed this way.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Greene, May 5th, 2008 @ 4:53pm

If it's a business that has competitors, what are they doing on Craiglist?
I didn't realize businesses could use Craiglist for advertisement. If they are a company big enough to have competition, wouldn't it be correct to mark their Craigslist ads as spam?

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
TX CHL Instructor (profile), May 5th, 2008 @ 4:54pm

Re: CAPTCHA
CAPTCHAs have been pretty handily defeated. There is one company that farms out CAPTCHAs all over the 'net, offering free porn for solving a CAPTCHA. Typical CAPTCHA is solved in about 10-15 seconds with that system.

Even the OCR (and neural net) programs are getting pretty good at solving CAPTCHAs.

CAPTCHA is not the answer. Wish I knew what was.
--
http://www.chl-tx.com Concealed Handgun License Training in North Dallas, Tx.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
anonymous, May 5th, 2008 @ 5:05pm

idea
if companies are doing this, craigslist should permanently ban them, and anyone using the software if there is a way to find it out, and i mean on the FIRST offense, and no recourse.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Haggie, May 5th, 2008 @ 5:43pm

It's probably used by competing pimps to remove "erotic services" listings from their competitors...

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Dr. Slobber, May 5th, 2008 @ 6:32pm

CRAPTCHA
It's not the competitors that you have to worry about on Craigs, it's the idiot flaggers that have nothing else to do but maliciously flag other user's posts. It's actually a sport over on Craigs to see how many posts you can have taken down. There are flagger mobs that spend a great deal of their lives just taking down other's posts.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Craigs defender, May 6th, 2008 @ 8:38am

Perception is part of the problem. Craigslist TOS do NOT allow commercial services or businesses to post in the categories save a very few exceptions. Craigslist is not meant for businesses, it is meant for individuals as spelled out in the TOS. Anything business oriented posted there is spamming if not placed in the SERVICES section unless for a very few exceptions. (car dealers and some Craigslist areas like NY apartments which must be paid for to post) Another thing is that the TOS prohibit selling for third parties, ie...Realtors and consignment brokers. Lastly, the TOS prohibit page graphics which link to the dealers site such as many Realtors use. These are all spam and need to be eliminated as Craigslist becomes to unwieldy to use. I support the individual user concept and do my best to flag dealer ads as spam. I do go to an extreme to assure that it is indeed a business by googling the phone number or name of the person listed but most are so blatant to list the business name. If there is a question, I leave it alone. The magnitude of the dealer/business ads is making Craigslist unusable and everyone should do their part to help out. Yes, there are some Aholes flagging willy nilly but one can find them in everyday life everywhere but if you are a business, READ THE TOS, you aren't allowed so, piss off.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Pitabred, May 6th, 2008 @ 8:49am

Escalating war
The problem with your solutions is that there would simply be an escalating war. There are already the bots (or whatever) to nuke posts, so it wouldn't be a huge leap to create one to "un-nuke" a post. I don't think making it a fairer system like Wikipedia would have the intended effect due to the transient nature of Craigslist posts, as opposed to the more permanent articles in Wikipedia.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
satan, May 6th, 2008 @ 9:21am

Re:
good idea

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
ananananan, May 6th, 2008 @ 9:23am

Re: Re: CAPTCHA
The best way to stop that is to have several captchas and an instruction on which one to solve

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Josh, May 6th, 2008 @ 9:41am

I think it'd be interesting to know how this program actually works. I see two possibilities:

1) The maker of the software has some kind of botnet under his control, and the "report as spam" link gets sent to them to "click" - this is obviously illegal.

2) When you install this software, your computer will download and "click" those links sent in by other people every day/hour/whatever. Legally in a grey area, its an opt-in botnet (I would bet the EULA says you agree to have your computer used to report other messages as spam), but likely violation of Craiglist TOS.

Option 1 can be dealt with by law enforcement, option 2 is a technical problem that could be solved with a blacklist of certain IPs from reporting posts as spam.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
People are losers, May 6th, 2008 @ 11:06am

Captcha
I have maybe had 2 or 3 problems with the million CAPTCHA's i've done. I dont see the big deal.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
JR, May 21st, 2008 @ 6:47am

Craigslist Auto Poster
Try the Craigslist Auto Poster, Free Demo, post 1000's of ads, download at: http://www.FreeWebTrafficOnline.com

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Julie, Jul 2nd, 2008 @ 4:14am

Help Me!
All I want to do is post 20 ads a day TOPS. I can't now with this new program. I use to just use proxies. That no longer works. What to do?

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Steve Baylot, Jul 3rd, 2008 @ 10:19pm

It's not right the way people flag things online
I have a business and I advertise on CL, I also use paid advertising. There is a jerk who is flagging everything in the automotive section of Jackson, Mississippi's CL. He has gone so far as to contact us and tell us we have no right to use CL. Is there any software I can use to get around these guys. Thanks.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
anonymous, Jul 5th, 2008 @ 1:34pm

Re: It's not right the way people flag things online
Steve... your car lot is spamming Jacksonville. How can you say you're being flagged with software when you have a bunch of repeat ads up for the same cars going back a MONTH?

You spammers and your stupid "flagger software" theories are morons.

YOU are the reason craigslist is becoming more difficult to use. You spam, making craigslist make things harder. Then you COMPLAIN (for no reason) making craigslist "guilty" to make things harder.

98% of problems on craigslist are SPAMMERS' faults.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Steve Baylot, Jul 5th, 2008 @ 4:03pm

Spamming Jacksonville? Never been there, hear it's lovely.
I don't think you know what you are talking about.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Cat, Jul 6th, 2008 @ 10:06am

Flagging
I can sympathize with Steve on this one. There is someone flagging and deleting people's ads in the computer services section here in Phoenix. It's sad when a competitor resorts to such tactics because they can't handle the competition. This person has completely destroyed a section that was once peaceful. A person shouldn't have the right to decide what's best for the customer. The customer should have the right to decide which company is the best for their service needs.

People who flag other business competitors ads because they simply either don't like them or because they don't want any competition whatsoever show not only how unethical they are but it puts the customer at great risk of getting ripped off. Then again, the person that has their competition's ads deleted probably don't care who they are hurting or why. It's a very bad way to conduct business and sooner or later the customer will wise up and choose a competitor anyway.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
anjum, Jul 23rd, 2008 @ 11:54pm

i support this , sometimes a bunch of flaggers just sit for fun flagging legitimate posts for nothing ,i dono if they get the ip adress or what but whatever you do they flag it.. even if its some baby item or piece of clothing you want to sell.. craiglist should do something about that other wise soon ppl will be frustated enough to leave the site

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Den Locke, Aug 11th, 2008 @ 3:24pm

similar issues all over cl
I agree that it is the spammers causing the issues. They don't even bother to read the aups. I also see a lot of employers using the gigs section to post free employment ads that are obviously FT positions offering 401k, salary, etc. I flag them all the time. It's petty that I pay $25 (read: CHEAP employment ad) and these guys spam the gigs section to save $25.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Phil, Aug 17th, 2008 @ 7:38pm

Software that assists flagging has its merits...
Not for vanquishing competitors ads but for fighting spam and scam artists.

The amount of spam in the electronics, computer and photo sections of NY craigslist is astounding and this is not only spam it's a scam as well. It seems there's a group of folks from China that are generating this using some auto-posting software. I'm talking about hundreds of ads by a single poster.

http://nospam.softmastergeneral.com:81

Helps in the fight against spam/scams of this nature.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
vern, Sep 1st, 2008 @ 1:41pm

This new phone verification is not working on CL new yorks computer services
There is 1 individual constantly spamming going under many many different business names, one can tell they are the same person its basically the same phone numbers and a flat rate that would be considered a slap in the face to any technical professional, not only that but he uses others ads from around the U.S. as his own, this person could not have an original thought if they were for sale at the 99cents store. He really needs a bitch slap. I won't stoop to that level, but it's ashamed at whats going on. I am only one person but I state my facts to spam@craigslist.org everyday, sometimes it works, other days it's a losing battle.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Anonymous Coward, Sep 11th, 2008 @ 12:58pm

Re:
Do you think pimps are this smart!

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Anonymous Coward, Sep 11th, 2008 @ 1:03pm

Re: similar issues all over cl
Are you sick spammer!

Spammers spam because they are getting flaged!

They have a product to sale as opposed to the flaggers what are they selling nothing.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Anonymous Coward, Sep 11th, 2008 @ 1:04pm

I would rather have more ads then more flaggers!

I use the search function anyway.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
nr, Oct 4th, 2008 @ 11:19am

Re: Abuse of Auto Flagging Software
Same in Atlanta CL esp under the "Cars for Sale" and and a few other places--talk about your ad getting flagged at the speed of light! Daaaym these greedy scumbag dealers are SCARED TO DEATH of any competition! Add these clowns to the malcontents who just flag ads because the don't happen to like and item and you can pretty much forget about doing any listing--almost sounds as bad as the computer services section of CL Phoenix....

I'm looking into somehow getting the auto flagging software (without spending a ton of dough and one thats Mac compatible)....Only getting to protect myself--they wanna flag my ads? I'll flag their azzez right back ;)

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
gypsybutterflyy, Nov 12th, 2008 @ 10:29am

Craig's List jewelry scam - names/emails
Publishing names/email addresses of recent Craig's List jewelry scammers in case someone (smartly) Googles their names before commencing business with them: Barry Wood - cdulf1234@bestmail.us, Heather Freret - newslady68@gmail.com, Teresa Perez - healmax003@gmail.com, service@paypal.com - this is a bogus address: shipment_status@accountant.com. Most of these are part of the Nigerian Craig's List jewelry scam. Don't fall for the fake payment/shipment authorization emails "from PayPal". Report emails immediately to spoof@paypal.com and press@craigslist.org. Hope this all helps!

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
sssss, Nov 19th, 2008 @ 8:07pm

Re:
fuck you fucking looser

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Jeff Mathias, Nov 21st, 2008 @ 5:13pm

Criaigs Flagging Software is Outdated
Ya, since software was created to flag down ads on craigslist, craigslist has been there to stop those programs using footprints as identification...

Post flagging is now a industry, you can have ads shot down in mass with Craigs Hitmen. You can just go to their site at www.craigshitmen.com to have tons of ads flagged.

Craigslist won't be able to stop that I bet

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Dick Hurtz, Nov 26th, 2008 @ 7:30am

Spammers killed craigslist
The autos for sale on CL is just a mess now with spamming skuzz dealers from all over the United States posting autos in Chicago as well as local skuzz scum bag dealers. They polluted it so much it's no good. A dealer friend of mine received a postal ad from a company that sells the software to list all your cars on CL, I told him many months ago they will just ruin the auto section as they have done. CL should just shut it down.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Ses Quip, Dec 4th, 2008 @ 10:13am

Forget about looking for a job on Craigslist now. The New York site has been taken over by Gmail spammers and other creeps phishing like there's no tomorrow.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
ken, Jan 4th, 2009 @ 12:50pm

Re: Criaigs Flagging Software is Outdated
YOUR A FKN GOOF

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
leon, Jan 18th, 2009 @ 9:17pm

flaging
we are constantly flaged by compitetor .what is the best selution?

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Anonymous Coward, Jan 28th, 2009 @ 10:41pm

Re: It's not right the way people flag things online
I have news for you, dumbass :

Craigslist is NOT for businesses. It is for individuals. You are WRONG to expect that your business has the right to post spam on CL.

If you were a real business instead of some dumb fucking hick you'd pay for ads like the rest of the world does.

I wish I lived in MI so I could flag you all day long. No, actually I don't.
MI is a shithole. Good place for a cocksucker like you.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
unknown, Feb 21st, 2009 @ 7:17am

Re: Re: It's not right the way people flag things online
so why did craigslist make a cars and trucks for sales by dealers section if it is not for businesses. at least you can separate this section from owners.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
jamie, Apr 23rd, 2009 @ 3:11pm

Im having this issue right now!
My legit postings are being killed in minutes!
even when i make it very clear im not spam.
its nuts!

all CL has to do is put one of those verification things like they do when you post. if someone wants to flag they can type in a 4 digit number!!

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
kay, May 5th, 2009 @ 9:44am

I have this issue
I have this issue with craigslist.
The only thing that has helped me was a group
I emailed at craigsspamhelp@yahoo.com
Does anyone know of any other groups that spam ads
on a regular basis?

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Anonymous Coward, May 29th, 2009 @ 1:50am

I tried a lot of software available in the market - nothing works.

Finally, I got an auto-flagger made from an indian coder of getafreelancer.com.

It works great - and it's worth the price!

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
CW, Jul 13th, 2009 @ 12:25am

Flagging
I found this post searching for answers cuz I am so friggin pissed of right now it isnt even funny. The CAPTCHA isn't the problem, the problem is self-righteous, lazy, losers who have nothing else better to do than flag. I have posted several legit ads today for employment and some idiot keeps flagging them. If you dont know...wake up, one person can flag a post if you know how to do it (which I wont mention here) This is not a one time thing for me it seems to happen more than 50-60 percent of the time and these people are OUT OF CONTROL! There has to be something that can be done to stop these guys???

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Anonymous Coward, Jul 13th, 2009 @ 11:52am

Re: If it's a business that has competitors, what are they doing on Craiglist?
Why should it be consider spam just because they're a big company? Why don't they have the right to post on Craigslist?

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Anonymous Coward, Jul 13th, 2009 @ 11:52am

Re: If it's a business that has competitors, what are they doing on Craiglist?
Why should it be consider spam just because they're a big company? Why don't they have the right to post on Craigslist?

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
shar, Aug 9th, 2009 @ 6:25pm

flag bots
they are destroying craigslist. they've already destroyed several cities r/r pages - just think what they could do to the jobs sites or the other sites. made numerous complaints to CL to no avail.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
jugstore cowboy, Oct 12th, 2009 @ 11:12am

They Got it Coming
I don't mind dealerships posting. The thing I don't like is when some jackass posts his whole damn inventory (this is when most people feel the need to flag). Dealers are getting worse than the scammers there. BTW, if people are browsing CL looking for a vehicle, they probably aren't looking for something in the $20k-40k range.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
CaptchaKing, Oct 19th, 2009 @ 9:45pm

Captchas are worthless
CaptchaKing is 95% effective as a bot program

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
CaptchaKing, Oct 19th, 2009 @ 9:45pm

Captchas are worthless
CaptchaKing is 95% effective as a bot program

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
ITSYS Solutions, Oct 29th, 2009 @ 3:53am

Web Scraping
Have a web scraping / data extraction requirement? Visit ITSYS Solutions at http://www.itsyssolutions.com

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Anonymous Coward, Nov 9th, 2009 @ 9:34pm

Re: Craigslist Auto Poster
FUCKING GOOF ARENT YA

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Toby Tucker, Nov 15th, 2009 @ 11:04am

Re:
WHY HAVE A CARS AND TRUCKS BY DEALERS SECTION?

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
cockpitinferno, Nov 23rd, 2009 @ 9:21pm

Some of these dealers have no fucking clue. They spam the shit out of the car section in my and post in the FSBO section. Yeah, I'm looking for a $25-30k vehicle on Craigslist. These idiots are getting worse than the scammers on there.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Ashley, Mar 3rd, 2010 @ 10:07am

Re: The problem is people like you
The entire problem was illustrated by your ridiculous post. There are morons who feel it is somehow their duty to police Craigslist...which 1) is owned by a BUSINESS, actively making millions of dollars from its use; and 2)is meant to be open-source. This is not a public-funded government organization, nor a non-profit service to help the 'unfortunate' people-who-have-crap-they-need-to-get-rid-of. It is open to everyone to post whatever the heck they want. Unless someone is posting hateful, abusive things, attacking people unfairly, making dangerous, inciteful, or illegal posts...you should mind your own damn business and leave their posts alone! Do you really have nothing better to do with your time than RESEARCH every ad you come across? How unbelievably sad for you!

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Dee, Mar 16th, 2010 @ 12:10pm

Someone is Flagging/Deleting my Ads
Okay, I work for a legit business offering office spaces etc for lease/rent and storage space for rent. In the past 3 days, all of my recent ads have been flagged. I was doing some ads with gogopin.com, and these were the ones flagged/deleted. I have tried posting a regular text ad and so far that has not been deleted. I post, on average 3 ads a day in various categories (ie storage in parking/storage etc.)

Has anyone else had this problem with html style ads? Any suggestions? Thank you.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
jack makokov, Mar 16th, 2010 @ 3:33pm

Re: Re: The problem is people like you
You don't seem to get what cockpitinferno was saying. For example, I'm currently looking to pay cash for an "inexpensive" vehicle ($3500 or less). Nothing wrong with most dealerships, but I'd prefer to purchase a vehicle from somebody not looking to make a ridiculous profit and selling something overpriced. So I check out the cars + trucks section in my area only to find the place loaded with car dealership ads, along with car dealers posing as private sellers. Yeah, I'll flag 'em, especially when I call a number and it's a dealership. Usually if a dealer is that desperate,deceptive, that's not someone I'd like to do business with. Most people would RESEARCH an ad if they were making a major purchase. Yes, Craigs is free for everybody to post, but dealers take advantage with auto-posters--er, "marketing solutions firms"--posting their whole damn inventories numerous times throughout the day.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Craft Fairs, Mar 25th, 2010 @ 8:31am

geo-IP based flagging system
Hey guys,

Now craigslist is not letting you flag so easily. It looks like they are requiring the flag clicks to come from the same IP address as the post (it's supposed to be a local tool right)?

So the trick of just clearing your cookies and then using a proxy are not going to work anymore.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
karate tortoise, Apr 17th, 2010 @ 10:02pm

Why do people have problems with dealers posting ads? The For Sale by Owner section is loaded with retards who obviously have no intention of selling a vehicle. At least a car dealer WANTS to unload inventory. Here's a few tips for posters and some idiot ranters here:

1.120k-plus is not low mileage for ANY model year
2.If a vehicle has been wrecked and damn near totaled, Blue Book value is of no consequence
3.Try posting a phone number or some sort of contact info if you're serious about selling your car
4.Type your ad in MS Word or other word processing program and check for grammar and spelling errors
5. A 1985 Buick Ciera is NOT a classic or antique
6. A potential buyer doesn't give a rat's ass about your emotional attachment or sentimental value to a vehicle
7. Spammers, don't post photos of vehicles with palm trees and/or desert in geographical areas where neither would ever occur. The incoherence of what you cut and paste is bad enough.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
darrell, Sep 15th, 2010 @ 10:46pm

here is the only solution
Pay for your advertising instead of using a free service.

Craigs list could give 2 shits about spam or people being flagged. ITS FREE!

I love it when people are using a FREE service and bitch when it dont work.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
syracuseny, Apr 7th, 2011 @ 5:01pm

Flagging Craigslist
I'd love to know what software to get in order to flag spam on craigslist. flaggers.org has gone down. Anyone know of any others out there?

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
david, May 10th, 2011 @ 7:05pm

Re: CRAPTCHA
exactly. i buy/sell on craigslist. my competition posts lies about me, then flag my posts. theyre con artists who lie to people, sell bad product on purpose, among a lot of other stuff. software like this could really put them in their place!!!!

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
tinky, May 24th, 2011 @ 4:04pm

Re:
why dont you lick my motherfucking balls

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Simon Garth, Oct 13th, 2011 @ 4:24pm

Real problem at CL
CL has a very serious problem with malicious flagging. But the owner, famed as an a..hole, doesn't give a damn and is not doing anything to solve the problem. He probably won't, either, until a good solid competitor kicks his a.. and scares the hell out of him.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Atomic, Nov 1st, 2011 @ 11:34am

There are people who live to destroy others instead of building a life of their own.

We have become too many.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Deep Doo Doo, Nov 29th, 2011 @ 8:50pm

Re:
All these suggestions are great, and many on the money and would work well.

Just one teensy weensy problem.

Neither Craig Newmark or Clint Powell give a rat's ass.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Deep Doo Doo (profile), Nov 29th, 2011 @ 9:02pm

Re: Re: It's not right the way people flag things online
Really.

Interesting.

Go to AdNuke. Sign up for an account.

Pay them $150.00

They will flag off as many ads as you want as often as you want, as long as you can pay them

Ahem .. .

Whose the idiot?

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Deep Doo Doo (profile), Nov 29th, 2011 @ 9:33pm

Re: CRAPTCHA
You are 100% correct.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Deep Doo Doo (profile), Nov 29th, 2011 @ 9:42pm

Re: Help Me!
what to do poor Julie.

quit spamming the fucking site.

If everyone started acting like human beings again instead of selfish me, me, me, assholes, everyone could do business on craigslist, you only NEED one ad up every day to sell you stuff or advertise your business if it weren't for the selfish fucking pricks who post 20 ads and more and KNOCK THE OTHER POSTS OFF THE PAGE.

GET IT?

If it weren't for the spammers everyone's post would be up long enough to generate some business for them.

But the spammers turn it in to a cesspool of pigs wallowing in there greed.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
NoLimitList.com, Dec 3rd, 2011 @ 7:45pm

Just Use a Craigslist Alternative
Check out No Limit List where no flagging system exists by design so that you can rest assured your ad will stay where it belongs.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Anonymous Coward, Jan 5th, 2012 @ 8:10am

Re: If it's a business that has competitors, what are they doing on Craiglist?
Business's pay to advertise on Craigslist, $40.00 a month to be exact.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
mrnapolean1, Jan 15th, 2012 @ 1:46pm

Solution to Combat Malicious Flagging.
I was thinking to require the user to enter a Capatcha in order to flag. (or to use any of the four links at the top of every post.)

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
CL SuX now, Apr 12th, 2012 @ 2:48am

the ONLY solution to flagBot retards
The problem is the auto-flaggers and pathetic self-appointed censors with no lives that are NAZI flaggers are just another form of SPAMmers on craigslist. This has been going on for years and CL admin has done virtually ZERO about it. Must be that CL admin are lazy, indifferent or incompetent, but this BS is a cancer that is slowly killing their site from within.

The ONLY solution: NO unaccountable flagging allowed!
If we have to go through the BS of Captcha and phone verification to place any legit ad, so should ALL the flaggers, every time. Otherwise CL is just a pointless idiotic Bot vs. Bot pissing contest!!

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Dude, Apr 21st, 2012 @ 9:01am

Re:
I guess businesses shouldn't post jobs either. In the jobs section.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
spammersblow (profile), May 1st, 2012 @ 5:26am

sw florida spammers are horrible!
i run a owner operated power washing business. i post in the household services section, sometimes the skilled trades.
i post once.
every time i post, ill check to make sure it actually made it (sometimes it doesnt and i dont know why) and on top of me is 15-20 posts from the same company also advertising power washing.
they must have someone sit in the office and check it all day to see if they get top posted, then they splash an insane amount of ads to stay on top.
i know when i post im asked for a phone number every so often. i am only 1 guy, i have a landline and a cell. this company must be using the emails and phone numbers of all of thier employees.
craigs should only allow 1 post a day, per section, per ISP, this might help that. also, when are they going to require a license number to post in ALL services sections? right now where i am at, its only required in the theraputic section. unlicensed contracting is ILLEGAL. it should be required by ANY contractor looking to provide a service.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Jerry, Jun 16th, 2012 @ 9:39pm

Re: If it's a business that has competitors, what are they doing on Craiglist?
your an idiot, thats the number 1 reason besides selling and buying cheap shit.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
John Sev, Aug 15th, 2012 @ 11:38am

i traced a flagger
i have a computer repair company in new york city and someone kept flagging my ads nonstop. I decided to find out who they are and i traced them. I called the guy to confront him about and he says yes i flag, what you going to do about it. What should i so about this cl flager????

this is the address of the flagger

billys t shirt shop

1248 Fulton Street Brooklyn, NY 11216
(718) 789-2273

call or text my phones

718-789-2273

718-925-5804

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Paul Wendt, Sep 5th, 2012 @ 3:11pm

Craigslist is a collaborator with the police state
Be assured that all "policies" that require any form of ID verification are deliberately engineered into existence for police state purposes. This IS 1984 being put into existence. What are we supposed to expect them to do? Admit what's going on? No. "It's for spam." "It's to stop stalkers." "It's to cover our liability for insurance purposes." Whatever. The endgame is: There will be no more anonymity, safety, security from govt online anymore. They intend to know every single thing you do online, with timestamps, location data, and everything else. Don't go along with it. If necessary, just print out a flyer yourself with your sale items or your yard sales and post them on bulletin boards around town. The only proper attitude toward Craigslist's collaborative, un-American "policies" is contempt, disgust, and rebellion. Fuck 'em.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Danuboxer, Nov 10th, 2012 @ 10:14pm

Jon Sev Fan
To Jon Sev....
Good job man. Impressive. I have an A-- hole in California flagging my postings. I have set up new accounts and done everything to be in compliance with Craigslist Policies . Yet this motherfucker still keeps flagging me. Can you email me or show me how to track down this motherfucker.I surely will appreciate it.

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Patrick Miller, Mar 4th, 2013 @ 3:53am

CL Flagging Tools
Yes that is true. Too many people use software these days for flagging purposes. This is one such tool that is used for flagging ads on CL http://activerain.com/blogsview/294752/listings-on-craigslist-getting-flagged-deleted-

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Patrick Miller, Mar 4th, 2013 @ 3:54am

CL Flagging Tools
Yes that is true. Too many people use software these days for flagging purposes. This is one such tool that is used for flagging ads on CL http://patmiller27.com/tools/cl-flagger-3/

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]
Anonymous Coward, Mar 20th, 2013 @ 9:04am

Re:
whys there a dealer option then?

[ reply to this | link to this | view in thread ]

Add Your Comment

So Many Reasons Why Deutsche Telekom Won't Buy... >>

<< Before Suing Wikipedia, Maybe Do A Wikipedia...

Follow Techdirt

A word from our Sponsors...

Hot Topics

New To Techdirt?

Explore some core concepts:

read all »

Techdirt Reading List

Amazon.com Widgets

Techdirt Insider Chat

Get the Insider Chat!

A word from our Sponsors...

Have a Techdirt Account? Sign in now. Want one? Register here
Name
Email	Get Techdirt’s Daily Email
URL
Subject
Comment	this is for spambots, do not use this
Options	Save me a cookie

Have a Techdirt Account? Sign in now. Want one? Register here
Name
Email	Get Techdirt’s Daily Email
URL
Subject
Comment	this is for spambots, do not use this
Options	Save me a cookie

Saturday
12:00pm:	Sophisticatedjanedoe / FightCopyrightTrolls Favorite Techdirt Posts Of The Week (33)
9:00am:	Awesome Stuff: Cool Product Designs (7)
Friday
7:39pm:	Rice University Professor: SkyNET's Gonna Take Ur Jerbs! (49)
6:33pm:	Make Art, Not Law (8)
5:27pm:	AP's Attempt At DRM'ing The News Shuts Down (13)
5:00pm:	DailyDirt: DIY Junk Food (3)
3:40pm:	Suburban Express Goes Double Or Nothing On Their Aggressive Behavior (6)
2:34pm:	Want To Destroy Any Hope Of Serious Cybersecurity? Give The DOJ Its Desired Backdoor Wiretaps On All Communications (19)
1:34pm:	Nintendo Exchanges Goodwill For Control; Issues Mass Monetization Claims On Let's Play Videos (31)
12:32pm:	Indian Publishing Firm Can't Take A Little Criticism, Threatens Blogger With $1 Billion Lawsuit, Criminal Charges (13)

Competitors Using Software To Mark Each Other's Craigslist Postings As Spam

from the now-that's-impressive dept

Reader Comments (rss)

Re:

Don't underestimate the spam

If it's a business that has competitors, what are they doing on Craiglist?

Re: CAPTCHA

idea

CRAPTCHA

Escalating war

Re:

Re: Re: CAPTCHA

Captcha

Craigslist Auto Poster

Help Me!

It's not right the way people flag things online

Re: It's not right the way people flag things online

Spamming Jacksonville? Never been there, hear it's lovely.

Flagging

similar issues all over cl

Software that assists flagging has its merits...

This new phone verification is not working on CL new yorks computer services

Re:

Re: similar issues all over cl

Re: Abuse of Auto Flagging Software

Craig's List jewelry scam - names/emails

Re:

Criaigs Flagging Software is Outdated

Spammers killed craigslist

Re: Criaigs Flagging Software is Outdated

flaging

Re: It's not right the way people flag things online

Re: Re: It's not right the way people flag things online

Im having this issue right now!

I have this issue

Flagging

Re: If it's a business that has competitors, what are they doing on Craiglist?

Re: If it's a business that has competitors, what are they doing on Craiglist?

flag bots

They Got it Coming

Captchas are worthless

Captchas are worthless

Web Scraping

Re: Craigslist Auto Poster

Re:

Re: The problem is people like you

Someone is Flagging/Deleting my Ads

Re: Re: The problem is people like you

geo-IP based flagging system

here is the only solution

Flagging Craigslist

Re: CRAPTCHA

Re:

Real problem at CL

Re:

Re: Re: It's not right the way people flag things online

Re: CRAPTCHA

Re: Help Me!

Just Use a Craigslist Alternative

Re: If it's a business that has competitors, what are they doing on Craiglist?

Solution to Combat Malicious Flagging.

the ONLY solution to flagBot retards

Re:

sw florida spammers are horrible!

Re: If it's a business that has competitors, what are they doing on Craiglist?

i traced a flagger

Craigslist is a collaborator with the police state

Jon Sev Fan

CL Flagging Tools

CL Flagging Tools

Re:

Add Your Comment

Techdirt RSS

Techdirt's Daily Email Newsletter

I’m looking for policy...

I have an idea...

I have an app...

Hot Topics

New To Techdirt?

Saturday