In our last post we presented a case in which a set of accounts were engaging in ID Theft/Deception and Dapp Farming. That post received a warm welcome by one of the dapps affected by the abusive scheme so today Jaguar Force would like to offer a sort of guide for curators with relevant countermeasures they can implement to minimize the risk of these types of Exploitative Steem Reward Farming affecting their curation operations.
Know Your User
Ask the users to introduce themselves and to provide social media accounts (at least in private to curators if they dont want that info being public), then have the users verify those accounts, for example posting a link to their steem account in said mainstream social media accounts. Most people in the world have some social media account these days, so it is a very practical approach.
If you see that the verified account is a long ago established account, that is a good sign, if the account provided is recently created that's a red flag for it can be social media account created ad-hoc to assist in the ID Theft/Deception and farming.
Avatar Reverse Image Search
Check avatar photographs via reverse image search, to do this right click on the avatar image and select "view image" or similar option in your browser, then download that image and run it through Google reverse image search and through Tineye, or use a reverse image search plugin/function in your browser.
Avatar Photograph Verification
If the user uses as avatar or in it's banners or posts the photograph of an attractive person, verify they are the person they portray to be, for example asking them the typical selfie holding a sign that has written in it their steem user name. This is not to say that users should show a photographs of themselves, but if they show a photograph in the avatar or somewhere in their posts implying that is them, then that ID should be verified.
Introduceyourself Photographs
Check photographs in the introduceyourself of the user via reverse image search too, if any matches show up contrast the data of the matches with the data in the introduceyourself and with the data in the social media accounts provided if any. If no matches show up, at least compare and contrast the images in the intro with the images in the social media account if any and with the avatar image if any.
Suspected Plagiarized Artwork
In the case of artwork that you suspect is plagiarized, please submit the link to the post to us via Discord DM: Jaguar.Force#7300. We employ confidential detection methods that we can't make public in order for plagiarists not to be able to circumvent them. We will employ these methods on the artwork you submit to us and report the results back to you.
Artwork and Sources
Make and communicate to users explicit rules that require the crediting and display of any online sources used as inspiration/reference. Require also that in the case of using images/photographs that are not freely available for commercial use with modifications (derivative works) the user obtains permission from the author for such comercial derivative work use.
Multiple Account Dapp Farming
Make and communicate to users explicit and clear rules that prohibit posting in the dapp or curation project from multiple accounts without disclosing in the bio and/or posts what the original account is. In this way you allow for thematic accounts provided there is full disclosure.
User's Interaction with @Steemcleaners and @Cheetah
Check the interaction between the user and SteemCleaners and also between Cheetah and the user. To do this you can use @inertia's site Steem Together. In it all you have to do is enter the user names in the two textboxes and press query, then the app will show you the interactions. If there is any, review them to see what type of abuse the user has engaged in.
Reposting/Recycling Check
Check that the content hasn't been posted before via regular google search/reverse image search and make and communicate to users rules that prohibit the reposting of the same content. Many users are incurring in this type of abuse, recoursively reposting the same content over and over and over, some went as far as to "delete" the previous instances so that the double post cannot be easily detected.
Faucet Recycling or Recycling by Segmentation
In the case of artwork, beware of cases where the same content in different stages of development is posted, for example if the lineart of a graphic is posted in one post and then the coloring in the next one and similar schemes such as changing the color of the background and making a new post. These are techniques aimed at exploitative rewards farming and we have seen extreme cases in which 20 posts were made of an embroidery work, with about 30 stiches per post. When schemes as the above or similar are used systematically, know you are being farmed by the user.
Complex Abuse Intelligence
Many times curators are faced with cases that are extremely complex to investigate and so we would like to take this chance to offer all curators reading this guide our abuse discovery/intelligence services. It would be our pleasure to assist any Dapp or curation project in the task of minimizing abuse within their midst.
This is Jaguar Force,
Reporting directly from the Jungle.
Onwards!
Hey @jaguar.force,
Nice job compiling all this information. This is exactly how we empower the user to participate and improve! Good job. 👍
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Thank you for your review, @anthonyadavisii! Keep up the good work!
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Good post. Resteemed.
This is like a one stop check point for planning an approach.
Love the closing tag :)
Taking off into the wind
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It might be a matter of respect to list sources that are in the public domain, but this is not required by law. It is patently silly to act holier than the Pope.
![](https://steemitimages.com/640x0/https://uploads6.wikiart.org/images/max-ernst/collage.jpg!Large.jpg)
Conversely, if you use copyright images, listing the source does not get you off the hook for illegally using a image.
Imagine a collage artist who used hundreds of details from public domain images: do you expect a list of sources? For example, would you flag Max Ernst?
https://www.wikiart.org/en/max-ernst/collage
The other problem you might run into (and had done yourself at times with Jaguar photos) is if the "source" quoted is itself a stolen image. Like, if you get your image from a social site, or a website that posts unsourced images (such as for wallpapers). Also, some stuff on DeviantArt is ripped off, which is a ongoing concern, so if you cite a DeviantArt image as a source, how sure can you be that it is not already stolen?
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Too bad you mentioned an artist who died in 1976 and you know better than me that there were no copyright rules, because the internet was far away.
For the rest, @jagur.force answer is exhaustive.
Citing the sources, for the correctness of any work with images is an ethical duty.
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" that there were no copyright rules, because the internet was far away."
you should only comment about a subject you have at least a basic understanding of.
I researched and compiled extensive resources concerning copyright.
What I am talking about is that sources get nitpicked, while there are all kinds of copyright violations going on, even by the author of this post.
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It is not only a matter of respect to list the sources, the reason why sources need to be credited is so the curators know what part of the composition/motive you created yourself and also so the curators can see to what level (if any) you transformed it. It is not a matter of law in that sense but of transparency and honesty, and as to allow viewers and curators to know what part (if any) you created yourself.
Certain CC licences (which is public domain) explicitly require attribution, so in those cases it is public domain and legally required to list the sources.
If you use a copyrighted image as reference, listing the source does not cover you legally as you say, but at least you are not deceiving curators and viewers into thinking the artwork is 100% created by you.
Using multiple sources doesn't except you from having to list the sources, curators and viewers still have the right to know what you created yourself and what comes from another author.
It is irrelevant from the perspective of curators and viewers if the source listed is not the original source, what is important within that context is that you communicate it's not created by you, but somebody else, who specifically is that somebody else is secondary.
Have a great day.
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"Certain CC licences (which is public domain) explicitly require attribution, so in those cases it is public domain and legally required to list the sources."
.... as do mine (attribution, no derivatives, non commercial), and quoting the source is OK as long as you do not use it for commercial purposes, meaning since you are posting here for earning Steem, you are commercial, so quoting the source, as in any other copyright material, is not enough be be legal.
On the other hand, if you purchase the rights for an image it is yours to do with as you like (within the parameter of the license you bought).
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so certain CC licenses require, legally, attribution, namely: you were wrong.
we do not post in any artistic tag, where the main content rewarded is artistic, although I agree with you hunting abusers can be called an art.
Have a great day.
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This post earned 31.193$ worth of author reward and was liquified using @likwid. To learn more click here.
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