4 ms·

I wonder if things will get to the point (or maybe we're already there) that it would be feasible enough to set up something akin to a SaaS/PaaS for botting ope

I wonder if things will get to the point (or maybe we're already there) that it would be feasible enough to set up something akin to a SaaS/PaaS for botting operations. Similar to how DDoS crews rent time and botnet resources for customers, such a service could auction off time slots (e.g. specific 'drop' dates in the case of sneakers) to users who want to buy en masse or ensure that they can at least get some amount of the product they want.

penagwin 6y ago
Oh they already exist :D Heck I have a feeling adecent number of people who work on such operations are on HN
franklampard 6y ago
Already. The sneaker market is filled with sophisticated bots.
JohnCurran 6y ago
These have existed for quite some time. If you'd like to take a closer look, see: https://www.reddit.com/r/shoebots/ https://www.reddit.com/r/shoebots/ https://shop.houseofcarts.io https://shop.houseofcarts.io
ZeroSync 6y ago
Hey, this is more or less being done. The best bots/groups are bringing in comparable salary if not more than industry standard in their respective fields. If anyone is interested in developing Bots/Platform to secure limited items em masse, please shoot me an email at: sukh@zerosync.io I have direct connects with some of the biggest sneaker storefronts, and looking for developers.
- x86_64Ubuntu 6y ago
  Wouldn't a bot network used to purchase any kind of good run afoul of the CFAA? I've never heard of such, but I wouldn't put it past a high level company to make a stink and then send Feds to peoples' doors.
vardaro 6y ago
In high school I attempted this. I was only able to successfully snipe a handful of Adidas sneakers and sell for a minor gain. I concluded that it was not worthwhile since I couldn’t develop a way to overcome captchas. If I were to try this today. I would attempt to reverse engineer the api route used for submitting an order instead of automating the web page via selenium...
- efficax 6y ago
  CAPTCHA solving farms are cheap relative to these "assets", they're not even remotely a barrier anymore
- rdtwo 6y ago
  You need scales think 100 or 10k tasks. And speed. But selenium works just not well. Usually the user just sits there and solves capcha.
manigandham 6y ago
This has existed for years. It's big enough that there are entire broker platforms to buy different bots, here are just a few: https://botbroker.io/bots https://botbroker.io/bots These bots are used for everything from clothing to video cards.
cinntaile 6y ago
Sneakers as a Service ;)

penagwin 6y ago

Oh they already exist :D Heck I have a feeling adecent number of people who work on such operations are on HN

franklampard 6y ago

Already. The sneaker market is filled with sophisticated bots.

JohnCurran 6y ago

These have existed for quite some time. If you'd like to take a closer look, see: https://www.reddit.com/r/shoebots/ https://www.reddit.com/r/shoebots/ https://shop.houseofcarts.io https://shop.houseofcarts.io

ZeroSync 6y ago

Hey, this is more or less being done. The best bots/groups are bringing in comparable salary if not more than industry standard in their respective fields. If anyone is interested in developing Bots/Platform to secure limited items em masse, please shoot me an email at: sukh@zerosync.io I have direct connects with some of the biggest sneaker storefronts, and looking for developers.

x86_64Ubuntu 6y ago
Wouldn't a bot network used to purchase any kind of good run afoul of the CFAA? I've never heard of such, but I wouldn't put it past a high level company to make a stink and then send Feds to peoples' doors.

vardaro 6y ago

In high school I attempted this. I was only able to successfully snipe a handful of Adidas sneakers and sell for a minor gain. I concluded that it was not worthwhile since I couldn’t develop a way to overcome captchas. If I were to try this today. I would attempt to reverse engineer the api route used for submitting an order instead of automating the web page via selenium...

efficax 6y ago
CAPTCHA solving farms are cheap relative to these "assets", they're not even remotely a barrier anymore
rdtwo 6y ago
You need scales think 100 or 10k tasks. And speed. But selenium works just not well. Usually the user just sits there and solves capcha.

manigandham 6y ago

This has existed for years. It's big enough that there are entire broker platforms to buy different bots, here are just a few: https://botbroker.io/bots https://botbroker.io/bots These bots are used for everything from clothing to video cards.

cinntaile 6y ago

Sneakers as a Service ;)