There is an interesting astroturfing/spamming tactic on Reddit that is currently being used, and it is practically invisible to Reddit admins. Here are the step

There is an interesting astroturfing/spamming tactic on Reddit that is currently being used, and it is practically invisible to Reddit admins. Here are the steps: -1- Create at least two Reddit accounts - an astroturfing account and a moderator account. -2- Moderator account: Become a moderator of a medium-sized subreddit - it doesn't have to be about your promotion target. You can either buy a Reddit account or petition to be a moderator through various means. Use your moderation credentials to become a moderator of a relevant subreddit that is run by an absent moderator. -3- Astroturf account: Start astroturfing - by putting your links on any post that is relevant to your product in the relevant subreddit. -4- Moderator account: Set the spam filter to automatically delete all posts and domains by astroturf users. -5- Moderator account: Approve the deleted spam comments/posts. Now, after that, Reddit won't care if you mark those comments/posts as spam because they have already been identified as spam, but the moderator approved them. To get Reddit to take action in a situation like this, I had to send probably over 20-30 reports. Reddit is making it harder and harder to get in touch with administrators/abuse teams - everything is automated. The key phrase that I think got the issue raised was something like, "I believe these posts/comments violate FCC rules regarding material connection to XYZ.com. Moreover, the relationship between the moderators of the XXX subreddit and the astroturfing accounts violates moderator guidelines and promotion rules."