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See https://www.reddit.com/r/KarmaBotKillers/wiki/index/ https://www.reddit.com/r/KarmaBotKillers/wiki/index/ > Couldn’t Reddit solve this simply by making kar

See https://www.reddit.com/r/KarmaBotKillers/wiki/index/ https://www.reddit.com/r/KarmaBotKillers/wiki/index/ > Couldn’t Reddit solve this simply by making karma worthless, like HN? Why would they solve this? These bots create engagement. Until some bot farm is weaponized to organize some sort of IRL 'bad thing', I bet nobody at Reddit actually gives a fuck.

ryandrake 3y ago
Thanks, but after reading that I still don’t get it. What makes an account with 10,000 karma worth money as opposed to one with 100 karma? Do high karma accounts get more prominent display, bolder text, or something else that’s actually worth money?
- bongobingo1 3y ago
  Higher karma accounts are less likely to get soft-locked out of communities ("comment/post deleted: you must have x karma to post here") and probably "look more authentic". That perception is probably still subliminally there for a bit longer.
  - ryandrake 3y ago
    Got it. So ironically, the subreddits are kind of causing the problem themselves by insisting on karma thresholds.
    - Implicated 3y ago
      They really don't have much choice. It's likely one of the most effective ways to minimize spam from 5 min old accounts.
- maximinus_thrax 3y ago
  > What makes an account with 10,000 karma worth money as opposed to one with 100 karma Astroturfing. Say you're on the /r/AppleWatch and you see a post asking for some watch band recommendations. People start posting said recommendations and you check to see who's posting what. You will instinctively trust the 3 yo account with 10k karma, very popular on /r/pics vs the 2 month old account with 100 karma. That's one example for why some of these accounts are actually bought and sold https://www.epicnpc.com/forums/reddit-accounts.1277/ https://www.epicnpc.com/forums/reddit-accounts.1277/ Political activism is another scenario for these sockpuppet accounts with heavy karma. I've noticed A LOT of pro-Palestinian and pro-Russian propaganda from accounts with huge amounts of karma quickly gained from a handful of posts on mainstream reddits like /r/pics or /r/funny which are reposted content from 3-4 years ago.

ryandrake 3y ago

Thanks, but after reading that I still don’t get it. What makes an account with 10,000 karma worth money as opposed to one with 100 karma? Do high karma accounts get more prominent display, bolder text, or something else that’s actually worth money?

bongobingo1 3y ago
Higher karma accounts are less likely to get soft-locked out of communities ("comment/post deleted: you must have x karma to post here") and probably "look more authentic". That perception is probably still subliminally there for a bit longer.
- ryandrake 3y ago
  Got it. So ironically, the subreddits are kind of causing the problem themselves by insisting on karma thresholds.
  - Implicated 3y ago
    They really don't have much choice. It's likely one of the most effective ways to minimize spam from 5 min old accounts.
maximinus_thrax 3y ago
> What makes an account with 10,000 karma worth money as opposed to one with 100 karma Astroturfing. Say you're on the /r/AppleWatch and you see a post asking for some watch band recommendations. People start posting said recommendations and you check to see who's posting what. You will instinctively trust the 3 yo account with 10k karma, very popular on /r/pics vs the 2 month old account with 100 karma. That's one example for why some of these accounts are actually bought and sold https://www.epicnpc.com/forums/reddit-accounts.1277/ https://www.epicnpc.com/forums/reddit-accounts.1277/ Political activism is another scenario for these sockpuppet accounts with heavy karma. I've noticed A LOT of pro-Palestinian and pro-Russian propaganda from accounts with huge amounts of karma quickly gained from a handful of posts on mainstream reddits like /r/pics or /r/funny which are reposted content from 3-4 years ago.