Do more to combat streams that advertise phishing links
The Oldschool Runescape section on twitch has rampant issues with phishing streams. The scammer downloads a vod of a popular streamer, creates a new account, and streams with titles such as "My Final OSRS stream", and instructs viewers to visit the runescape forum link below the stream to read about it. The link is a phishing page, obviously.
They do some other scams sometimes as well, e.g. "Click the link below to activate your double xp buff", while restreaming a dev Q&A vod.
I'm sure it's a problem in some other communities as well.
The streams are extremely easy to find, they're new accounts with hundreds of viewers, no sub button, no followers, etc.
Even if they get banned they just make a new account, so we need a different solution anyway.
It's impossible to send warning messages to chat because the scammer sets chat to sub only; that shouldn't be possible for channels that don't even have a sub button.
If the scammers couldn't use sub only, they would then use emote only, so maybe a new emote that says "SCAM" would be a good idea. It could even double as a great emote to spam when your favorite streamer starts doing sponsored gambling streams ;p
A new streamer getting 100+ viewers should automatically be flagged as suspicious, and maybe have a dismissible warning overlay on the stream?
On YouTube, sometimes clicking external links takes you to a page that says "Are you sure you want to leave YouTube?", a feature similar to that for non-affiliate, or suspicious-flagged channels is probably a good idea. "Are you sure you want to go to secure.oldschooI.us.leg1t-os-forums-real.lol?"
It shouldn't be possible to create a link on text if the text is a url that doesn't match the url being linked to, e.g. https://www.twitch.tv/mystream shouldn't be allowed, but My channel is okay. People are probably less likely to double check a link if the link they're clicking already looks like a url.
TL;DR please do... something
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annagorns commented
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Kydrah commented
+1
I was very public about this problem but then they threatened me via email with my real name and phone number in the email stating they had my full dox.
It feels like we're dealing with the internet mafia/cartel.
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chicknwiings commented
I was gonna write the same feedback. I remesiss about the game when I open up twitch and see the catagory there with their 7k viewers. Instantly I feel despise when I see 3k viewerbots on one stream that's maliciously trying get you to click their phishing link (and actially making a living) by stealing your in game accounts' belongings, then illegally selling the "profits" on shady websites.
As you mentioned, the streams are consistantly the most "watched" stream in this catagory and it should be easy to monitor as they only have 1 or 2 followers with 3k viewers. The fact that this has been going on for years and nothing being done about it beats me. The community guidlines on twitch.com spesificly says, and I quote:
'Any content or activity featuring, encouraging, offering, or soliciting illegal activity is prohibited. This includes' (...) 'defacement, or theft of public or another person's private property without permission on stream.'
In other words, following twitch's policy they do not premit these kinds of streams, but do little action to take them down.
Since twich puts the responsibility to click on links (that is not connected to twitch itself) on us, it's easy for them to not make an effort to deal with this problem. However, myself and many others despise these malicious streams that shouldn't be there in the first place. So please put some effort in removing this.
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SpookyxCraig commented
No safety or removal of phishing streams has occurred for communities, at all. Phishing streams are constantly online, or brought back online minutes after a moderator removes them.
Designate community or game-level moderators that can submit expedited stream take-downs of streams that are fake.
For example, the Old School Runescape category has a consistently #1 spot viewbotted account that is rebroadcasting streams of popular streamers in this category, claiming they "are quitting" and "click links in bio to read more."
These streams are phishing attempts and have legitimately been stealing CC information from fooled users for years, and nothing has been done about it.
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bananas commented
+1
I've seen these for at least 2 years. Do better twitch.