Why can you no longer report profiles for "financial interests"?

[ey****]

49 minutes ago, HatfieldMaster said:

Likewise, people (mostly men) don't sign up and pay to use this site to look for a prostitute

see, you say this - but it being a directory for pro dommes was a big part of it in Germany.  This was part of the model.

49 minutes ago, HatfieldMaster said:

. What is wrong with the adultwork.com site??

oh, where to start  

50 minutes ago, HatfieldMaster said:

Would you be happy if you were on there as a sex worker and the majority of people interacting with you had no intention of paying for anything?

I mean; this is what happens on a lot of those sites.

[Ar****]

7 hours ago, HatfieldMaster said:

Oh and they did remove "financial reasons" from the list briefly as I noticed that as well when reporting a profile. Whether that was intentional or by mistake I don't know.

There is one other possibility to consider.

Was the account you were attempting to report an upgraded Dominatrix account?

Those accounts have never been able to be reported for financial interests because they are literally openly declares financial interest profiles; if one of these accounts breaks site rules by acting as a FinDom or such then that has always had to be reported under "Other".

[ey****]

14 minutes ago, HatfieldMaster said:

You're right that there is no perfect (100%) solution, but the harder you make it and more obstacles you put in the way you will deter all but the most hardened fakes/scammers, which would probably eliminate 90% of the fakes. Simply removing profiles does nothing and is no deterrent whatsoever.

this is true - but the more obstacles to deter scammers, the more obstacles which deters 'genuine users'

whilst the more obstacles for scammers, the more lucrative it is to overcome them

15 minutes ago, HatfieldMaster said:

you can easily validate uniqueness by doing a debit/credit card number check

which then requires every user to hand over financial details - and - again, fake/stolen cards

15 minutes ago, HatfieldMaster said:

mobile number verification, with the same number not being allowed once it's associated with a banned account.

likely already works that way.

luckily you can get free SIMs fairly easily to generate another number.

And also, number spoofing.  

[ey****]

and ultimately, I'm not saying the answer is 'do nothing' but this site, and others, are already doing things

but there is always the battle between combatting people not wanted here - and - keeping the site accessible to new 'genuine' people 

[ge****]

23 minutes ago, HatfieldMaster said:

You're right that there is no perfect (100%) solution, but the harder you make it and more obstacles you put in the way you will deter all but the most hardened fakes/scammers, which would probably eliminate 90% of the fakes. Simply removing profiles does nothing and is no deterrent whatsoever.

The problem is that there is no incentive for dating sites (in the broader sense) to tackle this issue. You can bet your bottom dollar that if they were ***d by law to perform some sort of ID verification then they would all do so. There are plenty of 3rd party identity solutions available which would mean the site never had access to your real name and details etc (for those worried about the site being hacked). Would there be some dropoff in users? Probably, to begin with. But once it was the norm people would just accept it and get on with it.

And if you don't want to go down the ID verification route then you can easily validate uniqueness by doing a debit/credit card number check or mobile number verification, with the same number not being allowed once it's associated with a banned account. Again not 100% but it will eliminate all but the most hardcore fakes as the average fake is not going to go through the cost or hassle of continually getting new mobile sim cards and getting lots of debit/credit cards is impractical due to credit checks etc.

Sitting on your hands and ignoring the problem is no solution.

If such solutions were effective though they would be widely used not only on platforms like this but any other that are open to potential *** by scammers.
.
Yes I get what you're saying about incentives to use such things and having a healthy userbase versus cutting out the dead wood etc is always going to be a balance that sites take into consideration.
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What many people fail to realise though is that the vast majority of scammers aren't a lone operator who's sitting at home targeting random people - but massive organised crime groups with the resources (technical and otherwise) to make things like credit card, mobile and ID checks be pretty much irrelevant anyway.
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Not a case of sitting on my hands and ignoring things either, but I am limited in what I can do other than being aware of, and guarded against, the potential for being scammed - sadly something which cannot be said for a large majority of users.

[Ha****]

10 minutes ago, Aranhis said:

There is one other possibility to consider.

Was the account you were attempting to report an upgraded Dominatrix account?

Those accounts have never been able to be reported for financial interests because they are literally openly declares financial interest profiles; if one of these accounts breaks site rules by acting as a FinDom or such then that has always had to be reported under "Other".

Just a normal account. It worked shortly after so i assume it was just a glitch.

[Ha****]

3 minutes ago, gemini_man said:

If such solutions were effective though they would be widely used not only on platforms like this but any other that are open to potential *** by scammers.
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Yes I get what you're saying about incentives to use such things and having a healthy userbase versus cutting out the dead wood etc is always going to be a balance that sites take into consideration.
.
What many people fail to realise though is that the vast majority of scammers aren't a lone operator who's sitting at home targeting random people - but massive organised crime groups with the resources (technical and otherwise) to make things like credit card, mobile and ID checks be pretty much irrelevant anyway.
.
Not a case of sitting on my hands and ignoring things either, but I am limited in what I can do other than being aware of, and guarded against, the potential for being scammed - sadly something which cannot be said for a large majority of users.

"If such solutions were effective though they would be widely used not only on platforms like this but any other that are open to potential *** by scammers.".

Where is your evidence for this? What dating sites have implemented this kind of solution and are full or scammers?
Gambling sites are ***d by law to implement ID checks and do so very effectively. 100% - probably not, but like we agree, no solution will be...

"What many people fail to realise though is that the vast majority of scammers aren't a lone operator who's sitting at home targeting random people - but massive organised crime groups with the resources (technical and otherwise) to make things like credit card, mobile and ID checks be pretty much irrelevant anyway."

That is obviously the case for some of them (the hardcores that i referred to), but many of the fakes are not people with unlimited resources. A lot of the rise in "findom" cases is because there are "social media influencers" out there making *** selling the promise of easy *** to women, and tell them that all they have to do is sign up to sites like this and say that they're a findom and weak/submissive *** will empty their wallets. These are not hardcore scammers, but victims themselves of other scammers. These people can be deterred as well as other low-level fakes such as those selling worn panties, selling content, and the idiots pretending to be people they're not, using stolen pics etc.

"Not a case of sitting on my hands and ignoring things either, but I am limited in what I can do other than being aware of, and guarded against, the potential for being scammed - sadly something which cannot be said for a large majority of users."

And this is the problem... Savvy individuals can spot the fakes/scammers most of the time, but a lot of users can't - either because they're new to this sort of thing, are easily manipulated or are just socially inept. If the site is happy taking their *** then they have a duty of care to them.

[Ha****]

26 minutes ago, eyemblacksheep said:

and ultimately, I'm not saying the answer is 'do nothing' but this site, and others, are already doing things

but there is always the battle between combatting people not wanted here - and - keeping the site accessible to new 'genuine' people 

What exactly are the site doing about the problem?

[ey****]

8 minutes ago, HatfieldMaster said:

What exactly are the site doing about the problem?

even if I knew the specific controls - I'm not going to give this information out on a public board for scammers to make note of to try to bypass

[ey****]

10 minutes ago, HatfieldMaster said:

Gambling sites are ***d by law to implement ID checks and do so very effectively. 100% - probably not, but like we agree, no solution will be...

while there's reasons gambling sites have to do this - the incentive of someone signing up to a gambling account with fake/stolen ID is less so than doing so on a dating site

and really, if you were discovering this site for the first time and they asked for your ID, bank details, etc. would you trust them? Would you expect others to?  

[ey****]

12 minutes ago, HatfieldMaster said:

Where is your evidence for this? What dating sites have implemented this kind of solution and are full or scammers?

I'm going to flip this.  If there was a solution that was extremely effective then why wouldn't a dating site implement it?   Like, imagine the selling point they'd have if they could guarantee everyone was exactly who they said they were and that nobody would, at any time, ask you for ***

[Ha****]

7 minutes ago, eyemblacksheep said:

even if I knew the specific controls - I'm not going to give this information out on a public board for scammers to make note of to try to bypass

Exactly - you don't know if they're doing anything or not.

[Ha****]

5 minutes ago, eyemblacksheep said:

while there's reasons gambling sites have to do this - the incentive of someone signing up to a gambling account with fake/stolen ID is less so than doing so on a dating site

and really, if you were discovering this site for the first time and they asked for your ID, bank details, etc. would you trust them? Would you expect others to?  

You can say the same about any other online service that requires payment... but guess what, ecommerce is a big thing!

[Ha****]

6 minutes ago, eyemblacksheep said:

I'm going to flip this.  If there was a solution that was extremely effective then why wouldn't a dating site implement it?   Like, imagine the selling point they'd have if they could guarantee everyone was exactly who they said they were and that nobody would, at any time, ask you for ***

As i said previously, sites like this benefit from there being a certain level of fake accounts so there is no incentive to try it.

[UK****]

53 minutes ago, HatfieldMaster said:

As i said previously, sites like this benefit from there being a certain level of fake accounts so there is no incentive to try it.

As @eyemblacksheep pointed out, there is a big incentive to try.  That would be a great selling feature.

[Ha****]

14 minutes ago, UK_Knight said:

As @eyemblacksheep pointed out, there is a big incentive to try.  That would be a great selling feature.

You're ignoring the fact that this site is already the dominant position in the (fet dating) market so there is absolutely no incentive for them to change anything.

[UK****]

25 minutes ago, HatfieldMaster said:

You're ignoring the fact that this site is already the dominant position in the (fet dating) market so there is absolutely no incentive for them to change anything.

But not ignoring the fact that it could make more *** by offering that assurance.  There's a big incentive for them

[Ha****]

9 minutes ago, UK_Knight said:

But not ignoring the fact that it could make more *** by offering that assurance.  There's a big incentive for them

Or it  might not *** - and the feeling from others above defending the status quo is that it will put people off. So why take the risk as the dominant player?

[UK****]

3 minutes ago, HatfieldMaster said:

Or it  might not *** - and the feeling from others above defending the status quo is that it will put people off. So why take the risk as the dominant player?

I don't think knowing that everyone is genuine was ever put up as a thing that would put them off.  What was said as things that would put them off may be the hurdles that they need to jump through, however you were asked what the solution that you would propose would be but I don't think you answered.

[Ha****]

4 minutes ago, UK_Knight said:

I don't think knowing that everyone is genuine was ever put up as a thing that would put them off.  What was said as things that would put them off may be the hurdles that they need to jump through, however you were asked what the solution that you would propose would be but I don't think you answered.

It's not my role to do the work/investigation for the site, but I've given a few options earlier in the thread. No solution is 100% perfect, but the site is going downhill with the current status quo, and will continue to do so. And in the meantime paying members are being scammed and taken advantage of.

[ge****]

10 minutes ago, HatfieldMaster said:

It's not my role to do the work/investigation for the site, but I've given a few options earlier in the thread. No solution is 100% perfect, but the site is going downhill with the current status quo, and will continue to do so. And in the meantime paying members are being scammed and taken advantage of.

To turn this around a little and without wishing to sound like I'm victim blaming (even though I am to an extent).
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If those that are being scammed and taken advantage of weren't so desperate for attention and were more aware of the risks they are taking by engaging with people out to fleece them, then while the problem wouldn't go away completely it would certainly be minimised somewhat.
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Yet with regularity we hear of people on here handing *** over to random strangers on the Internet and never seeing a thing - and more often than not it's from someone who's "had no luck" meeting people etc
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While scammers are of course totally on the side of wrong here, I do think that many single guys could protect themselves better by being more aware and less gullible.
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Most scammers are pretty easy to spot and avoid and usually within the first two to three messages if not before.

[Ha****]

1 minute ago, gemini_man said:

To turn this around a little and without wishing to sound like I'm victim blaming (even though I am to an extent).
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If those that are being scammed and taken advantage of weren't so desperate for attention and were more aware of the risks they are taking by engaging with people out to fleece them, then while the problem wouldn't go away completely it would certainly be minimised somewhat.
.
Yet with regularity we hear of people on here handing *** over to random strangers on the Internet and never seeing a thing - and more often than not it's from someone who's "had no luck" meeting people etc
.
While scammers are of course totally on the side of wrong here, I do think that many single guys could protect themselves better by being more aware and less gullible.
.
Most scammers are pretty easy to spot and avoid and usually within the first two to three messages if not before.

I agree... but it doesn't mean that these people are any less deserving of protection.

Rather than deleting scam/fake profiles they should be left on the site, but with no ability to interact with users, and with warning labels alerting users that this was a scam/fake profile. That way you'd at least be highlighting that it was a risk users faced, and i'd also hope it would teach them on what clues to look out for on such profiles.

[ey****]

2 hours ago, HatfieldMaster said:

Exactly - you don't know if they're doing anything or not.

I used to be a fetmod.  I can confirm they DO.  They do a Hell of a fucking lot.

[ey****]

2 hours ago, HatfieldMaster said:

You can say the same about any other online service that requires payment... but guess what, ecommerce is a big thing!

where else asks for your ID when shopping online?  Even if you order booze they only check your ID on delivery

[ey****]

1 hour ago, HatfieldMaster said:

You're ignoring the fact that this site is already the dominant position in the (fet dating) market so there is absolutely no incentive for them to change anything.

so why don't any others

imagine how far someone would eclipse all others if they could assure they were "fake free"