Is adding a scammer/imposter warning to user profile pages a good idea?
Some ppl may get scammed by impersonators and put incorrect warning on innocent ppl.
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Good idea but it doesn't go hand in hand with calling out.
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It could be just an impersonal warning, no need to name anybody.
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How would it be callling out? If it wasn't clear, I just want a general warning about impersonators posted on my profile (and all profiles), so if someone else links an SG newbie to my profile pretending to me, the link recipient knows to check whether that person is actually me (before they get scammed by an impostor).
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impossible to call out he means post the warning on all accounts which is a good idea, im tired of hearing about people being scammed cuz they dont click "go to profile" to make sure they are talking with the same person
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it's just a warning without calling out, i think it would help.
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I wanted a chance to leave a neutral comment in Trade Feedback for this purpose during site testing, but it unfortunately wasn't included in the final site.
I agree with the option to add a warning to warn unknowning users to confirm they are trading with the correct user.
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Maybe it could be so that people that are not logged in or a new user checking a profile for the first time would see the message but have a check mark that you acknowledge that there are impersonators so you don't have to see the message every time if it's something you're already aware off.
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IMO, the people dumb enough to get scammed by impersonators don't pay enough attention anyway to heed warnings like that.
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While anyone getting into trading should learn to do a bit of research on users before hand, impersonators do make a habit of going after the ones who won't know any better. Even a bit of info on the page telling them to confirm the user has X games and Y badge level would cut down a lot of people who pull that crap.
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^This. Even with the tools I currently have, new traders often tell me they already double checked it was me thanks to the warnings I've posted on my trades and feedback page.
Its the new-ish traders who are simply linked to a profile on SG that end up getting scammed - they just assume that a profile with lots of positive feedback is safe to trade with. A Big ol' WARNING sign near that feedback number would go a long ways to prevent this, methinks.
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The biggest problem is with traders who aren't Steamgifts members. Since they can't see the link to our profile without being logged in, they take that rep at face value, then register to post negative feedback after they get scammed.
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Best you can do at this moment is changing your avatar with an impersonator warning. Success is not guaranteed though, at least from what I saw. It's the same user that tried to impersonate Delta not long ago and threw an hissy fit when outed.
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Yeah, noticed they are currently imping this guy myself.
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I have no reason to post here, but holy sweet Jesus dude, how does one simply have level 360 steam profile? :D
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I think this is a good idea. I don't trade very often, and I'm careful to check when I do, but this makes it better for newbies and that's probably a good thing.
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Basically my thought. The people who trade often won't care, but if it protects a few newbies from learning the hard way, then why not?
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I don't see any reason against the idea, so why not?
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Best thing you can do right now is use your avatar as a warning.
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I honestly can only agree with OP after just seeing another SG user scammed by a " know " SG scammer/impersonator (again)....
http://www.steamgifts.com/discussion/2ICmw/just-got-scammed-by-a-guy-with-300-steam-trades-rep
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It just happens far too much for there NOT to be a warning about it.
This is the same reason Steam added a big red text to (empty) trades about Steam wallet not being tradeable, a name similar to a friend you already know, etc. The more you know, rainbow!
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Its the same reason people fall for any scam - its easy to go to the steamgift profile and trust a high rep user with the same profile image / text, completely overlooking the fact that people might impersonate another user - unless you know about it already. 20/20 hindsight and all.
Once people are aware this scam happens (or fall for it), yes, they will make sure to check the linked Steam profile as carefully as they can for expensive games. That's why a warning would help.
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I think that said scammer/impersonator takes into premeditated account that his 'prey' is to busy, to distracted, to occupied, to unwary to notice crucial things like that. It's preying on humans being "human".
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Still not a great idea still leaves to much open for mistakes and wrong people getting blamed,it is bad enough that you can now get marks on Steam because someone dislikes that you will not give them the low ball offer they want and report you as a scammer.
To be honest i am tired of these warning and all this crap,if people risk there stuff and lose it that should be on them,most scams happen for the lack of common sense,and also the lack of being lazy and learning the basic of trading,and also not trust everyone fully on the internet which so many still do.I always said never trade anything your not fully willing to lose as no matter how many times you dealt with them or how trustworthy they are all it takes is one time to lose your stuff and one time for them to step over the line,if your not willing to take that risk then maybe trading should not be your thing/
Bottom line Steam offers plenty on how not to get scammed plenty of forums have post about plenty of sources of how not to,and people still do why because they fail to use common sense,also there will always be someone to risk it all for the mother load of deals.
This is also why i never got heavy into trading,it was just to much to deal with i feel much safer dealing with bundle games and getting games say for split price,as if anything goes south i am out pocket change,not dollars,not several keys and so on plus game.
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All he's asking for is a generic message at the top of this page telling people that impersonators exist and to double check that they're actually dealing with the right person. It doesn't do any harm to have a small red box with a bit of text at the top of the page.
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I know what he is saying and getting at...maybe the way i said things i said did not translate to what i meant...
I was just speaking in general not just on what he posted...
My point still is that i am just tired of seeing all these post about scamming and how to warn people and those who impersonate i still think people need to you know learn about scamming and what the risk are,instead of relying on someone else to point out who the scammers are they need to learn how to spot them.
Even if you do post this info on your profile it will do little good if the person who is being scammed is looking at the wrong profile and does not know how to check the right profile,hence all the warning in the world on your profile is going to do little good if the person being scammed does not know how to check if the profile is real or just someone faking it.
I am just saying it times to stop trying to save and warn everyone and let people you know learn on there own,all this hand holding is what helped fuel all these scams as they rely on people who do not do there research and and just throw common sense out the window if they would have taken the time to learn the basic of how scammers work most the time scams can be avoided but in the end it will always be a risk,just the more you learn the less risk it is,instead people still use rep on profiles and other dumb things as trust worthy lol.
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No one would be pointing out who the scammers are, it would be simply a little tidbit added to everyones profile to teach newbie traders how to spot scammers (like you suggested).
People can either learn on their own through helpful warnings like this, or actually falling for a scam - the former is far preferable, both for the victims of scam attempts, and the people falsely accused of crimes. It would also help reduce the number of scammers altogether when a popular method's success rate is vastly decreased.
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The problem is, impersonators are directing their victims to our Steamgits profiles claiming our rep is theirs. And we are the ones receiving the -rep and having to explain the the victim that we weren't the person they dealt with. It's even more problematic with people who aren't Steamgifts members because they don't get a link to our Steam profile when they visit the page so they have no way of comparing. They often register AFTER they got scammed to leave some negative rep.
I will take anything that can help us not be the target of scammed people's misplaced anger. Actually, I have made the same suggestion as the OP multiple times already.
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Welcome to trading...and welcome the what comes a long with it,dealing with these people...
None the less if people are not going to take the time to even learn the basic of how not to get scammed why should i take the time to show them as if they ignore even the basic warning who is to say they still will not throw out common sense and go for a deal that is to good to be true....
My point is...and was people need to learn to protect there stuff,in real life you would not just hand your money to to some stranger on a promise they will give you said item later so why would you do it online,and if you do then it is there fault for being stupid with there money..They also need to take in account like i said before it is never 100% safe so never risk anything your not willing to lose.I am just sick of those who are trading are the ones that are trying the hardest to not get people scammed while the people who do get scammed do little to protect themselves.It is about time we tell them to bugger off why help those who do not help themselves by learning even the basic of trading and scamming,and half the time even when they know about scammers they ignore all rules as I have seen a lot post on here about being scammed and they said i knew i should have not but they did anyhow and got scammed.
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The warning wouldn't be as much to protect the idiots as it would be to protect us from their future retaliation. I'm well aware that many will not take the time to ever read the warning, but if it prevents even 1 in 10 scam attempts, that's a gain.
I fail to see any harm in having a reminder on the rep page to compare profiles before jumping in.
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Fair enough,though i was not trying to say there was harm if you did or did not and if that is what it seemed like i am sorry.
I was just sharing what i thought and i think it is a waste of time,but i was not trying to imply just because that is the way i see it,that is what you had to do.
In the end what you do is your choice and you are free to do so and i was not trying to say you where not.Also i do think it is good that your trying as like you said there is no harm in doing it.
I still think it is pointless and a waste,but again just what i think...so do what you have to i am not judging you for it
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The only one who can really do anything bout it is cg. All I can personally do is suggest it over and over again. :P
It's a 5-minutes job for him to add a small message at the top of the page. And it could potentially prevent dozens of support tickets for -rep deletion.
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Well i do understand what your getting at and yes i agree it could help,but despite that most people will ignore it...but if it helps a couple people then it worked to a degree.
But i still feel strongly people need to take better steps to protect there stuff,and less hand holding and warnings as all of this is common sense,and i am afraid if you roam the net and life without using it,you are going to get screwed no matter how many warnings or red flags they are because in the end they are not going to pay attention.
Either way again it is good that your doing something and that it makes you feel good about helping others and maybe if even one person is stopped from being scammed it is worth it,so keep it up :)
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Each community needs to do their part to protect their community of noobs instead of just throwing it on them and saying "Learn2Trade bitches! You should have seen the signs that require experience with Steam trading to see. So obvious, so you're stupid." That kind of attitude is detrimental. Scammers don't go away just because you added them to your blocked list or got them marked somewhere.
@Nerney, I think it's kind of redundant since known scammers/impersonators will be permanently banned here anyway. And since the trade section isn't moderated (often anyhow) then who'll be doing the tagging and handling of that? Support can't even get to tickets from 2 years ago. I wouldn't push it on cg to add features that won't be used/enforced. Not before fixing the current issues anyway.
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You've misunderstood the request. This is not individual tagging of suspected scammers, this is a generic warning added to the top of every single profile to create awareness of imposters.
New-ish traders need to make sure the Steamgifts Profile and Steam Profile match up, and many simply don't have the experience to do so without a warning (until they get scammed).
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humanity need draconian rules again. killers need to be executed so they cant kill again, the hand of the thieves should be cut down. And dont come with human rights, other humans has rights to not lose things because of thieves and where are the human rights of those whose were killed by a sadist?
Btw, i never got scammed, but is it really terrible idea to try to go to police? Noone do it so i guess they dont careful now, so if police just ask IP of that account from steam they could catch him or give out to interpol, likely nothing will happen, but who knows.
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IP thing would lead to more problems then good as the person scamming could be using VPN or other means to mask there IP.
Killers should be Killed and so on is all well until the wrongfully accused is killed,The world your talking about would be an Eye for an Eye world and in that case the whole world would go blind and the one eyed man would be king.
I still think people also have to takes steps to protect themselves the same as they would offline,i guess i am just sick all the blamed being put on scammers when people themselves have to take steps to protect themselves and there stuff.I guess it just easier to blame others for your actions,it makes about as much sense as blaming your friend for getting injured because you joined in on a fight to help your friend but he started it so it is his fault you got hurt,when in the end you could made the choice to stay out of it.The same with being scammed you have to give them something,without that they get noting,it not the same as them coming into your house and taking an item,as you had no control over that wile this you have control over by just saying no i am not going to trust some random stranger with my stuff,the same as you would not ask some stranger in a park to watch your stuff and then be shocked when you come back and it is gone along with the stranger.,but yet people will trust stranger on the net to take there said item and hope in return you get what they promised
Also to be clear i think it is fine to put warnings on your profile and so on about scammers and so forth,but i still think it is pointless and a waste of time seeing how little people pay attention to it but that is just how i feel nobody has to agree or not do it just because of how i feel
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The only issue I can see is that if you're not logged into SG/don't have an account that meets requirements you can't actually see the link to go to the user's steam profile page. Really every trader should install enhanced steam so they can get the most information for minimal effort.
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Maybe the rep itself should not be visible to someone who's not logged in. That way, those who can't check what profile is linked to the rep page wouldn't be able to see the rep at all.
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Would be interesting if the warning message caught attention, like inside a red balloon with white text, something the user would not miss.
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Steam has warnings of all kinds and in red when you do trades within Steam,yet people still manage to get scammed....something about the allure of a good deal that makes people say hey it is worth a shot i guess i do not get it bu eh.
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It's impossible to get rid of scamming, because of human weakness. Someone is bound to not look at warnings and not follow guidelines. But whatever in my opinion everything that can be done to mitigate such risks should be done.
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Just as i have been saying,i never said you could get rid of it all,but actually you could...the simple answer is to just not trade your stuff...no stuff to trade..no scammers so yes it could be done..
The problem lies within the fact that someone will always take that risk...so there will always be scammers as long as there are people willing to risk there money/good/games/keys or whatever.
I mean scammers can not exist if they have nobody to scam,but i was never trying to say you could get rid of them,but merely that people need to be a lot more proactive on how they deal with people online and the risk of being scammed will be quiet low,but never gone as long as your trading.
I was just saying it time people learn the basic of trading and all that before you take the risk...anymore then you would not leave your kid with a random stranger you do not know but yet people on here will trade with a total stranger who could be from planet pluto then get all pissy when they get scammed,though instead blaming themselves for being careless with there stuff it is everyone else fault it happen.
In any case the topic was merely about posting warnings rather then try to stop it and all,i was just trying point out i am sick of seeing post about scammers but that just me i am sure plenty of others feel different and that is fine....i was just sharing how i feel about it.
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There were idiots traders that fell for this trick because the offender used my Steam account's profile link to do his/her dirty job. I support this.
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Yup. And its always fun messaging angry scam-ees afterwards to explain it wasn't actually you.
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I'm not a trader and I haven't been scammed, but I've seen enough "I got scammed" threads to know this would be a really simple way to prevent many users from having these bad experiences.
I was just about to suggest something similar, but did a search in case someone already had suggested the same thing and found this thread with good examples. I know it's an old discussion, but it really deserves a bump.
cg, you seem to do a lot of improvements to the site right now, this would be a welcome addition to the trade section, decreasing the number of bad experiences users have with the site (people not understanding how it works will think they "got scammed through a fake feedback profile on Steamgifts")
I liked Zomby2D:s example, but I think there should be a line of text added about verifying the account by checking that the Steam level /number of games is the same, so the people with the least experience don't take "same name/profile picture" as being the same account.
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Adding my plus one even though I don't trade - I've seen how these scammers spoof other reputable traders/members of this community and agree that a small addition of a warning would be beneficial - especially to newbies. Every little bit of education/ounce of prevention helps. :-D
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EDIT:
TL;DR: New-ish traders need to make sure the SteamGifts Profile and Steam Profile match up, and many simply don't have the experience to do so without a warning (until they get scammed).
To clarify, I am seeking a general warning about impersonators posted at the top of all profile pages, just so trade-newbies linked to a profile know to check first, trade later, before they lose $50 buying AAA games from a scammer. There will be no calling out or specific warnings about any given person.
I, and many other high level gifters/traders, get scammers pretending to be me, linking my SteamGifts profile page from a copied Steam profile. These impostors then use my rep and gift level to scam unsuspecting people who aren't active enough on SG to know better. A warning on profile pages about scammers or even a personal textbox to add your own info or warning message would help prevent thieves from impersonating high level gifters/traders to scam unsuspecting Steam users.
Currently, I put warnings on all my trades, and even managed to sweet-talk my first reppers to edit their feedback to include a warning message, but this still does not appear on my basic profile page (only if they expand feedback). If we could get some kind of warning at the top of profile pages (ideally near to the feedback numbers), I think it would be a very positive step to preventing trade scams.
====(Sample warning below. Images courtesy of MuIIins / Zomby 2D)=====
IMPORTANT NOTE:
BEWARE SCAMMERS / IMPERSONATORS!
If linked to this rep page, PLEASE make sure you are trading with the real user, not an impostor running a scam. Click the 'Steam Profile' button to make sure the profile is the same.
Muiin's warning example <-- I'd prefer something like this
Zomby2D's warning example
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