Calendar
Network
Feeds
- 59
- Sphinn It!
Went Hot: August 29, 2008 - 11:05 am
Posted By: montydad5000 95 days ago
Topic Type: News Story (Jump to http://www.montysmegamarketing.com)
Category: Affiliate Marketing
16 Comments
Went Hot: August 29, 2008 - 11:05 am
Posted By: montydad5000 95 days ago
Topic Type: News Story (Jump to http://www.montysmegamarketing.com)
Category: Affiliate Marketing
16 Comments
Top 10 Most Sphunn
In What's New
- Google analytics for SEO part III -... (19)
- Stop Paying Google! SEO vs PPC (18)
- Facebook Nearly Doubles US Users in... (18)
- Top 10 Reasons for PPC & SEO Synerg... (17)
- Making Geotargeted Content Findable... (17)
- fRank Takes on PageRank (16)
- 5 Ways PPC, Social Media & SEO Work... (16)
- trendwatching.com's December 2008 T... (15)
- SEO Bookmarklets Collection: On-Pag... (15)
- Web Analytics Q&A with Eric T. Pete... (15)
Latest Comments
- Not sure why you're so fixated on protecting your rights to create fake ava…
- I can post top cities for SEO jobs, as well, if there is interest.…
- You know, I found this article aand video to be worth checking out. Sphunn.…
- Ultimately the answer is a mixture of SEO & PPC to satisfy short term and l…
- I joined sphinn today, and must say this post has been worth signing up. Ex…
- Good stuff, thanks! GoAn just keeps getting better and more useful.…
- So what you guys think? Off base? Right on? Additions?…
- Reading this was the most fun I've had all day.…
- - read more -
Save the date for:
• SMX West - Feb. 10-12, 2009
• SMX Munich - April 22-23, 2009
• SMX Social Media Marketing - April 29-30
• SMX Advanced - June 2-3, 2009
Learn more about search marketing through free online webcasts and webinars from our sister site Search Marketing Now.
Upcoming Webcasts:
Comments
Frightening number of noobs in DP now considering this get rich-quick scheme. I quote "lol wow btw he and his frns have gr8 mind and tricks to make money :|"
For me this is no different from Seth's "cookie jar" plan. The advertiser looses out. Strange that a forum of people trying to make a buck on affiliate marketing can't see the threat cookie stuffing presents to their own business model. Let alone the way cookies could be forced onto users that override their own ones.
Interesting comment they found over at WickedFire:
@jonathan
Despite the 'beta' label this site seems to confirm the story. They are getting sued under the 1962 Racketeering (RICO) Act? I assumed that cookie stuffing would be against the TOS of some affiliate plans but this places it into a different light.
To be fair, his comment on Shoemoney's blog is taken entirely out of context. He's right, what Shoemoney describes isn't cookie stuffing. Comment is here:
http://www.shoemoney.com/2006/09/10/google-teams-up-with-ebay-cookie-stuffer-misspellitcom/
@QualityNonsense
You're right, when read in the context of the origional article that quote does take on a different meaning.
I hear people chanting "who does it hurt" all the time, that all this BH crap is harmless, that there are no real victims.
Sorry, apparently eBay disagrees and I'll bet the 12 people sitting on that jury will probably feel the same way.
Best yet, thanks to the RICO act, Shawn will have a new moniker that almost sounds like a cookie stuffing superhero...
"The Racketeer"
Yes the whole thing is really disturbing. Especially so many of the uninformed comments over at the DP forum.
I've been blogging this too, in detail. And before this did research and blogged about a specific BH cookie stuffing trick that people have been using to stuff TONS of cookies on forums. Reading between the lines in the legal doc, it appears that was the method Shawn et all allegedly used too.
I've been talking this week with affiliates over at the eBay forum about all the eBay cookie stuffing going on and some of the methods. And I'm helping forum owners learn how to spot this tricky type of stuffing that's being taught at some of the BH forums.
Ebay canned 300 affiliates in one fell swoop about a week ago and some speculate that some of those were cookie stuffers too.
Speaking of the eBay forum - I keep checking it for news of this and haven't seen anything. I wonder if people have posted and it was deleted because it's a legal case???
Linda
I personally have yet to meet a good programmer who has not at one point looked into cookie stuffing and whether or not it works.
Is this really true?
@MikeDanmann: I could introduce you to a many fantastic programmers that have all made millions and I'll bet not a single one of them ever tried cookie stuffing and probably don't even know what cookie stuffing means.
Don't lump all good programmers with seedy GRQ web programmers...
Some good points, Nick. Clearly this doesn't hurt Ebay though as much as it hurts the other affiliates who were stiffed out of a commission because people got "stuffed" elsewhere.
I agree with Mike, I don't understand how a programmer wouldn't be curious as to how it was being done. However, not many would actually try to profit from it. eBay's aff program pays very well without any need for cheating.
I'n curious to see how this case turns out. They clearly violated eBay's TOS, but a RICO case? It seems like this has more value for eBay as a scare tactic than as a winnable lawsuit. Cookie stuffing is as old as the hills, so does eBay's past indifference hinder their ability to claim damages?
Side note: I wonder if eBay's recent move to bring their affiliate program in-house instead of with CJ provided the tracking they needed to catch them / build a case. I would expect CJ to have more savvy than eBay for catching this sort of thing.
"Side note: I wonder if eBay's recent move to bring their affiliate program in-house instead of with CJ provided the tracking they needed to catch them / build a case. I would expect CJ to have more savvy than eBay for catching this sort of thing."
No I don't think so. The charges were from 2004 - 2007 when the program was on CJ and they mention that the stuffing took place through CJ.
"I don't understand how a programmer wouldn't be curious as to how it was being done" Programmers don't even need to try. It's been publically taught at some BlackHat forums. I posted a long blog about this particular method of cookie stuffing on forums awhile back and like I said have been helping forum owners learn how to catch and block this type of stuffing.
BW they buried the BH forum that's been teaching this and made it a private forum but luckily I found out and was able to grab everything from Google cache. I try to keep up with all their tricks. Since I own an affiliate forum, we are a big tarket for all kinds of sneaky stuff, like the type of cookie stuffing Shawn was accused of. I always have one finger on the ban button.
BTW I mentioned in my comment above that I thought it was odd no one on the EPN forum was talking about it. A thread just did finally start over there, so I'm glad they are allowing the conversation.
Thanks for the feedback Linda, you're certainly on top of things.
I had no idea the charges were going as far back as 2004. It does make more sense that these actions occured some time ago, as it seems like it would be very easy to detect / stop cookie stuffing.
zzzzzzzzzzzzzz...... old news... I am suprised it took them this long to bring charges.
you guys are great. Especially your open minds. The trial has not even started yet, but all of you seem to know he did it and already are waiting for something that makes you fell less un crative.
5star, shame on you for being so judgemental. You have never ever done anything to fight cookie stuffing, but now you are trying to hold someone accountable who has not even been proven guilty!