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Ask HN: Bots in YouTube Comments

2 pointsby assttoasstmgralmost 3 years ago
I subscribe to a few YouTube channels and noticed one in particular has had a recent explosion of bots in the videos&#x27; comments section.<p>However unlike a traditional spam bot posting links or other advertising (like you would see on HN if you browse with showdead enabled), the purpose here is a bit unclear. The bots all fit a similar profile - they are young attractive females with Hispanic-sounding names that leave generic pleasantries or inoffensive non-sequiturs. Due to the channel&#x27;s niche subject matter, a person fitting that description is probably the least likely person on the planet to be a subscriber so they stick out like a sore thumb.<p>I&#x27;m trying to understand what is going on here, since they simply add noise to the comments section. One theory is this particular creator - who is vocally obsessed with viewers and hit count - has purchased bots to artificially increase the views, and these comments are a method to evade Google&#x27;s anti-abuse software by posing as legitimate viewers leaving innocuous-sounding comments. Does anyone have any other ideas?

4 comments

eimrinealmost 3 years ago
Same is happening in Russian pro-war videos rn. Lots and lots of pro-Russian comments not referring to any word has been told in the video.
uniqueuidalmost 3 years ago
It would be very helpful if you could point to a concrete example!
synualmost 3 years ago
Sounds like the creator is paying to juice engagement.
metadatalmost 3 years ago
Your hypothesis sounds reasonable.