HN Explorer

Ask HN: Why hasn't YouTube removed those fake MrBeast $1000 giveaway ad scams?

32 points by laech ↗ HN
Example scam in the YouTube app: https://ibb.co/BNVy1ZR

I have been seeing this scam ad in the YouTube mobile app for the last few months, that claims anyone who sees this ad will get $1000 dollars. It seems crazy to me that Google/YouTube hasn't done anything about it so far, or have they?

35 comments

[ 3.3 ms ] story [ 94.8 ms ] thread
eiiot
YouTube doesn't have a huge incentive to remove these ads immediately (after all, if they're working, YouTube is making money).

YouTube just generally isn't known for being the best about spam stuff (comments, ads, etc.), so this fits within that narrative.

Pxtl
In general I'm getting deluged with spam on Google's stuff lately -- YouTube spam replies, google docs share spam, google slides share spam, etc.
robswc
I'm glad I'm not the only one to notice this. Maybe its because every other platform seems to have "fixed" it.

Only "spam" I get now is DMs on Twitter and Instagram. However, I _see_ a ton of spam on youtube in the comments or when there's not enough "popular" videos in the niche.

I guess videos is a lot harder than text but even the comment spam is crazy sometimes.

SteveNuts
YouTube ads have become mostly spam for me too lately.

Some of them are making very dangerous medical claims, I'm also shocked google has done nothing but also not surprised at all.

2muchcoffeeman
I stopped using the YouTube iPad app. Safari with ad blockers gets rid of all the scam ads.
Euphorbium
Does safari on ipad gets an adblocker? I am using brave for that reason, but when other apps include a browser, for example rss readers, I get adds.
alexiaa
You can use AdGuard to block ads in Safari.
grrdotcloud
A recent visit to YouTube, the top left video was to a link away from YouTube.

I believe this means someone significant.

joshka
When asking "why?" for something like this, follow the money. This one is pretty simple:

1. The ad is paid for already by someone.

2. To remove an ad, there needs to be a system to report it (or an automation).

3. To check that system, requires human effort.

4. The human effort to review ads likely costs more than the ad paid to be displayed.

5. The effort to minimize that cost costs more than the revenue lost by displaying bad ads.

6. etc.

Personally I value my time more than the $12/mo it costs to not see ads on YouTube.

mozman
With uBlock origin you pay $0 and skip ads.
paulryanrogers
With a get away driver you pay $0 and skip the check-out line.
bjt
Poor analogy. Since when is an adblocker a crime?
paulryanrogers
Since websites depended on ad revenue to deliver the content and services that visitors consume?
jwestbury
It's not a crime, and I use adblockers, but it's not hard to understand that using adblockers on websites which are ad-supported is a self-destructive cycle.
Renaud
That’s on the level of “you wouldn’t steal a car” type of argument.
somsak2
Great, now the creators who's content you enjoy don't get any money to sustain their efforts.

I think letting uBlock stay up as an extension is a brilliant move by Google. It means that the people that use it eventually won't have any content that they actually want to watch, because nobody can make money making it for them.

pseudo0
Sending them $5 via Gumroad or Patreon is worth hundreds or thousands of ad views, depending on the creator's RPM. YouTube ad payouts are pretty stingy.
john_the_writer
No way most people send cash. Most people won't pay for a netflix subscription, there's no chance they're dropping 5$ for a youtube creator.
operatingthetan
Watch any popular live stream on youtube and you'll see random people dropping $1-100 at any given time for their favorite creators. I don't really understand the motivation, but is a real phenomenon.
joshka
I'm not unaware of this. It however doesn’t fit all my use cases and hence the price is still worth it.
yjftsjthsd-h
> Personally I value my time more than the $12/mo it costs to not see ads on YouTube.

I go back and forth on this. On the one hand, yeah, I value my time more than that amount of money. On the other hand, it would mean actively rewarding YouTube for being terrible, including making it a monetary positive for them to leave those kinds of ads up. As incentives go, that seems like a poor choice.

TaylorAlexander
I feel the same way. I’d rather be reminded of what YouTube is for most people and let that be a reminder to use other platforms. I’m very happy with nebula for what it is.
Euphorbium
I paid for nebula in the first year and it was technically basically unusable. Havent used it since.
tech234a
I have also seen a lot of fake Tesla/OpenAI/Elon Musk livestreams in the recommendations recently. They aren't ads, but instead seem to be run on hacked channels that have a few thousand subscribers.
tjpnz
Google are making too much money from it. Only way it's going to stop is through regulation or a series of successful class action suits.
josephcsible
The scammers are paying Google money for the ads. Hiring enough people to deal with scams would cost Google money. So the reason is that there's perverse financial incentives on both ends.
Retr0id
I followed the trail on one of these before. It was backed by a real company, and as best I can tell, you really can get the $1000 if you jump through enough hoops. These hoops involve signing up for auto-renew free-trial subscription services (requiring payment info), surveys, etc.

Definitely not something I'd want to bother participating in, but it seems like it's not a complete scam. It has scammy vibes, but seemingly not out-right illegal, such that the company is allowed to continue to exist.

The supposed Mr beast endorsement is the potential sticking point, I suppose he isn't in on it, but he'd have to be the one to complain to YouTube about impersonation - I doubt you'd get very far trying to report it as a 3rd party without concrete evidence of impersonation.

The one I looked into was called "National Consumer Center"[1], backed by RewardsFlow LLC[2]

[1] https://old.reddit.com/r/beermoney/comments/i1ndrg/anyone_ev...

[2] https://www.nycompanyregistry.com/companies/rewardsflow-llc/