Problem with Blogger.com's 'spam' Algorithm hitting legit sites

[Martinscholes]

I have had several sites hit by Blogger.com and declared as a spam blog.

The Google Algorithm has spoken, so, therefore, that's that then. I have appealed but previously you could eventually get a human to sort out any problem, that seems less likely to happen now.

The problem is that many people seem to mistake an Algorithm for something akin to 'Boyle's Law or the Law of Gravity. It is not.

An Algorithm is a flow chart. The problem is that an Algorithm might be the best thing since the sliced loaf, or it might be totally useless.

For example it might accidentally say: "if blog contants word 'Daisy' then = spam", for example.

The problem is hitting more and more bloggers. Anyone got any ideas, besides the appeal system?

[jannystok]

Appealing only... I don't think there's much sense in trying to change your content or optimization, cuz algorithms fluctuate like hell and you might end up being a "spammer" again.

[Martinscholes]

Appealing only... I don't think there's much sense in trying to change your content or optimization, cuz algorithms fluctuate like hell and you might end up being a "spammer" again.

That's something that has concerned me.

[claybutler]

Could you elaborate more? What do you mean by Google has declared your blog a "spam blog"? I've never heard of such a classification.

How is Google's "spam declaration" affecting you specifically?

Google loves my site www.spamdiary.com and that's about as "spammy" as you can get as every post is about spam and includes the full body and subject line of actual spam.

[C0ldf1re]

I have had several sites hit by Blogger.com and declared as a spam blog...


Could you explain what a spam blog is, so that everyone can follow the thread?

(Nobody has complained about my blog there yet, and I haven't done anything wrong anyway. All the same, I would rather delete it than risk being subjected to a capricious and inaccurate algorithm that damages a person's internet reputation.)

[Martinscholes]

Google declare your Blogger.com blog to be a spam blog. Then they delete it.

It is an automatic process and you can appeal, but it takes time and your readers wonder where your site is, etc.

There are many false positives, so innocent blogs are penalised and years of work can go up in a Google bonfire.

"Blogger's spam-prevention robots have detected that your blog has characteristics of a spam blog. (What is a spam blog?) Since you are an actual person reading this, your blog is probably not a spam blog. Automated spam detection is inherently fuzzy and we sincerely apologise for this false positive.

Find out more about how Blogger is fighting spam blogs."

Is what you get.

[claybutler]

Interesting. Well it certainly makes it clear why I've always instinctively avoided Blogger (or investing in any third party platform such as Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, etc) They can terminate your account any time they want. Poof! All gone. I suggest just getting an account at www.bluehost.com for $6.95 a month and host all of your blogs on your own wordpress installations. They have one click installation and you can host an unlimited number of domains.

If you don't have backups already I'd go through Google's cache of your deleted Blogger blogs and start saving the content in case they don't reactivate the account.

[deepsand]

We had, not too terribly long ago, a member who had been one of Google's volunteer staff offer some advice re. resolving similar problems re. AdWords. He might be able to here lend a hand.

Unfortunately, given that our previous thread subscriptions have yet to be restored, and the currently reported post history does not pre-date the recent site revision, I cannot easily put my finger on that thread; but, I will look. In the mean, perhaps another will recall it and find it.

[C0ldf1re]

... I've always instinctively avoided Blogger (or investing in any third party platform such as Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, etc) They can terminate your account any time they want. Poof! All gone....


Quite right. Many firms in the past have suddenly changed to "paid-for". True example: free file storage in cyberspace, then suddenly pay up or you don't get your files back. Another example: free email address, then suddenly pay up or your incoming emails go in the bin.

Perhaps a big firm like Facebook wouldn't dare go that far, in case the uproar caused new laws to be passed. But they can degrade the free service, by new features only to paid accounts and slower response time for free accounts, until people are under pressure to pay.

[internet marketing tools]

RE "They can terminate your account any time they want. Poof! All gone"

Exactly.

Use of such a site as your primary internet presence I judge as absolutely nuts.
You take your destiny out of your own hands and into the hands of some silly robot
who will delete years of work in a flash.
You are also at risk from future policy changes or changes of attitude that could wipe your presence
one sad future day.

Far better to have things under your own control with your own domain.

Goes without saying that such sites are useful of course.
You can tap into different markets / groups of people through them.
But best done as supplementary to your own domain however.

Your own domain is the hub of the wheel.
Revolving around it are multiple satellite mini sites such as face book / blogger etc
drawing extra attention in.

A term from back in my old days as a civil engineer is "Redundancy"
A building supported on just one column would be a higly non redundant design.
eg if that column fails the whole building comes crashing down.

A redundant design can withstand the loss of some supporting elements.

The hub and satellite structure is much more redundant and safe
than putting all your eggs in a basket 100% under the control
of a 3rd party such as blogger.

Cheers
Mick

[Martinscholes]

They have now totally killed my Blogger account.

I think a cyber vandal has taken my site out with a false spam report. I feel sick. Google Do No Evil? In a pig's eye.

[C0ldf1re]

... Google Do No Evil? In a pig's eye.

Pardon? I didn't understand that. Sorry about your blog, all the same.

[Martinscholes]

Google's mission statement is "Do no evil" They seem to be killing off a large number of legitimate blogs as collateral damage in their fight against spam blogs. And if that isn't 'evil' then what is?

[C0ldf1re]

Google's mission statement is "Do no evil"...

Thanks for explaining. I would never have guessed. Google reminds me of a politician who starts as "a reform candidate", but when elected turns into the most corrupt of them all.

[claybutler]

While I sympathize greatly with Martin getting shafted by Blogger, I'd hardly call it evil. By agreeing to their terms and using their service for free you give them complete control over your blog. They have no obligation to treat you one way or another. They have an enormous amount of info to sort through. For every person complaining that their blog was deleted unfairly there is another complaining that they are letting too many spam blogs through.

Really, there is no excuse for anyone serious about blogging to use Blogger. It makes zero sense business wise. You can host an unlimited number of domains at www.bluehost.com for $6.95 per month and they have one click installations of wordpress. I can launch a blog from start to finish in under 30 minutes.

I understand what's it's like to get shafted by Google, but I don't understand all the finger pointing. It's their service and if you don't want to put yourself at their mercy then don't use them.

[Martinscholes]

While I sympathize greatly with Martin getting shafted by Blogger, I'd hardly call it evil. By agreeing to their terms and using their service for free you give them complete control over your blog. They have no obligation to treat you one way or another. They have an enormous amount of info to sort through. For every person complaining that their blog was deleted unfairly there is another complaining that they are letting too many spam blogs through.

Really, there is no excuse for anyone serious about blogging to use Blogger. It makes zero sense business wise. You can host an unlimited number of domains at www.bluehost.com for $6.95 per month and they have one click installations of wordpress. I can launch a blog from start to finish in under 30 minutes.

I understand what's it's like to get shafted by Google, but I don't understand all the finger pointing. It's their service and if you don't want to put yourself at their mercy then don't use them.

But it isn't free. Not really. Google has made a considerable sum of money from my sites and they now place adverts on the Blogger.com dashboards.

I used Blogger not because it is free (I have a paid for site, too) but because it is easy for me too use. I know very little about computing and needed something that was very easy to use.

[Martinscholes]

Thanks for explaining. I would never have guessed. Google reminds me of a politician who starts as "a reform candidate", but when elected turns into the most corrupt of them all.

Ain't THAT the truth!

[C0ldf1re]

... They have no obligation to treat you one way or another...

They are in business. They have made a deal with the consumer, from which they derive a commercial benefit. A Judge might well consider that a "contract" in law. Whatever they may say in their small-print, they cannot evade the implied terms of "good faith and fair dealing."

Although I cannot really be sure that they have gone too far in this instance, I know of other cases where Google might be sued successfully. Of course, anyone wanting to sue Google would have to travel to California, and face the highest-paid lawyers in the state.

[Martinscholes]

Google might like people to think that is the case, but I think it would be perfectly possible for someone to launch a lawsuit against Google in their own jurisdiction.

If it was held in Eire or Britain, Google would need a crash course in the differences between legal executives, solicitors and barristers. Hey. I know. They could Google it. ;)

Incidentally, I heard that Google even canned their own blog in one of these anti-spam sweeps! :)

[C0ldf1re]

... I think it would be perfectly possible for someone to launch a lawsuit against Google in their own jurisdiction...

There was once a failed Kentucky businessman who was convinced that his downfall was due to Satan's interference, and who persuaded his attorney to launch an action against the Evil One. The Judge dismissed the action, on the grounds that, "The Court had no reason to believe that Satan resided in the State of Kentucky."

[deepsand]

There was once a failed Kentucky businessman who was convinced that his downfall was due to Satan's interference, and who persuaded his attorney to launch an action against the Evil One. The Judge dismissed the action, on the grounds that, "The Court had no reason to believe that Satan resided in the State of Kentucky."
No doubt, though, the case could have been made for his having a nexus there by way of his operational presence.

[C0ldf1re]

No doubt, though, the case could have been made for his having a nexus there by way of his operational presence.

I thought everybody knew that Satan is a Yankee.

[deepsand]

I thought everybody knew that Satan is a Yankee.

Nope; Red Sox.

[Martinscholes]

Spamming is becoming big issue these days and it must be prevented.

Yes. Quite. But shutting down legit blogs (when a major problem exists with Chinese porn blogs flooding Google blogs with spam comments) seems to be doing nothing real to address the problem.

Google/Blogger recently accidentally classified itself as spam. Which did not help.

[Martinscholes]

Is there any update on this issue?

When Google accidentally declared Blogger.com as spam, it canned a vast number of blogs as spamblogs as a result. I believe all of these blogs were re-instated, but I do not know this for sure.

It seems that some people within Google are aware there are problems with the spam bot and also, perhaps, with the system to check the work of the spambot. But that others within Google do not want to believe there is a problem, or seem scared to admit there is a problem. For fear of aiding real spammers? Who knows?

As I have said before, it seems that Google might be are starting to classify things as spam that people outside Google might not categorise as spam, even though they may not agree with the use of the practice deemed as spam by Google.

It's all very confusing and hopefully Google will address this problem before too long. They must waste a lot of time and effort (theirs and of Google users) with false spam reports and the long drawn out appeals procedure, so clearing this up would benefit everyone. The only people it would not benefit are the real spammers who must at least allow themselves a chuckle each time a teacher has a blog he/she uses to communicate with 100s of students wrongly declared as spam and each time a grandmother has her knitting blog canned or a proud parent has their blog about their children declared as spam. For example.

Would it be worthwhile having a Blogger's spam conference (under the aegis of Google/Blogger.com?) to thrash this issue out? Then everyone would know what they can and can't do with the Blogger.com platform.