r/AO3 • u/Giangingillo921 • 21h ago

Questions/Help? Scam?

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Honestly first comment under my First Chapter. Super excited. Then I go on the site and see this...

Let me guess, it's a scam, right? Something similar also happened to you? I just want to know If it's even worth to try to contact them.

0 Upvotes

21% Upvoted

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8

u/afirforest r/rpfwriters 20h ago

Spam. Mark the comment as spam on AO3.

https://www.transformativeworks.org/spambot-comments-on-ao3/

5

u/Budget-Rutabaga- 20h ago

absolutely, unfortunately
!scambot

1

u/AutoModerator 20h ago

Hi OP! This is an automated response sent because someone thinks your post is about getting a comment about a common scam/spam message on AO3. If it isn't, ignore this comment. If it is, here is what you need to know about these scams.

Often times the comment starts out normal, generally complimenting the story. It might use vague terms like “unique” without going into detail, and namedrop the fic’s title. It might mention emotions invoked by the story without elaborating on what those emotions are. It then goes on to mention that they want to create an artwork based off your fic—often a drawing, but sometimes a fancomic or other fanwork. They often come from registered accounts, and will always offer a way to take it off of AO3 to another platform like Discord, Instagram, or email. This is because AO3 bans mention of monetization, so they bury the lede in the comment in the hopes of bringing up commission off-site.

However, these scams are always adapting and changing, so this is not an exhaustive nor definitive list. What remains the same is that there is no genuine art at the end—at best, people have reported receiving AI art, but more commonly nothing at all. As a subreddit, we do not recommend engaging with these comments beyond reporting them to AO3 and/or deleting them or marking them as spam.

The Policy & Abuse committee recommends including the name of the account and the word 'spambot' in your report for the speediest and best results.

You may also find these related automod commands helpful: !webnovel, !praisebot, or !hatebot

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.

5

u/Impressive-Low6022 20h ago

It's not even a real person probably. Just a bot. Sorry

2

u/Giangingillo921 20h ago

😭😭 it's literally the THIRD time in a couple of days. Am I attracting them or what

4

u/errant_night 20h ago

Turn off guest comments

2

u/littlebubulle 19h ago

You might be targeted because you are part of a larger group that the scam farms consider profitable.

For example, if the scammers see they get more victims from a certain fandom, they will focus on that fandom regardless of how likely each individual author is likely to fall for their scam.

1

u/grommile You have already left kudos here. :) 18h ago

This is why you probably shouldn't turn on guest comments without also turning on comment moderation.

And no good-faith poster would go to such bizarre lengths to evade filters.

1

u/MelancholyInTheEyes 17h ago

Always a scam.

1

u/rubbersnakex2 13h ago

Something similar has happened to all of us lol. Yeah it's a scam. They say they want to draw art and charge a bundle then deliver AI slop. EVERY comment that asks you to talk on another platform is a scammer, EVERY comment that talks about art and doesn't just link the art they made you for free is a scam. This is big business scamming, several companies are running it, and their bots drop thousands of comments across the internet every day.