Analysis of Deleted Posts with sMerit

InvoKing

legendary

Activity: 2142

Merit: 1065

✋(▀Ĺ̯ ▀-͠ )

Quote from: athanz88 on May 09, 2018, 12:09:40 PM

-snip-

Well, it depends from the merit source. From what I understand, some of them are exploring several parts of the forums and distributing smerit to the best posters. Others are mainly local orientated smerit sources, of course they can give smerit to everyone but local posters are their target.
I don't look at the Russian board to judge xandry behaviour very well but if someone is suspecting misconduct of ~~anon~~ xandry, you can pm theymos to inspect his actions.

athanz88

sr. member

Activity: 476

Merit: 359

So with this all being created, do you guys think that we need special grave for a deleted posts which has merits on it?

Quote from: InvoKing on May 09, 2018, 10:53:59 AM

Quote from: sncc on May 08, 2018, 05:06:58 PM

As you noted, xandry is the most special case
-snip-
.However, it is not clear why he/she needs to send merit so frequently
-snip-

He is a source, charged to distribute smerit mainly in his local board which is Russian.
(This information may be inaccurate of course since it is based on my personal analysis).
BTW, nice stats DdmrDdmr

Is there a written rule that if someone come from a local board and become a merit sources then he/she has to spend the merits on the local board? I guess no (but maybe i am wrong, please enlighten me). If the board doesnt have a good post, thhen he/she must find great posts in other board. Giving merits to low quality posts just because he is the merit sources of the board is not right in my opinion.

By the way, good job as always DdmrDdmr.

DdmrDdmr

legendary

Activity: 2338

Merit: 10802

There are lies, damned lies and statistics. MTwain

Quote from: InvoKing on May 09, 2018, 10:53:59 AM

<...>

Cheers..

Being xandry a Staff member and a Merit Source, on can only assume that the sMerit distribution is correct and founded. What stands out as strange is that 59,26% of the SMerit he sent has been to posts that were later deleted, aggregating a total of 288 sMerits in deleted posts. Nevertheless, the 288 sMerits are awarded to 283 different messages and 72 distinct users, so it is widely spread out and not concentrated.

The intriguing thing is only really why these posts where deleted when they seem to be legit due to the presence of a staff member in the awarding of sMerit process which endorses it all.

Note: I can’t tell how many threads the deletions occurred on, just the number of distinct messages stated above.

InvoKing

legendary

Activity: 2142

Merit: 1065

✋(▀Ĺ̯ ▀-͠ )

Quote from: sncc on May 08, 2018, 05:06:58 PM

As you noted, xandry is the most special case
-snip-
.However, it is not clear why he/she needs to send merit so frequently
-snip-

He is a source, charged to distribute smerit mainly in his local board which is Russian.
(This information may be inaccurate of course since it is based on my personal analysis).
BTW, nice stats DdmrDdmr

DdmrDdmr

legendary

Activity: 2338

Merit: 10802

There are lies, damned lies and statistics. MTwain

Quote from: seoincorporation link=topic=3650243.msg36787691#msg36787691

<…>
That's why I always propose the "Report possible merit abuse button".
Also, even if it is going to stop any day soon, this is annoying how many reports of merit abusers we have each day in the meta section when it can be easily stopped by a new system of moderation, for many of the reports don't seem legit to me.

Yes, I endorse the idea, but I would also raise the stakes. Just today, I got “wrongly” merited by a user for commenting on a merit abuse case that another user had found, which in turn has been found yesterday by yet another user. What I stated was:

The problem I see is that there is no clear unique procedure to resolve these cases, so they end up on multiple posts over time, often buried by other subsequent posts. Other times, the cases are reported directly to moderator.
Ideally, we would have a common unique zone where we could report and see the status of the action being taken searching by userId. This would avoid redundant reports, as well as mitigate the effect of re-reporting already cleared cases.
Seoincorporation is suggesting getting a “Merit abuse report button" in each profile to help the reporting process, but in addition I would add what I stated above.

So in my conceptual scheme, I would add to your proposal a “report ledger” (not on the blockchain, forum would suffice...) so we can trace the case status, whether it has been reported before (so as not to duplicate, triplicate or n-plicate cases). This could apply to account farming and merit abuse, though the former is formally pursued and the latter in an ad-hoc manner via DT (unless it drives us to an account farming case).

Quote

I know you spend time in the Spanish board, and, if you see the merit transaction of the most active members in this board, the normal situation is for them to send merit to each other, for they are all in the same board, and that doesn't mean a farming activity. It can happen in each local board and due to the number of threads opened in meta with merit abuse accusations, I 'm afraid this can become a wich's haunt, an unfair one, for it depends on the context.
That's why I strongly believe this is a matter for the mods on each board.

That’s true. The Spanish local board has a stronghold of maximum 10 users in my opinion that are good posters, so logically sMerit is awarded amongst them regularly, even though in small quantities simply because sMerit is rather scarce there. With time, it could look circular sMerit sending, but as you say, local mods could discern the above reason when studied in depth.

Quote

Anyway, yes, probably they will run out of merit (the farmers) and eventually they will stop doing that. But what about all those who were able to rank-up to full member for instance, due to the farmer activity?

Member rank is the most I figure any new farm will reach, unless the purchase sMerit or accounts with sMerit. New farms may try to live of increasing their number of accounts with low ranks, thus resulting in more effort to maintain (and even may lead to more spam). Some will backdown, whilst others persist.

seoincorporation

legendary

Activity: 3346

Merit: 3130

Quote from: DdmrDdmr on May 08, 2018, 12:56:33 PM

<...>

Thanks for your answer.
I do believe this is going to be stable somehow, for, as you've said, the merit transfer has low down. Also, the biggest and most concerning issue seems to be the hacked accounts but this activity is relegated to those who know how to hack accounts, and it is not so simple, but the cases are augmenting and of course it can be done, but shortly discovered. As you said, the fastest way of detecting and recovering hacked accounts is a necessary path to take.
Regarding the merit farmers, maybe they get tired and they will reach a non-trespassing point someday soon. But the problem, from my point of view, is that they are going, surely, to find another new and imaginative way of farming, either by hacking account, either by hacking merits. That's why I always propose the "Report possible merit abuse button".
Also, even if it is going to stop any day soon, this is annoying how many reports of merit abusers we have each day in the meta section when it can be easily stopped by a new system of moderation, for many of the reports don't seem legit to me.
I know you spend time in the Spanish board, and, if you see the merit transaction of the most active members in this board, the normal situation is for them to send merit to each other, for they are all in the same board, and that doesn't mean a farming activity. It can happen in each local board and due to the number of threads opened in meta with merit abuse accusations, I 'm afraid this can become a wich's haunt, an unfair one, for it depends on the context.
That's why I strongly believe this is a matter for the mods on each board.
Anyway, yes, probably they will run out of merit (the farmers) and eventually they will stop doing that. But what about all those who were able to rank-up to full member for instance, due to the farmer activity?

sncc

hero member

Activity: 536

Merit: 513

Quote from: DdmrDdmr on May 08, 2018, 09:50:04 AM

The weirdest case here is xandry, a staff member with 59,26% DeletedOverSent sMerit ratio, but highest value in absolute terms (288 sMerits in deleted posts). Should be a false positive right?

As you noted, xandry is the most special case, who was also identified in the analysis of Global structure of merit networks. You can find him/her in the second last figure. It might be the case that he/she is focusing on some very active threads and evaluating several users posted there, and those threads are deleted recently. However, it is not clear why he/she needs to send merit so frequently (see below) and I cannot read deleted posts so it remains unclear to me.

Quote from: sncc on May 08, 2018, 09:45:16 AM

DdmrDdmr

legendary

Activity: 2338

Merit: 10802

There are lies, damned lies and statistics. MTwain

Quote from: seoincorporation on May 08, 2018, 11:59:02 AM

As Theymos has said, maybe the merit system needs a while, for all these farmers will be, soon or later, out of merits, so they won't be able to farm anymore. I hope so, but, is there any calculation we can make in order to know if it is possible? I mean: is there any math that proves that the farmers eventually will be running out of merit and, by so, it will be impossible for them to farm anymore?
You are the math guy, do you think this is going to happen?

I cannot backup my opinion with solid data, since it would require to have knowledge of the accounts that actually do belong to farms and analyse those (Nº of account per farm, ranks, merit, smerit, etc.). Since that is not feasible, I will resort to what little my logic can come up with:

I believe (underline believe) that farming with a whole set on new high ranked accounts is going to be very difficult with the Merit System due to the difficulty of gaining merit.
Not with very low ranks based on Jr. member accounts where merit does not apply. Farmers could shift to creating many Jr. Member accounts and dealing to get some of them promoted to members, but that should be the expectation for new farms.
That doesn’t mean that new farms will cease or even be reduced extremely on the whole. If a farm can live of a large amount of lower ranked account, even if with more effort (and spam), then they will. It’s a question of cost/benefit (cost in time, benefit in tokens).

Even if a fee was to be set to have signatures or participate in social media campaigns, the cost/benefit analysis would be the one to determine impact. Now if campaigns require a certain amount of merit above the default rank level, that could be a game changer and act as a stopper (of course that would be that new users would not be able to join campaigns until they start getting merited, but that could be a win-win forum/campaign).

Data shows us that overall weekly supply is rather low and may seem to be stabilizing these past weeks, so there isn’t an overwhelming amount in circulation. Gaining merit the legit way seems rather difficult, but it does seem the main core path to it.

Illegitimate Merit can be achieved by:
•   Merit transfer from users within a single farm -> Whatever could be done here I guess is pretty much done already, and it’s only dormant farms that awake now that can follow this path.
•   Merit purchase on the market (and transfer from other user accounts) -> This is likely to happen, but I doubt that it is currently too significant. This is detectable as seen on the OP and reports on Meta from users.
•   Hacked accounts -> There could be an increase in hacking account attempts to bypass the Merit barrier. This is potentially troublesome and the Meta section has quite some cases every day that show up. The issue there is how long these cases take to get resolved, and the pain it causes to the legit user.
•   Purchases accounts seems like a more logical path, since it would bypass direct report to admins as happens with hacked accounts. Those cases could increase.

Even so, adding merit requirements above rank level minimum to campaigns as mandatory would diminish this effect quite a lot in my opinion.

seoincorporation

legendary

Activity: 3346

Merit: 3130

Seems like a new and sophisticated way of farming, I'm afraid. There are some topics related to how many deleted posts can be used to farm, for this is quite easy: you create garbage, receive merit from your alt, then delete your crap and Behold! You have received merit and nobody can't say they are not legit.
As you well know, I've been for a while trying to be listened to the idea of beginning to mod the merit system, by a "Merit abuse report button" in each profile. Sadly, it doesn't have caught the attention and many people disagree.

As Theymos has said, maybe the merit system needs a while, for all these farmers will be, soon or later, out of merits, so they won't be able to farm anymore. I hope so, but, is there any calculation we can make in order to know if it is possible? I mean: is there any math that proves that the farmers eventually will be running out of merit and, by so, it will be impossible for them to farm anymore?
You are the math guy, do you think this is going to happen?

DdmrDdmr

legendary

Activity: 2338

Merit: 10802

There are lies, damned lies and statistics. MTwain

Quote from: Vod on May 08, 2018, 09:53:08 AM

Actually, as long as they remain undeleted for about 2 mins, we also capture the message title, who sent and who received the merit.

Yep, I meant the message path/title really as the information that I cannot retrieve. Sender and Receiver are what allow me to perform the analysis and cross with ranks and so on, but it is the deleted message path I cannot get hold of.

Vod

legendary

Activity: 3668

Merit: 3010

Licking my boob since 1970

Quote from: DdmrDdmr on May 08, 2018, 09:50:04 AM

We cannot get access to the actual deleted posts (only their message Id)

Actually, as long as they remain undeleted for about 2 mins, we also capture the message title, who sent and who received the merit.

DdmrDdmr

legendary

Activity: 2338

Merit: 10802

There are lies, damned lies and statistics. MTwain

1. Introduction

This week alone there have been various threads on the topic of deleted posts, and how that could be hiding merit abuse or even be a lead to account farming, since scammers will now likely award merit and then try to delete their tracks by deleting the implied posts.

We cannot get access to the actual deleted posts (only their message Id), nor the reason the post was deleted (by mod/by user, specific reason). Even so, we can perform a rather interesting analysis of the sMerit transactions and forum users that are involved in deleted posts overall, thus this analysis.

Bare in mind that any user on the lists later provided are by no means automatically to be considered merit abusers or account farmers. Post get deleted for all sorts of reasons so it’s not that difficult to come up on any list of the kind, especially for users that award often multiple posts.

When it gets interesting though is when there are cases that are of the following nature:
- Users that have sent a large quantity of sMerit to posts that were deleted.
- Users that have received a large quantity of sMerit to posts that were deleted.

Where quantity could be taken as the absolute number of sMerits sent or received to later deleted posts, or the percentage deleted sMerited posts vs non deleted posts of the user.

The dataset for this analysis is the same used in my post on Forum Metrics - Section/subsection sMerit breakdown.

2. Overall Accumulative of sMerit on Deleted Post

The overall amount of sMerit that has been awarded is 145.572. Of that, 5,16% has been awarded to posts that were later deleted, adding up to 7.514 sMerits. These are not reverted as we know from user’s merit balance, and not being a great amount overall, the do constitute a fair share of “untraceable” sMerit awarding.

3. Rank of users that have sent sMerit to (later) deleted posts

The following is a breakdown by forum rank of all sMerit sent to a post that was later deleted.

The data shows that Sr. Members accumulate the majority of sMerit awarded to deleted posts (24,65% of the total sMerit on deleted posts). Legendary, Hero and Full members are behind with roughly 18% each overall.

4. Rank of users that have received sMerit in (later) deleted posts

The following is a breakdown by forum rank of all sMerit received by a post that was later deleted.

The data shows that data is shifted down a rank layer from Senders. Members are the most awarded on deleted posts (30,62% of sMerit awarded to deleted posts), followed by Full Members (23,17%) and Sr. Members (16,50%).

The above data cannot be taken verbatim though, since the rank shows current user rank, and not rank when awarded the sMerit on the later deleted post.
For example, Jr. Members with enough activity to become Members may have been awarded sMerit on these posts and therefore ranked up. The data shows them as Members since that is their current rank.

5. Percentage of user sMerit awarded to deleted posts vs Total awarded

This is an interesting view. It tell us what percentage of a user’s total sMerit awarding actually ended up on deleted posts.

I’ve aggregated the data for all the users, so the row labels tell us how many users have awarded between 0% and 10% of their sMerit to later deleted posts, between 10% and 20%, and so on up to 100%.
It turns out that 492 users have awarded their sMerit to later deleted posts, and to no other posts.

Of course, within this data there a simple cases. For example, users that have awarded only 1 sMerit (and no more) to a post, that later got deleted. On the other hand, there are extreme users that have awarded 82 sMerits, all to posts that later got deleted.

Now the vast majority have only a few sMerits involved in deleted posts. To get a better focus, I’ve redone the above graph but placing the condition that deleted posts for the user must sum up to at least 10 sMerit.

As an example, these are the 107 users that have at least 10 sMerits awarded to deleted posts, being the % DeletedOverSent>= 30% (additional condition I’ve added):

Code:

user_id name rank nUsersTo sMeritTotalSent sMeritDeleted nTxDeleted %DeletedOverSent URL
168114 CrackedLogic Legendary 2 82 82 2 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=168114
343531 dakota neat Hero Member 1 50 50 2 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=343531
841996 cacucacok91 Hero Member 1 50 50 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=841996
252477 thresher Hero Member 1 43 43 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=252477
221114 Noolz39 Hero Member 1 30 30 2 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=221114
843467 pentol86 Sr. Member 3 28 28 3 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=843467
912598 ikm Sr. Member 1 27 27 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=912598
911945 dnz gns Sr. Member 1 27 27 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=911945
983794 furylmz Sr. Member 1 25 25 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=983794
965531 loading... Sr. Member 1 24 24 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=965531
945530 KickItDown Sr. Member 1 24 24 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=945530
22398 djgtr Sr. Member 1 22 22 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=22398
996297 apolok Sr. Member 1 21 21 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=996297
904936 sealofsun Sr. Member 1 19 19 2 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=904936
313537 NASdaq Sr. Member 1 19 19 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=313537
1022815 oleg17 Full Member 1 17 17 3 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1022815
510355 jesselivermore Sr. Member 1 13 13 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=510355
1159476 lego17 Full Member 1 12 12 3 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1159476
955201 Stavri Sr. Member 1 12 12 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=955201
352475 NiceSoft12 Sr. Member 1 12 12 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=352475
217963 rossr1 Sr. Member 1 12 12 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=217963
854475 Cortes_Cripto Sr. Member 1 10 10 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=854475
212835 kikiyo Sr. Member 1 10 10 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=212835
150593 valley365 Hero Member 1 51 50 2 98.04 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=150593
64700 biodieselchris Hero Member 1 52 50 1 96.15 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=64700
1223911 dvillier Member 3 24 23 5 95.83 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1223911
840028 TeMHuK Sr. Member 1 23 22 1 95.65 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=840028
59386 TonTon Sr. Member 1 21 20 1 95.24 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=59386
1021252 raes Sr. Member 1 21 20 1 95.24 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1021252
1779 chickenado Hero Member 2 85 80 2 94.12 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1779
1275299 DronBudloS Full Member 1 29 27 1 93.10 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1275299
941248 Mihaylovic Sr. Member 1 32 29 1 90.63 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=941248
909540 Deymos Sr. Member 3 26 23 4 88.46 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=909540
62998 Gaff Hero Member 2 59 51 2 86.44 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=62998
221660 KenChanYu Hero Member 2 65 56 2 86.15 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=221660
954159 Vangardo Sr. Member 14 26 22 20 84.62 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=954159
275996 Beachguy Legendary 1 60 50 1 83.33 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=275996
863406 pinkpanther03 Hero Member 1 60 50 1 83.33 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=863406
932520 investalts Sr. Member 1 24 20 1 83.33 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=932520
1018936 Myrik_BY Sr. Member 1 12 10 1 83.33 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1018936
855140 tosha566 Hero Member 1 12 10 1 83.33 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=855140
1059990 ammo121810 Full Member 1 22 18 2 81.82 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1059990
953107 EleGiggle Sr. Member 1 19 15 1 78.95 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=953107
815249 ilovefeetsmell Hero Member 1 13 10 1 76.92 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=815249
1659648 First77 Member 1 13 10 1 76.92 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1659648
924920 ONCF Sr. Member 1 20 15 1 75.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=924920
747042 Opekin Sr. Member 1 14 10 1 71.43 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=747042
916776 Cherylstar86 Sr. Member 5 31 22 5 70.97 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=916776
1108972 gamerWOT Sr. Member 1 60 42 1 70.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1108972
400366 sandy-is-fine Legendary 3 53 37 3 69.81 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=400366
1072102 Jraf95 Member 3 19 13 3 68.42 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1072102
885664 abayan Sr. Member 2 30 20 2 66.67 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=885664
998570 mmhaimhai Sr. Member 1 15 10 1 66.67 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=998570
841947 wowok Sr. Member 2 17 11 2 64.71 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=841947
513294 trollercoaster Legendary 2 141 91 2 64.54 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=513294
148875 wpt1wpt1 Sr. Member 1 32 20 4 62.50 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=148875
1170838 chikading2016 Member 2 24 15 2 62.50 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1170838
842046 aioc Hero Member 1 16 10 1 62.50 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=842046
662293 fxpc Sr. Member 2 21 13 13 61.90 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=662293
790823 alpsea Copper Member 1 57 35 2 61.40 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=790823
859512 torikan Hero Member 1 50 30 1 60.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=859512
382413 xandry Staff 72 486 288 284 59.26 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=382413
800881 uservalera Hero Member 1 34 20 1 58.82 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=800881
388305 kusumadewi Hero Member 2 34 20 2 58.82 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=388305
510738 AS10 Sr. Member 1 23 13 2 56.52 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=510738
1828957 The_ Flash Member 1 27 15 1 55.56 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1828957
1006591 yohananaomi Sr. Member 1 18 10 1 55.56 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1006591
1146120 SummonKing2 Full Member 1 18 10 2 55.56 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1146120
920364 iyan33 Sr. Member 3 18 10 4 55.56 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=920364
5797 grue Global Moderator 3 42 23 5 54.76 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=5797
258500 ap3311 Sr. Member 1 46 25 1 54.35 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=258500
1233301 Mavilcposeti Full Member 1 46 25 1 54.35 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1233301
1122909 Balzhi Full Member 1 35 19 2 54.29 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1122909
985308 kpoxococ Sr. Member 2 26 14 2 53.85 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=985308
113333 PrintMule Hero Member 1 69 37 2 53.62 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=113333
912255 AliCris Sr. Member 1 19 10 1 52.63 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=912255
369702 klf Legendary 8 25 13 8 52.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=369702
1029845 ColorlessK Full Member 1 28 14 11 50.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1029845
1004188 Bagaji Sr. Member 2 27 13 2 48.15 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1004188
825659 sellrai Sr. Member 2 25 12 2 48.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=825659
952778 Sven11 Sr. Member 1 25 12 1 48.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=952778
196146 connexus Hero Member 1 40 19 2 47.50 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=196146
987982 kissmarx Sr. Member 1 22 10 1 45.45 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=987982
953671 QueenOf Sr. Member 1 22 10 1 45.45 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=953671
932517 Greencandle Sr. Member 2 27 12 2 44.44 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=932517
959179 c0mrade4chan Sr. Member 2 34 15 3 44.12 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=959179
387921 BTCMILLIONAIRE Hero Member 1 94 41 2 43.62 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=387921
1015952 Ronaldcoin2017 Sr. Member 1 46 20 1 43.48 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1015952
231477 nopedope89 Hero Member 2 30 12 2 40.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=231477
95531 n691309 Legendary 1 25 10 1 40.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=95531
1280519 cryptojaani Member 1 31 12 1 38.71 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1280519
893148 DynamQ Sr. Member 1 32 12 1 37.50 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=893148
942484 Sadlife Sr. Member 2 35 13 2 37.14 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=942484
833860 hyudien Hero Member 2 54 20 3 37.04 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=833860
1275242 RomashkaSuH Full Member 3 46 17 3 36.96 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1275242
869186 Harlot Hero Member 1 33 12 1 36.36 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=869186
9645 mich Legendary 1 140 50 3 35.71 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=9645
308447 garmin Hero Member 2 31 11 2 35.48 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=308447
1184165 hkdfgkdf Full Member 2 34 12 3 35.29 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1184165
944905 saulzaents Sr. Member 1 102 35 3 34.31 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=944905
1428236 Ekaterinat Full Member 2 50 17 2 34.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1428236
981947 DedGin Sr. Member 2 31 10 2 32.26 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=981947
951549 miha Sr. Member 1 32 10 1 31.25 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=951549
1056566 Yury1 Sr. Member 2 45 14 2 31.11 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1056566
184881 oxilore Legendary 4 146 45 4 30.82 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=184881
854905 wavesroom Hero Member 1 65 20 1 30.77 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=854905
158678 goraset Legendary 2 198 60 2 30.30 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=158678

The weirdest case here is xandry, a staff member with 59,26% DeletedOverSent sMerit ratio, but highest value in absolute terms (288 sMerits in deleted posts). Should be a false positive right?

Note: I’ve preferred to see the overall sMerit sent to later deleted posts by Sender, and not by the pair Sender/Receiver, since I think it shows better shows what we intend here. The list is ordered by DeletedOverSent descending.

Additional Note: As usual, I can't master this editor to give me a properly aligned list.

6. Percentage of user sMerit received on deleted posts vs Total received

Likewise, this is the same as above but from the Receiver’s point of view.

To get a better focus, I’ve redone the above graph but placing the condition that deleted posts for the user must sum up to at least 10 sMerit.

As an example, these are the 131 users that have at least 10 sMerits awarded to deleted posts, being the % DeletedOverReceived >= 30%.

Code:

user_id name rank nUsersFrom sMeritTotalReceived sMeritDeleted nTxDeleted %DeletedOverReceived URL
166677 Bitcoiner12 Member 2 84 84 2 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=166677
1339582 cheddur_announce Brand new 9 67 67 9 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1339582
327806 SpringfieldM1A Hero Member 1 50 50 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=327806
1951507 Wingzcrypto2018 Copper Member 1 50 50 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1951507
899064 Nasakioto_ Brand new 1 33 33 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=899064
262951 485Burnt Jr. Member 1 32 32 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=262951
1633248 Justin-Checqit Copper Member 2 21 21 3 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1633248
875065 Reid Hero Member 2 21 21 2 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=875065
1561081 uclrtpl Member 2 21 21 5 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1561081
749155 abegzad Full Member 1 20 20 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=749155
160506 MWesterweele Hero Member 1 20 20 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=160506
1445921 mnich Member 13 20 20 15 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1445921
1043561 GPS600 Full Member 1 20 20 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1043561
1087176 Bohxz M4p4gm4h4l25 Full Member 1 20 20 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1087176
1025208 texas23 Member 1 20 20 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1025208
253537 imutzz Member 3 18 18 3 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=253537
1045435 kaigeta Member 9 17 17 9 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1045435
1159476 lego17 Full Member 1 17 17 3 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1159476
1145768 dakilangisajaja Member 4 15 15 6 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1145768
1489202 Avenger907 Member 1 15 15 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1489202
943743 partitura Sr. Member 1 15 15 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=943743
1138300 Bruce1614 Member 2 15 15 2 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1138300
1631502 jabby Member 7 12 12 11 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1631502
1133776 carbal1987 Full Member 1 12 12 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1133776
327995 gonnafly Jr. Member 1 12 12 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=327995
1469886 f0rzef Member 2 12 12 2 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1469886
1827864 gtx1060aa Member 7 10 10 7 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1827864
1196164 Asawakobana2017 Member 1 10 10 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1196164
2318 AStephen2011 Newbie 2 10 10 2 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=2318
928911 Sniper150 Sr. Member 1 10 10 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=928911
1519131 Flak88 Member 1 10 10 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1519131
1083426 nowlscor18 Member 1 10 10 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1083426
1682812 luckyman0160 Member 1 10 10 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1682812
1219770 anigoweb Member 1 10 10 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1219770
1447648 woperbink Member 1 10 10 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1447648
1047634 lepbagong Full Member 1 10 10 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1047634
1316221 bizneser Member 1 10 10 2 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1316221
1438740 mull99 Member 3 10 10 4 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1438740
1717895 anonymous2020 Jr. Member 3 10 10 3 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1717895
1698785 raiderking96 Member 1 10 10 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1698785
987733 NS-Soul Full Member 1 10 10 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=987733
1252009 criptoturk Member 1 10 10 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1252009
885664 abayan Sr. Member 1 10 10 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=885664
1455329 Estrath Member 1 10 10 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1455329
1517267 Geraico Member 1 10 10 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1517267
1445179 Mixa zarik Jr. Member 1 10 10 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1445179
981373 akiraminai Member 1 10 10 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=981373
1526307 zein1111 Jr. Member 1 10 10 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1526307
772154 Meuh5598i Full Member 1 10 10 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=772154
1937109 tamerl4n Jr. Member 1 10 10 2 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1937109
1524524 hoodi Member 1 10 10 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1524524
1673052 daza16 Newbie 1 10 10 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1673052
160066 bsmith80 Member 4 10 10 5 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=160066
1391078 Rozcobs Member 1 10 10 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1391078
1091989 qrhyxelle Jr. Member 1 10 10 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1091989
1593336 Aroma92 Member 1 10 10 2 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1593336
1470096 kucing69 Member 1 10 10 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1470096
1914752 blizzard31 Member 1 10 10 1 100.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1914752
258825 ron_ Sr. Member 1 26 25 1 96.15 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=258825
1038148 shezu007 Full Member 3 21 20 3 95.24 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1038148
973996 Chris314 Sr. Member 1 16 15 1 93.75 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=973996
1240796 gambitcoin53 Member 9 15 14 9 93.33 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1240796
1368198 Kopceak_MD Member 3 14 13 4 92.86 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1368198
1725980 whoismoses Member 1 54 50 1 92.59 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1725980
289275 btcnerdie Jr. Member 1 54 50 1 92.59 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=289275
914013 jenia1 Sr. Member 2 12 11 2 91.67 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=914013
1992272 koroluk1990 Jr. Member 2 34 31 3 91.18 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1992272
1099522 SquidConqueror Full Member 1 11 10 1 90.91 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1099522
1770579 Zlata95 Member 1 11 10 1 90.91 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1770579
1148245 mrtryonebiggums Full Member 1 11 10 1 90.91 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1148245
1312481 petir.bay Member 1 11 10 1 90.91 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1312481
1453217 markovi4mark Member 1 11 10 1 90.91 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1453217
1061958 Stakh6 Member 2 29 26 2 89.66 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1061958
1762404 Alex_Sr Member 1 95 84 84 88.42 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1762404
2084188 Delitr Newbie 1 15 13 1 86.67 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=2084188
1061172 bitcoinqueen08 Member 2 29 25 2 86.21 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1061172
1184333 samsung001sss Member 9 27 23 9 85.19 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1184333
512705 the_doctor Full Member 2 65 55 2 84.62 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=512705
1275299 DronBudloS Full Member 6 90 76 6 84.44 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1275299
938506 Jianx Sr. Member 1 12 10 1 83.33 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=938506
1441331 DunnDy Member 1 12 10 1 83.33 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1441331
400366 sandy-is-fine Legendary 3 12 10 3 83.33 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=400366
1033191 lance04 Full Member 1 12 10 1 83.33 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1033191
1076869 pitipawn Full Member 52 478 392 66 82.01 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1076869
954159 Vangardo Sr. Member 11 16 13 13 81.25 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=954159
1524187 Romeotom Member 2 20 16 2 80.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1524187
911706 temmuz Sr. Member 4 169 134 5 79.29 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=911706
895458 targetmlrd Hero Member 1 26 20 1 76.92 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=895458
862738 Astvile Sr. Member 1 14 10 1 71.43 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=862738
537170 rafanadal Member 3 17 12 3 70.59 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=537170
513803 MetalEngine Hero Member 4 20 14 4 70.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=513803
1894608 disko_kraljica Member 7 23 16 8 69.57 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1894608
1351669 caneraydin123 Member 5 16 11 5 68.75 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1351669
1093001 Twinscoin2017 Sr. Member 4 228 152 4 66.67 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1093001
114845 litepresence Full Member 2 18 12 2 66.67 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=114845
1040994 cashbitca Full Member 7 15 10 7 66.67 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1040994
1842282 Neelix Member 1 15 10 1 66.67 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1842282
979216 RuSS512 Sr. Member 22 234 154 22 65.81 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=979216
559335 DarkDays Legendary 1 76 50 1 65.79 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=559335
897862 BitmarkInvest Sr. Member 1 77 50 1 64.94 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=897862
1233301 Mavilcposeti Full Member 6 90 58 6 64.44 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1233301
848985 ronin07 Hero Member 1 24 15 1 62.50 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=848985
1058576 zeingrind777 Full Member 2 16 10 2 62.50 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1058576
1202061 chimk Full Member 2 16 10 9 62.50 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1202061
962182 mela65 Sr. Member 5 31 19 15 61.29 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=962182
1416871 inbizin Member 1 59 36 36 61.02 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1416871
555171 cpfreeplz Hero Member 1 33 20 1 60.61 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=555171
338206 elizabethcrypto Jr. Member 1 20 12 1 60.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=338206
50024 craked5 Hero Member 3 20 12 3 60.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=50024
335943 nesty Full Member 6 77 46 8 59.74 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=335943
675421 Fatanut Hero Member 8 31 18 10 58.06 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=675421
1022815 oleg17 Full Member 2 23 13 4 56.52 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1022815
1421358 Krypital Member 1 26 13 2 50.00 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1421358
1223911 dvillier Member 3 47 22 4 46.81 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1223911
1036967 Andrew1709 Full Member 2 63 29 3 46.03 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1036967
870606 Dadan Sr. Member 1 23 10 1 43.48 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=870606
1377795 InBe$ToP Member 2 26 11 2 42.31 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1377795
1073550 BUK2016 Full Member 2 24 10 2 41.67 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1073550
1209059 Klara_karlovna Member 11 51 21 12 41.18 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1209059
905883 Bitcocoin Sr. Member 5 171 69 7 40.35 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=905883
1068464 Xal0lex Staff 2 44 17 17 38.64 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1068464
1682845 vensky Member 1 27 10 1 37.04 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1682845
1190597 wilburwilbur Member 1 27 10 1 37.04 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1190597
1728877 lemonrabid Member 19 93 34 19 36.56 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1728877
988671 batishta Sr. Member 8 47 17 9 36.17 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=988671
928416 Kousei23 Sr. Member 3 85 30 3 35.29 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=928416
1764764 esmanthra Member 7 85 29 29 34.12 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1764764
1002351 Chachacoin17 Sr. Member 1 150 50 1 33.33 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1002351
1114548 Necroface Member 16 76 25 16 32.89 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1114548
1108107 cherryganda Full Member 1 31 10 1 32.26 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1108107
1410604 Incognito01 Full Member 7 103 32 7 31.07 https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?action=merit;u=1410604

7. Is this useful at all?

It is if one wants to track down merit abusers or account farmers. A good starting point is by going over the above narrowed down lists. I’ve taken a look and some are definitively fishy, some are already tagged, and others seem probably ok based on what we can see on the profiles (bearing in mind that we can’t see the actual deleted posts).

If even a lower two digit percentage of the lists were true bad sMerit usage cases, then I would consider that a good ratio, although lists are small in total volume.
Nevertheless, there will be plenty of false positives and that can only be narrowed down with a one per one look at each specific case.

The lists could be lengthier, by lowering the 10 sMerit requirement on deleted posts that I’ve placed, but the lower this parameter the more false positives well encounter. Also the lower the %DeletedOverReceived value, the more false positives we’ll get too.

Topic: Analysis of Deleted Posts with sMerit (Read 412 times)