#ai spam

[fozmeadows]

I already posted about this over on Bluesky, but for anyone wondering how dire the current glut of AI-enabled, author-targeted scam emails is, this is what the spam folder for my professional email address currently looks like:

Like. It's absolutely fucking insane. I go into more detail on the Bluesky thread, but these scammy slopportunities are everywhere at the moment, and the ones that make it past the spam filters into my main inbox are worse. Every author I know is being inundated with this shit, and it makes me rabid.

[zenaidamacrouras1]

Heads up babes, new spam tactics! Finding authors who have recently posted on ao3 and looking for a matching Tumblr and messaging them there.

Typically how they work is they ask you to pay them for art, you pay them, they send you AI slop. Sometimes they can be very belligerent.

It makes me sad and angry.

[erinptah]

wake up babes, new kind of spam comment just dropped

[nightcucco]

Is this a new scam?

I got this guest comment on one of my fics yesterday. Unlike so many spambot comments, it does mention specific things from the fic in question instead of just generic nonsense. But the ending, the "What drew you to this [stuff from the fic] and [follow-up question]?" just feels weird to me.

AI is certainly capable of generating such specific comments nowadays.

I saw the same guest name making similar comments on a few other fics posted on AO3 in my fandom recently. Always with commentary specific to the fic, followed by "What drew you to [specific stuff from the fic] and [follow-up question]?"

My gut feeling is that this is some kind of AI spam, but it's new to me. Can anyone shed any light on it? I'm guessing if I engage then she (it) will ask to take the conversation to some other site and then try to do whatever it is that spammers/scammers do.

On the off-chance that this is a real human being who is just kind of unusual in how she seeks to make conversation with others in the fandom then I don't want to be rude, but nobody else ever leaves comments like this that I have seen.

[thedeerman]

has anyone else gotten a weird amount of spam messages that don’t seem like spam at first?

i’ve had five different accounts send me messages as if they just wanna chat, usually asking what my fave characters are, if i have any OCs. once i’ve told them, they ask if i’d like to see some art they made, then send something that very much looks AI made. and then they ask if i’d like “something special” made for the characters ive told them about, trying to sell them.

every single blog that does this has their first post in like june or july, some AI pics and 20-30 reblogged hazbin/helluva posts, that’s it.

i may decide to find someone to do some commissions for my fic someday, but i promise it will NOT be someone that sends AI spam to my inbox 😒 if you’re just trying to sell me things like this please stop sending me shit.

i’m making this post so hopefully y’all don’t bother with these blogs as much as i have lol. on the flip side, if you ACTUALLY wanna chat about hazbin/helluva/my fic/ just rambling about your day/etc and not try to sell me AI “art” pls feel free to message me!

EDIT: Check out the below link for details on this scam and the ever growing list of blogs to block

The List

[dependenta1de1pacanele]

I got one of these on a wip that only has info on the changes I made to cannon. There are no emotional moments, there is no story, the characters haven't been introduced yet, and the closest thing to a relationship are the tags💀

[alvivaarts]

I'm kinda sad lately because I've noticed a lot of AI comments on one of my big fics that's on pause right now. (AO3!) They're all guest comments claiming I used one of three various AI writing things, and it's like- so baffling? They're definitely bots since I've gotten repeat comments, but like... accusing fic writers of using AI with spam bots? What's the angle? Is this shitty advertising for these AI writing shitsites? I don't get it and it's annoying and demotivating.

[p-aidacheanus]

Spammy AI slop YouTube channels have no right to exist and should be deleted from the platform for the safety and sanity of everyone.

Actually, extend this to all platforms. To the internet.

People are stupid. AI is used by stupid people to manipulate even dumber people. The second I hear an AI voice I click out. The second I see AI in a thumbnail or video, I have all I need to know that the "person" making the video didn't care enough to put effort into it.

AI and bots are destroying the internet.