Experienced Gumtree poster requires advice from the "experts"
This is my first post on warriorforum so please bear with me. I have dug deep and searched through this site for solutions to my problem but have been unable to find one. I am hoping that someone clued up on Gumtree posting would be able to assist me in finding viable solution.
I am from South Africa and I have successfully sold backup copies of software on Gumtree for many years, however over the past 2 years it got more and more difficult to maintain my success as Gumtree employed more advanced security filters. My most up to date method that I am currently using has now seemed to fail and I am at a loss as to how they are stopping me. Let me explain my method and perhaps someone could point out where I have gone wrong. Bare in mind I use a MacBook Pro laptop.
I want to promote/sell one item of software but over many different categories in my hometown. Below is my most up to date method.
1. Using Firefox I make sure that all the boxes under 'clear your recent history' are checked and click 'Clear now' - This supposedly deletes all my Cookies, Cache, Offline Data etc. etc.
2. I then take note of my IP address here using whatismyipaddress. I then walk over to my router and pull out the power cord and immediately plug it back in. I wait till it has reset & check my IP address again - Great! It has changed, No need for a proxy, right? Next step.
3. Create a new Gmail account for this example lets call it flak1media which is set to forward any received e-mails to my master e-mail account.
4. Register this account with Gumtree
5. Now I post my first advert under Computers & Software. There are no URL's in the advert. The advert simply describes the software and what is on the disc nothing illegal I assume. I then attach 3 images, for this example lets call them 1.jpg, 2.jpg and 3.jpg
6. I click Post Ad and get a message that says my advert will be posted in a few hours/shortly. Great I close the tab (not sign out) and prepare to post the next advert.
7. Once again I make sure that all the boxes under 'clear your recent history' are checked and click 'Clear now'
8. I then walk over to my router and pull out the power cord and immediately plug it back in for a new IP address.
9. I register a new Gmail account this time I call it flak2media once again it is set to forward any received e-mails to my master e-mail account.
10. I register this account with Gumtree
11. I now re-post the same advert as in step under Cameras & Video Cameras. Once again there are no URL's in the advert. However this time the advert has been changed (word order etc) so as to make it seem unique and therefore is not an exact replica of the advert I have posted in step 5. I then attach the exact same 3 images, however this time round I call them 1a.jpg, 2a.jpg and 3a.jpg (not sure if the picture file name change makes a difference but I do it anyway)
12. I post the advert and get the same message that my advert will be posted in a few hours/shortly. Satisfied, I simply close the tab (not sign out) and prepare to post the next advert.
And so on.
A few hours later I will open Gumtree and search for my adverts, without logging in to any of the accounts I have created, to see if they are live - YES I see them they are live - GREAT no problems thus far!
Now the problem. Whether or not someone reply's to my adverts is irrelevant, because within 4-6 hours all of my adverts are suddenly removed all at the same time. The reason I get from Gumtree's automated e-mail system is the following -
"Hello there,
We have just deleted one of your Gumtree Ads for violating one or more site policies.
Gumtree policies prohibit any ads advertising the following:
* selling pirated or copied media (including DVD’s, movies, games, ect), modded game systems/consoles, or any items that facilitate copyright infringement in any manner
*selling counterfeit items or items that infringe on a copyright"
My Questions are:
1. How is this possible that Gumtree knows that I created all those same adverts especially since I used a new IP and e-mail address per advert?
2. How do they know the software I am selling is pirated and not original? I don't even say that it is a copy or ANYTHING that could suggest it is pirated) (could it be that my price is too low?)
3. Could it be that Gumtree's sophisticated security algorithms are picking up a pattern due to the fact that the e-mails I have used are closely related to each other (flak1media, flak2media etc) ? Could it be that the algorithms work this pattern together with the slightly reworded yet related adverts?
4. Is it a time factor - Perhaps I am posting the reworded adverts with not enough time in between? - but it shouldn’t matter right? I am using a new identity each time (IP and e-mail no?)
5. How else could Gumtree be stopping me? Could it be through my MAC address? I don’t know anything about MAC addresses.
6. Perhaps Gumtree picks up that I have used the same images (even though I have renamed the actual files) by looking at pixel dimensions as every image has this info stored in its metadata?
7. Am I going insane?
So as you can see I am very careful about my methods and have fine tuned them into what they are today. Somehow Gumtree nows seems to have gotten the upper hand and my adverts just wont stick for longer than an hour at the most, once they have gone live, if I am lucky.
So I am putting it out there - Any help from the Gumtree guru's would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks in advance.
I am from South Africa and I have successfully sold backup copies of software on Gumtree for many years, however over the past 2 years it got more and more difficult to maintain my success as Gumtree employed more advanced security filters. My most up to date method that I am currently using has now seemed to fail and I am at a loss as to how they are stopping me. Let me explain my method and perhaps someone could point out where I have gone wrong. Bare in mind I use a MacBook Pro laptop.
I want to promote/sell one item of software but over many different categories in my hometown. Below is my most up to date method.
1. Using Firefox I make sure that all the boxes under 'clear your recent history' are checked and click 'Clear now' - This supposedly deletes all my Cookies, Cache, Offline Data etc. etc.
2. I then take note of my IP address here using whatismyipaddress. I then walk over to my router and pull out the power cord and immediately plug it back in. I wait till it has reset & check my IP address again - Great! It has changed, No need for a proxy, right? Next step.
3. Create a new Gmail account for this example lets call it flak1media which is set to forward any received e-mails to my master e-mail account.
4. Register this account with Gumtree
5. Now I post my first advert under Computers & Software. There are no URL's in the advert. The advert simply describes the software and what is on the disc nothing illegal I assume. I then attach 3 images, for this example lets call them 1.jpg, 2.jpg and 3.jpg
6. I click Post Ad and get a message that says my advert will be posted in a few hours/shortly. Great I close the tab (not sign out) and prepare to post the next advert.
7. Once again I make sure that all the boxes under 'clear your recent history' are checked and click 'Clear now'
8. I then walk over to my router and pull out the power cord and immediately plug it back in for a new IP address.
9. I register a new Gmail account this time I call it flak2media once again it is set to forward any received e-mails to my master e-mail account.
10. I register this account with Gumtree
11. I now re-post the same advert as in step under Cameras & Video Cameras. Once again there are no URL's in the advert. However this time the advert has been changed (word order etc) so as to make it seem unique and therefore is not an exact replica of the advert I have posted in step 5. I then attach the exact same 3 images, however this time round I call them 1a.jpg, 2a.jpg and 3a.jpg (not sure if the picture file name change makes a difference but I do it anyway)
12. I post the advert and get the same message that my advert will be posted in a few hours/shortly. Satisfied, I simply close the tab (not sign out) and prepare to post the next advert.
And so on.
A few hours later I will open Gumtree and search for my adverts, without logging in to any of the accounts I have created, to see if they are live - YES I see them they are live - GREAT no problems thus far!
Now the problem. Whether or not someone reply's to my adverts is irrelevant, because within 4-6 hours all of my adverts are suddenly removed all at the same time. The reason I get from Gumtree's automated e-mail system is the following -
"Hello there,
We have just deleted one of your Gumtree Ads for violating one or more site policies.
Gumtree policies prohibit any ads advertising the following:
* selling pirated or copied media (including DVD’s, movies, games, ect), modded game systems/consoles, or any items that facilitate copyright infringement in any manner
*selling counterfeit items or items that infringe on a copyright"
My Questions are:
1. How is this possible that Gumtree knows that I created all those same adverts especially since I used a new IP and e-mail address per advert?
2. How do they know the software I am selling is pirated and not original? I don't even say that it is a copy or ANYTHING that could suggest it is pirated) (could it be that my price is too low?)
3. Could it be that Gumtree's sophisticated security algorithms are picking up a pattern due to the fact that the e-mails I have used are closely related to each other (flak1media, flak2media etc) ? Could it be that the algorithms work this pattern together with the slightly reworded yet related adverts?
4. Is it a time factor - Perhaps I am posting the reworded adverts with not enough time in between? - but it shouldn’t matter right? I am using a new identity each time (IP and e-mail no?)
5. How else could Gumtree be stopping me? Could it be through my MAC address? I don’t know anything about MAC addresses.
6. Perhaps Gumtree picks up that I have used the same images (even though I have renamed the actual files) by looking at pixel dimensions as every image has this info stored in its metadata?
7. Am I going insane?
So as you can see I am very careful about my methods and have fine tuned them into what they are today. Somehow Gumtree nows seems to have gotten the upper hand and my adverts just wont stick for longer than an hour at the most, once they have gone live, if I am lucky.
So I am putting it out there - Any help from the Gumtree guru's would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks in advance.
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Mark Andrews Banned-
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opticalmedia1 -
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Gail_Curran -
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