Scammers Break The Kindle Store
On Friday, a book jumped to the #1 spot on Amazon, out of nowhere; it quickly became obvious that the author had used a clickfarm to gatecrash the charts.The Kindle Store is officially broken.
This is not the first time this has happened and Amazon’s continued inaction is increasingly baffling. Last Sunday, a clickfarmed title also hit #1 in the Kindle Store. And Amazon took no action.
Over the last six weeks, one particularly brazen author has put four separate titles in the Top 10, and Amazon did nothing whatsoever. There are many such examples.
I wrote at the start of June about how scammers were taking over Amazon’s free charts. That post led to a phone conversation with KDP’s Executive Customer Relations.
Repeated assurances were given that the entire leadership team at Amazon was taking the scammer problem very seriously indeed. But it was also stressed that the problem wasn’t quite as bad as I was making out, and that this stuff never hits the charts and remains largely invisible to customers.
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I share your concern; however, I think Amazon might be in the right of it. It seems like authors are really the only people who ever notice this sort of thing (and of course you do, because your books are your babies! I totally get that)...but we the general reading public don't spend nearly as much time looking at the eleventy-five million genres/subgenres that Amazon has to see who's at the top. :) As a voracious reader, most of my recommendations come from trusted friends, trusted 'book clubs' or groups to which I belong, and those special few authors who've become...well, nearly friends due to their accessibility and willingness to communicate with the fan base - basically, if I like what they've written, I figure I'd like what they read.
ReplyDeleteJust a friendly 2 cents. :)
Recommended reading from friends and book clubs etc., is a good way to go when choosing your reading material, Shannon. And, I imagine, the best way to avoid buying click-farm fake books.
DeleteOH and PS: Scammers are filth and should rot in the bowels of gaol. :) I wasn't trying to make light of your well-deserved concern, just offer a little different perspective. :D
ReplyDeleteI appreciate your perspective, Shannon. I posted this article, written by David Gaughran, because I believe it's important for both readers and writers to be aware of click-farm scammers.
DeleteOH and PPS: I forgot to say I'm looking forward to checking out your books, thanks to Amazon Giveaway. :) Once I read what they're about, it seems right up my reading alley.
ReplyDeleteOKAY I think I'm done now.
I hope you do. And thank you for taking the time to comment, Shannon. It's much appreciated.
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