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Why is Spycrab running considered scamming, and yet sharking isn't?

Discussion in 'Discussion Archive' started by 『tofu』fun in the sun, Aug 26, 2013.

  1. The latter is a lot more profitable and dangerous to the trading community in terms of scale. Items wagered in a spycrab bet rarely go above a Bill's hat. I just don't understand why it's worthy of a scammer tag - maybe caution for dishonest trading, but the victim rarely loses any items, he just doesn't get the ones he would have won.

    Isn't it a bit of an overreaction? If people were to see the caution tag and know he's a dishonest better, no one's going to spycrab with him.
  2. ForteSP

    ForteSP New User

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    Spycrabbing: your hat belongs to your opponent when you lose, it is theirs and you are running with their hat. It is a scam.


    Sharking: You agree to a trade, going through multiple confirmations and agreeing to a sale. This is not a scam


    Also, I've had people run on me on spycrabs worth over 10x your backpack. It's not more profitable to shark. It's just a bigger gain if you shark a big unusual, than if you run on a single crab. You can go server to server running on bud crabs on regular servers, pretty easily.
  3. Sari

    Sari Helpful Member

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    You also have to keep in mind that you make an agreement when you spycrab [saying "you have to promise to give me the hat if you lose"]. When someone runs from a spycrab, it shows that they aren't willing to keep their promises/be honest, and this type of behavior can easily carry onto much more serious trades (such as money and gift wrap trades, in which they'll run off with items that are yours).
  4. ryaneus

    ryaneus New User

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    People who spycrab sometimes don't give what they promised and this can quickly become a case of scamming because spycrabs aren't "recognized" and they sometimes get away with it. Sharking, on the other hand, is jacking up a price really high such that newbies assume that that is the market price, and they buy/sell the item for more/less. This however is done with both parties agreeing to a deal and thus, may not constitute scamming.
  5. ForteSP

    ForteSP New User

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    Yes they are.
  6. ryaneus

    ryaneus New User

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    Hm. What do you mean? Isn't it discouraged to spycrab/gamble since theres no way of verifying that the other person will not run away?
  7. Ninja Otter With A Taco

    Ninja Otter With A Taco Retired Staff

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    No. Generally its discouraged to spycrab/gamble without a middleman as then that leads to problems however generally if you have proof that the guy said he would give you the items if he losses then thats enough proof of verifying that the other person ran away because you can show screenshots of your inventory history showing you never received the wager
  8. ryaneus

    ryaneus New User

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    Yep :) I see what you mean. I was assuming that OP meant spycrabbing w/o a middleman.
  9. SilentReaper(SR)

    SilentReaper(SR) Retired Staff

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    its rare for screenshots to be there of chats, for most of it is done in voice. Thats why its rare for spycrab reports to have enough evidence.

    but there is occasionally who recorded the demo, screened the chat in the overlay/trade (steam/tf2 doesn't, need 3rd party one)
  10. ForteSP

    ForteSP New User

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    No I mean they are recognized by steamrep as a scam if you run.
  11. ryaneus

    ryaneus New User

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    I think thats what I meant too :) I meant that spycrabbing wasn't recognized as a "proper way to trade".
  12. SilentReaper(SR)

    SilentReaper(SR) Retired Staff

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    Basically a spycrab is a conditional agreement to trade goods. That the condition is that 1 of the 2 wins, and gets the "agreed" items, isn't the problem, the problem is:
    - giving proof about the "bet" / Trade agreement
    - give proof of who won.
  13. Eoj Nawoh

    Eoj Nawoh Retired Staff Partner Community

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    The largest reason sharking is such an issue, is mostly due to the fact of how do we judge it.

    Scamming is pure and simple, a failure to meet an agreement. But with sharking, sure a craft hat for an unusual may stick out as wrong to most, but when the values get closer, where do we draw that line? How is it drawn and who draws it? Those sort of questions often prevent people from agreeing.

    Also, running from a spycrab is scamming. You agreed to a 'trade' of sorts, you lost and you failed to make it. In a Paypal transaction, I agreed to pay you upon receiving your hat. If I fail to do that, I scammed you. This is the same.
  14. |KSAW|// Nagyimetál

    |KSAW|// Nagyimetál New User

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    also if they would punish sharking, there would be like thousands of users marked and just imagine the number of appeals that would arrive
  15. Dragonborn Melon

    Dragonborn Melon New User

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    I was logged out due to time restrictions during a spycrab over a 0.22 strange, I want to give the person the items but I don't even remember who I spycrabbed... Yet I've had 100's of people spycrab run on me and nobody would do anything. #ScammerTagged4Life
  16. SilentReaper(SR)

    SilentReaper(SR) Retired Staff

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    1. Great necro on a year old thread.
    2. If you have no time, why engage anyways? worst excuse ever. Its YOUR responsibility to make sure you see it through. Oh, wait, unless you already planned to run.

    Archiving this.
    Tio José das Vacas likes this.