A Turing number is a randomly
generated security number, displayed over a patterned
background. There are several groups
of four-digit numbers shown under these, only
one of which corresponds to the correct, displayed
number. The member has to click on the correct
sequence of numbers before he or she can continue
to the paid ad.
These are used on Get Paid
To sites to defeat cheat-bots, which
are pieces of software that are programmed to click on paid links
automatically.
Turing
numbers
The member sees a set of
these numbers at a time interval that is
determined in Admin (Site Settings: Anti-Cheat
Settings). A good average time delay is 15
minutes – this is not too annoying for the
members, and still works well for deterring some
automated clickers.
Choose one of the
recommended font styles (System 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5),
as the other font options may not work on all
servers. I use a fairly large font size, so that
those with poor eyesight can see the numbers
better. System 1 font at 60 pixels high/wide seems
to be a good compromise between size and clarity.
Even though members will
not see the numbers that often, they can still be
a source of irritation when clicking, so you can offer to disable them altogether for members who
upgrade to a higher referral level (see "Referral
Levels").
Anti-Cheat Keywords
When setting up the list
of keywords that your members see in their profile
as subjects to choose for their e-mails, you can
insert a couple of "cheat-catchers". These are
sentences like "Don’t select this or your
account will be deleted" or "I cannot read
English". The software will tell you who has
clicked on the cheat links, and you then use your
discretion as to whether those accounts should be
deleted.
You may be surprised at
how many innocent people miss these when selecting
their chosen subjects, so stress that they must
read the list carefully before checking the
relevant boxes, to avoid having their account
deleted.
Bot Detection
Even with these safeguards
in place, some people will still try to cheat the
system by using automated click software, which
methodically scans the site for paid links, and
does everything a human site member should be
doing.
Would you believe that
there are people out there who design this software, and
market it as a legitimate method of earning from
"Get Paid To" sites! They argue that none of the site's
terms and conditions are violated by members using
automated clicks, but obviously this sort of
cheating costs you money, because nobody is seeing
the ads and the web sites that the bot clicks
through to.
The best that you can do
is regularly check the "Find Cheaters" section
of the menu, and use your discretion when
analyzing the data. You have to be pretty
merciless when doing this, otherwise the cheaters
will spread the word that you are a soft touch,
and every rogue from here to the end of cyberspace
will descend on your site. That said, if at all in
doubt about a member's integrity, do not delete
their account, because you will have a lot of
explaining to do if you are subsequently proven
wrong.
