On microservices platforms such as Fiverr, it is possible to pay people to create a false “hype” on NFT collection Discord servers. We take a look at this unethical practice, based on appearances.
What if the activity on NFT Discord Servers was just an illusion?
Relying on Discord server activity to judge the excitement of a non-fungible token (NFT) project may be tempting. But what if it’s all worthless?
In early September, a crypto influencer posted an intriguing video of several people in a flat, each communicating on a Discord server:
Was just sent this on Discord by some guy saying I can hire his team of “chatters” to make anyone’s Discord look more active.
He said these were his employees so far…
Wtf is going on man…
Get your money I guess wow… pic.twitter.com/hdp46sF5fN
– MASON VERSLUIS 🏆🔮 (@MasonVersluis) September 4, 2022
Jason Versluis explains that he received this video in which it was explained that these people would be paid to make his Discord server more active for his community.
While one cannot base an argument solely on this video, it does invite further investigation.
For example, if you go to Fiverr, a platform where freelancers offer their services, and simply type “chat” into the search bar, you will find the following:
The screenshot below shows only the first two lines of results, but these span several pages, often with recurring keywords:
- Discord hype;
- NFT Discord chat;
- Active Discord chatter ;
- NFT hype.
The offers are all similar: starting at around ten euros, advertisers offer to host chats on Discord servers dedicated to their clients’ NFTs, for a day or more.
The ability to outsource the creation of your collection
Typing “NFT” into the search bar of the same microservices platform yields equally interesting results:
Figure 2: Proposed services for NFT collection design
This time, we are faced with a large number of proposals to subcontract the creation of the visual design of NFT collections.
Of course, as with any entrepreneurial project, the person behind an idea will subcontract some parts of its realization. This is quite normal and can also involve graphic design. But in this case, the choice of a graphic designer should be made because of an affinity with his or her creative universe, and not because he or she explicitly identifies himself or herself as a “creator of unique NFT designs”.
It is therefore unlikely that a project with serious added value will go through this type of advertiser.
The purpose of these various examples is not to put all collections of artistic non-fungible tokens in the same basket, far from it. However, it should be borne in mind that this does exist and that many projects only show “appearances”, with the aim of taking money from gullible people.
As with all new technologies, scams are present and it is important to be critical in order to differentiate between initiatives with a real value proposition and those that are simply surfing on a trend
