Know about All Guidelines and Policies Issued by YouTube to Avoid Any Sort of Scam or Spam

Spam and scams on YouTube have become one of the major issues recently. Apart from creating videos, you need to know in detail about YouTube Video spam along with various aspects that are associated with YouTube and content-creating subjects.

• Video Spam

1. If a content creator promises to the viewers they’ll see something, but instead directs them off-site to view the promised.

2. Some YouTube content creator promises the viewers some monetary profit just to get more clicks on a certain link or to traffic off YouTube.

3. Or videos that have provided some links to direct the viewers to sites that try to gather personal information or spread harmful software.

4. If a content creator is posting the same content repeatedly across one or more than one channel.

5. Massively uploading content that is taken from some other content creator.

6. Generating content without maintaining any proper quality of the video, or considering any viewers' experience. 

7. Or massively posting affiliated or sponsored videos in dedicated accounts.

There is more to this list.

If any users, partners, or other creators see any content violating these guidelines they can use the flagging feature provided by YouTube. After the flagging submission, YouTube’s staff will review the content. And if they find any rule is broken they will directly report to the channel.

In 2017, YouTube has hired 10,000 additional employees to review various contents that might have violated the guidelines.

But this is not the end; there are more to this list

• Misleading Metadata or Thumbnails

This section includes if someone has used a popular face in their thumbnail, and the celebrity doesn’t have anything to do with the content. This scenario will be considered a violation. The second aspect of this section is having names or thumbnail that promises something else which has no relation to the video.

• Video Scams

Apart from Spam, there are scams that happen to be on these YouTube videos, which are Exaggerated promises are made by the content creator, such as claims that viewers can earn money easily or quickly. If a video claims to have a miracle treatment that can cure chronic illness, such as cancer. If some content creator offers cash gifts. Or if a content creator is offering or promoting pyramid schemes, it is like sending money without being provided with any tangible product in a pyramid structure.

Or promising unrealistic fake plans like ‘You’ll make $50,000 tomorrow with this plan.’

There is more to this list

The next guideline, those YouTube video creators must consider before uploading any content.

• Incentivization Spam

incentivization spam is content that sells engagement metrics such as views, likes, comments, subscribers, or other metrics on your YouTube videos.

‘Subs 4 Subs’ videos, this kind of video offer to subscribe to another creator’s channel solely in exchange for them to subscribe your channel back.

Videos that offer like also fall into this incentivization spam.

There are videos that offer to get you to channel 100,000 subscribers without any other content.

• Comment Spam

YouTube does not allow comments with the purpose to gather personal information from the viewers or misleading driving viewers off YouTube or perform any of the prohibited behaviors that are mentioned above.

Here are some examples;

Comments about surveys or giveaways that promote pyramid schemes.

‘Pay per click’ referred links in comments.

Providing links that falsely claim to offer the full video content in the comments sections.

Posting links are comments that have harmful software or phishing site.

Posting comments that provide links to counterfeit stores.

When someone posts the link of their channel that has no relation or similarities with the video that they have posted under, by saying ‘hey check out my channel or video here’.

If someone is posting the same comment repeatedly with the link a link of your channel.

• Stream Abuse

This policy covers live streams by creator if they are trying to stream content that belongs to someone else and aren’t corrected after repeated warnings, this will be considered as live stream abuse.

This section includes using phones to stream a television show.

Or, using third-party software to live stream songs from an album.

YouTube has issued complete guidelines on the 1st of May, 2019. The next question is what will happen if someone violates any of these policies.

If your content has violated five or more of these above-mentioned policies YouTube will remove the content and you will be notified by email.

If this is the first time you have violated any of the policies you will get a warning with no penalty to your channel.

If committed more than once then YouTube will issue a strike against your channel.

If 3 strikes have been issued for your channel by YouTube, within 90 days your channel will be terminated.