OpenStreetMap
There is one Search Engine Optimization (SEO) company that keeps adding incomplete data in the US. They never respond to inquires or fix their errors. They add duplicate nodes, use the wrong syntax for opening_hours, leave a lengthy description and never tag the type of business.
Looking at their history two things stand out. First their locale is either en:US or en:GB. Could be two different locations or more likely different users. The other is when they make their edits. Below is a breakdown of their edits since Jan. 1, 2016 :
UTC Hour Edits
Changeset timestamps show that edits start around 04:00 and end before 14:00. My guess is the location is 3 to 5 hours ahead of the UTC. Anyone want to venture a better guess?
Having the IP of the users to get a better location would be nice. Anyone with OSM system admin want to assist?
Diskuse
Komentář od TomH z 27. 11. 2018 v 08:21
No OSM sysadmin is going to assist a random user with access to potentially personal data like IP addresses.
If there is a problem then report it to DWG and they will be able to make whatever enquiries are necessary and to seek assistance of the admins where necessary.
Komentář od Alan Bragg z 27. 11. 2018 v 13:36
All types of spam should be a capital offence, that would end the problem.
Komentář od Mateusz Konieczny z 27. 11. 2018 v 18:06
Have you reported them to DWG?
Komentář od Glassman z 27. 11. 2018 v 19:55
@TomH - Guess I need to change my user name to Random_User. Thanks for the kind suggestion.
@Mateusz Konieczny - I’ve talked to a couple of DWG members over in the past year, not a formal complaint but just to keep current. They appear to be well known to DWG even suspect which SEO firm is paying to have the changes made.
My exercise was more to see how wide spread the edits were. It looks to me like just one firm with a couple of people working on the edits. I do need to do some more analyzing to see if I can get a count of the number of people.
It would be interesting to see what DWG is doing about them.
Komentář od Wynndale z 27. 11. 2018 v 20:48
One way we can crosscheck who is doing this would be to compare the days of edits with local holidays.
Komentář od SomeoneElse z 27. 11. 2018 v 23:14
@Glassman Well I’m in the DWG - is my username random enough? :)
Seriously, just report spam when you see it and move on. We get lots of spam reports already, and yes, you can often figure out the likely culprits by the MO of the people adding them, including time zone. As TomH has said above, where we get a series of linked issues that need further investigation / action beyond “just revert it” we can and do pass details on to the admins.
Komentář od Glassman z 28. 11. 2018 v 00:59
@SomeoneElse - I love your username. I used it all the time when I was a kid and my parents asked me who did it.
Most of the SEO edits from this group I just fix. They are mostly okay. But what I’d really like to see for these companies to just follow the guidelines. I’ve met with two different SEO firms. One of the largest and a local company located upstairs in a house in Seattle. Neither of the companies are adding to OSM, probably because we are way more difficult to add to our data. Other companies just want a spreadsheet and to follow their “tagging” guidelines.
I tried to contact the SEO companies that I know are behind some of the edits, but they just don’t respond. I’ve even tried shaming them on Twitter. Needless to say, I don’t have a lot of respect for them.
So now I’m thinking of approaching the actual firm making the edits to work with them. Is there anyone on DWG that has the time and would like to work on this? Let me know.