On the SIGIA-L discussion list people are talking about a spammy social network site called Tagged.com. I only know about it because I received an invitation from an unfamiliar sender to a never-used spam-honeypot email address of mine. I looked at the site, it seemed shady, so I ignored it. That was months ago.
Now I’m learning that the site encourages new members to submit their email usernames and passwords. It then scours the user’s address book, sending spam invitations to all of the email addresses it finds, sent as if from the new member, and follows up with reminders. (Much like WAYN and the original version of Plaxo.)
It also make the email addresses available to “marketing partners” on an opt-out basis.
It’s nearly impossible to find out who’s behind the site. (Its registration is associated with p.o. box in San Francisco.)
It doesn’t pass the smell test.
Shun. Avoid. Eschew.
Comments (44)
gesundheit
Posted by Cecil Vortex | April 23, 2007 5:37 PM
Posted on April 23, 2007 17:37
I also got an invitation.
Glad I didn't supply my Gmail-pasword.
I already thought it had a smell, and Googling for "tagged.com" confirmed this.
Johan.
Posted by Johan Van Mol | May 8, 2007 6:29 AM
Posted on May 8, 2007 06:29
I got invited to Tagged by someone I knew, but when I received an email from an older man, a stranger to me, I was put off by the tone of the email, I am now going to delete my information off.
Posted by RUTH C | June 19, 2007 3:32 AM
Posted on June 19, 2007 03:32
Tagged.com does have it's downfalls. It can get rather annoying, just like every site, and it has its fair share of idiots and morons. But I have this site, and I have met wonderful people, many of whome I chat with via yahoo or phone on a daily basis. You have to be mature enough to guard yourself as well as your information. This isnt the only site that asks to spam your address book.. it wont be the last.
Posted by Vicki Sutton | July 18, 2007 7:01 AM
Posted on July 18, 2007 07:01
While I have met one or two nice people on the site at times I really did find it hard to appreciate hence my account cancelleation. Their chatrooms are a classic example containing Flamers and Trollers more so then any other forum I frequent
Posted by Kyle | July 26, 2007 4:10 PM
Posted on July 26, 2007 16:10
Yeah I agree
I would be getting this spam mails right and I was like w/e but then more 5 come the next day and then a month later a mail from my house came looking for Yuna Park and I was like Gawdd
And today I recieved it again and I am so mad =[[[
And I want to know if we can report this to the police. Can we?
How do we stop this?
Posted by Julie P | September 22, 2007 7:03 PM
Posted on September 22, 2007 19:03
Good point
I wish people could report it to the powers that be and make it more of an issue but wait and see I guess. R.E the Email I had the same problem. 17 different messages were sent to my contacts without me even me pressing a button.
I understand you need to promote a site but surely there are better ways of doing this?
Posted by Kyle | September 27, 2007 3:32 PM
Posted on September 27, 2007 15:32
There was a time when people did not have to worry about the internet, because it didn't exist. And, the internet was used initially for either dirty or corrupt purpose, besides its intended use of sharing research. Why are so many terrible web sites on the internet, up to now. The government started the world wide web.
Oh...
Posted by Jon | September 28, 2007 8:56 AM
Posted on September 28, 2007 08:56
hmm yeah all of that stuff has happened to me but i agree it isnt the first website to do it and it wont be the last fer sure[= and i have met somevery cool people via there but i have also met my fair share of creepy wierdo's haha just like most other sites.
Posted by Tiffany | October 2, 2007 2:01 AM
Posted on October 2, 2007 02:01
I just recieved an e-mail scam from Tagged.com the content of the email stated that i had won second prize in an U.K lottery to the value of $1500000US - What a crock to poo. This is a scam to steal your identity. BEWARE !!! This has been reported to the authorities in Aust.
Has anyone else had similar emails ???
Posted by Cazzie | October 2, 2007 8:49 PM
Posted on October 2, 2007 20:49
This is all so ridiculous. Every site has it's pros and cons and it is up to the individual to safeguard themselves. If you don't like a particular site then just avoid it but don't inform others that it's dangerous and unsafe when in reality it is not. This is what causes problems for people who are honestly attempting to just make friends. Grow up and be a little mature, please!!
Posted by Judith | October 2, 2007 10:44 PM
Posted on October 2, 2007 22:44
that's just silly. almost not worth responding to. do you work for tagged.com?
Posted by xian | October 3, 2007 4:32 PM
Posted on October 3, 2007 16:32
how do yall get tagged.com to work i went to it it said service unavailable p.s.merry christmas oh and have a nice trip on christmas
Posted by rosemarie | December 8, 2007 5:04 PM
Posted on December 8, 2007 17:04
This is one of the worst sites on the net. Tricking people out of their contact list is illegal.This jerk at abuse
makes it voluntary on your part if you click "yes" . You gave them the right to take you contacts list without your knowledge...Yeh, that sound like stealing all right!
Should a stranger be asking you for your email login? Most of you know you should not do that, but slick
trickery can fool some.
Read on:
First I want to say, I did not click on yes or no....
I complained to abuse@above.net on behalf of someone else "victim " # ?(who knows)
and hope you all will to. The problem is the above.net person seemed to be defensive of this site, which is unusual. In every case I am aware of, they are trying to "protect" the consumer, but in this case, I was threatened with legal action when I called it "stealing" when it is in fact just that, and I am gathering information from this site as well as others, and may contact people to get declarations if this group of scammers try to threaten me again..Here is the text of the message I received from so called "abuse" see if this sounds like the position someone takes, who is trying to be on the side of you and others who have been scammed by this site.
their position:
Dear Farhana,
"Steal" is a very strong term and carrying possible severe penalties. In every instance that I've investigated to date, the email address and specifically the password for the email account was provided freely by the complainant.
Please provide any evidence that you may have, not just the accusation, that your email password was obtained by means other than by you providing it to them.
Sincerely,
Larry McDonald
Policy Enforcement
AboveNet Communications, Inc.
http://www.above.net/corporate/acceptableuse.html
http://www.above.net/corporate/antispam.html
Posted by farhanaf | January 24, 2008 7:23 PM
Posted on January 24, 2008 19:23
I also got an email from a friend of mine, so I didn't think the mail is safe or not. I opened it and clicked on some buttons. It seems that all the people from my address book has received it.
Posted by Kathy | January 29, 2008 8:05 AM
Posted on January 29, 2008 08:05
How do I delete myself from the tagged circle.
HELP>>
LT
Posted by Linda | February 10, 2008 9:53 PM
Posted on February 10, 2008 21:53
How do I warn my friends to avoid tagged like a plague?
Posted by Linda | February 10, 2008 10:06 PM
Posted on February 10, 2008 22:06
Tagged is nothing more than glorified, if that, SPAM. Do NOT use it.
Posted by Joe | February 12, 2008 8:18 PM
Posted on February 12, 2008 20:18
Recent victom: Signed up for tagged.com, and while entering the registration info I was prompted for mothers maiden name, which like an idiot I entered. I now have one $15 and another $13 charge showing up on my phone bill, which I specifically tracked down to the exact moments I registered with Tagged.com.
VERY SHADY WEBSITE!!
Posted by j | February 26, 2008 10:05 AM
Posted on February 26, 2008 10:05
I'm happy to have got this information. Someone I don't know has invited me to tagged.com and anytime I tried to loggon the message I have is "Service Unavailable" and I was worried. But I now know and i'm no more going to try. Thanks
Posted by D'Joe | March 3, 2008 1:21 AM
Posted on March 3, 2008 01:21
I am reporting these people - they ripped my
addressbook and are now sending spam to all
of my contacts. I've had a page there for some
time, but stopped using it some months ago.
These are bad, mean people.
Just reported to abuse@above.net, noc@above.net
and arin@above.net who are the company hosting Tagged's servers.
Read more here: http://64.233.169.104/search?
q=cache:KFW84kds4HQJ:www.nickhodge.com/blog
/archives/1816+Tagged.com+report+where&hl=sv&ct=
clnk&cd=3&gl=us (Halfway down the page)
Lets do what we can to stop this kind of hoaxes!
Now I'm gonna look up more places to report these guys!
Posted by GB C | March 28, 2008 2:43 PM
Posted on March 28, 2008 14:43
Hello everyone,
am so suprised you guys have this much negative attitude towards tagged.com, am personally a dedicated user and have met wonderful people through the site.
I donot deny scammers and weirdoes do exist but there is a provison of ignoring them and this site has it, you have to be selective and know the Terms of use for the site and precaution is not granted by government but rather ourselves, so be cautious and dont act instictively as you may shun people who would make your world a turn around or bring in those that will turn it down, i dearly miss the site myself.
Posted by Travis | April 16, 2008 2:27 AM
Posted on April 16, 2008 02:27
I got invited by a friend and later i got a bill stating i owed $14.95 and it said join for free.I had no clue you had to pay for it.
Posted by Melissa | May 7, 2008 6:29 AM
Posted on May 7, 2008 06:29
I got invited by a friend and later i got a bill stating i owed $14.95 and it said join for free.I had no clue you had to pay for it.
Posted by Melissa | May 7, 2008 6:36 AM
Posted on May 7, 2008 06:36
Rule 10. of the User Agreement states the following:
Members shall not use any portion of the Tagged website or the Services for uploading, posting, emailing, transmitting or otherwise making available junk mail, commercial advertisements, or any other form of commercial solicitation.
As a registered user, you may, at any time, cancel your account by emailing Tagged Tagged Site & Safety Squad at SiteSquad@Tagged.com and requesting cancellation of your account.
Opt-Out
Users can manage their mailing preferences to specify which type of email to opt out of on their Update Account Info page when they are logged in, simply by un-checking the boxes indicating which type of email they would not like to receive. Canceling one's account will also prevent a user from receiving future communications from Tagged, and Tagged will not share the user's information with third parties for marketing purposes.
No Spam Policy
We at Tagged.com are opposed to spam. Our No Spam Policy and Terms of Service prohibit all users from engaging in any activity involving spam on our service. Violations of these policies may result in immediate termination of service and legal action against any spammer. Tagged's Terms of Service expressly prohibit users from uploading, posting, emailing, transmitting or otherwise making available junk mail, commercial advertisements, or other form of commercial solicitation on the Tagged website or through Tagged's services. Any violation of our policies, by sending unsolicited email advertisements to or through Tagged.com computer systems, will use or cause to be used Tagged.com servers, located in California. Accordingly, any unauthorized use of Tagged.com computer systems is a violation of our policies and certain federal and state laws, including the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (18 U.S.C. sect 1030 et seq.), Section 502 of the California Penal Code and Section 17538.45 of the California Business and Professions Code. Such violations may subject the sender and his or her agents to civil and criminal penalties.
Posted by HTK | May 7, 2008 7:33 PM
Posted on May 7, 2008 19:33
I've been getting those "You've been Tagged" e-mails for months, ever since a former co-worker signed up.
Fortunately I am suspicious by nature, especially about unfamiliar websites that address me as a friend or want my personal information. I never responded through the Tagged e-mails or website.
The good news is that the most recent messages have come directly from Tagged, not from my former colleague's e-mail address, so I just added it to the blocked list.
Posted by Karen | August 3, 2008 11:22 AM
Posted on August 3, 2008 11:22
canceled my account and would like to have it back
Posted by kelvin stoney | August 9, 2008 4:26 AM
Posted on August 9, 2008 04:26
I have had worst things happen on myspace and on blackplanet. I have been deluged with scammers and I got tired reported them and left the sites. I am on myspace now because of nieces,but I don't answer anything or give my email to anyone till I have known or communicated with them for months. On Tagged we post them as maggots or put out a scammer alert and those who wish dive in on them and they eventually leave. They are like that on any site. You have to be smart and savvy enough to know when someone is pulling a fast one.
Posted by Stephanie Curry | August 12, 2008 10:49 AM
Posted on August 12, 2008 10:49
Im usually savy when these scams come up but Tagged got me because of the intro by a known relative. They stole my address book by deseption. This corp is large and evil. They have tried to nail my contacts and they are using the info for third parties. Watch out for yaier.com, a chinese firm. They are agressive in their online pr. Look at Wiki. Their time will come
Posted by Wooden05 | August 12, 2008 2:34 PM
Posted on August 12, 2008 14:34
I Hope someone will respond back to me . I now for 2 weeks have been having a problem to where I could not getmy alerts in my emails telling me i have a message from someone in tagged. The only way i know now that i have messages is to go in to tagged . Contacted others and they do not seem to have that problem . I have made sure I did the check offs and that i checked off alerts so i knew I had a message . I have tried every thing and nothing is working . Do you not have a department that fixes things ? ya know if you expect yahoo to fix it all you will not get any thing done I am ready to switch from yahoo. cannot contact them either. can i get some answeres please? Thanks Linda
Posted by Linda Powell | September 5, 2008 9:18 AM
Posted on September 5, 2008 09:18
I got an invitation from a friend to join tagged.com and at the time I thought it was harmless. WRONG!
I receiveD my phone bill today and see that there are numerous charges for things I did not agree to that came from joining.... such as:
One E-mail A Day $14.95
OEM-- Emergency Services $14.95
Transcendent Corp. $14.95
I got an e-mail from one that day and canceled it immediately when I saw I would be charged every month for a service I did not order and would never use!
That is why I deleted my account with tagged.com the very same day I joined.
What a rip off that people do not deserve to have to deal with when they are out of a job and having trouble making ends meet as it is.
I will be sure to report this to online fraud and post a notice on my personal, business and myspace websites for people to know that when they join tagged.com all kinds of charges will show up on their phone bills.
Glad I deleted my account Beware!
Angry in Arkasnas!
Posted by Yana | September 8, 2008 4:05 PM
Posted on September 8, 2008 16:05
Here's what tagged.com has to say in reply to my complaint. Like I said beware!
Hello,
Thank you for contacting Tagged.
We apologize for the bad experience you have had on our site. We apologize but those offers are from third party sites and we are not able to remove them. We have forwarded your email to our contacts for help. They should get back to you shortly. Please let us know if you
need help with anything else.
Sincerely,
Tagged
Customer Support
Posted by Yana | September 9, 2008 5:17 AM
Posted on September 9, 2008 05:17
about the author
he is the owner of the sample page. no pardon to miss his page
Posted by laurent | September 14, 2008 12:10 PM
Posted on September 14, 2008 12:10
I agree 100%. Eshchew!
I'm on dozens of social network sites, some good, some not so good - but thankfully smart enough NOT to have anything to do with Tagged (which has unfortunately already ensnared a number of my friends).
Posted by Eagle_Kiwi (N.Z.) | September 19, 2008 5:36 AM
Posted on September 19, 2008 05:36
I am one of those friends of EK above.
I DO agree about the getting your e-mail friend's addresses. It was totally wrong of Tagged. I wrote to all of my friends and stopped several from joining.
But I personally have met several with whom I exchange E-Mails on Tagged.
I won't leave tagged as I do not wish to lose them.
But nothing comes into my address except the messages I have been sent a letter or a notice.
So far I am sticking. But if things do change I really appreciate the advice on how to contact them .
Blue
Posted by Bluecarnation200 | September 20, 2008 12:44 PM
Posted on September 20, 2008 12:44
How do I remove myself from tagged.com? Please help. I have not subscribed but still get their stuff.
Posted by Lydie | September 29, 2008 8:13 AM
Posted on September 29, 2008 08:13
i love tagged .com personally its amazing i thinks its better than my space myspace can be full of pervs but tagged seems to be differant=] of coarse the ocaisional pervs but other than that i dont go on the chat rooms just only stay as a way to e-mail get to know other people safley i have nothing against tagged and have never gotten spam because of it=}
Posted by shelby | October 26, 2008 5:44 PM
Posted on October 26, 2008 17:44
I use to have this site Tagged and had a lot of good friends on there but i had a girlfriend that didnt like me to have it so i signed off of it for good, well, the relationship didnt work out so now i want it back but it tells me my email address has been blocked, i wonder why, i was always nice to everybody ;(
Posted by James Purvis | October 26, 2008 7:15 PM
Posted on October 26, 2008 19:15
still i have all those data on my file if tagged doesn't delete it.. i was invited by a distant chat friend Rowena Dionson from Cebu city Philippines to join tagged and i joined but found not interesting i just egnored but recieved a lot of notices from tagged company for the renewal of my membership account but i again egnored it.. this year of 2008 end of September i was again convince by a friend from a nearby town and because i did not want to dissappoint her i tried to recover my tagged account and joined again their upon learning of activating my account i notice that i've been a member of a lot of network company without knowing.. Still i tried to egnored.. this worst thing came when i found that i was betrayed by a friend Ida who just want to use me with those pigs playing with my pics and sailing it with those pigs. Elie an example man the pig i can say whom i gave warning not to open his cam if he is naked but again for the second time upon opening his webcam i saw his nakedness masturbating and asking me to remove my clothes and fuck him. i was very embarrashed and mad of this person conniving with Marymar whom i can say a whore! Why i can say that because i i discover that this both are just trying to get someone trust but working in the same net in the same room which i found accidentaly hold on.....
Posted by kyper | November 10, 2008 4:00 PM
Posted on November 10, 2008 16:00
Well, I have never had so much fun with the ladies on any other free site. Plus I'm meeting lots of young ladies in person from my own town. Press the skip button.
Posted by Johnny | November 11, 2008 10:03 AM
Posted on November 11, 2008 10:03
Wife started chit-chatting and swapping pics with who knowz who at tagged (I'm passworded out). Wasn't long before the computer was full of malware and other viruses.
Another good reason to avoid it like the plague...
Now, if only I knew what sorts of pics of herself she was hanging up there.
Posted by Igor | November 13, 2008 6:18 PM
Posted on November 13, 2008 18:18
MY ACCOUNT GOT CANCELLED AT TAGGED TODAY AND I HAVE NO IDEA WHY.
I LOVE TAGGED AND HAVE MET SOME FABULOUS PEOPLE THERE THE PAST COUPLE MONTHS. NEVER HAD A PROBLEM AT ALL AND FOUND IT REFRESHINGLY EASYGOING AND TRULY A LOVELY PLACE TO MEET PEOPLE.
I TOTALLY DISAGREE WITH ANY 'BAD' STUFF ABOUT TAGGED... I RECKON ITS FABULOUS ~ BUT MY ACCOUNT GOT CANCELLED??? WHY??
I DON'T GET IT.. AND I WANT IT BACK!
I MISS ALL MY FRIENDS ;-(
Posted by JERRY TAYLOR | December 9, 2008 9:04 PM
Posted on December 9, 2008 21:04
I didn't authorize Tagged and I finding it difficult to cancel. I want to remove it and inform all the students and affiliates at my school about this scam. Please help me cancel and inform whoever I can about the problems with this site.
Posted by Angelo Ace | December 10, 2008 2:28 PM
Posted on December 10, 2008 14:28
I deleted my tagged account last week for various reasons but then i missed the people i used to talk to. so i recreated an account with a different email addy, as it wouldnt let me recreate with the same addy. It let me request 63 of my friends bak let me do a profile and add 2 videos and loadz of my frends were adding me back and then it jst came up error - account canceled. impossible to get it back. Why? what have I dont wrong???
Posted by Katie P | December 15, 2008 11:49 AM
Posted on December 15, 2008 11:49