MySpace bots and adder tools have been a really popular subject in recent times and actually a very interesting development in social networking if you know some of the dirty secrets and history behind all the bull shit. Let me explain…

We start off with FriendBot, formerly known as MySpaceBot (2002), the first friend adder bot for MySpace. Once they started advertising their services, other programmers realized the potential revenue this had and bots started popping up everywhere.

One of the marketing industry favorites was Space Station, made by BotTower. Space Station was an easy-to-use bot that included all the favorite features and some new ones, like “time delay.” The time delay feature came out when MySpace started to delete accounts for using bots, adders, and automation. Programmers, of course, had no problem catching on to the methods MySpace was using for detection, such as the time delay factor between actions, and created their own methods of disguising the automation.

Although MySpace had previous limitations on how many actions (messaging, commenting, etc.) one could do, it wasn’t long before they began implementing many different varieties of limitations to confuse bot users. An account one day could send out 500 messages just fine, but on the next day it would be deleted for sending out just 200. Most bot users got frustrated, but some realized the monetary potential in spamming and sought out to work with the tools on more of a mass scale. Welcome account creator bots…

Account creator bots may have existed when or even before action bots did, but they certainly took off after action bots became popular. Spamming companies were formed around total MySpace bot program operations. Hundreds and thousands of fake accounts would pop-up every day, sending out affiliate-promoting links, encouraging users to buy gift cards, fill out surveys, or complete offers for free cell phones, and it only got worse. Phishing bots were introduced into the mix – an ingenious idea of spamming a user’s friends as the friend to ensure loyalty in a purchase decision.

It was far too easy for companies to obtain thousands and thousands of account e-mail and password combinations, even celebrities like Lindsay Lohan fell for it, although that probably doesn’t say much. Tom got busy sending messages to everyone to watch out for the phishers, but it only seemed to confuse people more. MySpace accidentally told users that their accounts were phished, forcing users to change their passwords only to lock themselves out of their accounts when in actuality, nothing was wrong.

MySpace began to fight back, suing the Spam King, Scott Richter, and implementing strict anti-spam methods such as excessive captchas and a link tracking system.

Off topic: Scott Richter on the Daily Show:

MySpace also sent informal cease and desist orders to MySpace bot companies. Space Station, Badder Adder, and Adder Robot all shut down operations to comply with the threats of legal action.

Although, with the amount of money to be made with a MySpace bot program, it wasn’t long until new copy-cat bot and adder websites popped-up, sometimes even directly copying code and information from previous bots.

Michelle MacPhearson, owner of Badder Adder, found out that one of these new bot companies, Legal Adder, had copied her customers’ testimonials word-for-word. Legal Adder even went so far as to tell visitors on their website that using their bot “won’t get you deleted.” Michelle, maker of Badder Adder obviously knows better and warns visitors on her blog, “Any bot will get you deleted when used improperly.” But just when she seems like the trustworthy source, her scandalous stories turn up…

One blogger, Lewis Smile, claims Michelle owes him $597.47 for commission money off Badder Adder sales and research shows he’s not the only one. Users in forums talk about how, not only Badder Adder is not paying the bills, but Friend Adder as well; and conspiracy theories and hidden company names only make the MySpace bot industry look worse. Some believe that many of the new bot programs are owned by the same companies that shut down under the veil of MySpace only to earn the same clients’ business twice.

One would believe that if MySpace pressured some adder bots into shutting down, then other bot programs would be forced to also, yet there’s still so many out there. One possibility is that the bot companies are just not responding to the MySpace pressure because they believe MySpace can do no harm to the bot creators, but only to the users of bots and adders. And even then, do the strict spam laws of California actually apply in the case of using a bot or adder program? And should the bot owners be held responsible for making the programs or should the users for using them?

It’s obvious MySpace would rather beef up its security and anti-spam methods then dabbling with these issues, otherwise we would hear of a plethora of legal complaints made against these bot programs. So will the methods MySpace implements allow the situation to come to an end?

MySpace might like to think so, but unfortunately for them, a large category of their users are the culprit in this situation – bands. The MySpace music partnership is, well, just that – an entertainment drive and ad revenue for MySpace and a fan pool for musicians. If MySpace was to start fighting musicians – the main drive of business for all bots and adders – MySpace would quite possibly go under with huge negative publicity.

In the end it seems there will be some endless and uneasy harmony between bot users and MySpace. What are your thoughts?

If any visitors are looking into using bots, I encourage you to have a quick look at the MySpace Marketing book as it goes over how to use bots effectively and without getting deleted.