I’m curious about what Twitch is doing to tackle the issue of fake viewers. It appears that this problem is becoming more common for streamers and the whole community.
I’ve heard that some creators use bots to increase their viewer numbers, which isn’t fair to those who are genuinely trying to build their audiences. It seems like it creates an uneven playing field.
Has anyone noticed if Twitch has improved its ability to identify these fake views? I’m interested in what strategies they are using and if they’re making a positive impact for smaller streamers who want to be noticed.
Additionally, are there any real penalties for channels caught in this practice? Do they face suspensions or just receive warnings?
yeah, i’ve seen that too! they seem to be takin it more seriously. it’s about time since a lot of genuine streamers were suffering. i hope they keep it up and help the little guys grow.
twitch’s bot detection is kinda messy. my buddy got flagged wrongfully during a raid and it took ages to sort out. meanwhile, some clear bot accounts just chill and aren’t touched at all.
Over the past year, Twitch has gotten better at catching view bots, but they’re not perfect yet. Their algorithms now spot weird viewer patterns and engagement that doesn’t match the view count. I’ve seen channels with sketchy high numbers suddenly tank - clear sign the system’s working better. They’ll suspend repeat offenders, but first-timers usually just get warnings and lose features like hosting or raids temporarily. Problem is bot services keep adapting to look more legit, so it’s constant cat-and-mouse. Smaller streamers are seeing some improvement, but the issue’s far from solved.
I’ve moderated several communities and yes, Twitch has certainly improved their enforcement measures, but they lack transparency. Their machine learning systems can identify strange patterns like abrupt increases in viewers without corresponding chat activity or new follows. However, the penalties are inconsistent; some channels face shadow-bans that make them vanish from discovery with no prior notice, while others may receive weeks-long suspensions. The frustrating aspect is that genuine streamers frequently fall victim to false positives, particularly during raids or viral moments. Additionally, there’s a perception that larger channels might receive preferential treatment.
From what I’ve seen, Twitch’s bot detection has gotten better but they’re still playing catch-up. They lean hard on community reports plus their automated systems. I’ve noticed they’re cracking down on viewing time analytics now - bots usually don’t hang around like real viewers do. Penalties are all over the place though. Some streamers lose hosting/raiding privileges temporarily, others get completely suspended. What bugs me is the appeals process takes forever - we’re talking weeks. That really screws over legit creators who get falsely flagged. The whole thing needs more human reviewers instead of just relying on algorithms.