Bots visiting residential sims

[Teagan Tunwarm]

Dear all,

I have been having an issue with bots coming to my estate. Many of the bots I observe are coming into the sim in specific spots and then appear to be taking pictures (standing in one spot, turning slightly, stopping, turning, again, stopping, turning again, and so on). When they complete the picture they tp out. So, a few questions: 

-One, what are these bots doing? Are they taking pictures or for what other purpose?
-Two, how can I determine who is sending them? I view it as harassment and have been ARing them as renters in my sim value privacy and here comes these bots taking pictures!
-Three, how can I stop them? 

When I look on the profile of these bots, on their web feeds I see many others commenting that these are bots, and that they are AR'd and banned on estate tools. I have tried to do the same thing, but this is not adequate since it just bans the bots that I've seen in the sim...and more come later on.

I am hesitant to turn on "Payment info" required because it will cause problems for some current renters/alts/guests of renters.

What I would LOVE is some solution that is eloquent, such as a way to let renters add people to the estate tools allowed list, without giving them access to estate tools. So in summary besides the questions I listed above, I guess I need to know have others figured out a solution? Am I the only one that is really annoyed by this or do others find it bothersome?

If you've figured out a solution, I would love to hear from you.

Best,

Teagan Tunwarm

[Marigold Devin]

I'm sure there must be more than one website set up for the same purpose, but this is one such example of an organisation who send out bots to photograph specific locations and then display a 360 degree of the area.

http://www.avatrian.com/Peek360/index.php

Whenever I've tried to test it (using my own home location I hasten to add), I always get told there is a high demand, and get shown some alternative places.

I cannot think how you could stop this from happening on  your own sim, apart from giving access only to group members or to people with payment information on file, and that would seem to be a bad idea.

 

[Melita Magic]

It's the bot KGB.

[Amethyst Jetaime]

I too think there should be a way to stop bots from coming to your estate. Since they have to be registered as scripted agents LL should give estate owners the choice of banning scripted agents.

The problem with AR's is that they are not committing a violation of TOS if your estate is public access.  What you can do is put in your covenant that permission must be obtained from the estate owner to take pictures.  Under the LL official policy for photos you can legally take pictures on any sim UNLESS the covenant forbids it without permission.  You can then give your tenants a written blanket permission.  Then when you AR the bots, there is an actual violation of policy you can site.  If you figure out who owns the bots you can notify them of your policy too and tell them they can't take any photos there.

I don't know how you can stop them completely short of creating a group that allows tenants to add people to it in the 'everyone' role, then allowing only those in the group access using the estate tools.  This should not interfere with people accessing their land/homes, and since they can add people themselves, they still will be able to invite people there.

If I were you I'd contact my tenants and see how they feel about the bots and if they'd like the group access option then go with whatever they would like.  Maybe they don't care about it or maybe they do and will appreciate the added security, since not only will it keep out bots, but griefers and drop ins too.

The only down side to this other than having to invite people, is that if you have land available you'll either have to temporarily open the sim to the public again or have people IM you so you can show them the land.

[Teagan Tunwarm]

wow so they can send to a specific place. how stalkerish 

[Teagan Tunwarm]

I'll update my own post a bit to say that I've found a couple (probably there are more) websites related to panoramic views of SL for mapping or promoting businesses. One site says that:

"Landowners with privacy concerns can set their region to private or opt out using a button that is on the bots. The application is free to use. Each request takes 5-10 minutes to process. See some of the below samples of the Peek360 service."

This is interesting because the bots are so fast that I've not been able to tp to them in time before they've left...and where would this button be located? Now I have to chase bots and looks for buttons to stop them? 

These companies/initiatives should really ask before invading sims all over sl.

Thanks for the suggestion to update the covenant, I have done so.

[Amethyst Jetaime]

---

Teagan Tunwarm wrote:

 

"

Landowners with privacy concerns can set their region to private or opt out using a button that is on the bots. The application is free to use. Each request takes 5-10 minutes to process. See some of the below samples of the 

Peek360 service

."

---

This is ridicules.  You should have to opt in to allow them to visit not some B$ like this.  I also think LL should require all scripted agents to have the name of their owner in their profile.

[Marigold Devin]

---

Amethyst Jetaime wrote:

---

Teagan Tunwarm wrote:

 

"

Landowners with privacy concerns can set their region to private or opt out using a button that is on the bots. The application is free to use. Each request takes 5-10 minutes to process. See some of the below samples of the 

Peek360 service

."

---

This is ridicules.  You should have to opt in to allow them to visit not some B$ like this.  I also think LL should require all scripted agents to have the name of their owner in their profile.

---

I fully agree with this.  If they're not being sneaky sneaky then they have nothing to worry about by having owner name in their profile.

We've got this 'curiouser and curiouser' thread running on the forums also, where there is another enigma regarding scripted agents.  One person, or maybe an organisation consisting of several people have got hundreds of individual bots running, and at first it was a bit of a concern that they were scanning something, could even have been copybots for all we knew.  Seems they are some kind of advertising spam bot. 

But back to Teagan's issue, and that of all of us who don't really desire a 360 degree view of whatever's going on in our house/land/skybox appearing on a website, these spy bots do seem a total invasion of privacy, and are indeed a stalking tool.

 

[Teagan Tunwarm]

Yes I agree Marigold. These organizations need to make it easy to opt out. I've found one page that advises muting a specific resident, yet when I search for that resident in SL that avi no longer seems to exist. I am starting to write to any service I find asking how to opt out without chasing bots down on my land. If I hear anything back, I'll post again.

[Tor Karlsvalt]

We have been seeing this in the Confederaton of Democratic Simulators.   So far as many as seven have appreard in the last two monhts.   Most of these have been banned.   But what are they for?  Pictures, mapping?  All are new AVs and the few I have actually seen are using the new mesh AVs.   Some are vampire AVs.   They rezz perhaps hundreds of times in the sims every day.  They rezz, then poof, only staying for 15 or 20 seconds.    As far as we can tell, they serve no purpose.