#box farms

[thepastisalreadywritten]

(CNN) — Jack Latham was on a mission to photograph farms in Vietnam — not the country’s sprawling plantations or rice terraces but its “click farms.”

Last year, the British photographer spent a month in the capital Hanoi documenting some of the shadowy enterprises that help clients artificially boost online traffic and social media engagement in the hope of manipulating algorithms and user perceptions.

The resulting images, which feature in his new book “Beggar’s Honey,” provide rare insight into the workshops that hire low-paid workers to cultivate likes, comments and shares for businesses and individuals globally.

“When most people are on social media, they want nothing but attention — they’re begging for it,” Latham said in a phone interview, explaining his book’s title.

“With social media, our attention is a product for advertisers and marketers.”

In the 2000s, the growing popularity of social media sites — including Facebook and Twitter, now called X — created a new market for well-curated digital profiles, with companies and brands vying to maximize visibility and influence.

Though it is unclear when click farms began proliferating, tech experts warned about “virtual gang masters” operating them from low-income countries as early as 2007.

In the following decades, click farms exploded in number — particularly in Asia, where they can be found across India, Bangladesh, Indonesia, the Philippines, and beyond.

Regulations have often failed to keep pace: While some countries, like China, have attempted to crack down on operations (the China Advertising Association banned the use of click farms for commercial gain in 2020), they continue to flourish around the continent, especially in places where low labor and electricity costs make it affordable to power hundreds of devices simultaneously.

‘Like Silicon Valley startups’

Latham’s project took him to five click farms in Vietnam.

(The click farmers he hoped to photograph in Hong Kong “got cold feet,” he said, and pandemic-related travel restrictions dashed his plans to document the practice in mainland China).

On the outskirts of Hanoi, Latham visited workshops operating from residential properties and hotels.

Some had a traditional setup with hundreds of manually operated phones, while others used a newer, compact method called “box farming” — a phrase used by the click farmers Latham visited — where several phones, without screens and batteries, are wired together and linked to a computer interface.

Latham said one of the click farms he visited was a family-run business, though the others appeared more like a tech companies.

Most workers were in their 20s and 30s, he added.

“They all looked like Silicon Valley startups,” he said. “There was a tremendous amount of hardware … whole walls of phones.”

Some of Latham’s photos depict — albeit anonymously — workers tasked with harvesting clicks.

In one image, a man is seen stationed amid a sea of gadgets in what appears to be a lonely and monotonous task.

“It only takes one person to control large amounts of phones,” Latham said. “One person can very quickly (do the work of) 10,000. It’s both solitary and crowded.”

At the farms Lathan visited, individuals were usually in charge of a particular social media platforms.

For instance, one “farmer” would be responsible for mass posting and commenting on Facebook accounts, or setting up YouTube platforms where they post and watch videos on loop.

The photographer added that TikTok is now the most popular platform at the click farms he visited.

The click farmers Latham spoke to mostly advertised their services online for less than one cent per click, view or interaction.

And despite the fraudulent nature of their tasks, they seemed to treat it like just another job, the photographer said.

‘There was an understanding they were just providing a service,” he added. “There wasn’t a shadiness. What they’re offering is shortcuts.”

Deceptive perception

Across its 134 pages, “Beggar’s Honey” includes a collection of abstract photographs — some seductive, others contemplative — depicting videos that appeared on Latham’s TikTok feed.

He included them in the book to represent the kind of content he saw being boosted by click farms.

But many of his photos focus on the hardware used to manipulate social media —webs of wires, phones and computers.

“A lot of my work is about conspiracies,” Latham said. ” Trying to ‘document the machines used to spread disinformation’ is the tagline of the project. The bigger picture is often the thing we don’t see.”

Click farms around the world are also used to amplify political messages and spread disinformation during elections.

In 2016, Cambodia’s then-prime minister Hun Sen was accused of buying Facebook friends and likes, which according to the BBC he denied, while shadowy operations in North Macedonia were found to have spread pro-Donald Trump posts and articles during that year’s US presidential election.

While researching, Latham said he found that algorithms — a topic of his previous book, “Latent Bloom” — often recommended videos that he said got increasingly “extreme” with each click.

“If you only digest a diet of that, it’s a matter of time you become diabetically conspiratorial,” he said.

“The spreading of disinformation is the worst thing. It happens in your pocket, not newspapers, and it’s terrifying that it’s tailored to your kind of neurosis.”

Hoping to raise awareness of the phenomenon and its dangers, Latham is planning to exhibit his own home version of a click farm — a small box with several phones attached to a computer interface — at the 2024 Images Vevey Festival in Switzerland.

He bought the gadget in Vietnam for the equivalent of about $1,000 and has occasionally experimented with it on his social media accounts.

On Instagram, Latham’s photos usually attract anywhere from a few dozen to couple hundred likes.

But when he deployed his personal click farm to announce his latest book, the post generated more than 6,600 likes.

The photographer wants people to realize that there’s more to what they see on social media — and that metrics aren’t a measurement of authenticity.

“When people are better equipped with knowledge of how things work, they can make more informed decisions,” he said.

“Beggar’s Honey,” co-published by Here Press and Images Vevey, is available now.

#Jack Latham #click farms #box farms #Hanoi #Vietnam #Beggar’s Honey #box farming #social media #algorithms #user perception #trolls #PR #marketing #advertising #likes #comments #shares #digital profiles #virtual gang masters #bots #spam #China Advertising Association #click farmers #mass post #disinformation #misinformation #fake news #metrics

[puppetmaster13u]

Prompt 236

The ritual is complete, blood staining stone and fires cut short, snuffed to ash. For all intents and purposes, it shouldn’t have gone wrong. It should technically be over and done and successful. The cultists look from their bleeding hands to each other in panic and slight hysteria, clothing torn apart. 

They would not speak of this, and fix it right away! R-right away… fix it? They can… oh they can’t fix it um. No one will notice, right? 

….

What do you mean it’s affected everyone in the world?!

#dcxdp #dpxdc #prompts #centaur au #a curse escaped Pandora’s box and smashed right into the minor ritual #the cultists just wanted their own ideal bodies not to be part horse & whatever else #Everyone is freaking out and has no clue what’s going on #Is it permanent? It’s not permanent right guys? GUYS?! #Mistakes were made #Amity is shrugging because someone probably made a wish or something #They start getting concerned when it doesn’t go away & apparently it wasn’t just them effected #Oh no even the ghosts are centauric now that’s concerning #Everyone now has hooves #Except for aliens like superman #who has claws that when folded mimics hooves #He’d be panicking more except he’s on leave to the farm for a bit so

[disco-troy]

thinking about how Dick got kicked out of his apartment after titans hunt and his landlord burned all his things

(id under the cut)

this i really a pattern tho, he gets kicked out of places and loses all his possessions:

when he had to leave the circus, in some versions he didn’t get to keep anything

when Bruce kicks Dick out in some versions he has like a small suitcase, in some versions nothing

in the Devin Nightwing run when his apartment is exploded

the example above (in addition titans tower also just blew up)

in the Taylor run his apartment just exploded again

like no wonder this guy doesn't care about worldly possessions he doesn’t get to keep any ever

Landlord: Hey, you -- what the hell do you think you’re doing? Dick: Excuse me? This is my apartment. Landlord: Yeah? Says who, buddy? Dick: But I -- I’ve lived here two years! Landlord: Well, not anymore you don’t, Mac. You didn’t pay your rent, you weren’t around to get the court summons, so you get evicted, fair n’ square Dick: But what about all my books? All my private papers? Landlord: Ya ever hear of the incinerator? Dick: You burned my papers? Landlord: Hey, I’m crying in my beer for you buddy. But that’s the way the rent control crumbles! Dick: But where am i supposed to live? Landlord: get yourself a cardboard box like the rest of the bums in this city! Dick (on the phone): Ummm, Hi, Alfred. It’s me, Dick. Listen I really need help. Can I use Bruce’s apartment in Manhattan? Just for the night? Oh? He loaned it to the redhead? Oh geez. I remember her. When you talk to her, her head echoes. No, don’t ask her if she wants to share. I think I see a cardboard box blowing by with my name on it.

#uhhh i know Dick played the cardboard box thing as a joke #but like they never show where he stays after that arc #i dont remember if donna had the farm yet or mayve with wally? #he was on the outs with Kory i think at this point and Dayton (Gars dad) who was hosting most of the titans #was not a fan of Dick at this point #and the aformentioned titans tower was destoryed #he could have gotten a hotel but nightwing did imply he didnt have credit score yet #sdjkfhk #he slepted on newspapers before when he didnt feel lie he had a #home #did he get the idea from this dude??? #also ahh the way he feels so bad reaching out to bruce for a place to stay for one night #and then bruces propertu has already been used #does he feel like he deserves it :(((( #dc comics #dick grayson #nightwing #Dick Grayson meta

[loganslowdown4]

Logan: Did you get the eggs like I asked?

Patton: Even better!

Logan: Wha-?

Patton: *reveals a live chicken* Her name is Fluffy!

Logan: No not- nO NOT AGAIN PATTON THE DOGS WILL EAT HER-

#remember that one quote that was filmed #Patton brings home a box of puppies? #that wasn’t my quote #but imagine this is a sequel to that #I love the idea of Logan being a push over #since it was clearly logicality coded #the glasses gays taking in the entire farm at this point #thomas sanders #sanders sides #logan sanders #sander sides #incorrect sanders sides #patton sanders #ts logan #logicality #ts logicality

[copperbadge]

I see a medication-management psychiatrist monthly for my Adderall prescription; we have a half-hour zoom meeting where he makes sure I’m not dying or hallucinating, and I can ask him any questions I have about the meds or whatever. He always seems faintly amused when I have a question for him about ADHD because they’re clearly kind of off-the-wall compared to his other patients. 

In any case, it will always be hilarious to me that, being a specialist in ADHD, he starts sending reminders that we have an appointment three days beforehand, and slowly escalates from a single email to a series of emails and text messages designed to make sure I absolutely do imprint that there is a meeting I have to attend at 1:30 on Monday. 

*checks calendar*

3:30 on Monday. I will receive multiple daily reminders about the meeting at 3:30 on Monday. 

Which is hilarious. 

And also clearly very necessary. 

#sam has adhd #I'm actually really good about keeping appointments #but this week and next have fucked me up because of Thanksgiving #1:30 is when my farm share box should arrive #3:30 is when I get the Good Brain Drugs

[blakeexists07]

requested by @shallowoak

they asked for AppleJack (any gender)! I'm so sorry that I couldn't get a finished illustration. At the moment I am creating fanart for one of my friends (and school is also a pain) and I want to prioritize it a little. So here's a little sketch of AppleJack!

This how I imagined AppleJack would look like as a human, and since MLP is full of magic and fantasy, I wanted to draw AJ as an earth elf :). I headcanon that AppleJack takes up boxing when she isn't picking apples or helping around the farm.

#fanart #art #digital art #humanization #ibispaintx #my litte pony friendship is magic #my little pony #applejack #mlp fanart #boxing #farm girl

[woohooincoffin]

cloudy, and sleepy, day in the garden.

#the baby chick and sprinkles falling asleep at the same time 🥹😭 #that little playhouse is by hariecc #i literally spent weeks looking for it so!!! #poses with the apple are by mel-bennett and are called farm life #the goose is by kalino more farm animals mod #the bee boxes are by leafmotif i think #the dress frankie is wearing is by clumsyalien #i think it’s by clumsyalien this is off the top of my head #i think that’s all of it #rosebud save* #rosebud gen 0* #ts4 gameplay #ts4 legacy

[everybodyshusband]

HEY FELIXXXXX WHAT HEADCANONS, SHIPS, OR WHATEVER HAVE BEEN ON YOUR MIND RECENTLY? 🩷🎤

P111111NKKKYYYYYYY I HAVE SOME THOTS FOR YOU THIS FINE EVENING (technically it's afternoon but it's almost dark ??? northern hemisphere what the FUCK !??!)

sooooo.... i've been thinking almost non-stop about my silly little farm au (post one, post two) but specifically about the uhhh spicier aspects 👀 even more specifically, mountain and dew's morning trists in the barn after dew's milked the cows and mountain's finished his milk rounds

their favourite way is when dew rides mountain. when he gets him on his back, when pain from the stray bits of hay from the bales lining the walls and floor poking at mountain's back melts away because all he can focus on is dew

dew straddles mount and is usually able to sink down immediately (he's never admitted it out loud, but they both know that dew sometimes brings his suction-cup dildo to stick onto his milking stool while he works so mountain doesn't have to wait for him to prep himself when he comes back). he'll grab at mountain's chest and flick his nipples while he smirks down at him and makes mountain watch as he rises and lowers himself on his dick painfully slowly. of course, it never stays slow, because as soon as dew gets going, his body (and mountain) starts begging for more

they always laugh way more than they should, giggling as steam puffs out from their mouths in the brisk morning freshness and readjusting their positions every few minutes when the hay digging into mountain's back starts to properly hurt. they finish with mountain sitting up, usually. the two of them holding each close and reaching their climaxes while moaning softly and gently crying out each others names against their lips, panting heavily during the comedown

when they're done, they'll head back to breakfast covered in hay and sweat with matching grins on their faces, bumping into each others shoulders as they toe off their work-boots and head into the kitchen. every morning, rain raises an eyebrow at the pair of them and every morning, he gestures towards the old, sturdy, wooden table where a feast of bread, butter, spreads, cereal, milk, fruit and juice is laid out, reminding them that if they want hot drinks or cooked food then they'd better make it themselves

not long after, the rest of the pack slowly filter down to breakfast, brushing the sleep from their eyes as they all mill about re-heating leftover rice, pouring glasses of juice and reaching entirely too far over the table to expect that you wouldn't get jam all over your pyjama shirt, swiss

aaaaand yeah i won't bore you with my sily ramblings any longer, but that's essentially what's been on my mind recently !!!!

#p1nky i love these rounds you do asking for headcanons so so much <3 #ask box #p1nkcanoe #husband rambles #husband headcanons #spicy tag #mountain ghoul #dewdrop ghoul #farm ghouls au

[gameraboy2]

Knott's Berry Farm Gift Box

#knott's berry farm #gift box #vintage

[cocobox]

It’s been a few days, I wonder how far I can go without clicking on them

#sky children of the light #thatskygame #sky cotl #that sky game #coco box thinks #am struggling #I want to click on it so bad #idk why am doing this to myself #am just doing it because I can #idk I think it interesting #I wonder how much candles I have #I’ve been farming for a few days

[fictionadventurer]

✒️

#so my brother found a box full of documents #from when some semi-distant relative was researching family geneaology #and all my time reading old letters on the loc website came in handy #because it meant i could decipher the handwritten document #of my great-great-grandfather's life story #and read it for everyone as we hung out before family sunday dinner #and the pressure is now on for all the unmarried family members #we've got a legacy to live up to with courtship stories #it seems my great-great-grandfather came to america after a failed engagement #a few years later he met a girl and her parents outside of church #the father hired him to work on his farm #three days later the girl rode with him in a wagon somewhere on some farm business #and she was like 'i've been thinking about you day and night since i first saw you and this is our first chance to speak alone' #and she was like 'we should get married' and he agreed and they shook hands #though they did wait until the next sunday to formalize the engagement #they waited three months to ask for her father's blessing #which they got #they got married two months later #and were married for 35 years #until the morning of the day they were scheduled to take their first out-of-state trip #(he was excited to give her a chance to travel after a life of knowing only home and work) #and he woke up to find her dead beside him #he was writing this not long after and you can tell he was heartbroken #so the marriage was clearly successful #so anyway my one brother was like 'now i feel unsuccessful. i've never found a woman who wanted to marry me after three days' #and my married brother told all us unmarried ones that he expects us to be engaged by next week #clearly it can be done #and anyway it's so interesting to know the details #after only vaguely knowing this guy's name

[sarioh]

Thoughts on wilson the tamagochi?

ok im about to drop the most rambling essay you've ever read about a Pet Tamagotchi made in survival minecraft. i hope u regret asking this question

wilson to me perfectly embodies what is so amazing about etho's let's play world and also by extension the game of minecraft itself. it's like, something that serves no real purpose and doesn't help advance the player at all like a farm or storage system, but was built purely for the sake of creation. and despite it being built with no useful intent (besides being the sole source of anything even remotely resembling companionship in a singleplayer world over 10 years old), it lead to one of the most widely used and revolutionary redstone builds. the hopper clock is at the center of so many important farms and devices, and it started off as the heart of a stupid little robot friend built for no real reason in a survival minecraft world.

i think thats why etho has always resonated as a content creator and why he has such a loyal fanbase. hes seen as one of the pioneers of redstone and overall one of the most well respected minecraft creators, but if you sat down and watched any of his videos, you’d have no idea. his farms are nowhere near the most efficient, and his builds arent the prettiest or the most impressive, but theyre creative and inventive and unique. a dancing bee farm. a pet tamagotchi. a purely-interior build with llamas in minecarts circling it and melons as wallpaper.

and thats also what minecraft is all about i think. creating for the sake of creating. not necessarily trying to be the best player, but making something thats Yours and that means something to you. thats what ends up being the most fulfilling, and is what ultimately leads to the invention of new and revolutionary things like wilson with the hopper clock. i think its very awesome and i love wilson a lot ^_^ 

#also unrelated but i dont think ive ever seen wilson survive for more than 2 episodes in etho's lp #but etho being absolutely abysmal at taking care of his pets is not the point here #ive used the hopper clock myself in almost every farm ive ever made. literally love that thing. love wilson #this has literally been in my ask box for at least 2 months and i was like i have to write an essay for this #im sorry whoever sent this. u probably dont even remember #im a bit high rn thinking deeply about wilson and the impact of ethos lets play world im sorry #ethoslab #ask #rio posts #meta

[moxflop]

Behold \(^o^)/ my farmer! I've been getting back into Stardew Valley again lately since newest update came out and I've been loving the meadowlands farm map, it's perfect for my rancher needs -w-👌

Here's the profile templete here and the portrait maker I used from here if you want to use it ^-^

My ramblings about Kiko is just below the read more!

Was one (1) year away from graduating from college with a history degree, but then dropped out and got a job in joja corp before quitting to take over grandpa's farm. The whole time frame has just been Kiko negatively spiraling and feeling lost without a purpose. He loves history, but college really was not doing wonders for his mental health and not sure where to go from after the degree

However, after moving to Pelican Town this led to being close with Gunther and developing a more fleshed out friendship as the two geek over the random artifacts Kiko brings to the museum talking about History

Kind of helps penny in regards of teaching about history to Jas and Vincent besides about farming and being a rancher while they're both good friends and after marriage.

Kiko challenges Penny in a way that isn't too shocking for penny. He does what he thinks is right and stands by his friends, but at first him and penny where just shy with each other, mainly on penny's end. Kiko tries to be a good friend first, as he understands her situation with Pam and wants the best for her period.

When not on Castaways Farm Kiko mainly likes to be fishing with willy, playing on the arcade cabinet's at the saloon, the mines (derogatory and reluctance), the spa (beloved), or in the secret woods

With friendship with Harvey it was dork to nerd gravitation or well dork to geek gravitation. They just clicked with each other and fell into a groove from how well they get along. Kiko considers Harvey as one of their best friends in Pelican Town

Absolutely loves Evelyn and does call her granny like she insisted when Kiko first moved in. Kiko has definitely worked his way to eventually getting her cookie recipe. As for George, Kiko also worked his way into his heart and their friendship as Kiko felt determined to get to being friends taking Evelyn and Alex's advice on what George like in his first season in Pelican Town

Actually loves all their farm animals <3 honestly loves being a rancher than a farmer

Was actually feeling a bit isolated and very shy in the first season he moved in. Didn't do great for mental health, but once got over it started coming out of his shell and was feeling more comfortable in himself and for once not feeling lost about himself and his future

Foraging and eating random shit is honestly just how they grew up in Zuzu City due to money being tight growing up, so the first year was not good with how his spending habits while learning the ropes of being a farmer fluctuates to good spending habits and buying too many seeds or buying a thing and underestimated how much money it left him with

I think I'll show the seasonal fits I had in mind for Kiko in the next post this already feels long due to my ramblings ^-^;

But if you want to ask about him don't be shy! There's stuff I didn't want to word vomit onto

#I couldn't decide on the last one in the friends box so I just put all 3 of them because I can't just pick one! >_< #He's good friends with all 3 of them! #sdv farmer #sdv oc #sdv #stardew valley #stardew valley farmer #OC: Kiko #Castaways farm

[plague-ridden-rat]

farmer rot

#doodle #my art #oc #oc x canon #I’m worried tagging the character lmao #but hiiii #the silly farming game took over my life again <3 #if you guys would like to see a specific character #my ask box is open :) #please feel free to leave a request <3

[vinescreens]

Stardew Valley

#stardew valley #pc game #farming simulator #concerned ape #stardew mr. qi #mr. qi #mystery box #purple seaplane #seaplane #mountains #stary night

[thewhimsyturtle]

We got a big nom-colored box filled with noms as big as me! But how do I get to the CHOMPable parts? 🎁🧀🌭👀🐢

#sausage #cheese #gift box #boop #Kirby #tortoise #Russian tortoise #Inspector Kirby #Hickory Farms #Kirby sits on things #red #mustard #GRUMP #cute #animals