YouTube Scams-Table of Contents
- Introduction: YouTube’s Hidden Exploitation
- Tough Monetization Criteria: A Barrier for the Innocent
- Unfair Strikes from Day One: No Chance to Grow
- Preying on Hope: Targeting the Middle Class
- A Playground for Scammers: YouTube’s Role in Fraud
- Lack of Support: Creators Left in the Dark
- A Billion-Dollar Scam: YouTube’s Profits vs. Creators’ Pain
Introduction: YouTube’s Hidden Exploitation
- A False Promise: YouTube, a platform with 2.5 billion users, markets itself as a land of opportunity for creators, but for millions of lower middle class and middle class Indians, it’s a mirage of hope that turns into a nightmare of exploitation.
- The Reality Check: In 2025, YouTube’s policies—like tough monetization criteria and immediate strikes—crush the dreams of innocent creators who invest thousands of hours, only to be left with nothing while YouTube profits billions.
- For zikzik.in Readers: Let’s expose 6 ways YouTube scams aspiring creators, revealing a system that preys on the vulnerable and fuels a cycle of despair in India’s gig economy.
Tough Monetization Criteria: A Barrier for the Innocent
- Unrealistic Standards:
- YouTube requires 1,000 subscribers and 4,000 watch hours in 12 months for monetization, a steep hurdle for new creators from smaller towns with limited resources.
- A 2024 Times of India report noted that only 5% of Indian creators achieve this within their first year, leaving 95% struggling for months or years without income.
- Middle-class creators, often balancing jobs and content creation, find these criteria nearly impossible, as they lack the time and tech to compete with established channels.
- No Transparency:
- YouTube’s monetization rules are rigid, with no leniency for genuine creators—data highlights how scammers exploit these rules by demanding fees to “fix” monetization status, a scam YouTube does little to address.
- X posts from creators like @xNickOnline in June 2025 reveal frustration over YouTube’s lack of clarity, with many unable to understand why they’re denied despite meeting criteria.
- This opacity ensures most creators remain stuck, investing hours without reward, while YouTube continues to monetize their content through ads.
- Critical View: YouTube’s monetization criteria aren’t designed to empower new creators—they’re a deliberate barrier to keep profits high, exploiting the dreams of those who can least afford to fail.
Unfair Strikes from Day One: No Chance to Grow
- Immediate Penalties:
- New creators often face community guideline strikes on their very first videos, as shared by X user @LeviRietveld in June 2025, who reported false flagging in the crypto space—a common issue across niches.
- These strikes, which can demonetize or limit a channel’s visibility, are issued without clear evidence, leaving creators unable to earn or appeal effectively.
- A Reddit post on r/Bogleheads noted that strikes can halt monetization during investigations, meaning creators lose income even if later cleared.
- No Fair Process:
- YouTube doesn’t interact with creators before issuing strikes—X user @rmotta2 in 2022 complained that YouTube neither specifies the violation nor the video, a practice still prevalent in 2025.
- For example, a hypothetical creator, Priya from Lucknow, uploads her first cooking video, only to receive a strike for “inappropriate content” without explanation, halting her channel’s growth before it even begins.
- X user @NotJoeSposto in June 2025 highlighted that investigations drag on, leaving creators unable to earn while YouTube continues to profit from their videos.
- Critical View: YouTube’s strike system isn’t about maintaining quality—it’s a tool to suppress new creators, ensuring only the privileged few rise while the rest are silenced from day one.
Preying on Hope: Targeting the Middle Class
- A Desperate Audience:
- India’s middle class, 31% of the population in 2021 and projected to reach 60% by 2047, faces financial stress with flat wages (0.4% CAGR over 10 years) and rising costs (food prices up 80%), per Web ID 18.
- YouTube exploits this desperation—middle-class creators, like a 57-year-old bookstore owner from Mangaluru (Web ID 11), invest hours hoping for income, only to lose ₹56.7 lakh to a YouTube scam promising “easy money” for liking videos.
- Web ID 0 notes that scammers target the middle class’s exhaustion, using hope as bait to lure them into scams, a vulnerability YouTube fails to address.
- False Promises:
- YouTube’s success stories—like earning millions as a creator—fuel unrealistic dreams, but the reality is grim: most creators earn nothing after years of effort.
- A 2025 LinkedIn post by Ashish Singhal warns that the middle class, expected to “absorb economic shocks in silence,” is the perfect target for platforms like YouTube, which profit while creators struggle.
- Creators invest 1,000+ hours annually, hoping for a breakthrough, but YouTube’s algorithm favors established channels, leaving newbies invisible.
- Critical View: YouTube isn’t a platform for opportunity—it’s a predator that feeds on the middle class’s hope, turning their hard work into ad revenue while offering nothing in return.
A Playground for Scammers: YouTube’s Role in Fraud
- Scammer Haven:
- YouTube has become a hub for scams—data reports that in Q1 2024, compromised accounts with 50 million subscribers were hijacked to spread crypto scam deepfakes, a trend continuing into 2025.
- Scammers lure creators with fake sponsorships, tricking them into downloading malware, as noted by Avast , while YouTube fails to curb these phishing attacks.
- A Mangaluru man lost ₹56.7 lakh in 2024 after being promised high returns for liking videos , a scam facilitated by YouTube’s lax oversight.
- YouTube’s Complicity:
- The platform’s automated ad systems allow malvertising—malicious ads that infect devices—exposing creators and viewers to fraud .
- YouTube profits from scam videos through ad revenue, yet does little to remove them, as seen in the rise of deepfake videos mimicking celebrities to promote fake investments.
- Web ID 13 notes that India faced ₹1,750 crore in cybercrime losses in 2024, with YouTube-enabled scams like “easy money for simple tasks” contributing significantly.
- Critical View: YouTube isn’t just failing to protect creators—it’s enabling scammers, turning a blind eye to fraud while innocent creators and viewers lose their savings to schemes the platform profits from.
Lack of Support: Creators Left in the Dark
- No Help for the Vulnerable:
- YouTube offers minimal support for new creators—X user @WasRobrtPaulson in June 2025 noted that without a direct connection to a YouTube employee, creators face “rough sailing” with no real assistance.
- When struck or demonetized, creators like @LeviRietveld report that YouTube support refuses to properly review cases, leaving them helpless against false flags.
- A 2023 NatWest report advises skepticism of platforms promising quick money, yet YouTube does nothing to educate its creators on avoiding such traps.
- Unresponsive System:
- Creators who face strikes or scams, like the Mangaluru victim , find YouTube’s grievance system unresponsive—complaints go unanswered, and appeals are ignored.
- X user @CryptoNewsYes in June 2025 warned creators to build on multiple platforms, as YouTube can terminate channels “under false pretenses” with no recourse.
- For example, a creator in Delhi might spend months building a channel, only to be demonetized for an unclear “policy violation,” with no way to appeal or understand the issue.
- Critical View: YouTube’s lack of support isn’t an oversight—it’s a deliberate choice to keep creators powerless, ensuring they remain dependent on a system that exploits their labor without accountability.
A Billion-Dollar Scam: YouTube’s Profits vs. Creators’ Pain
- YouTube’s Massive Gains:
- YouTube generated $31.5 billion in ad revenue in 2023, a figure likely higher in 2025, while creators struggle to earn even ₹10,000/month after years of work.
- The platform monetizes every video through ads, even those by unmonetized creators, meaning YouTube profits from the 1,000+ hours invested by middle-class creators who see nothing.
- Meanwhile, YouTube’s parent company, Google, reported $307 billion in revenue in 2023, showing the scale of profit while creators like the Mangaluru victim lose life savings to scams.
- Creators’ Struggles:
- A typical Indian creator invests 1,000 hours annually—equivalent to 125 eight-hour days—hoping for monetization, yet most earn nothing due to strikes, algorithm biases, and scams.
- Web ID 5 highlights the middle class’s financial stress—flat wages and 80% food price hikes—making YouTube’s exploitation even more devastating for those with no safety net.
- X user @DefinitiveZach in June 2025 called out YouTube for honoring false copyright claims, stealing revenue from creators while scammers thrive, a practice that continues unchecked.
- Critical Yet Hopeful Ending: YouTube’s billion-dollar scam preys on the dreams of India’s middle class, turning their hard work into profit while leaving them with nothing but despair. It’s a system that thrives on exploitation, ignoring the pain of millions. But we can fight back—by raising awareness, demanding fair policies, and supporting creators directly, we can push for a 2025 where YouTube becomes a true platform of opportunity, not a predatory scam.
Disclaimer
The views expressed in this blog are based on the author’s opinions, publicly available information, user experiences, and reports. This content is not intended to defame YouTube or any associated entities, nor to mislead readers. Readers are encouraged to conduct their own research and exercise caution when engaging with online platforms. The author and zikzik.in are not responsible for any actions taken based on this information.
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