Developer Protection and Review Abuse – Real Case and Open Question

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Hello colleagues,

I would like to share a situation I recently experienced and ask for your thoughts.

A user purchased my product without testing the demo version, and a week later began demanding a “working system” — whatever that means — despite already receiving a product that functions exactly as described. When I asked for clarification, screenshots, or examples, they refused to cooperate.

Instead, they began to threaten me with a negative review unless I provided them with what they called a "working system". At no point did they report a technical issue, nor did they request proper support.

Trying to avoid unnecessary conflict, I even offered a full refund — despite the fact that I would lose the platform commission and VAT. However, the user then provided multiple PayPal accounts registered under completely different names, refused to confirm identity, and eventually sent crypto wallet addresses from unrelated sources.

What’s more concerning is that the user claimed to have tested the demo beforehand — however, download records show that no demo was ever downloaded from the location where the purchase was made. This raises further doubts about the honesty and intentions behind the communication.

Despite all of this, and without providing any additional information or cooperating in any way, the user eventually left a negative public review, exactly as they had warned — seemingly as a means to pressure me.

I reported the case to support with full documentation, including chat screenshots and download logs. Unfortunately, the response I received was that “a negative review is not a threat,” and the review remains online.

This experience left me with the impression that developers have little to no protection against manipulative behavior. A single unjustified review can seriously damage the reputation of a product that took months of hard work to build.

Have any of you faced similar issues?
Do you think there should be better protection or moderation when there is clear evidence of abuse?

Thank you in advance for sharing your experiences.

—

Ivan Stefanov


EDIT by moderator : Please don't mention any product.
 
Ivan Stefanov:
Do you think there should be better protection or moderation when there is clear evidence of abuse?

Based on your well described summary of facts, you've already gone to the Service Desk which is the functional equivalent of a supreme court here at mql5.com.

I'm sorry to hear that you went through this, but opinions in this forum including my own are worth about as much as a warm bucket of hamster vomit--moot.

If it's any consolation to you, this happens all over the internet. If the platform in which you sell something allows reviews, competitors are basically invited to launch smear campaigns. You could build your own website and control your own future... for better or worse.

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