Polymarket Used Fake Videos to Get Users
Polymarket Used Fake Videos to Get Users
Polymarket 使用虛假影片吸引使用者
Introduction
The Wall Street Journal found that Polymarket paid people to make fake videos. These videos showed fake money to trick people.
《華爾街日報》發現 Polymarket 付款請人製作虛假影片。這些影片展示虛構的金額以欺騙用戶。
Main Body
Polymarket paid influencers to make videos. These people used a fake website. The videos showed they won a lot of money. In real life, they actually lost money.
Polymarket 付款給網紅製作影片。這些人使用了一個虛假網站，影片顯示他們贏了很多錢。但實際上，他們其實是虧損的。
Polymarket told the creators to hide the truth. They did not say the company paid them. They only said the truth after the newspaper asked questions.
Polymarket 要求創作者隱瞞真相，不要透露公司支付了費用。直到報社詢問後，他們才承認事實。
Now, Polymarket closed the fake websites. The company says it will check its ads to be more honest.
現在 Polymarket 已關閉了那些虛假網站。公司表示將檢查其廣告，以提高誠實度。
Conclusion
Polymarket is now changing its rules because it used fake trades and secret payments.
由於使用了虛假交易和秘密付款，Polymarket 現在正在修改其規則。
Vocabulary Learning
🛠️ The 'Action' Word Trick
Look at these words from the story:
- paid
- showed
- won
- lost
- told
What is happening here? These are not 'now' words. They are 'yesterday' words. In English, when something is finished, the word often changes its ending.
The Simple Pattern: Most of the time, we just add -ed to the end.
- pay → paid (Special change!)
- show → showed
- tell → told (Special change!)
Why this helps you reach A2: To tell a story or explain a problem (like this news article), you cannot use 'now' words. You must use 'finished' words.
Quick Comparison:
- Now: They pay people. (It happens every day)
- Finished: They paid people. (It happened in the past) ➔ This is how the article is written.
Vocabulary Learning
Investigation into Misleading Advertising by Polymarket
關於 Polymarket 誤導性廣告的調查
Introduction
An investigation by the Wall Street Journal has revealed that Polymarket used paid creators to spread fake videos showing false financial profits on its prediction platform.
《華爾街日報》的一項調查揭露，Polymarket 透過支付費用給創作者，在其預測平台上傳播顯示虛假財務獲利的假影片。
Main Body
The company's marketing strategy involved using a contractor to promote content created by paid influencers. After analyzing 1,100 videos, researchers found that the creators used fake websites—such as 'poiymarket.com'—to imitate the real user experience. These fake sites allowed them to show trades that never happened. For example, 118 clips showed winnings of nearly $900,000, whereas the actual market results for those trades would have caused a loss of $166,000.
該公司的行銷策略涉及使用承包商來推廣由付費影響者創作的內容。研究人員在分析 1,100 部影片後發現，創作者使用了假網站（例如 "poiymarket.com"）來模仿真實的使用者體驗。這些假網站讓他們能夠顯示從未發生過的交易。例如，118 段片段顯示獲利近 90 萬美元，而這些交易的實際市場結果本應造成 16.6 萬美元的損失。
Furthermore, the investigation emphasized that creators were first told not to tell their audience that they were being paid. They only started adding 'partnership' labels to their social media profiles after journalists began asking questions. One former partner compared this method to how products are made to look better in traditional commercials. In response, Polymarket has shut down the fake websites and stated that it will review its marketing materials to ensure better transparency.
此外，調查強調創作者最初被告知不得告知觀眾他們已獲取報酬。直到記者開始詢問後，他們才開始在社交媒體個人資料中加入「合作夥伴」標記。一位前合作夥伴將此方法比作傳統廣告中將產品美化的方式。作為回應，Polymarket 已關閉這些假網站，並表示將審視其行銷素材以確保更高的透明度。
Conclusion
Polymarket is now reviewing its marketing rules after the discovery of a planned campaign involving fake trades and hidden payments to influencers.
在發現一個涉及虛假交易與向影響者隱藏付款的計劃後，Polymarket 目前正在審視其行銷規則。
Vocabulary Learning
⚡ The 'B2 Power-Up': Moving from Simple to Sophisticated
An A2 student describes a situation using simple words: "The company told people to lie."
To reach B2, you need to describe how and why things happen using precise professional language. In this article, the most valuable 'bridge' is the move from General Verbs Specific Action Verbs.
🔍 The Linguistic Shift
Look at these three upgrades from the text:
-
"Used paid creators" "Promote content"
- A2 level: They used people to show the app.
- B2 level: They used contractors to promote content.
- Why: "Promote" describes a professional goal, not just a generic action.
-
"Fake sites" "Imitate the user experience"
- A2 level: The websites looked like the real one.
- B2 level: The sites were designed to imitate the user experience.
- Why: "Imitate" is more precise than "look like," and "user experience" is a high-level collocation (words that naturally go together).
-
"Check the rules" "Ensure transparency"
- A2 level: They want to be honest now.
- B2 level: They will review materials to ensure transparency.
- Why: "Ensure" (to make sure) and "Transparency" (openness/honesty) are essential for business and academic English.
🛠️ Practical Application: The 'Professional Swap'
Instead of saying "The company did a bad plan," a B2 speaker says:
"The company executed a planned campaign involving misleading advertising."
Key Vocabulary to Steal:
- Misleading (adj): Giving the wrong idea/lying subtly.
- Investigation (n): A formal look into the facts.
- Contractor (n): A person hired for a specific job, not a permanent employee.
Vocabulary Learning
Investigation into Deceptive Promotional Practices by Polymarket
針對 Polymarket 欺騙性促銷行為的調查
Introduction
A Wall Street Journal investigation has revealed that Polymarket utilized paid creators to disseminate fraudulent videos depicting fictitious financial gains on its prediction platform.
《華爾街日報》的一項調查揭露，Polymarket 利用付費創作者傳播虛假影片，在該預測平台上描繪虛構的財務收益。
Main Body
The operational framework of this promotional strategy involved the deployment of a marketing contractor to amplify content generated by paid influencers. Analysis of 1,100 videos indicates the utilization of simulated interfaces—including a domain identified as 'poiymarket.com'—to mimic the authentic user experience. These simulations facilitated the depiction of non-existent trades; specifically, 118 clips portrayed winnings totaling nearly $900,000, whereas the actual market outcomes for those positions would have resulted in a deficit of $166,000.
此促銷策略的運作框架涉及部署一名行銷承包商，以擴大由付費影響者產生的內容。對 1,100 部影片的分析顯示，該公司利用模擬介面（包括一個被識別為 "poiymarket.com" 的網域）來模仿真實的使用者體驗。這些模擬促成了對不存在交易的描繪；具體而言，118 段片段描繪了總計近 90 萬美元的獲利，而這些部位的實際市場結果本應導致 16.6 萬美元的虧損。
Regarding the transparency of these arrangements, the investigation asserts that creators were initially instructed to omit disclosures of their financial relationship with the firm. A subsequent shift toward transparency, characterized by the addition of partnership designations in social media biographies, occurred only following journalistic inquiries. One former collaborator likened the methodology to the aesthetic enhancement of products in commercial advertising. In response to these findings, Polymarket has deactivated the simulated domains and stated an intention to perform an audit of its promotional materials to ensure market transparency.
關於這些安排的透明度，調查聲稱創作者最初被指示不要披露他們與該公司之間的財務關係。直到記者詢問後，才隨後轉向透明，在社交媒體個人簡介中添加合作夥伴標記。一名原合作者將此方法比作商業廣告中對產品的美化。針對這些發現，Polymarket 已停用了模擬網域，並表示有意對其促銷材料進行審計，以確保市場透明度。
Conclusion
Polymarket is currently reviewing its marketing protocols following the exposure of a systematic campaign involving simulated trades and undisclosed paid endorsements.
在揭露涉及模擬交易和未披露付費背書的系統性活動後，Polymarket 目前正在審查其行銷流程。
Vocabulary Learning
The Architecture of 'Clinical Detachment' in High-Register Prose
To migrate from B2 to C2, a student must move beyond correct English and master strategic English. The provided text is a masterclass in Nominalization and the Erasure of Agency, a linguistic phenomenon used in legal, journalistic, and academic writing to create an aura of objectivity and perceived impartiality.
◤ The Mechanism: Transforming Actions into Entities
Notice how the text avoids simple subject-verb-object constructions (e.g., "Polymarket hired a contractor to spread lies"). Instead, it employs Nominalization—turning verbs into nouns—to distance the actor from the action.
- B2 Approach: "They used a marketing contractor to make the content more popular."
- C2 Execution: "The operational framework of this promotional strategy involved the deployment of a marketing contractor to amplify content..."
Analysis: By replacing "They used" with "The operational framework... involved the deployment," the writer shifts the focus from a culprit to a process. This is the hallmark of C2 formal register: it describes a scandal not as a series of bad choices, but as a systemic phenomenon.
◤ Lexical Precision: The 'Euphemistic Shift'
At the C2 level, precision is not just about the 'correct' word, but the word that carries the exact required connotation. Observe the transition from aggressive to neutral terminology to maintain a scholarly tone:
"fraudulent videos" "simulated interfaces" "aesthetic enhancement"
This sequence demonstrates lexical hedging. The text begins with a strong accusation (fraudulent) but then pivots to technical descriptions (simulated), mirroring the way high-level discourse balances bold claims with descriptive evidence to avoid libel or oversimplification.
◤ Syntactic Density: The 'Information-Heavy' Clause
C2 mastery is identified by the ability to pack multiple layers of meaning into a single sentence without losing coherence.
Example: "A subsequent shift toward transparency, characterized by the addition of partnership designations in social media biographies, occurred only following journalistic inquiries."
The Anatomy of this Sentence:
- The Nucleus: A shift occurred.
- The Appositive Modifier: (characterized by the addition of partnership designations...)
- The Temporal Constraint: (only following journalistic inquiries).
By nesting the definition of "transparency" within the sentence, the writer avoids the repetitive "This transparency meant..." structure typical of B2/C1 learners.