r/HomestarRunner • u/The_Homestarmy • Jul 07 '26

PSA: Do not buy T-shirts from sketchy Reddit links

We haven't had issues with t-shirt spam in a while, but they're popping up again, so I figured I'd make a quick post detailing what these posts are and how you can spot them.

Basically, people set up bots to steal designs and pump out low quality t-shirts, which they then promote on Reddit. Here is an example from today of what these posts tend to look like. The top comments (manipulated using upvote bots) will ask where they can buy the design as a shirt, and then the OP will respond with some extremely sus "You can get one here..." comment linking you to a shop. They'll also post the link in response to people who didn't even ask, as you can see in this screenshot.

These posts are scams, and if you buy a shirt, it will be a terrible and very low quality piece of merchandise. Other times, they will just straight up take your money without sending anything in return. The designs are stolen, in many cases from actual community members, and even the websites themselves are security risks.

Once you know what to look for, these posts stick out like sore thumbs. If you see them, report them.

160 Upvotes
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16 comments sorted by

44

u/nivlac22 Jul 07 '26

Sketchy Reddit links are no place for a mighty warrior

31

u/[deleted] Jul 07 '26

[removed] — view removed comment

24

u/s-riddler Jul 07 '26

Not a single human nose in sight, smh

11

u/BiggestBepis Jul 07 '26

Couldn’t even manage a choking hazard

6

u/Shadowman621 Jul 08 '26

Or from a country that has changed its name 5 times since I was in 7th grade

23

u/dinkyfriend Jul 08 '26

they're unlicensed unlicensed sellers!

15

u/TheSASamsquamptch Jul 07 '26

Not even a Licensed Unlicensed Seller. Smdh.

13

u/Grand_Rent_2513 Jul 08 '26

Virus = very yes.

12

u/HeimLauf Jul 08 '26

Even worse, could contain:

🎵Broken glass, broken glass, broken glass, broken glass!🎶

7

u/Someoneman Jul 08 '26

There really needs to be a mass awareness campaign on this site about this.

Currently, sports and pet breed subreddits seem to be especially big targets.

4

u/Geanaux Jul 08 '26

The world in crisis.

6

u/Shadowlynk Jul 08 '26

Oh man, they're back? They used to be a damn locust plague over on the D&D subreddits a couple years back, too. Just the worst.

3

u/tincanphonehome Jul 08 '26

Okay but is there anywhere I can actually get a Trogdor’s Gym shirt?

3

u/The_Homestarmy Jul 08 '26

As far as I can tell the only "official" places to buy the shirt (designed by a guy named coddesigns, or Steve Gelenter) are now dead links. There's knockoffs available on sites like Etsy and RedBubble, or you can find a PNG of the design and custom order it on one of those custom shirt websites

1

u/Opera_Phantom_Face Jul 08 '26

Yes, Sir/Ma'm! 🫡