Credential harvesting

Why does credential harvesting matter to a buyer?

This is the one bright-line rule in the market. Delivery works by directing external accounts at your public content, which requires nothing from you but a link. A service asking for credentials is asking for something it has no delivery use for, and the only remaining use is account takeover.

The consequences run past the account. Reused passwords compromise the email behind them, and write-scope access allows posting, direct messages and follow activity attributed to you — which can get the account actioned for behaviour you never performed.

How does credential harvesting show up in a price list?

It never appears in a catalogue. It appears at order time or in onboarding, framed as needed for verification, account warm-up, growth management or engagement services.

PanelCompare does not list panels that request account passwords, and a listed panel found doing so is delisted rather than downgraded.

Which terms should you read next?

Credential harvesting only makes sense alongside the terms it interacts with — most confusion in this market comes from reading one word without the one that qualifies it.

• Attack serviceCatalogue rows sold to damage a third party; tortious as well as ToS-violating.
• Exit scamA panel that banks prepaid balances, stops delivering and disappears.
• ShadowbanUnannounced distribution throttling — the usual step before any visible penalty.