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What about a browser extension doing exactly that: a distributed user populated database, karma based abuse prevention (because it will be abused) and a big indicator that turns on from yellow to red according to the level of garbage the site is throwing against its users.

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What would stop them from abusing the karma itself and/or buying “influence” points from popular users?

Hopefully, the fact that the system would create its own loop, and would rely on the accuracy and usefulness of that loop. If it served inaccurate info to users, they might be tricked into opening something they wouldn't have, at which point they would lose trust in the tool upon seeing the thing it's meant to protect them from.

Not sure if we’re talking about the same. It’s clear that one could block reviews from a bad reviewer and e.g. subscribe to another one. But those who game the system will promote their own reviewer accounts and drown real useful ones in low karma via botnets, making them non-discoverable for new users. It means money to them, and it doesn’t cost much, so it’s basically free money in doing that for sites which would want to pay for a good position in such system. It’s inevitable and there are tens to hundreds of examples of third-party review sites out there. The loop is fragile by design.

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