So... advertising CD Key sites

[Deleted member 67555]

The (il)legality of it is one part of the debacle, yes, but just one part. I'm not here to argue whether it's legal or illegal, as I don't know enough about it to say whether it is or isn't... but I do know shady when I see it, and given GlacerNine's report in #106, that site looks about as shady as a cave on the night of the full moon.

Also, I'm not sure exactly what happened to @jmcslob there, but if he was hit like that as a result of using sites that have been promoted here at TPU, well, that's just repugnant.

There should definitely be a better vetting system in place for these sites we're advertising. GlacerNine has one again stepped up and did it with the latest ad. Why can't the ones posting these ads do that? You can't just post garbage and then later say "oh, sorry you got scammed, we'll remove that ad" and then post more garbage.

No...never from anything here...
I got hit at Wendy's, Target, Walgreen's and 3btech as well as through Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield and a retirement account with the Teamsters

EDIT:
Can't prove the 3btech but the licenses were bought from the same zip code the day after a purchase.

 

[CrAsHnBuRnXp]

Hasnt it been brought up time and time again that these key sites are allowed by Microsoft themselves to be selling these cd keys? I bought Office 2019 and a Windows 10 pro key from one of the sites TPU partnered with and i have had 0 issues with anything.

It's legit. Stop overreacting.

Edit: And to add, when my brother built his high end gaming system back in December, he bought Windows 10 + Office 2019 from the same place I did. Zero issues.

 

[OneMoar]

I prefer not to quote Linus but he did do a video recently addressing the $20 CD keys



He also repeats what Microsoft says in their Licensing Terms which i quoted in my previous post.

some of them are also KVM keys lol, which you can get from a google search

 

[GLD]

The Win 10 Home key I got from GO24 is a Retail key. It took a couple of hours to arrive, that was worrysome.

 

[lexluthermiester]

Do they follow the LT or T&C ?

Not sure. How would any of us know that? We are not given privilege to that private business info.

Hasnt it been brought up time and time again that these key sites are allowed by Microsoft themselves to be selling these cd keys? I bought Office 2019 and a Windows 10 pro key from one of the sites TPU partnered with and i have had 0 issues with anything.

With the LTSB keys, only Microsoft themselves supplies them directly which means they are selling them to these outlets who are authorized to resell them.

It's legit. Stop overreacting.

Exactly. If MS had a problem with it, their legal teams would put a stop to it.

 

[OneMoar]

Hasnt it been brought up time and time again that these key sites are allowed by Microsoft themselves to be selling these cd keys? I bought Office 2019 and a Windows 10 pro key from one of the sites TPU partnered with and i have had 0 issues with anything.

It's legit. Stop overreacting.

No its not no part of this is legit and key re-sellers are explicitly forbidden by Microsoft I am not sure where you get your information from but Microsoft does not and has never offered stand-alone keys for sale

there is so much wrong with everything you just said I am gonna stop there

The Win 10 Home key I got from GO24 is a Retail key. It took a couple of hours to arrive, that was worrysome.

slmgr /dlv AND a screenshot of the activation settings panel,

also just because one site overs a key that works does not mean they all do

and let me remind people again there is a way to flag machines in such a way is they come up as legit activated (even after a format or physical drive change)

if they provide anything other then a key you can install with slmgr /ipk then guess what its not legit duh doi

and really I don't care if they are selling legit keys or not the bottom line is kids Microsoft explicitly forbids the sale of Microsoft product keys though anybody but authorized partners if they are not on Microsoft Partner List/Authorized Re-seller they are not legit PERIOD END OF DISCUSSION anything you buy from said people Microsoft reserves the right to terminate and or revoke if they find about about
it

and its a very short list

https://partner.microsoft.com/en-us/licensing/distributors

https://www.microsoft.com/en-US/solution-providers/search < for VLK/SBO

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/4076425/partner-licensing-questions-quick-reference-guide < use the search function

 

[GLD]

slmgr /dlv AND a screenshot of the activation settings panel,

I used: slmgr -dli in command promt. It reported RETAIL. No screenshot, take my word on it. Cheers.

 

[OneMoar]

I used: slmgr -dli in command promt. It reported RETAIL. No screenshot, take my word on it. Cheers.

thing is a 'digital license' will always report back as Retail No matter what the source is in cases like yours they where probably a legit key at one point but not for the US market or where part of a bulk purchasing agreement that somebody slipped a few out the back door either way still not legit

 

[CrAsHnBuRnXp]

No its not no part of this is legit and key re-sellers are explicitly forbidden by Microsoft I am not sure where you get your information from but Microsoft does not and has never offered stand-alone keys for sale

there is so much wrong with everything you just said I am gonna stop there


slmgr /dlv AND a screenshot of the activation settings panel,

also just because one site overs a key that works does not mean they all do

and let me remind people again there is a way to flag machines in such a way is they come up as legit activated (even after a format or physical drive change)

if they provide anything other then a key you can install with slmgr /ipk then guess what its not legit duh doi

and really I don't care if they are selling legit keys or not the bottom line is kids Microsoft explicitly forbids the sale of Microsoft product keys though anybody but authorized partners if they are not on Microsoft Partner List/Authorized Re-seller they are not legit PERIOD END OF DISCUSSION anything you buy from said people Microsoft reserves the right to terminate and or revoke if they find about about
it

and its a very short list

https://partner.microsoft.com/en-us/licensing/distributors

https://www.microsoft.com/en-US/solution-providers/search < for VLK/SBO

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/4076425/partner-licensing-questions-quick-reference-guide < use the search function

See the post above this one im quoting of yours.

 

[R-T-B]

Microsoft furthermore does not sell LTSB keys in retail channels at all, so if you find one for sale without a huge agreement (like the one my former employer had long ago for 2016 edition), it's absolutely not legit.

It's rare me and OneMoar agree, but there is absolutely nothing legit about this and I'll be honest, this is one of the many reasons I am slowly trying to withdraw from this site. I really can't reconcile this.

I'm honestly worried that if I reported this to microsoft, TPU would see some very real consequences. They aren't outside of the jurisdiction of microsoft like many of the key sites.

Not sure. How would any of us know that? We are not given privilege to that private business info.

You could start by reading the terms and conditions and realizing if it isn't attained from a reseller on this list, it's a license violation:

and its a very short list

https://partner.microsoft.com/en-us/licensing/distributors

https://www.microsoft.com/en-US/solution-providers/search < for VLK/SBO

https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/4076425/partner-licensing-questions-quick-reference-guide < use the search function

 

[lexluthermiester]

I'm honestly worried that if I reported this to microsoft, TPU would see some very real consequences.

You're assuming that hasn't already happened. I called Microsoft myself(last year) to inquire as to the legitimacy of the licenses on offer as I was interested in offering them to my clients, but ONLY if they were lawful licenses that Microsoft had authorized the distribution of. It was confirmed to me that Microsoft has entered the digital distribution market channels just like other software distributors and game etailers.
Don't just take my word for it, call up Microsoft themselves and ask a reseller rep. That's who I talked too. If I, as business owner and reseller, can lawfully purchase and resell these types of licenses, anyone else can to. Last year when this all began, I gave my input and encouraged the TPU admins to contact Microsoft in the same way and it seems they have done so. TPU would not participate in such endevours unless they knew they were not breaking any laws, which they're not.

You could start by reading the terms and conditions and realizing if it isn't attained from a reseller on this list, it's a license violation:

That's an assumption on your part. Microsoft has the absolute right and authority to enter into distribution agreements that are outside of what is generally stated on their website.

 

[OneMoar]

You're assuming that hasn't already happened. I called Microsoft myself(last year) to inquire as to the legitimacy of the licenses on offer as I was interested in offering them to my clients, but ONLY if they were lawful licenses that Microsoft had authorized the distribution of. It was confirmed to me that Microsoft has entered the digital distribution market channels just like other software distributors and game etailers.
Don't just just take my word for it, call up Microsoft themselves and ask a reseller rep. That's who I talked too. If I, as business owner and reseller, can lawfully purchase and resell these types of licenses, anyone else can to. Last year when this all began, I gave my input and encouraged the TPU admins to contact Microsoft in the same way and it seems they have done so. TPU would not participate in such endevours unless they knew they were not breaking any laws, which they're not.

That's an assumption on your part. Microsoft has the absolute right and authority to enter into distribution agreements that are outside of what is generally stated on their website.

a lot of frankly wrong assumptions there

 

[lexluthermiester]

a lot of frankly wrong assumptions there

Hmm, let's review...

I called Microsoft myself

It was confirmed to me that Microsoft has entered the digital distribution market channels just like other software distributors and game etailers.

Hmmm..

Don't just take my word for it, call up Microsoft themselves and ask a reseller rep.

TPU's apparently done so too. Try it and be enlightened. Go on..

 

[rtwjunkie]

Hasnt it been brought up time and time again that these key sites are allowed by Microsoft themselves to be selling these cd keys? I bought Office 2019 and a Windows 10 pro key from one of the sites TPU partnered with and i have had 0 issues with anything.

It's legit. Stop overreacting.

Edit: And to add, when my brother built his high end gaming system back in December, he bought Windows 10 + Office 2019 from the same place I did. Zero issues.

For now. Microsoft has said also that sometimes it can be years, and then some action that comes to their attention just related to your key sets their eyes on you and your key gets deactivated too.

 

[MrGenius]

The FUD is EPIC in here. Nice job guys! :thumbsup:

 

[notb]

Hmm, let's review...

You've read or heard that OEM licenses are legal, so you extrapolate and simplify.

But there are many requirements to be fulfilled. Can you be 100% sure they are?
We don't know how these sellers acquired the keys. We don't know if they have a registered business activity.

Moreover, are you 100% sure you're allowed to resale them further? You use them for the PCs you sell, right? Do you have a registered business activity? (you don't have to answer, it's just to make you realize some issues)

The fact that you say you've called MS and they told you something doesn't mean a thing. Can you give us a name of a senior MS employee that we can confirm this with?
Why not via e-mail? So that you could show us the answer and we could at least confirm whether the author exists?

These key providers are shady. It doesn't mean it's always illegal, but probability of breaking the law is somehow high. Risk of getting a bad key is high as well.
So why is TPU doing it? Do they really can't get a better sponsor?
If TPU staff is afraid of being accused of bias, they don't have to go after sponsors that make stuff tested on TPU.
I follow at least 10 reviewers of computer and camera gear. They're sponsored by hosting companies, by web services providers, by online stores etc.
TPU is a small and niche entity, true. But they aren't so small and unknown that they can't get a deal with a serious, respected company.

 

[londiste]

Consumer has no reasonable way to know what key they are buying. Microsoft probably should be to blame for this. They have the Genuine messaging out but there is no way to verify. "It works" may be a temporary solution as for example MSDN keys are theoretically (but not in practise, so far) revoked after MSDN contract ends. The way Activation works tends to vary as well. From the test machines I have handy, slmgr reports OEM, Retail and MSDN all as Retail.

 

[P4-630]

@Bill_Bright

 

[Vayra86]

Still rocking my $7,99 Windows 10 key, still working just fine. As are the well over 50 games I bought using keys.

I've said before and will say again: key sellers are very diverse and this is as 'gray' as it gets. You can be a white knight about it, or use plausible deniability. We know TPUs stance on it, and its not the white knight stance but we have no say about it. /thread...

 

[GlacierNine]

Still rocking my $7,99 Windows 10 key, still working just fine. As are the well over 50 games I bought using keys.

I've said before and will say again: key sellers are very diverse and this is as 'gray' as it gets. You can be a white knight about it, or use plausible deniability. We know TPUs stance on it, and its not the white knight stance but we have no say about it. /thread...

Or you could be seen to at least make a common sense check via Google about whether a company appears to be astroturfing their trustpilot and has a reputation for defrauding people.

 

[CrAsHnBuRnXp]

For now. Microsoft has said also that sometimes it can be years, and then some action that comes to their attention just related to your key sets their eyes on you and your key gets deactivated too.

Then I'll just get another for $15.

 

[OneMoar]

this whole controversy could have been avoided by simply getting the right sponsors and making the patron worth something by providing some swag, a forum badge and maby promoting it because I didn't even know tpu had one until it was posted in this thread

instead what we have is completely the wrong approach with a few mis-guided users accually defending this utter nonsense

unfortunately I think we are beyond that point of no return here the site has been mis-handled for too long tpu was way to late getting on the you-tube wagon and when it did it immediately fell off because nobody had any idea what they where doing

the quality across the board here has been on a downward slide since 2016 its common knowledge that w1zzard does not want to be involved in running the show so this is what we get

so I see two options either w1zzard steps up and takes a more hands on approach to running this show, or gets somebody that can (and no I don't mean some random guy he found on the street I mean somebody from within the tech community or from tpu its self I nominate R-T-B/rtwjunkie/hat

or the site slowly bleeds long time users out until nobody is left to care.

because lets face it the game has changed being a stand alone review--tech-news site is no longer sufficient pretty evident by what is obviously a attempt at generating more revenue

 

[NdMk2o1o]

Soooo. not proved illegal or shady but still lots of whining going on by those that know MS licensing T+C's better than MS themselves, where's the popcorn? Same people who have more than likely bought numerous games from key sites but feel self entitled enough to piss and complain without any real evidence said sites are infringing any MS rules, let alone actual real laws. Usual suspetcs though. Innocence until proven guilty is a pretty widely know concept.

 

[OneMoar]

Soooo. not proved illegal or shady but still lots of whining going on by those that know MS licensing T+C's better than MS themselves, where's the popcorn? Same people who have more than likely bought numerous games from key sites but feel self entitled enough to piss and complain without any real evidence said sites are infringing any MS rules, let alone actual real laws. Usual suspects though. Innocence until proven guilty is a pretty widely know concept.

You have reading comprehension problem bud?

evidence pff what evidence you mean the massive mountain of evidence concerning every single key-sell operation in existence ?

or the fact that all 3 sites posted to tpu in the last 6 months have no track record,where recently created and have been actively reported as scams ?, poor reviews non existent customer service and a complete disregard for any of the EULA's they are breaking simply by existing

did you not read any of the past 3 pages ?

No you didn't so kindly go pound sand

but as leVar burton once say you don't need to take my word for it

https://www.godaddy.com/whois/results.aspx?domain=urcdkeys.com

the whois is a joke
here are the bullet points
1. address is a abandoned building in vegas

2. domain owner is using a hotmail address

3. the registrant new century network co is located in china

https://www.cmmirz.com/new-century-network-co-shanghai-ltd-cmmi5/

 

[NdMk2o1o]

You have reading comprehension problem bud?

evidence pff what evidence you mean the massive mountain of evidence concerning every single key-sell operation in existence ?

or the fact that all 3 sites posted to tpu in the last 6 months have no track record,where recently created and have been actively reported as scams ?, poor reviews non existent customer service and a complete disregard for any of the EULA's they are breaking simply by existing

did you not read any of the past 3 pages ?

No you didn't so kindly go pound sand

thats why you're on ignore