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WriterBay.com and Paperwritings.com – Living Under the Same Roof – Is It A Question of Ethic’s
Whilst looking at WriterBay.com to see whether it was a legitimate operation or another scam I turned up an interesting fact which may pose many writers a quandary with their ethics.
WriterBay.com and Paperwritings.com – The Discovery
Marc Babineau, freelance writer and steward at Helium, asked in a group discussion on LinkedIn if anyone knew anything about WriterBay.com. Having managed to whip myself up into a frenzy over freelance writing scam sites I set off to explore.
After a cursory exploration I posted this reply to the group: -
“Nigel Lewis-Davidson • @Marc My initial look at the Writer Bay site shows a list of their top 10 earners this month. Louis Logic apparently earned over $4000. A Google on the name after showed, passing over the NY hip hop star, pulled up a WordPress site for Louis Logic. There are archives there going back to October 2010. Every archive, article and blog took me back to the same page which is about 10 articles long, all very generic and the type of thing I was writing for $3 and less. None of these articles was posted before November this year. Obviously this a may be a glitch.
You have probably already guessed my feelings.
I would not be accepted there if I were to apply as you need to have a BSc or more and I only have a diploma.
I will investigate further when time allows”
Obviously not conclusive proof against WriterBay.com but enough to make an old plod suspicious.
The Itch You Know You’ve Got To Scratch
The itch wouldn’t go away. I was like a dog with a flea I just had to scratch, so I figuratively scratched and departed for Google land. I read through WriterBay’s ‘terms and conditions’ and ‘about us’ pages but never actually followed through with an application; I felt I was under qualified with only a diploma despite Marc’s reassurances.
The topics available to write on were quite diverse and the offer of $20+ per page seemed very reasonable. (Oh if only I’d gone to uni (sigh)).
Still something nagged at me so I searched on the contact address. This showed me two things, first, the address matched a company offering a virtual office service operating from there, second, there was a second writing company operating from the address.
Enter Paperwritings.com
paperwritings.com Landing Page
Now Paperwritings.com were a different type of writing service, they offered writing
List of Services
services to those who needed something written for them. What are those services? Well to list a few they include such ethical minefields as, dissertation, thesis, coursework, homework and college papers to name but a few. However there are also categories that do not raise the eyebrows.
I suppose what this all about is the ethics of the writer and the self-control of the buyer.
If the buyer pays for a dissertation and uses their purchased item to frame their own then I would say the job was legitimate and the writers could hold their heads high, but how when you are writing that piece of work do you know the buyer will not submit it as their own work? You cannot. I suppose a question that needs to be answered is what type of person goes and buys a dissertation?
- Is it the student who has meticulously organised and worked on their work since it was set? Probably not.
- Is it the student who has a good support network to turn to for help when they suffer moments of doubt? Probably not.
- Is it the type of student who has left everything until the last minute and now find themselves with a mountain to climb? Probably so.
- Is it the type of student who really does not have a clue what they are doing or talking about? Probably so.
- Is it the type of student who really does not care as long as they pass? Probably so.
My thinking here is the last three students will have no qualms about presenting the dissertation bought from Paperwritings.com as their own, in fact the chances are it will only be these types of students that approach companies like Paperwritings.com.
Why do some students need this type of help?
For some the excuse given is they have no support networks which is why they turn to this type of company for ‘advice’ with their dissertation. I don’t doubt that for some students university and college can be a very lonely life but if you intend doing well you will turn to your tutors for the necessary help rather than pay a third-party, unless of course…
Or the student is having difficulty with getting their dissertation presented or formatted correctly. My guess is somewhere in the university there is not only advisers on these subjects but probably also many, many dissertations stored in a thing called a library.
Are there some coincidences here?
Is it coincidental that: -
- Two writing companies are housed in the same building with one side advertising services to students and the other looking for writers to complete similar work.
- If there was no concern over the legitimacy and ethics over this type of work why are they not just one company?
- The address is also used by a company offering virtual office space, I wouldn’t dare suggest that neither company actually work from the address.
- Louis Logic, their top earner before Christmas and the second top now, has such a debatable website.
- Other names on the top earners list have no trace on Google, not conclusive by any means but…
Back to the original question
The original question was about ethics. A dictionary definition of ‘ethic’ courtesy of thefreedictionary.com is: -
b. A theory or a system of moral values.
So ethics are not a set of rules others set for us but ones we set for ourselves, other than professional ethics, so whether it is unethical for a writer to produce a dissertation for another to use in their own name is a matter for where that writer sets their ethical ‘bar’.
It is also true that there are people in this world who set their ethical bar low enough so it is easy for their conscience to jump over whenever they wish.
I believe that a writers bar should be set at a height where it is a struggle for their conscience to climb over it therefore giving the writer a chance to reel it in when temptation is giving it a leg-up.
My deepest sympathy goes to those poor (in both senses) writers who are so desperate that they have to gag and blindfold their consciences and duck under the bar to survive. And damn the companies and clients of those companies who force these poor writers into what we should all try to hold close to our hearts, the loss of our conscience.
This company was hotly debated within a few LinkedIn group discussions the link to one of the discussions is below. The discussion went into far more detail than my blog has gone and is well worth a read.
Without sadness happiness would become mundane 
I replied to one of these ad’s on LInkedin to find out more as I am trying to become a medical writer so it is not the money that interests me, but the experience. I have obviously seen a lot of these scam writing companies to researching led me here, and I have decided not to go ahead with them. I also agree that if you need help with an assignment, that is fine, we all need help from time to time, but using services such as these does not deserve a degree.
Thank you for posting, I will keep looking for more writing opportunities!
Hi mj thank you visiting and I’m glad you found my words helpful. Nigel
I was wondering about their legitimacy, and their ethics, plus who are their clients and why is it so important to know the various presentations. The names are strange, such as one woman is named after a character of CSI Grissom and other one has for last name Writerbay. I want to know who their market was, knowing that students do buy term papers and pass them off as their own. The student does not get graded on their research but it is the ghostwriter who does the work and the student gets the grades. Teachers and professor use the internet to find out if papers were bought online and those who are found cheating get an “F”, yet this seems to be a clever way to get around the buying of papers that are offered online, they are original work. What tipped me off what hurry and hurry our busiest season starts Dec.l 6 which coincides with the end of term and when term papers or dissertations are needed. I have nothing against helping a student in their research or pointing them in the right direction, discussing ideas to challenge them however I am against ghostwriting for a student who does not want to do their research or who have the cash to pay a ghostwriter… thank you for your explanation it was helpful
Thank you for visiting and expressing your valued opinion ‘-)
Thank you Nigel for the informative post, and thank you to all that have commented on this topic. I contacted the vendor thinking at first they needed revision work for their clients, I would have never thought possible they would trade collage papers- unbelievable. I do not want to pass judgment on anyone, but how can you pretend to have earned a given degree when someone else has done your work? It may say a lot about the state of our western civilization at this crucial time.
Best regards and a happy future to all,
Fabrizio
Thank you Fabrizio for reading the post and I’m glad it is helpful
Nigel
Believe me, students post their assignments (not only essays, but math, physics, programming) everywhere.
They order essays at services like textbroker.com and 1ws.com (who don’t provide academic aid), at freelance boards like elance, freelance_blab-bla-bla.com, at student forums and even ask their friends to help with writing.
So even if all academic-help-kind-of-websites will be shut down, student will find the way to cheat.
But if teachers spend enough effort they know for sure if this student has written this paper himself/herself. Every person has its style.
The only way to stop this – is to go back to handwriting I guess.
Sorry to take so long to answer your comment Lindsay. Handwriting maybe, but you can still copy it. The cheats will always find away unfortunately however exploiting the weak and the gullible is despicable. Nigel
Food to one, poison to the other. Writerbay.com ethical or unethical puts food on the table plus more. There are other garve methods of survival far worse than writerbay’s
From a writer who is struggling to live point of view, I can appreciate your comment, Nelson.
From the cheats using the service and the product being offered, I am sorry but I do not appreciate it at all.
Yes, Nelson, you are also right, there are far worse ways of making a living.
Good luck
By the way Nigel your profile says you are a freelance writer- what kind of writing do you do? maybe you could help some of us get more ethical writing jobs
Unfortunately although I am trying to become a writer, I do not get paid for much. My only suggestions are for you to join Freelancer, Elance or other such sites that allow you to bid for projects. I maintain this blog as a chance to rant, be creative and, as a possible showcase for my style. Sorry.
Nigel
Cheer up, Nigel, you’re not alone, my Man.
I have been following this thread because I have a few stories about Internet immorality and one of the “gigs” I turned down was the one that brought me here to commiserate with my peers.
No matter where humans are, we have to make our own happiness by supporting our fellow pilgrims.
Your comment could not have come at a more poignant time Paul. Today I have heard that our friend’s 17 year old daughter has had a relapse of lymph cancer, another friend has been on the phone crying as his wife’s hospital results have come back badly, although we don’t know all yet. Following on the back of Monday, when we found out a friend, is paralysed in hospital after an operation on his spine for an abscess hasn’t gone to plan. Put’s things in perspective when all I worry about is paying the bills
Nigel
I can can tell you this for a fact that most of the writers are from poor countries where their degrees have not got them jobs, a dollar is worth a lot and they need the money. Yes it is unethical but for these writers it is a matter of survival. I am from Kenya and here free lance writing employs a large fraction of graduates- there are no jobs even for those with graduate and postgraduate degrees yet we need the money some what to do? some of those writing here have never gone without food, well here it is the reality and to us writing is an opportunity to make a living. Trust me given a choice most writers would prefer something else if only to put food on the table
Hi John I totally agree with you and eluded to that fact in my post. It is a fact that some people in the world are being forced to break with their ethics because of poverty and the need to eat and feed their families. I can reassure you that only the harden cynical writers do not sympathise with you and people like you. Nigel
that’s the situation; I read a story that freelance writing is a major employer in India and here in Kenya it is a major industry. There are so many graduates and undergraduates in this country and there are no jobs- so some have even employed others to do the writing for them. . . the things poverty make us do . . .
Poverty has a lot for answer for, as do those who cause poverty and those who then tempt those in poverty to act desperately. I count myself very lucky even when things aren’t going well. My heart is with you
Nigel
I have commented here earlier. The reason why I am doing so again is to register my joy and consolation at the great number of people who have joined me in my disgust at the practices of the less than honest members of our society. True that I am a person of deep religious convictions to begin with. It doesn’t matter whether those who have reacted to the blog post are religious or not. The very fact that we all join together in a chorus of indignation is comforting. For now, we know that we are united in the refusal to participate in such an underhanded practice.
To the point that Elyse made, I can say that it does happen that “graduates” who turn out to be underperformers do get discovered and do get separated from the companies who find out that they cannot do the work that they purport is within their area of expertise. However, it would seem to be the few rather than the many who get their comeuppance.
Thanks for returning Paul. I personally struggle with my religious faith, although I am still a Christian, however, the ethics that guide my life, although flawed, do not allow me to condone this type of behaviour. What saddens me is the people who have to forget their ethics, in order that they and their families can feed themselves. I agree with your comment that not all get found out, also the cost to business’s for recruiting and re-recruiting must be phenomenal.
Nigel
In addition to the complete absence of ethics (on both sides), this practice really harms society. Early on in life, people are hired based on the skills have developed during school. If I am hiring someone with a University degree (or a Masters or whatever), I expect them to be able to do the work themselves, obviously with guidance. The folks who have to buy their research papers are sabotaging their own futures, the fools. And they wouldn’t last too long in my office.
I agree Elyse, and it really does make you wonder how many people are walking around the planet with false qualifications. It has always made me wonder if there is a central database with legitimate qualifications stored on it or if there is a way of checking the legitimacy of a qualification. In my last blog I mention a company that has been in business since 2003 supplying this type of service. Thanks for visiting Nigel
Reblogged this on Your Riverside Forum and commented:
This is for the writers and parents of students who may be wondering about such services. They are out there. There might not be anything illegal about them, but they raise some major ethical questions.
Thanks for re-blogging
Excellent post!
I have been looking into Writerbay as well. You have, what should occur to many writers, a good point. What writer with any integrity (because when you get right down to it, that is how you live ethically) enter into such an ethical nightmare as this? What gave me pause was the fact that the jobs come from students. Shouldn’t they be writing their own papers…I had to. The big Ethics warning light went on big and bright red, so I wanted to look further. I wanted to see how I would utilize Writerbay services if I wanted a paper written. I have yet to find a customer site. I recently asked Writerbay customer service about this, and await a response.
Part of the problem is, individuals so often look at the degree as just a stepping stone. Long gone is the attitude of learning for learning sake. I had a friend who I called the auditor. He would go to a class until they realized he wasn’t in the class and asked him to leave; then he would move onto his next area of interest. Like me, he just loves learning. Students nowadays seem to be in it just for the experience, to say they went or to get those letters at the end of their names. I saw it almost 20 years ago when was in college. People would be there to party; I am not saying they wouldn’t do well, but they did not seem to be learning anything.
Hi hawkdad. Thanks for visiting and taking the time to comment. I love the auditor, imagine someone sneaking INTO a lesson lol. The student end of WriterBay is Paperwritings.com, there you should find what students get out of it. There is a company @ http://www.ukessays.com/faqs.php#tag5b who make a very reasonable argument for using their service, but even after reading it I still can’t stop myself thinking it’s wrong. Whilst looking up that site I stumbled on another website @ https://ukessay.co.uk/ and here is a direct quote: -
We guarantee never to resell your essay, which many companies do, exposing you to the risk of being caught.
Nothing quite like spelling out the fact you’re cheating.
Nigel
I am glad that I smelled it. when I turned to studyiing the tutorial and the blurbs that were all so “vaguely specific”, I decided to write to the recruiter and ask bluntly if what they were doing is fishing for writers to do papers that people would hand in for grades. I have a masters degree in Theology. I wrote my masters thesis in Latin, all by myself. I sure as shooting am not going to write some poor baby’s paper in English and let him/her claim that it is 100% free of plagiarism. Sheeesh!
Ethics? of course! Fair play? Damn right! Old Fart conservative? You bet, and proud of it.
Thanks for the visit Paul. Totally agree with you. It just makes you wonder how many Mickey Mouse degrees are floating around out there on people’s CV’s. I don’t know whether there is a way of checking if they are legitimate but if there isn’t there should be
there are millions of such sites and business running all across the globe.Shame on the students who are getting a degree this way and shame of the companies who do not realize what the impact can be.
H Shalini Thank you for reading. I agree the repercussions of these types of sites undermine the whole of the educational systems throughout the world.
Nigel
Why am I not surprised but someone from WriterBay has viewed my profile, I wonder why?
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I could not find a link to paperwriters from WriterBay.com, but what I initially found (months ago) was this:
“Become a part of our big family at WriterBay.com! Work online as much as you want – earn money for your creativity and knowledge while you develop and perfect your writing skills.”
“There are thousands of people in need of top-quality essays, research papers, term papers and dissertations. All of them need your assistance.”
“If you have great writing skills and want to earn extra cash by writing custom papers, you are welcome to apply and start earning today!”
This was on the home page near the top and gave me reason – at that time – to keep them off my ever-growing report Paying Markets for Freelance Writers. At the bottom of their home page there are five choices: Freelance Writer Jobs, Resume Writing Jobs, Content Writer Jobs, Writing From Home and Online Writing Jobs. These links are active, but they all lead back to that home page that I have quoted above.
Ethics are wonderful for those who have them. These people don’t have any. The links indicate that four out of the five have nothing to do with writing papers. Rather, their writers could also do resumes, web content, stories, etc. In other words: UNethical times two, four and six!
I just saw my photo again on your wall and saw the ‘noodles’ comment. You have me laughing!
A question of ethics indeed. Both of the writer who sells their work to these companies and the students who buys it to pass off as their own. How does such a company exist? You outline excellent points about the writer needing income and the student needing to pass. Your website is helping me learn what sites to avoid as well as have a chuckle along the way. Well written Nigel. Okay now I am off to Tweet about it…
christyb
These sites are the worst. I already shared my post about Writers Bay and the ethical considerations of doing college papers. It is disgusting in this day and age that we pay top dollars for kids to go to school and we allow this type of crap to be accepted as “finishing your course”. Appalling that there seems to be nothing that will stop these sites from shutting down either. I’ve actually seen writers justify this type of work because “if I don’t do it someone else will and I have bills to pay”. Shameful.
This shameful behavior has been going on since writing thesis became a requirement for graduation. The rash of smaller companies are of equal ethical vacuum, as many of them are a sole writer offering their work to the students.
You have correctly put the majority of the students in the correct categories: Most are looking to have the work done for them in absence of their own efforts.
My wish is the trolls which write the papers eventually be caught with the plagiarizers. I have always had a problem with only the plagiarizer be caught when the one who wrote the paper did so with coercion or duress. To my mind, they are equally guilty.
Red.