Can i trust myfxbook?

I didn’t want to start a new thread, but really couldn’t find one that related to my topic. I did find the one on share your fxbook, but there were no answers to my questions. Nor did I want to just hijack someone’s ongoing exchanges.

Since this forum is about Holy Grails and Trading Systems, especially free, I thought it would be appropriate here. I expect this one to be short-lived and I don’t expect a lot of contributions beyond my getting some basic thinking squared away which may also be helpful to others. I will certainly appreciate input from any number of more experienced and smarter traders than myself.

My question is whether myfxbook can be trusted or is it subject to manipulation. If I see an fxbook showing 15,000% growth, 18% max drawdown, on a real account, with 1:100 leverage, from early November 2011 until now, verified privileges and track record, can I believe that? Or, has someone found a way to falsify results? More modestly, from a current poster on this site, a 204% gain since April 10, this year, 27% drawdown, demo account, 1:500, verified privileges and track record. Are these statistics trustworthy and out of reach of those who would rig them? If fxbook can be manipulated, what I say from here is moot. If fxbook is essentially inviolable, we may be underutilizing a most valuable tool.

It does appear that most traders trust this information. Many presentations begin by citing the fxbook as scripture and going from there to further convince us to buy or buy into their trading method. From a personal view, I know I would be much more willing to actually purchase something or invest the time to pursue a lengthy thread if someone started with some verifiable evidence of trading competence.

If fxbook can be trusted, this is a way to avoid a lot of dead ends and gurus who just want to blow smoke for whatever reasons. Start by showing me what you’ve done or start now so I can check in from time to time and see how you’re getting on. Wouldn’t this be the way to separate the talkers from the doers?

This and other similar sites have literally thousands upon thousands of methods, systems, ea’s, indi’s, ideas, etc. Most of them are in the back closets of the forums, never accessed or referred to again. The current thread list shows only the latest hot topics. Are we to conclude that there is nothing of value in all that previous work? How could we know unless someone took time to apply the constructs to actual trading and showed us the result? How do we know any of the current topics are worth pursuing?

One judgment I have most certainly already drawn. Maybe you will show me why fxbook can’t be trusted. If so, maybe you can show me some other ways I might find evidence that one who purports to be a trader actually knows something about trading, someone I would be interested in learning from. If one is not making some kind of effort to show results, I am left with the conclusion that they don’t have any to show.

I think a guy by the name of Jackmarkets posted an article here on the topic & it was quite informative, short story was "Yes it can be manipulated"
If I find it I’ll post the link…

Found it.

http://forums.babypips.com/newbie-island/53684-guide-using-recognising-myfxbook-accounts.html

Green as grass, thank you so much for referring me to an outstanding and well-written article on the subject. Also, thanks to JackMarkets for making the contribution. I will definitely give that thread a bump from time to time as I believe it should be required reading for any aspiring trader.

Beyond my question about validity, it also contains a great deal more valuable information about how to use myfxbook. Essential reading for anyone who wants a brief but thorough education in questions like, “Is it really a 95% failure rate in forex?” “Is anyone succeeding and how do we define success?” “Are there profitable teachers, methods, or services?” “Can demo accounts show trading ability?” Amazing work offering empirical answers to some of these questions. Regarding my initial concern, I can conclude that there are few ways to falsify results and I have been shown how to spot those.

I see frequent complaints from traders that they invested time and, possibly, money in trying to learn a method, only to come up with an empty bucket. On these forums, there is a real difference between someone exploring, pursuing a “work in progress,” and someone who starts by implying they know how to trade and can show you. Next time, before you invest many hours of your time plowing through a few thousand rambling, ill-defined posts and, perhaps, some of your money in that offsite group you are led to, you might start by asking what evidence there is to indicate it would be worth it. Vendors, gurus, teachers, thread-starters, in a nutshell, if you’ve got it, show it!

I will wrap it up with a quote from JackMarkets and encourage you to see that thread:

“I have been criticized in the past for saying that ‘I don’t trust a trader/teacher without a track record’ mainly because those teachers/traders wish to hide their own failure and continue to provide a second class trading or teaching service. Trading, especially retail trading is full of ego, and having to admit that you are not successful shatters that ego. Myfxbook is an example of a trade verification service that checks with the server to ensure that the trader is telling the truth about how they trade.”

Read more: http://forums.babypips.com/newbie-island/53684-guide-using-recognising-myfxbook-accounts.html#ixzz34KQnSDrQ