Yes the problem is not widespread but probably because of other accounts being exposed as merit cheats and it being frowned upon at the time. From experience, it is safe to assume usually when threads such as that are created there is more going on than meets the eye.
OK, I understand that you've found a possible account farm. And in that case I agree with you, something must be done.
But banning/considering bad all the "merit giveaway" threads is imho an exaggeration we don't need. Imho threads like
🔥 GingerWallet.io | LN Quest ⚡Up to 50 merits should
not be banned.
So it's more difficult to take the things into account. A general ban is not OK and it's most probably not easy to tell which giveaway is harmless and which is ill-intentioned.
I will add only one more detail. You know, like trust feedback, meriting is not moderated. Yes, this can easily lead to abuses, but from my understanding theymos didn't consider that a real problem and I tend to believe it won't be easy to change his mind.
(My) conclusion: it may be easier to do something against WW and his siblings or minions (obviously, with proof) than stepping up against merit awarding topics.