techguy
10th April 2010, 06:35 PM
Thought this was wildly appropriate, and should be posted in this forum as well.
Web forum sockpuppets and/or trolls aren't very creative so they tend to repeat their actions. But if you recognize their tactics you can recognize them. Sometimes it's one person with multiple aliases, and sometimes it's a small group of people working together. They'll try to discredit the site directly or indirectly and elicit support that way by driving members away. They'll spam multiple posts with phrases like: Has this site ever gone downhill, or, It sure is dead here at this place. A variation on this is to attack the mods/admins over the way they run the site. They think it helps if they have others to thank them or agree with them, so 1 or 2 others participants or sockpuppet id's will lend support to make it look legit. It's usually a small group of them doing it so it does stand out once you've seen it a few times. It usually appears in more than one post and they will litter the site with them to spread their agenda slowly. If you keep this in mind you can spot their patterns quite easily. Singular agendas are more noticeable if you're looking for them. If you see enough of them you start to recognize they use the same kind of language each time. They think repetition will convince others. They keep the message short to avoid detection. (The more you say, the more you give away) They have to hide this way because the longer your thoughts are in print, the easier it is to see the kind of person you're dealing with. They keep it short to disguise this fact.
The stolen identity (user id) gag is another way to achieve their goals, especially if it's a name others recognize. It gives the appearance of a real persona, so they believe it will fool people. What they don't realize is that each person has a different way speaking. ie: Grammar, vocabulary, tone/demeanor, etc. These traits do spill over into written words though so you can tell if someone isn't who they say they are if you watch for them. Out of character rants, language that the real person never uses, grammar mistakes the real person never makes, or topics discussed that the original person stayed away from, all give away their fraud though. They think most people won't notice these kinds of things, but it is distinguishable if you know about it and look for it.
Another variation of the discredit tactic is the 'why was this member banned' post. Fake user id's, multiple persona's, and other disenfranchised members are all used to try and lend support to their claim to make it look real. Their goal here is to foment revolt from other real members. Try to get others angry to lend legitimacy to their cause, or just to drive members away. If they suck a few people into their web each time, it does have a small effect, so they'll repeat the tactic hoping to plant the seed that will drive others away or create dissent.
The direct attack on a member isn't used as much because it burns up their sockpuppet id's faster as they get banned quicker. So they'll mostly try to drop little bombs here and there in different threads trying to get more mileage out of each sockpuppet id before it's discovered and banned. The direct attack can be accomplished if they know a little bit about the person they are attacking though. Ethnicity, nationality, and political ideology are some areas they'll attack, trying to get the member to take the bait. If you're wise to this tactic you can avoid being drawn into their games by avoiding them. They want you to respond in anger, it's the goal of the post in the first place. If they can anger you they might be able to get you to say something that could get you banned. They will gladly lose a sockpuppet id if they can take someone else down with them. (ie:suicide sockpuppet)
The different ways they operate mentioned above have been used by many people like them on every web forum I've ever been on over the years. The forum topic doesn't seem to matter though. They want attention and they want to cause damage to members or the forum itself. Paid shills use the same tactics too. It's digital guerrilla warfare. Sockpuppets, shills, and trolls all have one thing in common. They show up wherever people gather online. It's as sure as death and taxes.
Written by GR, copied with permission.
Web forum sockpuppets and/or trolls aren't very creative so they tend to repeat their actions. But if you recognize their tactics you can recognize them. Sometimes it's one person with multiple aliases, and sometimes it's a small group of people working together. They'll try to discredit the site directly or indirectly and elicit support that way by driving members away. They'll spam multiple posts with phrases like: Has this site ever gone downhill, or, It sure is dead here at this place. A variation on this is to attack the mods/admins over the way they run the site. They think it helps if they have others to thank them or agree with them, so 1 or 2 others participants or sockpuppet id's will lend support to make it look legit. It's usually a small group of them doing it so it does stand out once you've seen it a few times. It usually appears in more than one post and they will litter the site with them to spread their agenda slowly. If you keep this in mind you can spot their patterns quite easily. Singular agendas are more noticeable if you're looking for them. If you see enough of them you start to recognize they use the same kind of language each time. They think repetition will convince others. They keep the message short to avoid detection. (The more you say, the more you give away) They have to hide this way because the longer your thoughts are in print, the easier it is to see the kind of person you're dealing with. They keep it short to disguise this fact.
The stolen identity (user id) gag is another way to achieve their goals, especially if it's a name others recognize. It gives the appearance of a real persona, so they believe it will fool people. What they don't realize is that each person has a different way speaking. ie: Grammar, vocabulary, tone/demeanor, etc. These traits do spill over into written words though so you can tell if someone isn't who they say they are if you watch for them. Out of character rants, language that the real person never uses, grammar mistakes the real person never makes, or topics discussed that the original person stayed away from, all give away their fraud though. They think most people won't notice these kinds of things, but it is distinguishable if you know about it and look for it.
Another variation of the discredit tactic is the 'why was this member banned' post. Fake user id's, multiple persona's, and other disenfranchised members are all used to try and lend support to their claim to make it look real. Their goal here is to foment revolt from other real members. Try to get others angry to lend legitimacy to their cause, or just to drive members away. If they suck a few people into their web each time, it does have a small effect, so they'll repeat the tactic hoping to plant the seed that will drive others away or create dissent.
The direct attack on a member isn't used as much because it burns up their sockpuppet id's faster as they get banned quicker. So they'll mostly try to drop little bombs here and there in different threads trying to get more mileage out of each sockpuppet id before it's discovered and banned. The direct attack can be accomplished if they know a little bit about the person they are attacking though. Ethnicity, nationality, and political ideology are some areas they'll attack, trying to get the member to take the bait. If you're wise to this tactic you can avoid being drawn into their games by avoiding them. They want you to respond in anger, it's the goal of the post in the first place. If they can anger you they might be able to get you to say something that could get you banned. They will gladly lose a sockpuppet id if they can take someone else down with them. (ie:suicide sockpuppet)
The different ways they operate mentioned above have been used by many people like them on every web forum I've ever been on over the years. The forum topic doesn't seem to matter though. They want attention and they want to cause damage to members or the forum itself. Paid shills use the same tactics too. It's digital guerrilla warfare. Sockpuppets, shills, and trolls all have one thing in common. They show up wherever people gather online. It's as sure as death and taxes.
Written by GR, copied with permission.