Internet Trolls 101 or How to Avoid Strangers with Candy!
Jan 25 '05
The Bottom Line When a stranger offers you candy - don't quickly accept the treat - poke a big hole in the bottom and make sure it's not filled with cr@p.
Back in the 70s life was simple - you could always spot the stranger - it was either the creepy man in the park with the trench coat OR the creepy man in the car trying to lure you away with candy or puppies. It was pretty easy - just look for the creepy old man and avoid him at all costs.
I grew up in a world very different than the one, which exits today. I was raised to be a trusting person - to accept what everyone says at face value and to never question anyone - if someone said something it had to be true and to question it would be considered disrespectful.
I spent most of my youth like this - living in a fog of ignorance as to the way the world and people really were. I was quick to give trust and to bear my soul to others. I thought nothing about revealing personal bits of information to relative strangers - of course back then it was all face-to-face - this crazy Internet cyber world thing was years away.
Looking back I shudder think how dumb I was - telling people I hardly knew information about myself and never thinking twice about it. I mean I wasn't divulging state secrets, handing out my social security number or anything fabulous like that - I was just talking about myself and goodness knows that on several occasions it came to bite me in the @rse.
Right before my senior year of college my view of the world and others changed - I was viciously attacked in my off-campus apartment - in an instant I went from the world's most trusting sole to the world's most suspicious sole. I ceased to be what some might call nice, and viewed everything from a new angle - one of doubt and disbelief.
It hasn't always been a very nice to live the past 18 1/2 years, in fact I have been darn lonely at times, but that experience made me a much better judge of character. It has served me well in the relationships I form - both on and offline. Some may view me as cold and isolated - I view myself as cautious - I take my time before I open up and I am very slow to warm up to anyone new. If I'm told something that I don't think is true - I get a very wiggy feeling - I don't play my hand too soon and call the person out, I try to gather information before I blow the whistle - I'd say 9 times out of ten my feeling is correct.
That all said, you are probably wondering how this relates to Epinions. Last week a large block of us got trolled (yet again) by what appears to be a professional internet troll - someone who goes from website to website spreading lies and deceit without even thinking twice - someone who without conscience gains trust only to break it and destroys lives without ever looking back.
In the past five years I too have been trolled at Epinions - sucked in by some who presented such wonderful stories you could hardly not believe what they were saying - I mean you have to sit back and ask yourself why would someone lie about that - it'd be like someone lying about having 4 kids and living in the suburbs (side note - if you want to steal my story - realize the penalty will be I will hunt you down and give you my four kids to live with, so I can finally have my own life). I guess it's easy to choose a boring life to mimic, no one really questions a claim that you're a soccer mom - it isn't until the story begins to unwrap that we all realize we've been had.
Like I said, I admit even with my spidey senses I have been trolled here more than once. I let my guard down and allowed myself to form friendships with folks I thought understood my life and where I was coming from. I invited them, via modem, into my life - only to get stabbed in the back when I realized that everything they said was a pack of lies - and believe you me the pain is just as real even when you get shafted by virtual friend - maybe even more than by a real friend - because you stop and think, it's the internet - I really should have known better.
I'll stop here to rest and there is a HUGE difference between trolls and characters - I have no issue with anyone who chooses to come to this site as a character - lays it all out on the line and reviews as that character -that's being honest and upfront - I choose to guard my real identity and post reviews as this made up person. Many of these folks are ultra talented and put out some of the best reviews on the site - and some mcfreaks just miss the mark when they talk about their minion robot offspring.
Trolls on the other hand are devious and sneaky - they come to the site with no other motive than to lure you in, get you to trust them and then stomp all over you when it becomes too hard for them to keep track of all the lies they have told. For them it is almost a sport, or perhaps compulsion, to mislead. I'm not sure if they actually take pleasure in deception, or if they are in it for the attention, but the end result is always the same - honest trustworthy folks are hurt.
In my five years here I have seen many trolls and in light of recent events I began to think - wow despite the difference in stories told, they have many similarities in how they came to site, how they worked their magic and how they sucked so many in. It's almost like they tossed up red flags and we chose to ignore them, in the hopes that this time it would be different.
So what have I noticed about the trolls - they seem to arrive at this site with a bang. Most normal folks find Epinions, join and slowly begin to read, rate and maybe write. Not your trolls - they want to get in you face from day one. They seem to get how the site works, how ratings work, how to write high rated reviews and just how to work the system - it makes you think - have you been here before, how do you get it so quickly?
I know when I first started here, it took me time to get to know the site, to understand how to submit and update and to just produce something that resembled a helpful review. Trolls seems to have mastered writing Epinions from the time they sign up - they know what to include in a review to make it VH, they seem to have mastered style, content and presentation - have you ever seen a new troll post a jumbo paragraph review or one filled with grammar and punctuation errors - nope it's like they've been studying the site and know just what to do to draw tons of positive attention and comments to their first postings.
Trolls need positive reinforcement - if they are in it for attention - or even if they aren't. If you happen to H one of those first reviews - expect an e-mail from a troll - they will try to suck you in by praising your knowledge and experience at the site - they will ask for your help in fixing their Epinion. They will persist (almost stalk you) until they have fixed the Epinion to your liking or worn you down so much that you change your rating.
The problem is at the time it might not seem like stalking - it's nice to have someone flatter you and your ability to write. It isn't until the sh!t hits the fan and the dust has settled that you realize the troll was just blowing smoke up your @ss to get you to buy into their deception - they know just what to say and when to say it. (In this instance hindsight is 20/20).
The same will hold true if you make the mistake of leaving a "welcome to the site" or positive comment on a troll's review - before you know the troll will try to strike up a conversation with you - whether in the comment section or via e-mail. You'll be amazed at how friendly they are, how much they have in common with you, etc. It's like they need make a connection with you from the start, and won't stop until they have.
Of course the connection is a load of "cr@p" - they are on a hunting expedition - trying to glean as much personal information from you as possible. They are no better than those fake TV psychics who ask question after question until they get you to reveal the information they seek. I do credit to the online troll, it has to be twice as hard as the psychic to get info - after all they can't see you nod your head and give tells. Of course it might be easy based on your profile page - do you come off as an open and caring person - if so, you might be a good mark for the troll.
The troll will also come to site not only expecting instant recognition, but fame and glory as well. You will find that most trolls are bucking for hats only a month or two after they have been here.
Trolls will also set up the most elaborate profile pages days after joining the site. It's one of those things that when you see it makes you think WTF? You think there must be a typo on their member since date - no newbie would invest that much time and effort into their profile page. It looks like they have been a lifelong member and you wonder how they could settle in so quickly.
They will also post photos, photos and more photos! (most of the time fake - or at least not them). They need to validate their identity and have you relate to them as a human - not just a cyber buddy. One easy way to catch attention and grab lots of trusters is to put up a money shot - like showing lots of boob. They want to catch your eye and have you think wow - she's hot and suck you in that way.
Trolls also like to tell stories - and this is where they usually get busted - they need to join every Eps related chat group and start spreading tales about themselves. It's amazing how many things you like that they like as well. They seem to love every member they talk and just can't help but talk about themselves. They won't be satisfied having you feel sorry for them once - once they have pulled the wool over your eyes and gotten your sympathy - they will need to one up themselves.
You will notice with trolls that they seem to have lots of things go wrong with them - each one worse than the next. If you being to get that good touch bad touch feeling when you read their continuing sagas, more than likely, you are dealing with a troll. If the story seems unbelievable, more than likely it is - trolls will eventually trip themselves up, because they won't be able to keep up or cover up all the lies that have told.
Trolls are creepy little folks who like to come out from under their bridges every now and then and wreck havoc. They like to take a happy little community and divide it. They have a no holds barred approach to their destruction - not caring who they hurt or how much they hurt them (our recent troll was probably the worst - actually stealing someone else's story and trying to make it their own - that was reprehensible).
The sad thing is, that won't be the last time we see a troll - hopefully the next time we will be able to catch on faster - not get lured in and notice the warning signs. Hopefully members will start to taking to each other sooner - because it seems like a lot of us sniffed out the troll, but were too afraid to rock the boat and speak up - if we can validate how we feel, then we can make a preemptive strike and hopefully not so many folks will get hurt.
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Epinions.com ID:
ned1
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 - Top 100 |
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Member: Nancy
Location: in the Barbie aisle
Reviews written: 894
Trusted by: 340 members
About Me:
Off to Basel (1/21) - in search of Swiss Miss Barbie - back (1/26)
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