Active discussions

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Site stuff

Join our Innovation Panel to try new features early and help make Mumsnet better.

See all MNHQ comments on this thread

Original poster

Dealing with the trolls

330 replies

margiebargie · 07/06/2016 14:34

Lots of people reported the most recent big troll thread, but it obviously trundled on for a while regardless - I presume while you were looking into it behind the scenes. How about a system whereby if you've received a certain amount of reports, the thread is automatically "paused"/locked/hidden while you investigate?

And if a thread is revealed to have been from a troll, delete it (with the message "Yawn" or similar), and keep it up for a day or two but hide it from everyone apart from those who were posting on it (op excluded, obviously), so that they can discuss it among themselves without their discussions being public. I'm sure the trolls get a kick out of being called a sick fucker as much as from the original deception; as it's an attention-seeking phenomenon, the less attention they get, the better, no?

OP posts:
Original poster
margiebargie · 07/06/2016 16:25

Do the genuine threads generate as many reports? Would be interesting to hear from MNHQ on that. Generally I think that when a thread is so obviously bs it must get reported more, surely.

Perhaps there should be a line at the top of every thread - "This thread has been reported x amount of times". That might make people stop and think before sharing their own stories.

I agree it's frustrating that we're not allowed to comment on the thread itself, but that just snowballs into its own fight anyway. Doubters vs believers - which happened a bit on the last one, even with very minimal questioning.

The giving more than you can afford is a good line but no one takes any notice because a lot of people WANT to believe the story and enjoy (sorry, can't think of a nicer way to put it) being part of the unfolding drama.

OP posts:
WannaBe · 07/06/2016 15:55

I think that automatically locking a thread is a difficult position tbh.

Because while so many threads turn out to be trolls, equally there are many more who turn out not to be. Taking the stance that because so many people reported it must be a troll will automatically lead to more reports which might mean that threads are locked which shouldn't be. And I think that mud sticks, once a thread is locked once people will remain suspicious whether it's proven to be genuine or. Not.

I think that there needs to be greater emphasis on the fact that giving more than you can afford to is a bad idea, that the Internet is the unknown and that it is not possible to know that people are who they say they are.

And I think (and I realise this won't go down well) that pointing out inconsistencies on threads should be more permissible. There is a difference between the kind of troll hunting which is a poster coming on to a thread and saying "well, this is clearly bollocks/I think this is a troll/reported," and one who comes on to a thread and questions the inconsistencies in posts.

It would have been possible to stop this last troll early on if people had questioned more I.e. The speed of the diagnosis of the type of leukaemia (not the actual leukaemia but the type, there is a difference, and there is a timescale,). Or the fact that the OP was posting from her car just waiting to go into the hospital (and tbh I've seen a lot of those over the years from OP's claiming to be sitting in their car just going in/just coming home etc).

If the seed were sewn then more posters would have sat up and taken notice rather than be pulled in.

And less of the "you're so brave/just checking in/how fabulous you are," type posts would be less likely to resort in trolls needing to keep posting because they wouldn't keep getting validation.

ThenLaterWhenItGotDark · 07/06/2016 15:52

I'm for public naming, shaming and outing. Let the dogs at the fuckers. No deletions. Just total humiliation.

(I realise this isn't going to happen, but I bet HQ think 'if only we could' Grin)

Doik · 07/06/2016 15:45

I think locking them is a good idea, but I'm not sure about only allowing those who have posted to see them. Many people follow threads but do not post, particularly if they have doubts themselves about whether it is true. This could lead to people posting purely to see the outcome.

NavyAndWhite · 07/06/2016 15:36

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Swipe left for the next trending thread