Trolls

[Throwingshade]

I know there was a thread about this just a couple of weeks, but just want to remind us all to think before investing time and emotion - and most importantly personal information and experiences - on threads in Relationships. Especially if it's something triggering for you.

This board is being infiltrated by trolls at the moment.

If the OP is over egged, if the OP is too 'bad' to be true, if it reads like a soap opera with convenient updates every couple of hours to keep people entertained, then it's likely not true!

How do you mean iffiltrated by trolls? Itś hard to tell tho.....does that mean a OP has to be vague, update infrequently and not be too ¨bad¨? Itś pretty difficult to tell imo and could turn a person into a paranoid loony. Personally Iḿ scared to comment on anything anymore now.

Well all three posts I've reported in last 24 have been taken down.

No they don't have to be vague or post infrequently, but I think if the OP is very extreme wicked stepmother or posts every few hours with a new drama or update, people should be alert.

I feel bad for posters who invest heavily especially those who post with a huge amount of personal information and who PM the OP.

I find it very easy to spot trolls. Have to keep quiet about them though!

still don really get the motives tho. What would possess someone to make up a load of bull and then carry on the plot like theyŕe writing a novel or something? A very elaborate way to waste time! Just don see the point really.........Maybe itś more interesting than Sudoko or daytime TV!

I know it's against site rules but sometimes I do call troll on the thread, for reasons I said above - to alert people who are being suckered in.

Moomin - I think boredom, mischief, maybe mental illness....

M48 I´ve clearly not been around long enough perhaps! Maybe some people have too much imagination AND time, lol.

I think there's an awful lot in it when you say maybe its more interesting than sudoku or daytime tv, tbh Moomin.

I think trolls can be spiteful, socially inadequate, educationally lacking, desperately lonely, deluded, suffering from a mental health crisis, a bored teenager on the summer holidays (esp. the sex and poo trolls) - or a combination of any of these.

There's no one answer.

Itś a shame cos if you were bored, why be a troll? Why not come on MN and actually give some support to those that are genuinely seeking it? Why make up a very detailed, convoluted BS story. Spoils it for others...

In the latest example, it would make me wary posting on another thread where the guy is being abused by his wife. But what if the next guy is genuine? So I can see how it would ruin it for others genuinely seeking advice. Once bitten...and all that

Please dont tell me the 'controlling wife'' thread wasn't true???
I spent ages reading it and now I can't find it!

I thought this was going to be about Shrek and Fiona's marital problems. not really

As usual, I think it's ok to post on threads regardless. People with similar problems may always benefit. But we really should never get too much emotionally involved with anonymous posters on the Internet, anyway. It's a good rule.

And next time this better be a thread by an underbridge dweller looking to keep their relationship with the abusive and noisy trip trap goats.

I never spot a troll and think, oh that's a troll but I must realise subconsciously because a lot of the troll posts I have read the op then thought, nah, not getting in on this one.

Ah, I was reading one last night and this morning, on Relationships. It did not feel right, but everyone was supporting the chap. I did think that if it is still going this afternoon I would report it. It has now gone, someone else must have reported it. I agree, some sound like novels and the OP's seem to relish the attention and get more carried away with their stories.

usual Yes I think I need to spend time doing something more constructive myself. I´ḿ trying to learn a 2nd language and come on here to procrastinate

I don´t think it´s fair to call people gullible though, when they are generally kind people motivated to help people. Not everyone has a Troll Radar. I know I take people as I find cos why not? But I reckon I´ll be more cautious in future, if I bother at all.

Lavender

Yes controlling wife threads was a troll.

I'm not trying to be a smart arse, but could tell it was bollocks when I first came across it.

First of all the style/language was stilted. A lot of 'like' woven into sentences to appear colloquial but too contrived. Then way too many updates and dramas - he had a talk with the wife, he found condoms missing, she was out all night. All in a day or so.

Even if a story is just a load of nonsense, sometimes I think they throw up some interesting questions, or make for interesting discussion. I don't think it's worth getting too riled up about someone who surely must have problems (mental health, loneliness?) and accidentally leads to the odd interesting point.

But Moomin you were a lovely poster on that thread, it's no refection on you that you're not a hardened cynic yet. Even when I got suspicious I carried on posting because I found it interesting. Whose going to point at us and call us gullible, nobody knows who we are.

God I must be so gullible!
I did think that the guy seemed very naive 'and with he language. He used 'like' alot but I assumed he was young and unconfident.
I must pay more attention and get a life

There is a regular well respected poster on the board. If she hasn't posted in the first few pages then I think she knows it's a troll. I don't invest in the thread until I see her comment.

I took it at face value, and posted accordingly. Never been too good at spotting liars, which is why I treat them very harshly when I catch them. That said, I've known men in abusive relationships and some of his stuff sounded plausible.

Just because 1 poster doesn't post does not mean that it is a troll. It might mean that she has a life outside mn. Shocking I know Thus I do not judge a thread by the posters unless I think a poster is a someone who I wish to avoid for various reasons seeing as we don't have a hide poster function

A lot of people patting themselves on the back and thinking themselves very clever for "spotting trolls" are actually causing a lot of distress and exclusion to quite genuine people, that I know in RL. MN taking a thread down, or banning a poster is not evidence that they are a troll, you know, they don't know any better than you. It becomes totally misapplied self confirming cycle,