I don't know. I suspect those who reported knew exactly what they were doing.
Quite possibly.
Coercive Control:
Trolling and Online Abuse - Is there a difference?
(extract)
The definition of trolling is changing.
Trolling was seen as luring others online into pointless, time-consuming arguments and to ‘get a rise’ for a troll’s amusement or to alleviate boredom.
It has now become intentionally malicious behavior to specifically cause distress (continues)
What separates them from other trolls is their sense of entitlement.
They believe they are justified in their behaviour.
And what may well have started off as kudos trolling has expanded into something much more virulent, obsessive and cruel.
This cyberbullying has included #stalking #harassment and #mobbing and has been conducted in a specific way to exact distress whilst remaining undetected. (continues)
And to better understand the motivations behind those who commit online abuse, we need to better understand the many tactics employed by abusive personality types- especially those who want to be seen as NOT abusing.
The perpetrators who reside below the radar.
As someone who has been raising awareness and better the understanding of #coercivecontrol, I have been struck by the many similarities shared by certain online abusers and coercive and controlling ex partners. This is especially true of those who partake of online #mobbing.
Put simply, #mobbing is bullying of an individual by a group. This can be family, peer group, school, workplace, neighborhood, community, or online.
It is almost always malicious and relies on rumor, innuendo, intimidation, humiliation, discrediting, and isolation.
Mobbing campaigns rely heavily on the reluctance of bystanders to intervene which only adds to the distress caused to the targeted individual.
One of the main reasons bystanders do nothing is because they are simply not aware of how mobbing campaigns operate.
The ringleaders behind the mobbing campaigns are very secretive.
They would never admit what they are doing. They play the “I've done nothing, it’s someone else “ card.
Their aims are:
*Character assassination
- To ensure others distance themselves from the targeted individual.
- Recruit others to abuse on their behalf ( #abusebyproxy) using information with a special significance aimed at the targeted individual, knowing that the bespoke targeting will cause immense distress.
- Inciting others to mock, goad, provoke the target into responding.
Ringleaders will build up their network of proxies to perpetuate the falsehood that the targeted individual is the problem. It allows them to retire* some of the original proxies who are then replaced with new proxies to keep the mobbing sustained & the abuse hidden.
The reason is to more effectively turn the tables and direct the abuse away from the mobbing campaign and onto the target whilst giving the impression the target is belligerent and antagonises others. Even better if the mobbing campaign has successfully provoked a reaction.
They will use that reaction to make their point that the target is THE problem, the target is abusive, harassing, stalking etc etc.
The ringleader relies on the knowledge that the target is hyper vigilant and will be aware of a smear campaign specifically targeted towards them
BUT
Because of the bespoke nature of the abuse, not everyone will be privy to the triggers and so will be oblivious to what is going on.
The natural reaction for a victim of #mobbing is to highlight what is going on &the common response of those around the victim is disbelief.
So, what often happens is that victim becomes increasingly desperate to point out what is happening but, because the ringleader has been able to retreat, only the proxies are visible. So the abuse is effectively invisible in plain sight." (continues)
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