exist people who are dedicated to generating a negative reaction through aggressive comments about others. Its main objective is that the members of a community lose the thread of the conversation they had.
These people are called trolls and are characterized by having their identity reserved and acting in different discussion groups, analysis and even in gamers rooms.
In this article we will explain what a troll is and why they engage in this disturbing activity.. In addition, you will find the best tips to avoid these harassments and we will tell you how you can track a troll.
What are Internet trolls and what is their intention?
Trolls are people who are dedicated to creating conflicts between participants and do so through comments that they make about social media or newspaper publications. They also perform in discussion forums and video game chat rooms. They are characterized by having their identity reserved, since the avatar and your username they use do not represent your true personal data, and systematically provoke or annoy others.
Its purpose is that the members of a forum confront each other, for this they use techniques that manage to divert the topic of conversation that was treated until their malicious intervention. They do it to provoke and obtain their own benefits, whether personal, political or just for fun.
Trolls impact How much damage can a troll cause to our brand?
Trolls can have a very negative impact on a trademark, whether that of a person or a company. This is due to their ability to install unfounded negative concepts in different environments.
You must not forget that the objective they pursue is harassment. So when they act in groups they can attack on different Internet sites and achieve brand decline through comments that include false examples and experiences. In some cases the trolls they take completely unrealistic news to justify their comments.
Types of trolls How are these individuals classified and how is each characterized?
Individuals who are responsible for annoying and provoking others in different virtual environments can be classified into:
Single action
These types of trolls are characterized by acting a single time so your comments are very provocative and generate widespread unrest in the community. In this way, the responses they get are out of focus and users are generally very angry.
Untimely
Trolls dedicated to sending messages with disruptive tones are one of the most common and at the same time efficient on the Internet. Their tactic is to write messages that are out of context so that the community participants lose the sense of the conversation and in this way lose time, get upset and pay attention to the troll.
Among the most common topics used in this type of technique are the Racist comments, of sexual content and also often misspell the names of users with a mocking tone. Another theme that is common to find is when they use the spoilerThat is, to count the end of a movie or series before other people have reached that instance.
Histrionic
This class of trolls are those that are identified by drawing attention to a group of users with disorienting messages causing negative reactions among the participants. Among the most widely used topics are those who ask for help on problems that are impossible for them to be real, there are also those who communicate intentional errors and those who write false demonstrations of unresolved issues yet.
Fake news
Is a method widely used by trolls who want to cause discomfort in people and generate a certain rejection about certain topics. These objectives may vary if the trolls seek to obtain large-scale political benefits. An example of this are those newspapers that publish false news about a certain ruler.
Trolls and anonymity online How do I identify and track one that affects my online reputation?
As we mentioned before, a characteristic that trolls have is that they keep their identity anonymous, so they always use avatars and usernames false. Because of this they feel comfortable and unpunished and can generate any kind of provocative comments. Identifying or tracking a troll is not an easy task, since the most effective way is do it through the IP.
But there is a big complication with this, they can use a VPN server and thus avoid geolocation of the device with which they make provocative comments. Another way you can have to find out the real identity of the troll is to ask the moderator or forum administrator for your email password recovery. This will allow you to investigate the identity of the email provider.
But you must bear in mind that this is a long way and that many times you will not have the result you expect. You may have already noticed that it is very difficult to track a troll, so we recommend that Actions directly in Google to use the right to be forgotten tool when your online reputation has affected you.
Tips to protect yourself from trolling on social networks and the Internet
Then, You will find some tips that will help protect you from trolls on the Internet. Pay attention and if you find another particular technique that we have not detailed, we recommend that you use it, because how many the more tools you have the more protected you will be.
Follow these steps:
Ignore them
It is the main and most efficient in the mind you have at your disposal. Every time you see an off-axis comment you should keep in mind that there are people who get benefits with this type of tasks, so you will have to ignore them in order to continue with the thread of the conversation.
Notify the group
Another tip to keep in mind is to inform within the forum group that you have found a troll and who makes certain comments. It is also convenient to inform all the other groups in which they participate about the technique that a provocative user has.
Communicate to the moderator and report it
In addition to notifying all chat participants of the existence of a troll, You must also inform the moderator or person in charge of that group to be expelled from it. If the comments are very disturbing, you can report it to the police.
Avoid confronting him
In case you realized a little late that you are interacting with a troll, avoid continuing to do so using negotiating technique phrases. This will cause the troll to be confused and thus will not continue its activity. Never confront him because this is what he wants.
Do not take into account the content of your messages
By this we mean that you shouldn't take anything personal, since the objective of the troll is harass and provoke a discomfort on your person. So it will use aggressive, wild and even racist phrases that could disturb you.
Do not reply to private messages
If for any reason you receive private and non-public messages, avoids answering them and immediately blocks the user who sent you those annoying chats.
Read all community rules
When you are about to enter a new community The first thing you should do is read all the regulations that have on this topic. This will help you quickly determine what the forum's policy is regarding trolls.
Get advice from an expert
You must not forget that cyberbullying is a crime in our country, so it will be necessary for you to consult with experts who can help you take more serious paths and thus detect troll and stop harassment messages.