Trolling is slang for someone who misleads people by posting offensive and misleading information or accusing someone. trolls tend to derail the topic to deriving an emotional reaction. Trolling is cyberbullying, though it starts with light and funny criticism. Trolls often try to vail their doings by claiming it as a joke. they usually undertake a fake user name to hide their identity and any legal responsibilities. Trolling often encourages the mob mentality as they urge others to join them. Cyber trolling is very common, be it celebrities or normal people. most of the time we are unaware that we are being trolled. Retaliation can worsen the situation by attracting more trolls in a never-ending cycle. To better understand Cyber Trolling Let’s dive deeper into troll mindset, Prevention, and the Different types.
How Do You Identify Trolling?
Trolls are likely to have dark personality traits, like sadism, psychopathy, and narcissism. They are often aggressive and deceptive due to their fake identity to distance yourself you can identify a troll account by identifying the following patterns:
1. Offensive Language
Trolls often use over-offensive language in their posts, their motive behind this is to derive an emotional reaction from the reader.
2. Personal Targeting
A troll will always target you and try to spread misleading information rather than discuss the real problem, they may also accuse you wrongly of something.
3. Derailing The Whole Discussion
Trolls often tend to derail the topic and derive an emotional reaction from the person they are targeting.
4. Lack of Credibility
Trolls often hide their identity behind fake usernames and accounts. often trolls don’t have profile pictures also their profile lacks regular credible posts.
5. Hidden Identity
If you come across someone using offensive language with a recently created account, with no credible post, chances are high that you are encountering a troll.
Different Types Of Trolls
Experts have divided trolls into 5 main types based on Common behavioral traits:
1. Classic Trolls
Often involved in disruptive behavior and use of offensive language they aim to disrupt online productive discussions and create controversies for amusement.
2. Flame Warriors
Flame worriers are trolls using offensive language and aggressive trolling. they aim to start a furious dispute in online communities.
3. Political Trolls
With a political agenda, they are the most infamous trolls who aim to create a divide and promote conflict among online communities.
4. Troll Farms
This term is used where structured organizations is involved in large-scale coordinated trolling operations. Troll farms often have political or commercial goals.
5. Impact Trolls
Impact trolls are the trolls that intend to harm the victim in real life, in other words beyond harassing they aim to disrupt their victims in real life.
How to Prevent Cyber Trolling?
Now We Have Understood “What Is Cyber Trolling?” Let’s Understand How To Prevent It From Affecting Our Lives.
As of now, no law exists that addresses the problem of trolling in India because a direct law targeting trolls can affect the Right to Free Speech. which is among the 7 fundamental rights given to citizens of India. but there are a few effective preventive actions to stop cyber trolling.
1. Ignore And Don’t Feed Trolls
Trolls often intend to derive an emotional reaction from you by accusing you and spreading false information. in this situation reacting or replying may end up feeding them and inviting more of them.
2. Protect Your Posts
Almost every Social media platform allows you to control your post visibility, by protecting your posts from going public you ensure better control over your online community and keep the trolls out.
3. Control Who Can Contact You
Social media platforms also have options to restrict who can add you and befriend you. By restricting this you can ensure that no one with a hidden identity enters your community and disrupts the discussion there.
4. Collect Evidence
To support your case before reporting the offensive post you should collect some evidence. which can include screenshots and recordings of offensive posts.
5. Report
If you are being trolled immediately report the post and the user, this may help you get their account deleted.
6. Block
After collecting evidence and taking effective reporting actions you should also block the user, it will help you cut all the connections and distance yourself from them.
7. Talk To Someone Trustworthy
Trolls often aim to disrupt your life by spreading false information. even though you have read this article and now know how to prevent trolling, talking to someone trustworthy with whom you can share your feelings always helps, don’t hesitate to talk to someone.
Learn More About Cyber Trolling:
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Conclusion
Each one of us must have faced trolling in some way or another, most of us are unaware of what to do in this kind of situation. This article is to help you understand What is Cyber Trolling and how it can affect you and your loved ones. There is more to this and pursuing a professional course designed with industry specialists helps a lot.
Recommended Reads :
- How to Start a Career in Cyber Security-Eligibility, Career Scope & Salary
- Cyber Security Tools in 2024
- CISSP Training in Mumbai
- Cyber Security Interview Questions and Answers
Most Asked Questions:
1. How do you identify a troll?
You can identify a troll account by identifying the following patterns:
- Offensive language
- Personal Targeting
- Derailing the whole discussion
- Lack of credibility
- Hidden Identity
2. Is Cyber trolling a crime in India?
Trolling is cyberbullying, though it starts with light and funny criticism. There is no direct law that addresses the problem in India because a direct law targeting trolls can affect the Right to Free Speech. but there are a few preventive actions that you can take to stop cyber trolling.
- Ignore and don’t feed trolls
- Protect your posts
- Control who can contact you
- Collect evidence
- Report
- Block
- Talk to someone trustworthy
3. What is a troll farm?
Troll Farms- Troll farm is a term used where structured organizations are involved in large-scale coordinated trolling operations. Troll farms often have political or commercial goals.
4. What are the different types of trolls?
- Experts have divided trolls are usually divided into 5 main types based on Common behavioral traits:
- Classic trolls
- Flame warriors
- Political trolls
- Troll Farms
- Impact trolls
5. What is a flame-worrier troll?
They are trolls using offensive language and aggressive trolling. they aim to start a furious dispute in online communities.
