What is the law regarding stalkers on discussion sites online?

What is the law regarding stalkers on discussion sites online?

Recently I have been the victim of a particularly nasty piece of work that has been following me around on a *well known* site for a long time.

The discussion sites that this has been happening on is *NOT* this one, which seems to be a good one.

I *MUST* make this clear.

It could never really occur on a site that is moderated by people rather than computer systems and the owners of *that* site do not seem to care at all that this takes place blatantly and openly.

Because the discussion sites this has happened on seems to rely mostly or fully on computer moderation, the stalker seems to be able to manipulate the system with *many* fake sock puppet accounts that it has created over a good deal of time in order to harass and abuse people.

It uses some of its accounts in order to give itself support and talk to itself while it abuses genuine posters who like to post, so it can virtually gang up on its victims and it also abuses a voting system that site uses to create trouble in general and encourages others who are there to cause trouble by using its many, many fake accounts to vote other troublemakers up and genuine posters down.

Its agenda seems to be to get genuine posters banned, seemingly using its many fake accounts to abuse the computer system (originally designed no doubt to stop abuse) to remove posts of others by complaining with its many fake accounts pretending to be many people about others posts until it achieves this objective and it seems very determined to continue doing this.

It has never contributed to topics, just uses the site as its playground.

I would not be the first victim, and I would hope to stop this happening to others who may be unsuspecting in the future there.

It seems to like me a lot because I fully exposed its game in a forum there. I did of course try to bring this to the attention of the "moderators" of that site before I did this, but they either do not seem to care or it seems easier for them to ignore it, at least at this point in time.

Thoughts or suggestions are welcome, thank you.

One almost has to admire the persistence of internet trolls (of which Cutting Edge has ample experience) in dedicating so much of their time and ingenuity on a peculiarly unrewarding activity.

Like graffiti, few people will know the author, so fame is not the spur. In many cases they won't know whether the "target" was damaged or amused - or indifferent.

There's nowt funnier than folk.

Page One, Rule One, Line One: Don't feed the troll.

Hi OW,

This is not exactly a troll however it appears to be an online stalker, trolls with only one account are not exactly a big problem for anyone I think and it does not even seem to need to be talked to in order to do what it does to people, which is damaging to others in a real way.

Hi T.

The site in question is all the poorer for the absence of those who have been hounded out by the stalker in question. I myself fell foul of his multiple complaints when I repeatedly objected to CWB's posts denying the Holocaust.

Welcome to cuttingedge2.forumotion.co.uk anyway

Thanks Sheldon good to see you I know, and I also know I am just the latest in the line, I did however go out with a bit of a bang exposing the game he plays which hurt him a fair bit I think, this is not really about me. I would like very much to stop it happening to others who are unsuspecting in the future as he seems to be determined to continue his game for his own amusement.

Elevating an internet troll to the category of "stalker" seems to me to fall directly under the heading of feeding the troll.

But the debate is not about nomenclature or semantics, it concerns antisocial behaviour.

Fortunately, it's a proven fact that ignoring such sociopaths makes them go away, because that way there's no fun in it for them anymore.

TMG wrote:Thanks Sheldon good to see you I know, and I also know I am just the latest in the line, I did however go out with a bit of a bang exposing the game he plays which hurt him a fair bit I think, this is not really about me. I would like very much to stop it happening to others who are unsuspecting in the future as he seems to be determined to continue his game for his own amusement.

The more permanent trolls on there like spin seemed to rally to his cause as well. Though I think he just took a troll's perverse delight in supporting the more outrageously offensive or stupid posts with his use of multiple accounts.

The mind boggles that grown adults get anything from such behaviour. I suppose it gives a sense of power to those who feel inadequate in the real world.

oftenwrong wrote:Elevating an internet troll to the category of "stalker" seems to me to fall directly under the heading of feeding the troll.

But the debate is not about nomenclature or semantics, it concerns antisocial behaviour.

Fortunately, it's a proven fact that ignoring such sociopaths makes them go away, because that way there's no fun in it for them anymore.

Actually he has created an account on here *just before* he managed to get me banned in order to let me know that he is hounding me, he was determined to get me banned from that site when I started exposing him this is when he created his account on here which he has not posted with and he has been hounding me for a great deal of time there using the "power" of all his accounts to get innocent and harmless posts of mine removed from that site, it took him a very long time for him to achieve his objective with me.

He finally managed it by complaining with all his many accounts that I was "spiteful" he *knew* I was going to join this site.

so not really a troll.

Dr Sheldon Cooper PhD wrote:The more permanent trolls on there like spin seemed to rally to his cause as well. Though I think he just took a troll's perverse delight in supporting the more outrageously offensive or stupid posts with his use of multiple accounts.

The mind boggles that grown adults get anything from such behaviour. I suppose it gives a sense of power to those who feel inadequate in the real world.

yes, he seems to turn that site into a breeding ground for actual trolls as he supports them in what he does. I expect it makes him feel powerful, (in reality of course he is just a sad little person) and he seems to think he cannot be touched.

I would like to prove him wrong.

oftenwrong wrote:Page One, Rule One, Line One:  Don't feed the troll.

How very true oftenwrong but the person TMG refers to, whilst offering little to nothing in the way of useful or constructive contribution, uses the power of inference, obfuscation and multiple personalities to manipulate his chosen victim into an inappropriate response at which point, to his own obvious delight, he begins to turn the knife deeper manipulating voting and the automated moderation system to maximum effect.

During a discussion on forgiveness I mentioned that someone had deserted my dog on a beach with the tide coming in. He then started stalking me with comments about looking for his dog. And I do call it stalking when he moves around different fora in an attempt to fulfil whatever spiteful deed he has in his agenda. Fortunately I was forearmed and turned it back on him but many of his naive victims are not so lucky. They end up trapped before ever realising a snare has been set.

I read a string of those posts mentioning him looking for his dog, and that he'd lost his dog and had anyone seen it, that's typical of the nasty way he goes about provoking anyone and everyone to respond. He really didn't care what the topic was at all, and unashamedly used it to provoke a response.

TMG wrote:yes, he seems to turn that site into a breeding ground for actual trolls as he supports them in what he does. I expect it makes him feel powerful, (in reality of course he is just a sad little person) and he seems to think he cannot be touched.

I would like to prove him wrong.

I know what you mean, I was one of the first to go as I set my stall out early on and didn't give an inch. Played into his hands a bit, but I reasoned the site wouldn't be worth being on anyway if he stuck around, and it seems I was right as it's littered with trolls now, some are extra accounts he actually uses to talk to himself to give the impression a discussion is going on, but none of the topics are relevant or go anywhere, or contain any cogent intelligent discussion. There a few left who try, like Anthony and Anita, but they increasingly are isolated by trivia and trolling as every topic is slowly ruined. Amazon didn't seem to want to know, the automated way the site is policed just played right into his hands.

Actually he has created an account on here

I’m all ears if someone would like to tell me more about this troll who has opened an account here, especially as I’m watching out for a new member who hasn’t posted anything but has a suspicious email address. To assist anyone who might want to send me a PM, I have dropped the threshold temporarily from a minimum qualification of ten posts to eight……..

We have been criticised at times for running a tight ship – minimising personal abuse, keeping threads on subject, merging similar topics – but it’s probably preferable to the near anarchy which some of you have described. Anyone who opens multiple accounts on this forum will soon be detected and will have all of them deleted and be permanently banned. Anyone who makes a real nuisance of themselves will be reported to their internet service provider (that’s happened twice in four years).

On the other hand, we have a number of regular and occasional members who post their messages here and appear to be more than happy with the ordered structure. Please familiarise yourselves with the house rules on the welcome board and any updates on the staff notice board for members. If you’re not a troll and can adhere to a few simple rules, this is, hopefully, a good place to post.

That's nothing, he made "jokes" about cancer knowing that my mum died of it, my cat was ill and had to be put down, I mentioned this on that forum he knew this, he went there as well shortly after I mentioned it...and he practiced open defamation and persistent lies to help him achieve what he did with me for a great deal of time, a lie that is repeated as many times as he did becomes more believable.

He also has inferred many many times (before I started to expose him) that he would like me to actually die.

an example:

"***I hope you have some quiet too, T. The kind of quiet that signals a flat lining heart monitor.***"

Hi TG, Mate, he has not posted on here yet on any thread that I have read anyway, so just chat along to the threads title my friend,as Foxcliffe is on here also,and you should of had a PM from them also regarding the stalking, but forget about him now you are on here until anything happens then you just report to Ivan who will check the poster out and ban him like he said ok now just have some fun chatting like the rest of us do.

[quote="Ivan"]

Anyone who makes a real nuisance of themselves will be reported to their internet service provider

That happened on the other site too Ivan but he gets around that by using a proxy.

As to the rest of your message, it is all good news and welcome.

the stalker I am referring to baits and waits, he would not be able to get away with what he does here which is why he has not posted.

*Many* of my posts disappeared there over a good long time (harmless ones) because he was abusing the automated system with all the fake accounts he uses. (abusing the report abuse feature)

He hopes of course to get people to say something abusive back which helps him to complete his agenda, which I have seen happen before.

The problem is the system there and the fact it is wide open to abuse by someone who does the things he does with all the fake accounts he has and he is determined, a real menace to posters.

stuart torr wrote:Hi TG, Mate, he has not posted on here yet on any thread that I have read anyway, so just chat along to the threads title my friend,as Foxcliffe is on here also,and you should of had a PM from them also regarding the stalking, but forget about him now you are on here until anything happens then you just report to Ivan who will check the poster out and ban him like he said ok now just have some fun chatting like the rest of us do.

Hi Stu,

how are you doing buddy?
I doubt he will post here he only manages what he does there because of the way the system is *there*

He does not bother me now, it concerns me that he is allowed to continue unchecked there though (up to this point at least) because others who come along unsuspecting will fall into his game.

Well you are on here now for heavens sake TMG, forget about him please and learn to relax and discuss another subject and start smiling,because most of the people on here do not want to hear about him or know about him.

stuart torr wrote:Well you are on here now for heavens sake TMG, forget about him please and learn to relax and discuss another subject and start smiling,because most of the people on here do not want to hear about him or know about him.

I am relaxed Stu apart from the eye candy here I think its a good site, and I will be getting into other topics soon enough, maybe some do not want to hear but perhaps some do, I really I started this thread up for advice on how best to combat this *for others* who might come across it in the future, not for myself, he cannot hurt me at all on a site like this but all the time he is allowed to continue there he will hurt others, this is my concern.

just for you my friend

And thank you for raising this,TMG. As someone who has never used the Amazon forum and so has never come into contact with this person, I'm glad you alerted me to this.

Thank you Claudine

It was ignored there for a long time because it seemed nothing could be done. I made a bit of an issue about it there and exposed him in the actual forum itself, which I did in a big way Because I have put up with a lot for a great deal of time and good posters were leaving because of this, nothing ever seemed to be done about it by the people who are supposed to run it.

I am glad to be on a site that is cared about by people. Its good to be here, perhaps all that I can do has been done now and its possible at least that they may act to resolve it. (although I would not count on it)

Just a quick post to let others know that this person has now been removed from this site (Cutting Edge) and would say that it shows the difference here in the moderation immediately between this site and the one that I used to use, good job thank you Cutting Edge.

"How far that little candle throws his beams!
So shines a good deed in a naughty world."


The Merchant of Venice, act 5, sc. 1.