Frogponders,
I come to you humble in my request for information. I know that many of you are skilled in the behind the scenes world of the internet.
We have a growing problem of trolls at our website. This site is not political, but political discussion has attracted trolls.
I’ve have learned to use the software running the forums to ban users. But, I’d like to research further to prevent reincarnations. FindIP and WHOIS are my only weapons right now.
May I throw myself on the kindness of the Pond to request better ways to hunt down and shut out the trolls, please?
I recently had a troll at my blog, and thanks to the miracles of Haloscan commenting software, I was able to ban his two IP addresses (he posted from work and home). If you are finding that the same person is re-registering and causing havoc, that would be helpful in stopping it.
So, if you use blogspot or another free web-based blog software, I recommend Haloscan
If you have further questions, either post them here or feel free to email me at the address in the sig.
Happy Blogging!
Thanks for the information!
Go to Americablog tonight. There’s a big discussion on exactly this topic.
Which is why I suggest that you ignore the trolls and move on. I’ll add that i.p. blockers and other software does not work as someone who is determined will just use a proxy.
There is a diarist who was “outed” who was a valuable asset to our community. This caused this person to leave the community. There are other diarists, posters and lurkers that wish to remain anonymous. Some won’t post or diary for this reason alone. So as far as revealing anyone just forget it.
Thank you, everyone. I’ve and bookmarked the suggestions.
I think there needs to be a national conference for site managers on securing your site for its intended purpose. A troll can really do a lot of damage to the legitimate workings of a site. I loved someone’s comment on A-Blog that trolling is not free speech, it is graffiti.
I like the recipe posting on dailyKos. It’s funny, it reminds you that it’s just the Internet, and that ignoring such people is the best way to make them go away.
At least, it does all that for me — and I think for others as well. I would institute this practice on your own blog.
The bad news, not everybody can do it.
The good news is, it does not require any technical skill.
What a troll wants is attention. If he or she does not find individuals who are willing to cooperate, and grant the satisfaction of a response, the troll will go somewhere more rewarding.
It is not easy for everyone to simply not respond, but if the sincere desire is to vanquish the troll, this is the only method that will work, no matter how much nerdical savvy she or he may have.