Lifting the Veil on Bots and Trolls
Mark Weinstein · 2024
Bots are automated software programs that mimic and impersonate humans. Trolls are individual users who deliberately provoke and harass others. Both entities exploit the anonymity of the Web and social media to manipulate public opinion, spread falsehoods, and propagate chaos. Bot and troll armies are the flamethrowers often funded by foreign governments like Russia and China to amplify disputes, exacerbate societal divisions, and interfere with democracies. All the Big Tech social media behemoths have revenue models based on targeted advertising. AI chatbots like ChatGPT can be incredibly useful and positive tools. Managing bots and trolls on the social media giants before our current age of AI was already an uphill battle. The chapter presents four ways to spot and sidestep a bot on social media: check the profile, note odd timing, watch for repetition, repetition, and stump them with non sequiturs.