ASTROTURFING: The Illusion of Mob Rule

I apologize if this has been posted before, but I could not find any threads that specificaly mention this, though I remember reading something similar a while back.

The need to protect the internet from 'astroturfing' grows ever more urgent.

The tobacco industry does it, the US Air Force clearly wants to ... astroturfing – the use of sophisticated software to drown out real people on web forums – is on the rise. How do we stop it?

Every month more evidence piles up, suggesting that online comment threads and forums are being hijacked by people who aren't what they seem. The anonymity of the web gives companies and governments golden opportunities to run astroturf operations: fake grassroots campaigns that create the impression that large numbers of people are demanding or opposing particular policies. This deception is most likely to occur where the interests of companies or governments come into conflict with the interests of the public. For example, there's a long history of tobacco companies creating astroturf groups to fight attempts to regulate them.

Credits to REDDIT for providing this link.

reply to post by Scarcer


Thanks for bringing this important issue to the fore again.

Its hard to have too much information about the topic. Now I wish someone would get a "how to spot them" guide up or something. I have pretty good ideas, but I would love any tips if anyone finds any.

an ongoing thread here:

www.abovetopsecret.com...

has a similar theme.....

the theme there is geared towards "sock puppets"

I think "one" was spotted !!!

the first half is hot..hot..hot!

please continue with this thread!

reply to post by Illusionsaregrander


Wish granted... in part. Here

To OP,

Now, if someone could actually decode the program behind this kind of software so we understand how it works...