What should we do when we spot a confirmed fake / alt-account?

[Num7]

What should we do when we spot a confirmed fake / alt-account*?

*** A fake account is an alternate account created by the same individual using the same IP addresses, previously used by a now-banned account. For instance, Member-X gets banned for trolling and trouble-making. He then proceeds to create a new account, Member-Y.

Thanks to the tools available in the forum software, we're going to be able to notice that this new account is closely related to the previous one(s). What should we do? Should we ban it right away to protect the community from a troll? Or should we give the new account a chance? In other words, should we allow alt-accounts after a ban?

I also know that some people can possibly be against the use of such tools, or doubt their reliability, especially if you add VPN services to the mix. I respect that as well, and that's an element to think about.

We're asking this question, in light of the recent new member we had to block because we were able to trace a large number of his IP addresses, to a bunch of troll accounts we blocked in the past. There was solid evidence in the logs, showing that these accounts were closely related.

We didn't notice it right away though... The new member was nice and courteous, everything was going fine until we spotted those anomalies in the logs. Maybe we were wrong to block him and should have ignored the logs and let him be??? What is fair??? That's an open question here.

So, I decided to open this poll, see what you guys think. Hope most of our active members will vote and share what they think. I'll be honest, there's no good or bad answer/argument here, so feel free to share. I'm myself, no sure what's the best course of action. I'm not a big fan of alt-accounts, but I believe in second chances. I usually give people good intentions.

Thank you for taking part in the exercise!

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A few notes:

If we were to allow alt-accounts in general, it would potentially result in some people creating multiple accounts to post on the forum. You wouldn't necessarily know that Member-ABC is actually the same person as Member-123. It can result in unusual situations, such as people speaking to themselves, or replying to their own posts. That's something to consider.

If we were to allow alt-accounts, but ONLY after someone gets banned. In other words, folks who got banned and decide to register again for a second chance could do it. In that case, it kinda invalidates what bans are meant to be. You get banned for death threads? No big deal, register a new account under a new username and start over. That's something to consider as well.

Our current method is to prevent any alt-account. We don't allow alt-accounts for regulars. If we happen to ban someone for X reason, we're notified when this person creates another account using the same IP address. We, therefore, block that new account. Sometimes, we notice after some days or weeks, that a new member is very closely related to a previously banned member. Depending on how solid the evidence is, we'll do something that ranges from getting in touch with the member for an explanation to a ban.

Maybe all of this is too complicated, we should just stop looking at the logs and let things happen?

 

[Martian]

I don't know the answer, but at the moment I'm thinking it really depends on their intentions. For instance, if it's someone who is genuinely hostile (e.g. making death threats, stalking people, doxxing, etc.) then action should be taken. However, sometimes people forget their login or password after being gone a long time, or maybe they have some other harmless reason for it. It gets complicated when VPNs or proxies are involved, because there are sometimes legitimate uses for them. For example, if someone is the victim of stalking, doxxing, etc., they might use such things for their personal safety. I know that Tor is specifically designed to make every user look the same. As they say, the media is the biggest problem with it, because people only hear about the bad uses of it, not the good. It's a tricky subject.

By the way, I do remember Lussorio. That was so annoying. I think he showed up in 2016, but I'm not sure.

 

[Opmmur]

Maybe all of this is too complicated, we should just stop looking at the logs and let things happen?

I would personally not search for fake members. Until they become a problem member. At that time you can make a decision to ban or issue a warning.

 

[NaturalPhilosopher]

if they're fake or not it becomes self evident the more they speak.

scammers aren't consistent
they lose interest after a while and it reveals their authenticity.

just let it be.

 

[Martian]

if they're fake or not it becomes self evident the more they speak.
just let it be.

scammers aren't consistent
they lose interest after a while and it reveals their authenticity.

You actually raise a very good point. Lussorio's many sock puppets quickly became apparent back in the old days.

 

[NaturalPhilosopher]

.

 

[NaturalPhilosopher]

i am lussorio's/lordchatteron/F.Stein/Walker's sockpuppet..
i'm still convinced they are legitimate but are also trolling same time.

complicated 'eh?
the technical details they revealed is exactly the same thing I figured out on my own years prior.
there is absolutely no way they can know it without being legit.

num7 thought i was lussorio.

para-site people need to just focus on time travel technology.
forget everything else.

 

[TimeFlipper]

Admin has all the necessary tools to ban certain members, carry on using them Num7 ..

 

[Martian]

Admin has all the necessary tools to ban certain members, carry on using them Num7 ..

 

[TimeFlipper]

@Martian ..