You may think you’re good at spotting troll posts online. Clemson University has created an eye-opening online tool that might surprise you. Test your ability to decipher between troll activity and authentic social media content: https://spotthetroll.org/start. It's more difficult than you think!
There are a number of well-known tactics employed by bots and trolls on social media you may have seen in the past. These include unsolicited messages, hyper-active accounts, accounts with no profile image, accounts with stolen profile images, or computer generated account names. While some of the troll accounts we discuss in the quiz used these tactics, they are not the focus of what we cover.
The Spot The Troll quiz tests users’ ability to identify which accounts are genuine and legitimate and which are professional trolls. Along the way, advice is provided for what to look for and how to be a better consumer and producer of social media.
All of the accounts and posts used in this quiz, both the genuine accounts and the trolls, have been taken directly from Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Nothing has been changed.
The Spot The Troll quiz is created by Clemson University researchers Darren Linvill and Patrick Warren at The Clemson University Media Forensics Hub, and Interactive Knowledge, designers and producers.
Learn more about the innovative collaboration to stop the spread of disinformation at: https://interactiveknowledge.com/work/clemson-university-creates-powerful-tool-designed-teach-thoughtful-humans-how-spot-internet.
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