Internet Forums: How To Infiltrate, Exploit And Control Them

Yes, we've discussed this very article previously over the years although i cannot locate it now.

The tactics are classic and have been exhibited here from time to time. I've actually tried a few of the derailment tactitcs and they do, indeed, work. As a discussions starts off in a certain direction but before it has 5 posts, Me and, say, Quigley_Sharps can go in and tag team each other to get the thread in another direction. It has never failed and I think a little bit of the herd mentality comes into play. Not that we're anyone special, it's just that we have conspired to do this a few times....

It looks a little like this:

 

We've also used it for crowd control. Forget the thread (Alpha Rubicon?) but Clyde and ghrit went in and swayed it away from animosity and towards agreeable discussion. at least for a moment...

 

Hm. Thought we simply banned everything and everyone on that thread, must have been another one. Ah, well. I know we've had to brow beat a few deviants.

 

A team needs to come steer this one back on topic since I think it's important.

 

Yes, it has been pointed out that the What did you put away this week thread violates #4. I have to say that we started that thread in '06 as a way to spur some activity on a pretty slow forum. That thread format has been copied on many other survival boards - same with our Pay it Forward thread - both SM originals.

There are things I talk about here and things that I reserve for private conversations. We suggest that others do the same although I suspect that lists of bandaids, bags of sugar and tattler canning lids are of little interest to the alphabet agencies.

Calling our resident Fed Brokor for his take...

 

Remember, the is also only 1 Beer Tent. Many trolls trying to infiltrate and derail that thread and find the hidden CNC plans embedded in the Luche Lage picture. We can be pretty sneaky, too.

 

So far as I know, the one word association game started here, too. If ever there was a revealing of thought processes, an analysis of that one might show various tendencies.

 

Yes but sometimes i wonder if the 'Forum Spies' document was maybe put out as counter-counter propaganda to make all of us distrust each other. The tactics are sound but it also leads some to think that some of the practices we use in this forum could be suspect.

#5 is an absolute giveaway. Post anything inflammatory and many will reveal which side they are on. Myself included

kinda makes me want to return us to our roots. In case some of you are new, we started this place off as a completely closed forum for a group of around 12-14 to discuss, hang out, laugh and learn. We opened it up to the public after - what? 6 to 8 months?

 

Yes, it is true that anything you post on the internet can be submitted as evidence or at the very least used by the media to promote character assassination of any individual, even those who are merely charged or suspected of a crime. It is therefore prudent for anyone to only post truthful, non-violent and non-incriminating information on any forum or blog. But, I must say that, unless one is using their real name or has in some way made it known who they are on a forum, their information most likely wont even be traced back to them. The only exception to this would be in a case where the individuals personal computer has been seized and submitted to digital forensics for analysis, or if they have been closely monitored by Federal Agencies.

The concept or notion behind the government spying on people all the time is ludicrous, even to me (a well suspected theorist) or to anybody with any decent amount of information regarding our own lazy bureaucracy. It is true, however --that we are being tracked and traced and data is collected by some rather insidious programs and stored (perhaps even viewed in some cases) by those working in the Fusion Centers located in the country. The information gathered there, however is most likely credit card purchases and spending habits, not so much online activity. Those little "bonus" cards you are always offered at every gas station, grocery store and corporate chain, are methods to track and trace what you do as well as build up points to offer you a discount.

I do not see anything at all wrong with posting in friendly fashion on a forum such as ours, provided some care is taken as to not give serial numbers or real names and exact locations out. Since we are living in a world where some ideas and activity may have at one time been acceptable and within the order of law, nevertheless we can see changes in the traditional authority of our own nation, and what was once typical and acceptable could very well become a crime tomorrow. Due caution is always advised.

 

IIRC, it was about that long, mostly getting to know each other and sort out the software. So far as a full return to roots goes, bells cannot be unrung. More's the pity sometimes.

So far as #5 goes, yes, one can make an inflammatory statement and maybe smoke someone out. We have had that happen a couple times, and it's been revealing if anyone really cared to look. I don't think the controversial statements were deliberately posted to inflame, more likely dashed off with little forethought. But, deliberate or not, there have been some exciting responses.

Somebody said that 70% of communication is non-verbal. That is one of the things that makes forums more difficult, what is written may not convey the intent too awful precisely. But without forums, learning from a wide range of other folks would not be possible.

 

We have a pretty good system here with requiring new members to post in order to take part, but if you wanted to weed out any possible .Gov hacks (and there are plenty of them out there), all you have to do is make 75% or more of the forum *the most relevant parts* off limits until they post enough in the welcome forum, reading room and general forum. I know this will certainly not appease the lurkers, but you can't have your cake and eat it, too.

It all comes down to how far you/we are willing to go to assert OPSEC.

Most informants and .Gov instigators do not stick around and spend enough time becoming deeply rooted --they often times present themselves during very important periods (elections, wars, crisis, etc.) and move on to the next series of possibles.

 

We had a pretty good system before.
Currently, in our fight against spam, we have gone to manual vetting of all new members. This weeds out spammers but does nothing to weed out provocateurs. Perhaps some guidelines could be suggested in a separate thread. We're all ears.

 

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