Introduction
Today, not tomorrow, we live in a world were every information exchange may be weaponized to persuade or take advantage of us. We need to update the personal rules we use to evaluate what we choose to see, hear, and consider. We are under deliberate assault by carefully built information campaigns designed by skilled operators intended to influence us and and in some cases manipulate us.
Understanding how these operations work will help us defend ourselves from deception and unconscious influence by Bad Actors.
Toward that end, we need to understand Propaganda, what information and influence operations are, what troll farms are, and some common tactics they use to persuade or manipulate us. The next step is to simplify into some Critical thinking Guidelines Guidelines to use when we chose to interact with information.
Understanding Propaganda
White, gray and Black Propaganda
White is what we call public relations -Gray is sneaky persuasion that tries to hide its purpose. Black is deliberate deception-lies - as part of warfare, in dishonest political campaigns, by state actors- Russia is the author and perfector, the industry leader in this area.
White Propaganda is most public relations/publicity activities, involves communicating a message from a known source. For instance, when a PR person places a news story about the local bank’s $100,000 donation to the local hospital in the local newspaper, both the hospital and the bank are clearly identified in the news story, and it is certainly implied—if not stated directly—that this story ensued because both the hospital and the bank want to be seen in a certain way by the community and that they will benefit from this perception.
Gray propaganda is the communication from an unattributed or hidden source. That is, the messenger may be known, but the true source of the message is not. From a foreign policy viewpoint, gray propaganda would be placing news stories in an enemy country’s news outlets instead of buying ads to directly appeal to the enemy’s people. The message coming through the news media appears to be neutral, thus believable, whereas the direct appeal from an enemy is unbelievable.
Black propaganda goes beyond hiding the identity of the source of the message to falsely attributing it to a different entity, such as attributing an inflammatory message to a hostile source in order to stir up hate against the source, or cause it to lose credibility, or goad it into doing something of benefit to the propagandist. Black propaganda inevitably involves lying and dishonesty.
Troll Farms are entities that Carry Propaganda Activities,
Understanding Troll Farms
What is a Troll Farm
A Troll Farm is a network running social media accounts and websites that coordinate their effort for some specific objective, or sometimes just for money. Troll Farm Activities can be involved in White, Gray, or Black propaganda Activities. Illicit troll Farms can be involved in criminal activity including scams and fraud. They are engaged by all sides during elections. Recognized and unrecognized Governments use them in Hybrid warfare during war
A troll Farm can be people or AI or a combination of Both. They can be volunteer or professional or a combination of both. They can be in one location or many. They can be ad hoc network or permanent entity, or change from one to another.
Troll Farms may or may not work in concert with cyber organizations. Cyber operations are about getting access to, stealing or manipulating data sets (Hacking), or protecting them (Security). Modern Hybrid Warefare is a fusion of conventional and unconventional military and tools of subversion. in a synchronized way to exploit the vulnerabilities of an enemy.
Troll Farms are expanding in structure and purpose. Many think tanks, non profits and professional influencing organizations have built or are building their own internal troll farms, or are outsourcing troll farm functions.
Russia probably started the first troll farms when the took their long established propaganda entities into the digital age, and in 2018 a Harvard Study identified 140 Troll Farms spread around the world.
Understanding Information Operations
Information Operations (RAND)
The collection of tactical information about an adversary as well as the dissemination of propaganda in pursuit of a competitive advantage over an opponent.
Critical Thinking Guidelines
Troll Farm Examples
Understanding Information Operations
Here is a incomplete dynamic list of entities identified by various groups as engaging in troll farm-like behavior, as of the date of this article
Disclaimer: All this information is a moving Target: Troll Farms are closed down, re-opened, repurposed, and their skill set changes frequently. Some are for sale to any one willing to pay and have no information ethics standards, or goals other than financial gain.
a Troll is a derogatory term first used to identify social media accounts that "troll" other accounts to produce emotion, and/or outrage today, accounts that do that are sometimes called Rage Farmers today.
A Troll Farm is a network of people running social media accounts that coordinate their effort to some specific objective, or sometimes just for money.
They are most effective when non one knows they exist, and tend to shut down, scatter or go quiet when they are exposed.
I can't find my originals source ( apologies) but the University of Moscow recently shut down their t
Internet Research Agency became was cerated by Pregozian at Putin's direction to influence US Electtions. IT has been active ever since, and has been handed off alagedely to another Russian Oligarc
Volodin's Prism
Philippines
The Philippines has been called "patient zero in the global disinformation epidemic."[22] Studies into the country's troll farms found that political campaigns pay trolls $1,000 to $2,000 per month to create multiple fake social media accounts to post political propaganda and attack critics.[22][23] The political campaign of President Rodrigo Duterte has spent $200,000 to hire online trolls, according to one study.[24] Duterte admitted to hiring trolls for his 2016 political campaign.[25][26]
Since then, trolling behaviour supportive of Duterte has been traced back to taxpayer-funded government institutions.
Finnish investigative journalist Jessikka Aro interviewed workers at a “troll factory” in Saint Petersburg. Aro was harassed online after she published her story.[8] A court in Helsinki convicted three persons who had harassed Aro on charges of defamation and negligence.[9]
MEK
Iran - Albania
In February 2020, the New York Times interviewed 10 ex-People's Mujahedin of Iran (MEK) members who said that the MEK's Albania camp had a troll farm that promoted the opinions of MEK supporters, including Rudy Giuliani and John Bolton, and attacked the Iranian government. The MEK claimed that the former members were Iranian government spies.[3]
In the March 2021 CIB (Coordinated Inauthentic Behavior) report, Facebook announced that it removed hundreds of accounts, pages and groups in both Facebook and Instagram which were in a troll farm in Albania, operated by MEK.[4]
50 Cent Party
"50 Cent Party" is a term used for online users who have been hired by the authorities of the People's Republic of China to manipulate public opinion and disseminate disinformation to the benefit of the governing Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
BJP Party - India
India's ruling party BJP has a large number of online supporters who support its agenda and attack political rivals. Their methods were recorded by investigative journalist Swati Chaturvedi, who described them as a "digital army" in her book on the subject, I Am a Troll: Inside the Secret World of the BJP's Digital Army.[11]
Sandinista Liberation Front -Nicaragua
In November 2021, Facebook reported that it closed accounts, groups and pages in Facebook and Instagram linked to a troll farm operated by the Sandinista National Liberation Front, the ruling party in Nicaragua.[14]
Turning Point USA
A conservative alleged political Farm in Arizona, usa on some lists- it appears this group is a a conservative values NGO group- i see no evidence that it is a troll farm - possible link to
AK Trolls
Developed and Used by Turkish Tayyip Erdo to win election in 2014- mostly state sponsored Propaganda
References
What Are Troll Farms
Hybrid Warfare
Combining kinetic Information, Influence and Cyberspace operations in time of war. The 2022 Rusian Invasion of Ukraine
Information Operations (RAND)
The collection of tactical information about an adversary as well as the dissemination of propaganda in pursuit of a competitive advantage over an opponent.
Influence Operations (RAND)
Influence operations are the coordinated, integrated, and synchronized application of national diplomatic, informational, military,
economic, and other capabilities in peacetime, crisis, conflict, and
post conflict to foster attitudes, behaviors, or decisions by foreign
target audiences that further U.S. interests and objectives.
CyberSpace Operations : Military
Actions in or through cyberspace intended to preserve friendly freedom of action in
cyberspace and/or to create effects to achieve commanders’ objectives.
Cyberspace attacks in war are often
conducted by military organizations, such as cyber commands. They these are
often, but not exclusively, targeted against opponents’ military infrastructures such
as headquarters, command and control, and weapon systems. Cyber attacks in war are often counter-force attacks and stand in contrast to the use of strategic cyber
attacks in peacetime.
References
Trolling is a numbers game. In Pruszkiewicz’s case, she found that a small team of a dozen or so people could command at least 70 accounts on Facebook, 94 on Twitter, 11 on Instagram, and three on YouTube. Collectively, these can create 10,000 posts defending a client or attacking their rivals, potentially reaching 15 million views.
Interview, NewOrkTimes 2018 interview of Troll Farm Manager Pryuszkiewicz
