History Main / SockPuppet

[-[[http://www.flickr.com/photos/alexbrn/7919873782/ Photo by Alex Brown]], used under CC BY-NC 2.0 license.]]-]

* Another notable incident in Wiki/{{Wikipedia}} sock puppetry is the deletion debate for the article on ''Webcomic/StarslipCrisis'', a {{webcomic}} by Kris Straub. The discussion overwhelmingly favoured deleting the article, which a passing admin then enacted. At this point [[https://web.archive.org/web/20070322191145/http://www.halfpixel.com/2007/03/18/delete-wikipedia-a-webcomics-case-study/ Straub revealed]] ''he'' had been the nominator. And ten of the user accounts arguing for deletion. From the same IP. Using factually incorrect arguments. It's bad form to misbehave on the Wikipedia to make a point, but everyone seemed to be too busy gaping in astonishment at Straub's [[BatmanGambit brilliant execution of the plot]] to notice.

Sock puppets are banned in ''many'' online venues. Wiki/{{Wikipedia}} is notoriously plagued with them; its "anyone can edit" philosophy makes it hard to keep them out, while its bureaucratic processes provide incentives for their creation.

** PlayfulHacker group [=m1nx=] is known to have done this on several occasions [[{{Troll}} for the purpose of playing pranks]]. [=Jezz0=] has multiple known ones: "Dr. [=m1nx, Ph. D=]" is the one who spread the hoax about a condition called "Beefbrain", scaring people into putting obtrusive graphics on their pages as a "shield", and [[spoiler:Counselor Ronnie Porter, the community leader of the Teentopia zone posting blatantly untrue "facts", as well as spreading the rumor of an outbreak of a fake drug]]. Others are known to exist; at one point, they comment that infiltrating the [[ConspiracyTheorist Open-Eyed zone]] is particularly easy because [[PoesLaw their fake accounts seamlessly blend right in]].

* In ''VideoGame/HypnospaceOutlaw'', [=CPColdSnap=], a KnowNothingKnowItAll of a music snob, is guilty of some extremely vile harassment towards Hypnospace musicians that he doesn't like, whether it be putting them on a wall of shame page or [[spoiler:[[LastDisrespects celebrating their death and disfigurement]]]]. Unfortunately, he does all of it on an alternate account, [=CPColdSnap2=]. He isn't at all secretive about it unlike most examples; [[GenreSavvy he just knows]] that, due to how the system works. [[WeirdlyUnderpoweredAdmins the Enforcers are powerless to put him in his place]],

* In ''VideoGame/HypnospaceOutlaw'', [=CPColdSnap=], a KnowNothingKnowItAll of a music snob, is guilty of some extremely vile harassment towards Hypnospace musicians that he doesn't like, whether it be putting them on a wall of shame page or [[spoiler:[[LastDisrespects celebrating their death and disfigurement]]]]. Unfortunately, he does all of it on an alternate account, [=CPColdSnap2=], so [[WeirdlyUnderpoweredAdmins the Enforcers are powerless to put him in his place]].

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9vs-rHSR6_E A white, straight man named Dean Browning wrote a tweet proclaiming "I'm a gay black guy" who supported Donald Trump]]. Shortly after this post, he was found to be linked another account with a user claiming to be a gay black man named "Dan Prudy" of which was a sock puppet account, of which merely had a stock photo of a black man rather than an actual individual's selfie picture, which Twitter suspended both accounts. It gets more unusual when Browning had a son of Patti LaBelle falsely claim to be the "real" Dan Purdy, which in turn was also promptly exposed as a ruse.

* One of the worst offenders is the Wrestling/MollyHolly stalker. He has over 40 accounts on Website/YouTube (most notably one called "noragreenwaldisacunt") plus many more on Website/BlogSpot and Website/DailyMotion. His posts are all suspiciously similar in style. WordOfGod is he fell in love with her but went over the DespairEventHorizon when she got engaged to her now-husband.

A secondary, pseudonymous Net identity created by an individual in order to give the impression that there are multiple people who agree with a given point, idea, or action, when in reality [[VocalMinority there's only one]]. Sock puppets are usually used to post follow-ups that [[ButHeSoundsHandsome praise their owner]] or echo their convictions, in the hopes that they will convince real people to pay attention to them and/or their agenda. Alternatively, they can be used to argue against the poster's real agenda, [[TheWarOnStraw but in such a stupid or offensive manner as to discredit the opposition]]. Sometimes, they are used to [[UnCancelled evade bans.]] While the first Sock Puppets appeared on Website/{{Usenet}} (i.e. they are pretty much as old as discussion on the Internet itself), they have long since spread to other electronic venues, most notably blogs.

The term is a long-standing one in electronic media, dating back to the early days of the Net in the 1980s. It originated on Website/{{Usenet}} and is still seen there, especially in the anti-spam groups. The term itself comes from the practice of creating a cheap puppet by pulling a sock over your hand, and then pretending to talk to it. One sub-category of the sock puppet is the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Troll_(Internet)#Concern_troll "concern troll"]], in which a sock puppet pretends to be part of a faction but makes "concerned" derogatory comparisons to another faction for whom the troll is a sock puppet.

This is one of the more popular [[http://www.cracked.com/funny-3809-internet-argument-techniques/ "Internet Argument Techniques"]] very common in forums and mainly used by trolls; this can be a source of frustration to users trying to have an honest debate. Can also be a source of laughs, not only for the trolls and others in on the ruse, but for other users following the argument. Once discovered, this is commonly used as another point against the user and/or another way to discredit their arguments.[[note]]Of course, someone could always create fairly obvious sock puppets claiming to agree with the opposition for this very purpose, if they were a particularly MagnificentBastard.[[/note]]

* Another notable incident in Wiki/{{Wikipedia}} sock puppetry is the deletion debate for the article on ''Webcomic/StarslipCrisis'', a {{webcomic}} by Kris Straub. The discussion overwhelmingly favoured deleting the article, which a passing admin then enacted. At this point [[https://web.archive.org/web/20070322191145/http://www.halfpixel.com/2007/03/18/delete-wikipedia-a-webcomics-case-study/ Straub revealed]] ''he'' had been the nominator. And ten of the user accounts arguing for deletion. From the same IP. Using factually incorrect arguments. It's bad form to misbehave on the Wikipedia to make a point, but everyone seemed to be too busy gaping in astonishment at [[MagnificentBastard Straub's]] [[BatmanGambit brilliant execution of the plot]] to notice.

* Another notable incident in Wiki/{{Wikipedia}} sock puppetry is the deletion debate for the article on ''WebComic/StarslipCrisis'', a {{webcomic}} by Kris Straub. The discussion overwhelmingly favoured deleting the article, which a passing admin then enacted. At this point [[https://web.archive.org/web/20070322191145/http://www.halfpixel.com/2007/03/18/delete-wikipedia-a-webcomics-case-study/ Straub revealed]] ''he'' had been the nominator. And ten of the user accounts arguing for deletion. From the same IP. Using factually incorrect arguments. It's bad form to misbehave on the Wikipedia to make a point, but everyone seemed to be too busy gaping in astonishment at [[MagnificentBastard Straub's]] [[BatmanGambit brilliant execution of the plot]] to notice.

* Another notable incident in Wiki/{{Wikipedia}} sock puppetry is the deletion debate for the article on ''Starslip Crisis'', a {{webcomic}} by Kris Straub. The discussion overwhelmingly favoured deleting the article, which a passing admin then enacted. At this point [[https://web.archive.org/web/20070322191145/http://www.halfpixel.com/2007/03/18/delete-wikipedia-a-webcomics-case-study/ Straub revealed]] ''he'' had been the nominator. And ten of the user accounts arguing for deletion. From the same IP. Using factually incorrect arguments. It's bad form to misbehave on the Wikipedia to make a point, but everyone seemed to be too busy gaping in astonishment at [[MagnificentBastard Straub's]] [[BatmanGambit brilliant execution of the plot]] to notice.

* Another notable incident in Wiki/{{Wikipedia}} sock puppetry is the deletion debate for the article on ''Starslip Crisis'', a {{webcomic}} by Kris Straub. The discussion overwhelmingly favoured deleting the article, which a passing admin then enacted. At this point [[http://www.halfpixel.com/2007/03/18/delete-wikipedia-a-webcomics-case-study/ Straub revealed]] ''he'' had been the nominator. And ten of the user accounts arguing for deletion. From the same IP. Using factually incorrect arguments. It's bad form to misbehave on the Wikipedia to make a point, but everyone seemed to be too busy gaping in astonishment at [[MagnificentBastard Straub's]] [[BatmanGambit brilliant execution of the plot]] to notice.

** Sock puppetry was a big part of the political discourse of the early American republic. UsefulNotes/AlexanderHamilton (yes, '''''that''''' Theatre/{{Hamilton}}) was a frequent user of sock puppets in his various contributions to newspapers of the era.

* [[Website/FourChan /b/]], the haven of trolls that it is, thrives on socks, especially when one is trying to direct another poster to a questionable link or delete his own hard drive. They're charmingly referred to as [[FanNickname samefags]], though accusations like this generally get thrown around regardless of whether or not they actually think the other anons are sock puppets.

[[quoteright:240:[[VisualPun https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/7919873782_a1ff9a4080_m_1370.jpg]]]]
[[caption-width-right:240:"Your argument [[{{Pun}} socks]]!"[[note]][[http://www.flickr.com/photos/alexbrn/7919873782/ Photo by Alex Brown]][[/note]] ]]

* A group of these flooded the "Songs for Tibet -- The Art of Peace" charity compilation with one-star reviews written in {{Engrish}} and/or Chinese [[StrawmanPolitical referring to the Dalai Lama as a slaveowner]] and promoting the [[UsefulNotes/{{China}} People's Republic of China.]]

* {{Fanfic}}tion author [[http://www.fanfiction.net/u/40569/ Jared "Skysaber" Ornstead]], who has long claimed problems with hatemail and other shenanigans from people who do not like his work or style, used a second online identity, [[http://www.fanfiction.net/u/40569/ "Perfect Lionheart"]] for over three years starting in 2007 in order to escape them. Lionheart and Skysaber favorited each other on Website/FanfictionNet, and Lionheart denied claims that he was Skysaber made by readers who found their styles virtually identical.

* This is why [[http://www.ebay.com eBay]] seller ratings have to be taken with a grain of salt: some sellers create fictional accounts for the purpose of giving themselves feedback. Some users will cheat the system if they're not happy with how their auction is going. If the bid is too low they will use another account to outbid at the last second so they won't have to sell.
* [[http://wonkette.com/439132/facebook-lou-sarah-account-violated-our-terms-of-service Sarah Palin briefly had an alternate Facebook identity that "like"d a lot of her posts]].

* {{Fanfic}}tion author [[http://www.fanfiction.net/u/40569/ Jared "Skysaber" Ornstead]], who has long claimed problems with hatemail and other shenanigans from people who do not like his work or style, used a second online identity, [[http://www.fanfiction.net/u/40569/ "Perfect Lionheart"]] for over three years starting in 2007 in order to escape them. Lionheart and Skysaber favorited each other on Fanfiction.net, and Lionheart denied claims that he was Skysaber made by readers who found their styles virtually identical.
* There were persistent rumors during the ''Series/{{Jericho}}'' [[SendingStuffToSaveTheShow Nuts!]] campaign that CBS was using paid trolls to break up the movement. Whether or not that was even possible, several sock puppets were discovered in the later days of the fandom. One person was caught having as many as seven handles, all used to spread their socio-political viewpoint (right wing religious conspiracy theories) on the same board. There was an extreme amount of trolling going on in the fandom at the end of the secound season. Some put it down to the show's BrokenBase; others thought the campaign may have attracted a certain personality type; but some still point that a rather large number of those trolls were very web-savvy, very organized and rather literate compared to your usual flame-baiters.

* Microsoft is infamous for having paid [[TheShill shills]] to post pro-Microsoft messages in forums with notably anti-Microsoft attitudes. So has Apple.

A secondary, pseudonymous Net identity created by an individual in order to give the impression that there are multiple people who agree with a given point, idea, or action, when in reality [[VocalMinority there's only one]]. Sock puppets are usually used to post follow-ups that [[ButHeSoundsHandsome praise their owner]] or echo their convictions, in the hopes that they will convince real people to pay attention to them and/or their agenda. Alternatively, they can be used to argue against the poster's real agenda, but in such a stupid or offensive manner as to discredit the opposition. Sometimes, they are used to [[UnCancelled evade bans.]] While the first Sock Puppets appeared on Website/{{Usenet}} (i.e. they are pretty much as old as discussion on the Internet itself), they have long since spread to other electronic venues, most notably blogs.

The term is a long-standing one in electronic media, dating back to the early days of the Net in the 1980s. It originated on Website/{{Usenet}} and is still seen there, especially in the anti-spam groups. The term itself comes from the practice of creating a cheap puppet by pulling a sock over your hand, and then pretending to talk to it. One sub-category of the sock puppet is the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Troll_(Internet)#Concern_troll "concern troll"]], in which a sock puppet pretends to be part of a faction but makes "concerned" derogatory comparisons to another faction for whom the troll is a sock puppet. Another is TheShill.

* In the ''Literature/HarryPotter'' fandom, an individual using the handle Msscribe famously created a whole zoo of sock puppets over a period of years in order to increase her popularity and become friends with BigNameFan Cassandra Claire. She was eventually unveiled in very long and epic chronicle of her misdeeds by... a sock puppet. The event is referred to as [[https://web.archive.org/web/20130203000224/http://www.journalfen.net/users/charlottelennox/784.html Puppetgate]][[note]]In case any of the links on the web archive are broken, there is also a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K_DZd78WLQY YouTube video detailing everything]][[/note]]. Due to this, the phrases "Maybe they're Msscribe" and "Maybe I'm Msscribe" became [[MemeticMutation memetic in the fandom.]] (It's been theorized that Charlotte Lennox is in fact multiple people, given the staggering amount of work that went into chronicling the whole thing.)

* The PR wing of [[ChurchOfHappyology Happyology's]] Office of Special Affairs has ''an entire staff'' of people whose job is to create sock puppets in order to spam the comment sections of news articles and various newsgroups with either pro-Happyology messages or confusing junk posts. ([[http://raincoaster.com/2008/01/27/anonymous-demonstration-london-church-of-scientology/#comment-249716 Example]]) Unfortunately for them, the more active spammers aren't very good at hiding themselves. Wikipedia eventually imposed a blanket editing ban on all computers associated with the Church of Happyology and its affiliates.

* In the ''Literature/HarryPotter'' fandom, an individual using the handle Msscribe famously created a whole zoo of sock puppets over a period of years in order to increase her popularity and become friends with BigNameFan Cassandra Claire. She was eventually unveiled in very long and epic chronicle of her misdeeds by... a sock puppet. The event is referred to as [[https://web.archive.org/web/20130203000224/http://www.journalfen.net/users/charlottelennox/784.html Puppetgate]][[note]]In case any of the links on the web archive are broken, there is also a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K_DZd78WLQY YouTube video detailing everything]][[/note]]. Due to this, the phrases "Maybe they're Msscribe" and "Maybe I'm Msscribe" became [[MemeticMutation memetic in the fandom.]]
** It's been theorized that Charlotte Lennox is in fact multiple people, given the staggering amount of work that went into chronicling the whole thing.

* [[SuspiciouslySpecificDenial This wiki totally doesn't have any examples.]] The forum, on the other hand, has the infamous DarthWiki/{{Venhax}}.
** One Tnophelia holds the second place after getting banned for creation of '''over forty sock puppets'''.
** Less seriously, it's not at all uncommon in larger media threads for tropers to create alternate accounts to roleplay as characters from the works being discussed.

* Peter Pedersen, member of Swedish parliament, once gave a suggestion that can be watched subtitled [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NYTGDkWMe0M&feature=related here:]] that somebody invent a battery that not only powers a car but also, using for instance a dynamo, somehow extracts so much energy from the car that simply by driving the car one will receive enough power to keep on driving it. In other words, Pedersen wondered why they couldn't just invent a ''perpetuum mobile'', which it is well-known that nobody can ever do since it would violate at least one fundamental law of physics. When this was put on Website/YouTube, scornful and jeering comments poured in, but one recently registered user started defending Pedersen vigorously. It didn't take long for most users to come to the conclusion that this user was Mr. Pedersen himself.