Trolls for hire in Philippines: The concealed political weapon used in a social media war

And also to counter trolls whom buy multiple SIM cards and sign-up multiple accounts using different phone numbers, Facebook users are determined by their Internet Protocol (IP) addresses to track where the accounts are made.

If the IP address will be the same but there is a new contact quantity, that account will be disabled, said Andy.

Even without the system filters, he can spot trolls and inauthentic accounts, he added. They do not use their own pictures, for instance , and there is no account activity other than feedback.

On usa president candidate Leni Robredo’s official Facebook web page, Andy pointed out a commenter who “only (had) 14 friends”.

Still, tech companies are struggling to keep pace with disinformation networks that are progressively more skilled in covering their tracks.

“What (social mass media platforms) are looking for is co-ordinated inauthentic behaviour. But … it’s not co-ordinated because (disinformation networks) distribute the task to different people who don’t necessarily know that they are working on the same task, ” said Cabanes.

“It’s these types of disinformation tactics that are well thought of that often evade regulations … and that’s a genuine big concern. ”