Over the past 5-6 months, I've been noticing a lot of new accounts spinning up that look like this format:
https://instance.xyz/u/gmbpjtmthttps://instance.xyz/u/tjrwwiifhttps://instance.xyz/u/xzowaikv
What are they doing?
They're boosting and/or downvoting mostly, if not exclusively, US news and politics posts/comments to fit their agenda.
Edit: Could also be manipulating other regional news/politics, but my instance is regional and doesn't subscribe to those which limits my visibility into the overall manipulation patterns.
What do these have in common?
- Most are on instances that have signups without applications (I'm guessing the few that are on instances with applications may be from before those were enabled since those are several months old, but just a guess; they could have easily just applied and been approved.)
- Most are random 8-character usernames (occasionally 7 or 9 characters)
- Most have a common set of users they're upvoting and/or downvoting consistently
- No posts/comments
- No avatar or bio (that's pretty common in general, but combine it with the other common attributes)
- Update: Have had several anonymous reports (thanks!) that these users are registering with an
@sharklasers.comemail address which is a throwaway email service.
What can you, as an instance admin, do?
Keep an eye on new registrations to your instance. If you see any that fit this pattern, pick a few (and a few off this list) and see if they're voting along the same lines. You can also look in the login_token table to see if there is IP address overlap with other users on your instance and/or any other of these kinds of accounts.
You can also check the local_user table to see if the email addresses are from the same provider (not a guaranteed way to match them, but it can be a clue) or if they're they same email address using plus-addressing (e.g. [email protected], [email protected], etc).
Why are they doing this?
Your guess is as good as mine, but US elections are in a few months, and I highly suspect some kind of interference campaign based on the volume of these that are being spun up and the content that's being manipulated. That, or someone, possibly even a ghost or an alien life form, really wants the impression of public opinion being on their side. Just because I don't know exactly why doesn't mean that something fishy isn't happening that other admins should be aware of.
Who are the known culprits?
These are ones fitting that pattern which have been identified. There are certainly more, but these have been positively identified. Some were omitted since they were more garden-variety "to win an argument" style manipulation.
These all seem to be part of a campaign. This list is by no means comprehensive, and if there are any false positives, I do apologize. I've tried to separate out the "garden variety" type from the ones suspected of being part of a campaign, but may have missed some.
[New: 9/18/2024]: https://thelemmy.club/u/fxgwxqdr
[New: 9/18/2024]: https://discuss.online/u/nyubznrw
[New: 9/18/2024]: https://thelemmy.club/u/ththygij
[New: 9/18/2024]: https://ttrpg.network/u/umwagkpn
[New: 9/18/2024]: https://lemdro.id/u/dybyzgnn
[New: 9/18/2024]: https://lemmy.cafe/u/evtmowdq
https://leminal.space/u/mpiaaqzq
https://lemy.lol/u/ihuklfle
https://lemy.lol/u/iltxlmlr
https://lemy.lol/u/szxabejt
https://lemy.lol/u/woyjtear
https://lemy.lol/u/jikuwwrq
https://lemy.lol/u/matkalla
https://lemmy.ca/u/vlnligvx
https://ttrpg.network/u/kmjsxpie
https://lemmings.world/u/ueosqnhy
https://lemmings.world/u/mx_myxlplyx
https://startrek.website/u/girlbpzj
https://startrek.website/u/iorxkrdu
https://lemy.lol/u/tjrwwiif
https://lemy.lol/u/gmbpjtmt
https://thelemmy.club/u/avlnfqko
https://lemmy.today/u/blmpaxlm
https://lemy.lol/u/xhivhquf
https://sh.itjust.works/u/ntiytakd
https://jlai.lu/u/rpxhldtm
https://sh.itjust.works/u/ynvzpcbn
https://lazysoci.al/u/sksgvypn
https://lemy.lol/u/xzowaikv
https://lemy.lol/u/yecwilqu
https://lemy.lol/u/hwbjkxly
https://lemy.lol/u/kafbmgsy
https://discuss.online/u/tcjqmgzd
https://thelemmy.club/u/vcnzovqk
https://lemy.lol/u/gqvnyvvz
https://lazysoci.al/u/shcimfi
https://lemy.lol/u/u0hc7r
https://startrek.website/u/uoisqaru
https://jlai.lu/u/dtxiuwdx
https://discuss.online/u/oxwquohe
https://thelemmy.club/u/iicnhcqx
https://lemmings.world/u/uzinumke
https://startrek.website/u/evuorban
https://thelemmy.club/u/dswaxohe
https://lemdro.id/u/efkntptt
https://lemy.lol/u/ozgaolvw
https://lemy.lol/u/knylgpdv
https://discuss.online/u/omnajmxc
https://lemmy.cafe/u/iankglbrdurvstw
https://lemmy.ca/u/awuochoj
https://leminal.space/u/tjrwwiif
https://lemy.lol/u/basjcgsz
https://lemy.lol/u/smkkzswd
https://lazysoci.al/u/qokpsqnw
https://lemy.lol/u/ncvahblj
https://ttrpg.network/u/hputoioz
https://lazysoci.al/u/lghikcpj
https://lemmy.ca/u/xnjaqbzs
https://lemy.lol/u/yonkz
Edit: If you see anyone from your instance on here, please please please verify before taking any action. I'm only able to cross-check these against the content my instance is aware of.
The duopoly is maintained by First Past the Post. If we want meaningful change, we must change the voting system.
https://ncase.me/ballot/ http://zesty.ca/voting/sim/ https://cdsmithus.medium.com/simulating-elections-with-spatial-voter-models-1ff50892390
The Democrats dont have Ranked Choice voting on their agenda this is a red herring.
The Greens have RCV though! 2 in 1!
And without something like RCV, the greens can never win.
You're presenting a safe with the key locked inside.
Yes yes she can never win and Biden is the best candidate. We know the drill. Democrat voters know how politics work right
It's not a matter of politics. We could be voting on which salad dressing to use, and FPTP will always devolve into only two parties (Caesar and Italian, perhaps?). Go read those links I shared.
I know very well how it works. People who told me that Biden was the very bestest candidate told me all about it.
How's Biden doing in the polls right now?
FTPT is just another convenient fearmongering excuse.
No, it's reality.
I don't think you do. Biden has nothing to do with it. Democrats have nothing to do with it. Go read up.
Biden was a good candidate, just too old, that's all. He's saved far more Palestinian lives than anyone in your movement did, though. You want us in the West to divest, at which point nothing holds Netanyahu back from just completely cutting the last of the food aid and finishing the job in a single month.
You just don't know how to recognize a messy, ugly, harm reduction scheme, instead preferring some sort of purist, noble-minded alignment driven by wishful thinking and based on a misinformed concept that Israel would somehow magically fall apart without the US. When they're really just using us, because it's conveniently their best option.
The ugly reality is, though, that you don't actually need big bombs to kill all the Gazans. Or even defeat Hezbollah honestly, considering they're outnumbered 4 to 1 by the IDF. And no, the Sunnis will not all rise up to attack Israel alongside a Shiite militia funded by a regional rival to the Sunnis, regardless of your fantasies. And that's not even mentioning the modern Israeli nuclear arsenal.
So sick and tired of you tearing down what you don't understand because it doesn't fit your childish views of somehow saving the day. It's not that easy. Biden did the best anyone could have, in an ugly situation. He kept Netanyahu strung out on a line, needing us, and was able to stop him before Rafah by withholding those bombs.
The man deserves some understanding for how many people could have died if he just did what you all ask for, because Netanyahu would not have just sat down and stopped. Not so long as he still had bullets for machine guns, hand grenades and bulldozers, which is all that's really necessary to wipe out every last Gazan.
This is like accrediting Adolf Hitler for saving Jewish people.
At least you're mask off now.
Yeah, crazy spin is all you have left when you have no facts or arguments. The Holocaust and Gaza are nowhere near comparable, and Biden isn't hamas or Netanyahu.
So, in what way is Biden like Hitler?
Do you even think israel is committing Genocide?
Yes. More specifically an ethnic cleansing.
Answer the question. In what way is Biden like Hitler?
In the way that Joe Biden is the reason that Genocide and ethnic cleansing is even happening in the first place.
At this point, it feels like you believe if you can get people to hate Harris, Jill will magically win.
It's never going to happen. I'm sorry, but that's not how this reality works.
Maybe if you ban enough people who oppose Genocide from Lemmy.World everyone will magically start supporting Genocide.
Yeah. You're the victim. You break civility rules. There are plenty of pro Palestine people in the community. They just follow the rules.
Normal people apologize when they are called out for insulting others. That's another difference.
Other users? Is Kamala Harris a Lemmy.World user now? And calling her out for spreading misinformation is not allowed right?
Just like how users insulting Trump by calling him a Fascist Cheeto totally crosses the line how dare they insult a politician they all get banned by the Lemmy.World mods!
And no user on .World is making up actual conspiracies and spreading misinformation about Jill Stein being a Russian plant. All of them get banned for misinformation instantly.
No it's clear a consistent set of rules is being applied on .World to totally not ban speech critical of Kamala Harris being complicit in Genocide.
That's not how this works. This will be the last time I ever interact with you.
I won't stoop to your level with insults, I'll just leave you with this: I fly 4 flags at my house: American, pride, Ukraine, and Palestine.
You spend so much time attacking us for some made up thing, when the truth is simple: your unbearable with your constant attack on anybody that doesn't agree with you. I WILL be voting for Harris, because a vote for ANYBODY else is a vote for Trump, and there are MANY more issues I worry about.
... And on and on.
YOU, for some reason, think it's a simple thing, but it's not.
Goodbye.
There were zero insults in the my comment. If you felt insulted by Lemmy.World censoring Genocide then lmao.
I'm sure those Palestinians are very happy with the virtue signalling and then proceeding to vote for the people responsible for their Genocide. And when Kamala spreads fake rape hoaxes to dehumanize Palestinians you ban everyone calling it out. What an amazing amount of 'care'.
Let's ask an actually murdered Palestinian scholar:
So you starve them. See how that works? There's a small amount of food aid getting in, that's how they're not all dead yet. You cut that lifeline.
Anyways, still not seeing how Biden is the reason it is happening.
Also, I find it funny that you suddenly believe the IDF when they say something you think might be convenient.
Israel gets all their rockets and bombs from America. They would fully be out of interceptors to stop Hezbollah and even Hamas.
Israel is entirely dependent on foreign supplies for their advanced weapon production. They have R&D but little production facilities
Yes, we are helping protect Israel, no question about it. We have treaties with them. Hopefully they come to their senses and throw out Netanyahu soon, the protests against him have gotten pretty fucking huge recently. I'm less hopeful on that one though, just keeping my fingers crossed.
Leahy law
It's a good pressure mechanism, but again, it wouldn't save Gazans unless used strategically. Machine guns and bulldozers could eliminate them all, fancy bombs are not needed. It's a tightrope walk.
They don't actually need interceptors either, incidentally. Netanyahu gives no shits about his people, if a few thousand die in rocket strikes, I doubt he cares if he gets Gaza in the end.
Oh, and we don't actually supply all their stuff btw, just a lot of it.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Defense_industry_of_Israel
Go read the article I linked earlier from Haaretz.
You clearly did not.
Also look up who supplies those dozers lmao.
That article quotes an IDF officer, whom you just believe all of a sudden, just because he says something convenient to you. This is very foolish, he is an officer participating in a war, and will say what he needs to or is ordered to say.
Bulldozers can be purchased in many places, they are not difficult to build.
edit: Oh, and I almost forgot, but Israel imports more from China than it does the US, as of the latest data I can find.
https://oec.world/en/visualize/tree_map/hs92/import/isr/show/all/2022
Yes IDF officers admitting their own countries shortcomings is slightly different than spreading propaganda. The officer very clearly states that almost all weapons are made in America.
Your second link is not about weapons nor D9 armored bulldozers. Unless you are implying China is selling interceptor missiles on Aliexpress.
Yes, they get a lot of weapons from us, no question. It is very advantageous for them to do so. The question is, do they have to? You seem to think yes, but have no evidence to support that. Nor does it make any sense, except with regards to the most advanced weapons.
Plenty of other countries manage to get weapons without getting them from the US.
Do the bulldozers need to be armored to do work enabling the genocide of Gazans? No, right? You cannot seem to distinguish optional things from requirements. Necessities from conveniences. Why is this?
Hezbollah and Iran exists thats why. You are still stuck in the israeli power fantasy. It's a miniscule player that is worthless without external backing.
Israel runs on an abundance of high tech weapons imported from overseas. They are worthless in their tanks.
They won several wars in their early history, before getting an advanced air force, on the back of heavy infantry casualties. Again, you have no evidence.
What would a rocket barrage do? Kill tons of Israelis. Would that defeat the IDF somehow? We learned in WW2 that you can level cities, but the country will fight on. What can Iran do asides fire missiles? March through the two countries in the way?
I am not the one living in fantasy. I am not the one just conveniently believing dumb shit spoonfed to me for someone's political purposes.
They won their previous wars with an abundance imported external weapons even the earliest ones.
And they got defeated by Hezbollah and Egypt when the weapons stopped.
I recommend you read up on what the actual history is instead of this retold israeli power fantasy.
Ooh, fascinating. Name me when Hezbollah and Egypt defeated them.
Instead of trying to pivot to a different subject every time you are wrong you'd be best off reading the first article I linked.
I've already said, I don't give a shit what an IDF officer says. I actually know better than to listen to military messaging. Yes they get weapons from us, but do they have to or are there other ways on planet Earth to get weapons asides buying from the US?
Still waiting for your Egyptian victory.
Perhaps you were talking about Yom Kippur, where if I recall Egypt and one other country (not Hezbollah) launched a surprise attack with the aid of advanced kit from the USSR, gained some ground and then were beaten back?
Quit believing dumb propaganda
You're flat out wrong, likely rooted in ignorance of the system. Without choice on the ballot it can't be voted for. The obstacles to access are far greater than winning an ideoloical majority.
No, you are flat out wrong. Read the links I shared. Statistically, it is nearly impossible for a third party to win under FPTP; you may as well buy lottery tickets. The most a third party can do is create a spoiler effect. This is regardless of being on the ballot or campaigning a lot.
The voting system must be changed. Neither the Democrats or the Republicans will advocate for this, however, since they both enjoy having roughly half the pie.
I need not read links to identify your false premise. The goal isn't that a certain party win. The revolutionary isn't loyal to party, only principle. It doesn't matter which group of opportunistic assholes "win".
What false premise?
So the principle you are loyal to is...we get to be led by Democrats or Republicans, forever and forever?
I don't care which party takes advantage of the principles of the labor platform.
Ok, sure? But as long as we have FPTP, your choices are Democrat or Republican. Or bank on the Green Party winning the Powerball, I guess.
Lol you're the one not making any sense, but sure