How I Deal with Trolls

It was late 2006/early 2007 when I first encountered a troll. I was new at my job and he targeted me. He even threatened to email our president to tell him about me. The troll did it through blog posts and everything he said was not true. I immediately reported it to our PR lead and he advised me to ignore it and don't engage. The troll even made me a mistress! He did it several times, but I just ignored it. 

Good thing I was given that advise because the troll just got tired and stopped. A few years ago I was the target of trolls again. Friends alerted me about it. They were discussing my political affiliations and beliefs. They couldn't find any because I never really posted anything. I focused on my work and just continued to do the job at hand. 

It went on for some time and they started to uncover who my friends were. I was worried that they would target my family next. I think it helped I had close friends in Davao because that confused them a lot! I did the same thing and alerted the PR lead in the Philippines. She also told me to ignore it and they'll take care of it if it escalates. They stopped when I told a close friend about it. Almost immediately the trolling stopped. (I honestly don't know what he did to stop them or what his involvement with them was). 

So I continue to ignore them. Nowadays it's harder to identify real people versus fake accounts. I noticed this when I was still in Singapore. The "Filipinos in Singapore" group had a lot of trolls in it and they were pretty nasty people. I would randomly check profiles and lot were new accounts, obviously fake. It was useless to engage because they would just attack you if you tried correcting them. The group eventually became this place of negativity so I just stopped reading. Honestly, the tech companies who own these apps should do a better job of policing it. Also, companies who have been involved with these troll armies should be held accountable.

The best way to protect yourself from trolls is not to engage them. If you encounter one, report their profile. It's also important to make sure that your online properties are kept private. Don't just keep accepting invites. If you must do something, just share verified sources (preferably from valid news outlets). 

Family and friends are best enjoyed in person and in real life. 

#BeKind #StaySafe

What if Your Friend's Child is a Troll?

Yesterday a friend pinged me for advise. He told me the son of one of our elders in the community has been sharing fake information and exhibiting troll-like behavior. He said he's called his attention several times about it, but he's just been ignored. 

Found this fitting photo of the friend who brought up the issue. 
Behind him is my Dad haha.

While I'm frustrated over the fact that I have friends and family who are fanatics of the dictator's son, they're still a loved one and I respect their decision even though it's exasperating at times. The elections happen only every couple of years and relationships are more important than voting for the same person. 

The son of our friend is probably in his early twenties. Miggy told me that it's really hard for their generation to grasp what happened during Martial Law since they weren't around yet and there's really a lot of disinformation on Tiktok and Facebook. I told Miggy that's where parents come in. Told him he's on the right track because we fed him the right information. His grandparents also made sure he knew what went on during Martial Law. 

Miggy's already an adult, but I was never anxious about what he does online. I made sure of that when he was younger because I would check what sites he'd go to. We were lucky because everything was still PC based when he was young. It's harder to check what they do on mobile and tablets. I'm not even familiar with Tiktok since I don't use it and don't have the patience to learn it. I tried it for a day and immediately deleted it because it was too noisy for me (#signofoldage).

Since our friend's son hasn't been listening to him I advised him to either step up on calling his attention or bring it up with the elder's sister who is a kakampink. I told him I wasn't sure who the Mom was supporting and I didn't want him to get in a bind. Managing the relationship is key so I thought it would be useful to ask the tita for help first.

With so much disinformation flying around, do check what your kids are getting themselves into. I do take time to read what my family and friends post online since I have the time to do it. I didn't see this one that my friend flagged since I'm not friends with him on FB. I would have immediately brought it up with his mom if I saw it. Hopefully the matter would be rectified and there would be one less troll online. 

#BeKind #StaySafe #VoteWisely