Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

You may have a point…

https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-...s/syc-20353928

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

The forthcoming Online Safety Bill was discussed on the Radio 4 programme 'Woman's Hour' this morning:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m0016h9c

To summarise:

Their political correspondence from Westminster Mark Darcy described it as a massive bill that is now starting to make its way through Parliament. He went on to say that it will cover a wide variety of user generated content, such as inciting or threatening violence, hate crime against those in the protected groups eg disabled, black, LGBT+ people, financial crime, scams, protection of children from harmful material, cyber flashing, posting material that triggers epileptic fits etc.

It was described as groundbreaking and evolving all the time and is being designed to easily add further measures, so has been described as the framework into which other furniture can be added as and when required.

There will be very heavy financial penalties for the owners or managers of user generated content websites. Non compliance could see individuals personally fined or have criminal charges brought against them.

Nadine Dorries says that she has an acute understanding of how inappropriate behaviour affects people, as she used to be the health minister in charge of mental health issues and is keen to put a stop to bad behaviour on the internet where it causes devastating mental health problems. MP's said they found it very difficult to listen to the parents of a 14 year old girl who had committed suicide because of what other people on the internet had been saying to her.

Restrictions will also be made on whats been called 'legal free speech' that may be theoretically legal but is, nevertheless, harmful behaviour eg encouraging suicide, encouraging people not to eat, encouraging them to access illegal pornography.

There have now been calls by people, including Carol Voderman and Carherine Allen, for the Metaverse/Virtual Reality (VR) to be specifically written into the final law as, for example, children have been approached by adults to provide an embodied experience of a sexual nature, minorities have been subject to insults & harassment etc. In the future it's expected that people will spend up to ten years of their life in a VR environment.

When it was stated that some people disagreed with the Bill, the response was that some people actually tried to push back on the legislation to make online grooming of children an offence.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

:sleep::sleep:

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

So basically its a complete disaster that will cause way more issues than it ever solves, from a ever more controlling super nanny state.

Why are their "protected" groups (black, LGBT, etc) - what about everyone else ? Dont they matter ?
Yep, just more discrimination, do these morons really not understand what fuels hatred ? - its ok to hate white people (or anyone not black, so bad luck all you Asians as well) or to hate hetrosexual people.

As for "posting material that triggers epileptic fits" ? seriously, what fracking planet are these idiots on. :dozey:
Whats next posting material that trigger "fits" of laughter :rolleyes:

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

So much for discussions, then. And as for arguments, don’t even think about it….

The whole thing sounds like a total disaster and needs to be thrown out. I hope common sense prevails.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

A crime against anybody in one of the protected groups is classed as a hate crime if it is borne out of hatred, discrimination etc.

Some idiots have been deliberately posting things on the internet or even sending things directly to known sufferers of epilepsy that triggers epileptic fits.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

So you completely missed the point then. :rolleyes:

Um .... ok.
You realise that this forum (and pretty much every site ever) consists of people "deliberately posting things". :dozey:

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

You could tell the world was heading down the plug hole when they put the 'this product may contain nuts' warning on packets of nuts.

too many do-gooders with no common sense.




Oh, apologies to anyone who may be offended by reading this post. I've tried to blend the background and text colour to avoid any harm or injury - whether physical or mental.
I've also tried many things but am still unable to get braille to work on the internet, perhaps the Government and those 'special' busybodies need to look into this absolute disgrace at the lack of thought for those who are blind.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

That’s what Screen Readers and Braille Displays are for…

https://www.rnib.org.uk/sight-loss-a...and-notetakers

(amongst the many things developed and implemented by those ‘special’ busybodies to try and help those with issues/challenges to have an even chance of enjoying the same things those without issues/challenges take for granted)

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

I have a friend who would say they hate their neighbour because he's (to use my friend's words) a knob. So you're saying my friend couldn't be accused of a hate crime dispute admitting the deep hatred he has because you have to be in a protected group and being a knob isn't protected??

What a strange world we live in.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

I think it's more pertinent to ask why his neighbour is a knob? Without that info it's moot.Background info is so important.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Is there anywhere that one can view the list of protected groups?

Just asking to see if I, as a white able bodied male heterosexual (as I recall) pensioner, sound of mind and body, with no political or religious affiliation, perhaps belong to one of them . . . or am I now in the minority and allowed to be abused?

edit: apparently I may fall into a special category as I'm classed (statistically) as overweight and smoke/drink, therefore at risk of a multitude of illnesses both physical and mental, although I think being a sarcastic grumpy old fart isn't an illness as such, but more an enhanced life skill ;)

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Nice link Richard, most informative . . however, could linking to a firm of solicitors be seen as advertising for them which, in a way, is discriminating against other firms of solicitors?

just curious how the new rules would deal with that one ;)

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

He has the attitude of "I've lived here 30 years and nobody's going to tell me what I can and can't do in my own house or garden"

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

What's the problem with that?

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Plenty if they're an inconsiderate asshat

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

What if it's the neighbour complaing that's the "inconsiderate asshat"?

Two sides to a story . . well you'd think so but I often wonder ;)

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

There are 3 sides to a story ;)

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

So your not my missing twin after all. Even if we both have an enhanced life skill:shocked:. Not fat, don't smoke but other than that .......:dunce: just to mix it up a bit are not the likes of black police officers association, discrimination :confused:

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

As many as you like if you are in a protected group.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Carol Voderman was on Channel 5 again this morning. She (and Jeremy Vine) went into more depth about the Metaverse/VR experience and what it's like to use it. it effectively convinces the brain that it is real life.

It really is immersive, can be enjoyable and can be used to help medical problems- I do hope to get the chance to use it sometime.

It's even possible to have a group chat with friends as if you are all altogether. I think that this will partially replace social media and, in time, will replace chat rooms and forums. Those who are children now will see conversing via typing in words as quaintly old fashioned and are expected to spend ten years of their lives in total in the Metaverse.

Sadly, as ever, trolls, paedophiles and bigots etc spoil the wonderful possibilities that this technology offers.

Carol Voderman said that half of the women researched who had used it had been sexually harassed, groped and abused; she also said that there is a lot of harassment of people of colour. She highlighted an incident where a black man was racially abused and then effectively beaten up (apparently, you are able to physically feel it if someone hits you).

Another incident was where a seven year old girl was approached by a paedophile, so you can guess the rest.

This is why she says that she is campaigning for the Metaverse to be specifically included in the Online Safety Bill. She believes that anything that would be illegal in real life should also be illegal in the Metaverse. She thinks that the mental health problems caused by internet trolls is bad enough, but that this will be much worse as, if you use the analogy of describimg the internet as water, the Metaverse is akin to diving into a swimming pool.

https://www.channel5.com/show/jeremy...022/episode-79

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Pron in VR is a sight to behold hahaha

Just stay out of VR Chat Rooms and play single player games and you will have no issues

Just for reference no one ever gets groped in VR it is not real you can not be touched

You can only feel something if you wear a haptic suit and it still will not be like getting a beating

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

This threat is becoming more and more detached and surreal.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Thanks, it's not something I know much about yet.

I didn't think that you could get a real beating, I think it's the fact that people have the desire to act out these fantasies (that they probably can't/daren't do in real life) that she finds so objectionable and offensive.

---------- Post added at 20:47 ---------- Previous post was at 20:44 ----------

One day, maybe streaming services will be viewed as old fashioned and we will actually be in programmes, either as an observer or participant, via the Metaverse!

Football fans could watch a game whilst virtually sitting in the terraces with other fans, or be sitting in the Rovers Return having a pint whilst watching the other 'customers' acting out their lives.

As crime increases, travel becomes more expensive and there's a desire to cut pollution, perhaps the future is to virtually sit with our friends at the theatre or in the pub, knowing that we won't get mugged or that our home will be burgled in our absence. Cheaper, safer and more environmentaly friendly, but will it be the same? It could also see a lot of businesses go under.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

and perhaps The Matrix films weren't make believe :shocked:

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

That’s what the Illuminati want you to think!

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Having spent quite a lot of time with VR, most of, if not all that I've seen is that it's young kids that does the "virtual" "groping".

As for calling it sexual abuse, well that just shows just how sad and pathetic some have become and really needs to get a grip. (pun not intentional, lol).

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

If nothing is done to stop it, i'm sure that paedophiles will be all over it in order to meet young children to become sexual with them, but without the risks associated with trying to meet up with children in person.

Matthew Wright once made a suggestion that, in order to protect real children, sex dolls of children could be used to give child abusers sexual gratification.

It's also been suggested that paedophiles could be allowed to role play in strictly adult only rooms with childlike avatars in order to satisfy their perverted desires, to protect real children in the real world from sex abuse.

One problem that I can possibly see arising is that some could start by doing this virtually and it may encourage/lead to them progressing onto attempts to do it in real life.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Here is the Secretary of State for the Department of Culture, Media, & Sport (Nadine Dorries) telling a Conservative MP (Dr Luke Evans) on his TikTok channel that she intends to make the British Internet the safest Internet in the world (amongst other things).

https://www.tiktok.com/@drlukeevansm...&is_copy_url=0

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Made me smile when she mentions downstreaming movies :rolleyes:

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

During discussions of this Government's intention to privatise Channel 4, it became clear thar she thought that it was funded by the TV licence and the taxpayer.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Nadine Dorries at the next Conservative Part Conference… :D

https://www.cableforum.uk/images/local/2022/04/1.gif

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Well you don’t upstream them!

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

I suppose she considers that the job of the likes of Netflix

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

One of the aims of this law is to prevent children gaining access to Internet pornography, where other attempts have failed.

It looks like adults will have to verify their age through facial recognition, AI will then work out their age:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w3ct374x

At least this part of the bill is something that won't affect Cableforum members :D

---------- Post added at 21:49 ---------- Previous post was at 21:43 ----------

But every single one of us is in a protected group where actions against us are considered to be a hate crime.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

This attempt will completely fail as well.
The mere fact they think a few badly thought out laws will stop it shows how little they understand the internet and technology.

Really, and how exactly do they plan to force overseas porn sites to do that ...
(and of course, it will be inaccurate as well).

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

To be fair, the programme did highlight possible ways that children could try to circumvent this.

One of them was by the use of VPN's to pretend to be abroad, so I don't think that it will be the overseas porn sites who will be expected to implement this, they must be doing it some other way.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Surely, this must demonstrate how futile this legislation would be if introduced. Hopefully, the sane politicians will kill this off.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

No matter how hard the Government try to appease the "offended for you" groups with technology the ordinary internet users will find a way to circumnavigate it. The more they announce about it the more people will look for ways around it. All this will do is piss people off even more.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Well who is in charge of overseeing all things digital in the government?Is it Nadine Dorries? Well if it is, good luck with getting anything sensible achieved.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Every time i see a government talk about the next big thing in software it becomes the next big failure.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

I do agree, but she'll just be fronting it. I doubt she'd be capable of carrying out any initiative on her own!

---------- Post added at 00:09 ---------- Previous post was at 00:06 ----------

It's not about people being offended on behalf of others, it's an attempt to protect vulnerable members of society (and others) from being hurt, taken advantage of etc.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

It, along with other similar things, is an attempt to put everybody into a cardboard box labeled 'lab rats'

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

A one size fits all approach isn't going to work when it comes to policing the internet, much the same as one size fits all doesn't work in education.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

AIUI, those who post inappropriate things on the internet will be expected to be dealt with by site owners & managers. If this isn't done correctly, or at all, it will be site owners/managers who will face the possibility of fines, imprisonment etc.

This action will be expected whether or not the offending material has been brought to their attention.

After consultation with Ofcom, I hope that, where appropriate, education, support, guidance and advice would be given to those who haven't removes material, not out of malice or personal prejudices, but because they were not able to grasp that something posted was harmful and the reasons why.

Some things will be clear cut, such as incitement to racial hatred, illegal pornography, attempts to scam people etc, but some may not have the life experience, to know the correct way, for example, to speak to a disabled person or understand the issues that they face if they have no experience of interacting with such people.

One of the constant things that I experience when asking for help (both on and offline) is for it to be refused on the grounds that 'they do not treat disabled people any differently' because 'it's the law'. When I point out that this is nonsense, (and illegal) and that treating someone equally is not the same as treating them the same and ask what training they have had of the Equality Act, the answer is often 'what's that?'!

Thankfully, most change their attitude after various things are pointed out. A minority do not, such as one of my banking providers and an NHS provider (who you really would have thought would know better) who have now had legal proceedings issued against them.

In essence, I do agree with what you say in the sense that, wherever possible, education is a better way to make change before using the heavy hand of the law. Some people may genuinely not know the harm that they are causing; this may be due to thoughtlessness or because they regard what they are doing as a bit of fun.

Government resources to help to train/educate siteowners/managers/users would be a good start.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Say goodbye to forums, chatrooms, in fact anywhere that has half a dozen people in conversation with each other.
People argue disagree about many subjects, and this leaves the door open for complaints and accusations if people feel they're not 'winning' the debate.

There are also those who will trawl the internet looking for something they can claim against, some will see it as easy money if they're helped by the system

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

7It won't be anything to do with any debate per se, it will be about treating others with respect and kindness in an appropriate manner.

To aid with this, Google has launched a system that will suggest more appropriate words when non inclusive or diverse language is used. For example, 'landlord' is replaced by 'property owner', so help is available for those that struggle with using out of date terminology:

https://www.yorkshireeveningpost.co....lusive-3667567

We'll be saying goodbye to forums, chat rooms etc anyway as the Metaverse starts to take over, but the same standards will still be expected of users.

---------- Post added at 16:35 ---------- Previous post was at 15:24 ----------

Organisations whose business it is to help disadvantaged people are tending to support this bill. The only criticism that i've come across is that it doesn't go far enough.

For example, the Internet Watch Foundation welcomes the ability to get inappropriate material taken down quickly and deal with any perpetrators, but believes that the Act should include provisions to prevent such material from being created on websites/apps in the first place:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m0016pj8

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

A barrage of assault, racism and rape jokes: my nightmare trip into the metaverse

https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-r...-the-metaverse

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Which is subjective. Words are violence and all that.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Exactly, if you're going to post something you'd better make dammed sure it can't be interpreted as something else . . . speaking from experience

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Thanks for posting this, i'm going to watch it to learn more about the dangers of the Metaverse.

Dispatches at 8pm this evening on Channel 4 asks:

The Metaverse. Are you safe?

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

I'm sure all forum members will instead be watching Morgan interviewing Trump then.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Ah yes, Talk TV opens tonight doesn't it. I shall be recording both.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

I watched neither.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Me neither!

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Once again I have to point out that "inappropriate things" is completely subjective - inappropriate in whos opinion exactly ?

Now you really are taking the pee.
How does anyone take action on something they know nothing about ?

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

:tu:

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

1) The Gov. will probably appoint a 'minister for action against inappropriate internet use' . . who will then have as backup a 10 person panel drawn from the minority groups in the UK (which now seem to have the majority of influence in the UK)


2) The phrase "ignorance is no excuse" could be getting a fair bit of use :rolleyes:

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

PCommon sense will dictate what is clearly inappropriate, for example bullying, harrassment, encouragement of suicide etc.

Some things less so, depending upon the attitude/life experiences of site owners/managers. This is where extra training would be useful. I've seen nothing to suggest that the Government will be providing any, but that's not to say they won't be doing so. Perhaps private companies will offer this??

An example of a scenario where it may not be immediately obvious that published comments are offensive/inappropriate could be where a member of a forum/chat room/social media platform is deliberately vague, yet repeatedly & deliberately disparaging about minority groups.

The law will indeed expect inappropriate material to be removed, even where it hasn't been reported.

Amendments to the t&c"s and rules are probably good places to start to prevent the material from being published in the first place.

Other measures could include revisiting the lists of banned words, AI, pro-active (as opposed to re-active) moderation.

These last two are things that you already do on your own site to prevent people from publishing inappropriate remarks.

I do hope that the Government make it clear what is expected of everybody concerned. This is why my personal opinion is that extra training is made available for site managers/moderators etc.

This is essential as the law has been designed, not to cover every specific situation rigidly, but to be flexible enough to be able to deal with current and future scenarios.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Whos "common sense" ? Yours ? Mine ? Vladimir Putins ?
There is no such thing as 'common' sense, because peoples views are not 'common'.

A law that is impossible to achive is unenforcable.
You have not answered the question, hows does anyone remove something they dont know about ?

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

I looked out of the window today and saw a blackbird feeding on the lawn

Just thought I'd mention it before it becomes an abusive remark

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Are we feeling a little sensitive?

:hugs:

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Just naffed off with . . .



oh it doesn't matter (again). I'll hopefully be gone from this world by the time everyone figures out where it all went wrong :D

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Knowing your luck, you’ll be a secret immortal, and just don’t know it…

(so’s your wife…)

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Immortality? nah, waiting for the Mothership to return and take me back home :D

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

The new owner of Twitter says he intends to relax moderation of the site, leading to fears of abusive comments & misinformation (BBC News).

This could cause problems for UK users after the online safety bill becomes law. He hasn't made any reference to this, so I don't think it's due to an intention to directly challenge it, but nevertheless, it will be interesting to see what happens.

---------- Post added at 20:36 ---------- Previous post was at 20:17 ----------

I take common sense to mean a view that any reasonable person of average intelligence would take. Using my earlier examples, I doubt that there are many sites that would tolerate harrassment, bullying etc of minority groups or user generated content that encourages suicide.

The police once visited a bar owner to speak to him about allegations of drug selling/taking on the premises. His response was that he didn't have eyes in the back of his head and that he couldn't be expected to be everywhere at once. "Yes, you are if you have a licence to sell alcohol" was the response from the police".

I expect a similar response from the Government.

A number of sites are already preparing themselves to ensure compliance by retraining moderators/management of sites & reviewing their rules, acceptable use policies etc to try and prevent any issues occurring in the first place.

My personal opinion isn't really relevant though and I would advise site owners and anyone involved in managing them to contact their new regulator if there's anything that they aren't sure about as the penalties for non compliance can be severe (and sanctions can be imposed on individuals as opposed to the companies/owners themselves).

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Which sites?

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

I don't know, this was stated in an answer to something else that I asked my contact about at Ofcom.

I personally think that many sites will be waiting until just before the bill becomes law and/or any guidance is issued, so that they know exactly what's expected of them.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

any more than currently?

define “average intelligence”

define harassment & bullying, define minority groups.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

So in just under an hour you've gone from a number of sites are already preparing to I personally think many sites will be waiting until just before the bill becomes law.....

I do hope (as the thread title says) the police get tough on internet trolls and this new law will come down hard on people spouting unfounded statements.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

And there was me thinking you were asking a question in good faith when, in reality, you were just trying to run rings around me.

Are you still a champion for those with mental health issues at work?

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

I was asking a question in good faith, it's just a shame the same can't be said about the statement that triggered the question. If you stop spouting baseless rubbish you'll find people stop picking you up on it.

I'm a mental health first aider, but don't see the relevance.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

You're looking for a pointless puerile argument and I won't be indulging you.

Pulling stunts like this on me makes you unsuitable to hold such a position in my opinion.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

No one asked your opinion, and right now, you are trolling.
Keep it up and you'll find out what moderation actions we can take.

---------- Post added at 00:35 ---------- Previous post was at 00:34 ----------

You forgot "define reasonable person".

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

And there you have the issue - you are using your personal boundaries to define "pointless" and "puerile"; subjective rather than objective.

GUN will have undergone assessment and review to undertake his role (I know, as I’ve been involved in the process in other organisations), but you feel, because he disagrees with you, he is "unsuitable".

This says more about you than him…

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

I'm willing to bet 38p that sometime today, a phrase similar to 'cognitive impairment*' will get used . . .




*get out of jail free card*

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Trouble is, Bots would be needed to search for violations.

But there is only one issue.

They can't tell the difference between real abuse and when a fan page on Facebook quotes a line from a program or film.


Take the line in the film Taken, where he says to his daughter's kidnapper that "I will find you and kill you". FB says that a threat and bans you

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

I would like to close this thread because it's become pointless.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

:tu:

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

:tu:

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

I can probably understand why people requested the thread be closed, but in the interests of free speech (which we all admire) I can see why it was denied ;)

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Unfortunately so many ones are :(

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

I'm just fed up with trying to see how to moderate it especially as the subject matter no longer fits the title.

Maybe changing the title would be better except I've no idea what to change it to.:rolleyes:

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

There was a feature by Martin Lewis today as he was one of the leading campaigners who got financial scams included in the Online Safery Bill:

https://www.itv.com/hub/this-morning/2a6292a0829

A young lady who suffered facial disfigurement after an accident was featured on Radio 4 today:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m0016ppk

1 in 111 people have a facial disfigurement and they (like disabled people) suffer from abuse, bullying, harrassment etc with snide, sarcastic comments & assumptions about this, both on and offline. This new legislation will be geared to prevent people from being allowed to get away with this, though it's a real pity that it's needed.

https://www.itv.com/hub/this-morning/2a6292a0829

---------- Post added at 23:08 ---------- Previous post was at 22:49 ----------

I find this post to be very offensive, however, this may be due to a lack of knowledge about this condition. This link provides information about cognitive impairment. I suggest that you read it for your own sake as about half of us will get dementia and the effects are similar: You or a loved one are likely to be affected:

https://www.psychguides.com/neurolog...ers/cognitive/

---------- Post added at 23:26 ---------- Previous post was at 23:08 ----------

You make a good point. A bot cannot tell the difference in tone/meaning of what's been said. It can sometimes be difficult for a human to understand what is actually meant by the written word, so a bot will have no chance!

It's not just words, pictures can be flagged up by bots too. There was a picture of Hitler going round Facebook with Putin as his son. Because the bot picked up that a picture of Hitler being posted, those that posted it were flagged up as posting inappropriate material!

There will have to be increased human involvement, I can't see any other way around it, though i'm sure that the large social media platforms will be able to afford the extra wages.

Maybe posts which are reported or flagged up by the bots will be hidden from view until assessed by a human member of staff?? I expect there will be allsorts of ways to do it and each platform will decide what works best for them.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

The Online Safety Bill was featured on last nights Question Time.

Points discussed included concerns about free speech, the responsibility of Government to ensure responsible free speech and the need to protect vulnerable people online. It was stated that it would become law shortly.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0016tk6

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

I hope there are enough solicitors to cope with the demand :D

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

I'm sure some people already have their legal teams lined up, straining at the leash, and ready to go ;).

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Surely VPN would hide them if they really wanted to hide however I am sure someone here will be able to confirm it if correct ?

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Using a VPN doesn't guarantee online trolls anonymity. A lot of sites forbid their use; I believe that this is one of them.

There are calls for only those who have verified their identity to post user generated content. I have sympathy with this* as, if someone is prepared to say something online, they should be prepared to back this up as 'themselves' and face any consequences that may arise. One example would be an employee working for an employer who promotes the ethics of equal opportunity & diversity and insists that their employees espouse this too, whilst they are harrasimg & trolling someone in one of the protected groups. Hopefully the fact that they would be liable to disciplinary action, up to and including dismissal, will be enough of a deterrent.

There was one man caught by a troll hunting team. In public, he was a pillar of the community, he did voluntary work to help local residents etc. It was later revealed that he spent his evenings going down to his shed (in order to hide it from his wife) to troll a woman to the point that it made her ill. He ended up losing his job and the respect of his local community.

* I can see circumstances where this may be warranted eg Russia. I don't suppose there is any harm in people continuing to use fictitious user names in the UK, as long as their true details are available to be passed on by the site owners should any issues arise.

---------- Post added at 22:29 ---------- Previous post was at 22:01 ----------

I'm sure that it won't come to that with the vast majority of people. A lot of offensive things aren't said out of malice, but ignorance, particularly where people have no experience of the subject matter.

Having said that, your earlier inappropriate remark about the neuro diverse really did upset me and an apology would be very much appreciated.

If you struggle to understand and empathise with those with mental illness, mental disability or learning difficulties in general, may I recommend a Radio 4 series that covers the whole spectrum of neuro diversify. It's called 'All In The Mind' and it's broadcast twice a week, but is also available on BBC Sounds here:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006qxx9

I do hope that you find it interesting and informative :)

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

You believe incorrectly, we have no rules against VPN use.


From clueless idiots who cant see any further than tw*tter or fakebook.
This forum does not 'verify your identity', and has no plans to do so. It causes no issues.

Nor btw, do we verify your 'facilitator', who seems to be editing your posts.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

As my health seems to be deteriorating, I seem to be making more spelling mistakes, grammatical errors etc, so I often ask whichever facilitator is on shift to correct this if i've written a post without any assistance.

I seem to remember a post made some time ago (by Sirius IIRC, apologies if this is incorrect). I think it was in this actual thread, where he said that he was switching off his VPN in order to comply with the t&c's or something similar.

Unfortunately, I have to accept that it's entirely possible that my neurological condition has confused me though and I ask people to kindly be understanding of this.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

I turned it off as i thrust the team here. I do know at one time i was under the misunderstanding that a VPN is not allowed here but that was clarified as not true.

I use a VPN when i feel that a site is not trustworthy or i feel that there are people on a forum i do not trust as they have an agender.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Thank you for clarifying this, it's good to know that my memory hasn't been completely destroyed :)

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

Each morning, during the Radio 4 breakfast programme 'Today', there is a segment called 'Thought for the Day'. This is where reflections are offered from a faith perspective on issues and people in the news.

This morning, following the MP admitting that he had viewed pornography in Parliament, Rhidian Brook took a look at the issue of pornography.

He began by examining the negative aspects of online porn, including the normalisation of violence against women, torture etc and that children were actually using porn as a form of sex education!

He went on to reveal that a study by the British Board of Film Classification revealed the shocking result that 60% of 11-13 year olds had viewed porn accidentally on their devices. One of Rhidians friends has a son who was shamefully sent home from school for viewing porn. He was so traumatised by the shame of being caught and by the content that he'd accessed that his father dedicated himself to ensuring that age verification on the internet be made a legal requirement and the result will form part of the Online Safety Bill:

He ended his talk with the following quoatation from the Bible:



https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0016xj0

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

My m/c's and phone all have VPN set as the default setting.:shocked:

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

:tu:

Mine too…

(SurfShark)

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

I can't see the point tbh if you're not doing anything illegal or immoral (unless you live under a dictatorship that forbids reasonable activity).

Using a VPN may actually draw attention to those who use them and there's also no guarantee that the VPN operator isn't snooping or recording things either.

Re: Police to get tough on internet trolls.
 

After concerns about plans to weaken moderation, Elon Musk has been invited to appear before a Commons Select Committee regarding his intention to purchaseTwitter..

Julian Kinight, who chairs the DCMS panel, will be asking him to explain how he will be balancing his commitment to free speech with the forthcoming obligations on websites to protect users from harm under the Online Safety Bill.