How trolling indicates a moral collapse

     Social Media is a huge part of our lives. Reportedly, out of a whopping world population of 7.3 billion, the Internet has 3.17 billion users. Trolls create conflict on social media sites by making controversial statements with the purpose of causing havoc, disturbing a person mentally & affecting him/her socially. It can be found in every nook and corner of the web. They can create problems for people, businesses & the general well-being of some aspects of social media.
     Trolling is defined as creating hostility on the Internet by starting quarrels or upsetting people by posting inflammatory or off-topic messages in an online community which can prove mentally disturbing or even harassing. Basically, a social media troll is someone who purposely says something controversial in order to get a rise out of other fellow users or moreover it can be done by "attention seekers" just to get mere attention.
     Trolls are the anti-social side of being what is termed as "socially active". They are proving a threat to good manners & internet etiquette. Trolling is all about deliberately and cleverly annoying people online and there are plenty of rock solid examples.

Here’s what you can do to minimize the risks of becoming a victim :-

Adopt the "stop, block and tell" strategy. In other words :

• Take action: report the aggressor. Inform and urge the website owner to block any hateful or offensive comments coming from a certain account.                                                                          
• Change your passwords regularly. If you feel like prying eyes are watching your every move, you might want to choose stronger passwords to avoid someone hacking your PC.                                                                                                                      
• Temporarily deactivate your social media accounts. Exposing your life on social media has its risks. When trolls start commenting on your profile page you can choose to shut down the channels they use to contact you.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                       
•  Ignore provocative comments. Don’t fuel the conversation the troll starts, it will make things worse.  Replying will only feed the bully’s hunger for attention.                                                                                                                                                                                                      
• Silence means becoming an accomplice, so contact the authorities. Whether you’re a victim or you know someone who is, don’t be afraid to tell your story to people who have the authority to ban such aggressive behavior.

There will always be trolls out there, but knowing what to do will help you stay off their radar ! 

- Anaya Degloorkar.       

10 F                     

Udayachal High School