Sock Puppets

"A sock puppet, for those still boning up, is a false identity through which a member of an Internet community speaks while pretending not to, like a puppeteer manipulating a hand puppet."


Why do you think people create these sock puppet accounts?
I can understand a person wanting to protect thier identity to an extent, when they are not openly comfortable conversing with strangers on the internet.
But through multiple accounts? Or by pretending to be someone else?
Why do that? What would be gained through deciet like this.
I am not talking only the accounts that claim to be sexy emo girls either. I mean sock puppets that claim to be average everyday girls and guys, or even average career women/men.
I just don't get it.
Is it fun to see how many people you can decieve? Fun to be someone else? Is there something wrong mentally with someone that would actively portray themselves as several people and go about this as per the norm. Not even as trolls, but as everyday posters. And not only post in the forums, but build online friendships with people under these false premises. It's so strange to me.

I welcome opinions and any insight that you can offer me, as to why you think people do this.

Sock puppets are either tools or they have no friends outside the matrix.

There is no spoon.

The only puppets I like were created by Jim Henson.

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Ohh, I had no idea....

Hmmm sock puppet, thanx, I never knew what that meant till now.
I should give you a kudo for that

I might go create a sock puppet acct just so I can answer this honestly.

I really do have some theories on this though.

I have a sock puppet.

I use it to come oniine and post when I'm not up for chatting..(when depression hits and such)..no explaining needed..

But I don't have any friends under that account; in fact, I specifically say on my profile I'm not here to make friends.

Please share!

To post without being recognized. Maybe they feel they aren't liked enough under one acct or want more friends. Or got off on the wrong foot and want a new start.

Or they're pissed and want to troll or cause other people trouble. Or catch people in lies...

or back when we had neg kudos, possibly kudos abuse.

Or they are embarrassed about an issue and need to talk about it.

OR...they're really 80 year old men and want people to think they're 17 year old girls. or they look like trolls and online is a place they can pretend to be beautiful?

but I don't really know.

Interesting. Thanks for sharing.

I guess I will never get peace of mind in really knowing why they choose to do this either. Just weirds me right out knowing they exist on here and some blend in so well, even though they can be full of s***.

Who here is like that?

I sometimes feel, I can tell right away which ones are sock puppets...even who the "original" person is. I just ignore them.

and for the record, I don't really have a sock puppet acct

I fudged some personal info for my account here, but I am true to me in my posts. Also, I only ever had/have this one account here or any where else for that matter.

if that makes me a sock puppet... so be it.

I wanna make a Sock Puppet account now But I'm too lazy to do so

I could never say, as I could get in trouble for doing so.
But there are alot of them! I am not at all, the only one that notices on here. Alot of people do.
But I am sure there are alot of profiles that go undetected too.
It just seems crazy to me!

Well maybe they'll all stop now, that this thread is up!

I deleted mine, but Tino never got to it yet! - it's been daaays.