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having trouble with obnoxious commentors

Posted by kdawg68 • 7/30/08 • Subscribe to this Discussion [RSS] • Report This Topic
Topics: offensive comments, trouble with a commentor

So I may need some help here from the resident BC blogging gurus (of which I know there are many).

One of the folks in my blogging group is having trouble with an obnoxious/abusive commentor. We've all been there before.

She's trying to track down definitvely who the person is so that she can report them to the proper authorities.

I've told her about BC and about all of the wisdom/expertise of the community here. She should be in the process of joining/registering as we speak.

In the meantime, Anyone have any advice on specifically what steps she should take?

I know this has come up before and I apologize in advance for not researching already existing threads. Sort of pressed for time here and trying to multi-task to help out a friend in need.

Her blog is located here:

jen-thoroughbreds.blogspot.com/

Hopefully she'll be a BC member in the near future and will be able to chime in here.

I'm really only familiar with the tools available to wordpress dot com bloggers. I guess her main questions would be:

-can she "track down" the individual in question? If so how?
-what would the appropriate course of action be in your mind (i.e., who to report to?).

Thanks in advance - you guys are the best (well, everyone except for that pesky ninja).

User Comments

7/30/08

jackpayne

This is a tough one, Dawg. About the only real recourse she has is threatening a civil law suit.
For this to become a reality there would have to be names mentioned, loudly and clearly, and tangible damages to be shown. All this hide-and-seek commentary that exists on the internet is so tough to prove that it's nearly hopeless. Best defense for much of it is a deaf ear.

[reply]
7/30/08

johnsblogs42

I'm sure there are a few IP tracing tools/pages out there that may be useful. I found this 1 on first page of google just searching key words; "ip tracking"

www.tracemyip.org/

There's also this 1 which has a DNS look-up which also may prove useful;

visualroute.visualware.com/

Although, I must admit, I'm not sure what she would hope to accomplish by "tracking down" the malicious commentor. Unless there's some sort of specific threats made or form of harrassment situation, I dun think there's really a lot she can do. Other than to simply "deny" comments made from the individual being posted.

If there's actual threats or some such, I suppose she could try to report it to a cyber-crimes division of her local P.D. Providing they even have a cyber department.

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7/30/08

DrowseyMonkey

I don't get it. She must allow anonymous comments on her blog then? Just change it so people can't do that. Pretty simple.

[reply]
1. 7/30/08
  
  timethief
  
  I'm agree with drowseymonkey. Turn comment moderation on. Develop a comment policy and post it. Then focus on your readers, rather than the trolls. onecoolsite.wordpress.com/2008/06/04/how-to-handle-negative-comments/
  
  I also agree with Jack Payne. If you have a law breaker then you have to be prepared to launch legal action. That takes time, money and energy. A civil suit will cost big bucks, stretch out over the course of years and may not be successful.
7/30/08

drjay1966

If she's being harassed by the commenter, I believe she can get a court order to force the provider to divulge the person's identity. Then, I really don't know much about the subject, so probably shouldn't be commenting on this thread...but it's better than work.....

[reply]
7/30/08

rakhisabant

comment removed by the community.

[reply]
1. 7/30/08
  
  crpitt
  
  How is that useful to this discussion?
2. 7/30/08
  
  DrowseyMonkey
  
  Exactly, and if you're making 30k a year with your blog why do you need commentors?
7/30/08

ChicaX

Well gee that really bites. People who are morally low enough to do that, make me fume like no other. I hope she gets the situation resolved. Soory I can't add much to the thread.. :/

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7/30/08

crkian

I see sitemeter is used with it which could also track the ip address of the commentator. Though I have a feeling the template is by some one who requires the sitemeter and adsense to stay in the blog (why use a template like that)

If she uses google analytics she could find out an ip address then do some work and get a general idea of where the comments are coming from. As mentioned dont allow anonymous comments

[reply]
7/30/08

ender

the problem is you can track down the IP, but if the person is using a good proxy service, you can't prove that that particular person was using the that IP at that time.

[reply]
1. 7/30/08
  
  crkian
  
  I cant see them being that bright
2. 7/30/08
  
  timethief
  
  Exactly. Even if the troll isn't using a proxy service IP traces can be rendered useless because the kinds of lowlife that cause this grief simply get another one. Anyone can go to a public terminal in a library, college or internet cafe, etc. and simply move from one computer to another at will.
7/30/08

crkian

I take it that this is the anoymous information

Posted by Anonymous to Jen's Thorough-blog at 10:30 AM
Domain Name rogers.com ? (Commercial)
IP Address 99.251.83.# (Rogers Cable)
ISP Rogers Cable
Location
Continent : North America
Country : Canada (Facts)
Lat/Long : 60, -95 (Map)

[reply]
1. 7/30/08
  
  Anok
  
  For a baby, you scare me a lot.
2. 7/30/08
  
  kdawg68
  
  Dude - you rule!
  
  Know what's funny - when I first suggested she join here and become a member of BC - I mentioned "there's a guy named Crkian that could probably help"
7/30/08

Anok

Hopefully it will be rectified, Kev. In the meantime tell her to stay cool, SAVE copies of the comments (but I think they can be deleted after "evidence" has been cataloged) and just ignore it as best as possible.

♥

[reply]
1. 7/30/08
  
  kdawg68
  
  okay - how is it everyone else can do the heart thingy but me???
2. 7/30/08
  
  crpitt
  
  I cant either.
3. 7/30/08
  
  kdawg68
  
  god i love that avatar! It's like two of my favorite BC members "wrapped" into one.
4. 7/30/08
  
  crpitt
  
  Hah! I did it just for Anok
  
  Its larger version is on my blog now.
7/30/08

kdawg68

Thanks guys - I'm passing on the info to her.

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7/30/08

Theresa111

She could write a post about how all of the comments left are to be investigated by the FBI and that might scare them off. Just a suggestion if even a bit dramatic. I do tend to watch lots of movies. I am sorry she is having this happen.

[reply]
1. 7/30/08
  
  kdawg68
  
  interesting....I think a proper threat of castration might also help. Unless of course she's dealing with a eunuch - or however you spell it.
7/30/08

bloggernoob

changing the setting could help. she should be able to get the ip address of the comments. u can kinda track where it's from and report to local authorities.

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