Technique

Sock Puppet Network

Also known as: Fake Persona Network, Coordinated Fake Accounts, Troll Farm, Bot Farm, Coordinated Inauthentic Behavior, Persona Network, Shill Network

MANIPULATION

Operating coordinated fake personas across platforms to manipulate discussions, amplify scam content, and create illusion of legitimate community endorsement.

Common attack flows

How it fits in a scam

This technique shows up duringMANIPULATION

Before

This is often where the scam begins.

After

Defense

How to defend against this

How to spot it

  • Multiple accounts posting same content within minutes
  • AI-generated profile pictures with telltale artifacts
  • Accounts that only engage with specific topics or brands
  • Similar writing style and errors across supposedly unrelated accounts
  • Profiles with stolen or stock photos as profile pictures
  • Account age very recent but high activity burst
  • High-entropy usernames with random numbers or characters
  • Symmetric follower-to-friend ratios trending toward 1:1
  • Accounts form tight cliques with unusual relationship symmetry
  • Profile created in weeks but claims years of history
  • Generic engagement comments like Nice pic or Great post

Further reading