Nigeria's Internet Trolls

The Internet is always a force for good and in so many instances a force for evil.

The history of the world should be divided into, before and after the Internet was discovered. It has brought us the e-mail, search engines, social media and has made a few people billionaires not to talk of the millions all over the world employed in Internet and mobile phones related companies.

The Internet has also in its handbag latent evil like the explosion of paedophilia, the ease with which terrorists can now communicate and trolls.

A troll is a supernatural being in Norse mythology and Scandinavian folklore. In origin, troll may have been a negative synonym for a jötunn (plural jötnar), a being in Norse mythology. In Old Norse sources, beings described as trolls dwell in isolated rocks, mountains, or caves, live together in small family units, and are rarely helpful to human beings.

Later, in Scandinavian folklore, trolls became beings in their own right, where they live far from human habitation, are not Christianized and are considered dangerous to human beings. 

The activities of certain Internet users have been so bad that they have been likened to these mythical creatures in Norse folklore.

In industrialised countries where Human Rights are taken seriously the activities of trolls are taken rather seriously and there have been a few convictions.

In Nigeria, however, trolls still have a field day as people still take the liberty to abuse and threaten other people on blogs and network forums.

On Nairaland.com hardly any thread that has responses goes without someone contributing to the thread turning it into an opportunity to sling mud at another tribe or abuse someone else.

With a troll it is not enough to disagree with an opinion an insult has to be thrown it as well.

Celebrities have not been spared either. Trolls insult celebrities on Twitter and on blogs.

Most of these trolls get away with the security, which anonymity gives them in Nigeria.

Fortunately, in more technologically developed countries, such security does not exist as every device connected to the Internet has an IP address, which can always be used to trace and track down the troll.

Here is calling on the National Communications Commission to invest on such tracking devices.