Anonymous Vigilante Group Hunts Down Cyberbullies on TikTok
A masked vigilante group is gaining virality on TikTok by exposing the identities of online trolls. The Great LonDini TikTok account, which has over 2.3 million followers, serves to hunt down cyberbullies on the app.
"We are taking social media back from the bullies, pedophiles, scammers and trolls," a member going by the alias Leo told BBC.
One of the group's most popular videos has amassed over 12.3 million views and features a man with a black hood, an altered voice and a white mask with hollowed black eyes and a smile reminiscent of the Joker from the Batman movies and comics.
In the video, the man duets a video of a woman reading a troll's comment on her TikTok. "It took over eight hours to uncover this commenter," the masked man says. "Stupid game, stupid prize."
The "game" referred to here is hiding behind anonymous profiles online and attacking strangers, the "prize" is having your identity exposed to millions of users by the Great LonDini.
In another video with more than 8 million views, the masked vigilante releases a troll's identity and Instagram profile. "He sees nothing wrong with criminally harassing a woman with disabilities." The masked man then says that he sent this information to the troll's employer.
After Leo's friend's 14-year-old autistic son took his life as the result of online harassment, the man's friends were able to track down the anonymous harasser and reach out to his parents.
The group, which started with Leo and his friends, has now become an operation run by people with military, cybersecurity and ethical hacking backgrounds. Leo referred to the group as the "anti-troll" during an interview with BBC. The vigilante group is attempting to moderate the online platform to make it safer by reporting dangerous users to TikTok.
While many are happy that individuals are taking responsibility for ridding the app of trolls and scammers, TikTok believes that some of the Great LonDini's videos break community guidelines. Leo told BBC that the group has had nine accounts deleted and its active account has faced suspension several times for online harassment and bullying.
TikTok reports over 61 million videos were removed in just the first three months of 2021 for violating the community guidelines. In its 2021 Transparency Report, the app mentions that they have introduced "a number of tools to help creators manage their TikTok experience, including numerous commenting, reporting, and blocking tools, as we work to improve proactive detection in this area."
Newsweek reached out to the Great LonDini for comment but did not hear back in time for publication.
