How can you tell if a user is a clone?

I've been reading through some of the complaints regarding bans over on the Corner, and it’s left me genuinely curious: how do you actually identify a clone account?

From what I gather, most of the heavy lifting is done by checking IP addresses. But let's be realistic—most people know exactly how to mask an IP, especially those intentional about creating burner accounts. There's also the issue of shared IPs. If two people are using the same computer or hopping on the same Wi-Fi, they could easily be a married couple or roommates backing each other up in the threads.

Personally, I don't have any interest in playing the cloning game. I have zero desire to risk a permanent ban by engaging in that kind of nonsense, nor do I have any need for it, but curiosity gets the better of me. My apologies if this topic is out of place or if someone has already covered it elsewhere.

👋

Who even cloned you?

Henry Cox78 said:Who even cloned you?

I haven't touched my IP address in ages. There, happy now? 😛

Besides, you're starting threads just to drift off-topic.

wiredmason10 said:I've been reading through some of the complaints regarding bans over on the Corner, and it’s left me genuinely curious: how do you actually identify a clone account?

From what I gather, most of the heavy lifting is done by checking IP addresses. But let's be realistic—most people know exactly how to mask an IP, especially those intentional about creating burner accounts. There's also the issue of shared IPs. If two people are using the same computer or hopping on the same Wi-Fi, they could easily be a married couple or roommates backing each other up in the threads.

Personally, I don't have any interest in playing the cloning game. I have zero desire to risk a permanent ban by engaging in that kind of nonsense, nor do I have any need for it, but curiosity gets the better of me. My apologies if this topic is out of place or if someone has already covered it elsewhere.

👋

I guess their DNA has to be a perfect 100% match.

The Force, my little padawan...The Force.. 😁

How on earth could they possibly know? They can't. It’s nothing more than pure guesswork—the kind where even a blind hen occasionally stumbles upon a grain of corn by sheer luck, I suppose...😁😁

Watch the IP address, kids. Watch the IP address.

I guess I can never be 100% certain if someone is actually using a clone account...

btw, the author wasn't banned from cloning herself; she was just banned from using a clone if her original handle is already flagged...😉

Every vBulletin setup comes with this specific plugin designed to upgrade things by automatically flagging clones, so they don't even have to go through the hassle of manually checking IPs themselves.🙂

But you know, it’s not just about tracking them via their IP addresses; there's actually another way they spot those clones too.😉

wiredmason10 said:I've been reading through some of the complaints regarding bans over on the Corner, and it’s left me genuinely curious: how do you actually identify a clone account?

From what I gather, most of the heavy lifting is done by checking IP addresses. But let's be realistic—most people know exactly how to mask an IP, especially those intentional about creating burner accounts. There's also the issue of shared IPs. If two people are using the same computer or hopping on the same Wi-Fi, they could easily be a married couple or roommates backing each other up in the threads.

Personally, I don't have any interest in playing the cloning game. I have zero desire to risk a permanent ban by engaging in that kind of nonsense, nor do I have any need for it, but curiosity gets the better of me. My apologies if this topic is out of place or if someone has already covered it elsewhere.

👋

Let's spill the beans.😬

We’re just sitting here staring at the monitors, constantly cross-referencing everything against the files in the archive

Betty Chase54 said:I guess I can never be 100% certain if someone is actually using a clone account...

btw, the author wasn't banned from cloning herself; she was just banned from using a clone if her original handle is already flagged...😉

I suppose one could attempt to post using a clone account within the same thread as their primary handle—essentially engaging in a bit of self-dialogue to offer oneself some much-needed moral support. It’s a rather peculiar way to go about things, I guess, but there it is.

swiftfalcon43 said:Watch the IP address, kids. Watch the IP address.

It is common knowledge that changing an IP address is harder than changing your fingerprint, gender, and Social Security number all at once. ☕

Personally, I don’t see why anyone would criticize this—there are incredibly sophisticated tools out there that analyze the frequency of certain letters in posts (mostly things like "f's," "t's," and "s's"), the specific force with which a user strikes their keyboard, and even the correlation between posting times and the position of Saturn relative to Pluto's house.

Once that analysis is complete, you just take a coin from $1.75 and flip it on the floor. If it lands on tails, people just shout "Unknown" and issue the ban.

IP registration logs
computer names
seeing the same IP addresses popping up over and over
writing style
using specific software to pull it all together into one big picture
and all that good stuff😁

steeleagle70 said:IP registration logs
computer names
seeing the same IP addresses popping up over and over
writing style
using specific software to pull it all together into one big picture
and all that good stuff😁

Total nonsense. 😳

dustypuma5 said:Total nonsense. 😳

Of course not! It’s not just obvious, you can see it right in your computer's OS too.
p.s. I'm not saying Reddit is the cause, but I definitely see it happening on other sites too.

Ever seen how some forum admins act? Like they just installed some script to give themselves all that power?

Yeah, you know how it goes. 🙏

dustypuma5 said:Ever seen how some forum admins act? Like they just installed some script to give themselves all that power?

Yeah, you know how it goes. 🙏

yep

🙄
Every single one of you (well, some of you) is on my list.

One of these days, I’m going to pay all of you a visit at your homes—maybe before Christmas, or perhaps even sooner. 😂

Laura Evans3 said:Let's spill the beans.😬

In the 21st century, 😕it’s hardly a shock when the server crashes☕

Honestly, what kind of code is this? 😁