Today, I realized just how many bot accounts out there are masquerading as real people. It’s fucking wild. Accounts claim to be real but are just sophisticated bots. They gain popularity because they align perfectly with algorithmic preferences, interacting seamlessly with countless people. With the rise of LLMs like ChatGPT, these bots are becoming even more pervasive.
I always thought this was an X/Twitter problem, but Threads is not immune to this trend. In text-based environments, bots thrive. Can you imagine popular accounts with hundreds or even thousands of followers (mostly real people) that could be bots? The idea of talking to a bot, thinking it’s a person, drives me crazy. We need to stop or at least minimize this phenomenon. People should at least be aware they might be chatting with a bot while assuming it’s a real person.
By the rules of Threads (and probably X/Twitter), bots are allowed under certain conditions, but they must be marked as bots. This way, you know you’re talking to an algorithm, not a human. Here are some tips to identify if an account is a bot or a person:
- Consistency and Contextual Knowledge:
- Ask context-dependent questions. “What’s your favorite Threads feature and why?”
- Bots might give generic responses lacking personalization or deep insight.
- Test for memory limitations. Humans have better long-term memory in casual conversations.
- Repetition and Variation:
- Test response variability. “What’s your opinion on the Threads algorithm?” vs “How do you feel Threads helps users engage?”
- Ambiguity and Sarcasm:
- Ask questions with ambiguous meaning or use sarcasm. “Threads is just like every other app, right?”
- Error Tolerance:
- Introduce deliberate typos or awkward sentence structures to see how the account responds. “wat u thnk abt threds??”
- Time and Speed:
- Test response speed and availability. Bots might respond instantly, 24/7. People need to rest and work.
- Ask for Subjective Inputs:
- Ask personal or experiential questions that are harder for a bot to fake. “What was the first thing you posted on Threads? Why did you post it?”
- Observe Patterns Over Time:
- Look for patterns in interactions. Bots tend to give generic responses, avoid in-depth debates, and lack continuity in multi-threaded conversations.
Overall:
- Test domain-specific knowledge.
- Look for follow-up engagement.
- Ask about highly time-sensitive or local events.
Jeez, I feel like I’m in a sci-fi movie, trying to figure out if the person in front of me is an enhanced robot
Leave a Reply