Bahrain to host world’s first trolling conference

Organisers hope TrollCon will become the ultimate event for the world’s cyber bullies

MANAMA: The world’s internet message board abusers, cyber bullies and web stalkers are set to descend on Bahrain this November for TrollCon, the first international trolling conference.

According to organisers, the three-day event will feature panel discussions, workshops and presentations from some of the internet’s most notorious troublemakers.

“TrollCon is set to become the definitive arena for hate-inciting web abusers everywhere,” said event director Verity Sisters. “We’ve already had plenty of interest from across the world, and are expecting something in the region of 11,000 trolls, young and old, to attend.”

Among the confirmed sockpuppet guests so far are LilKilla83, who in 2010 hit the headlines by being the first internet user to be banned from over 100,000 web message boards, and LordValhalla, last year named ‘Most Utterly Loathsome Person Online’ by Wired Magazine.

FredTheHater, considered the web’s original trolls after he left a misogynistic message on Tim Berners-Lee’s website at CERN in 1991, will be at the conference to collect a Lifetime Achievement Award and will also take part in a Q&A session.

“From insightful panel discussions where amateurs can pick up tips from some of the best defacers of internet tribute sights, to presentations explaining new and exciting ways to stalk 14-year-old girls via the latest social media tools, TrollCon will have everything for the discerning cyber bully,” said Sisters.

“But it’s not all hard work and there’ll be time for some fun and game too, such as a competition in which contestants must attempt to cause as much online grief as possible in just 30 minutes,” she added.

Tickets and schedules will be made available on the TrollCon website, although Sisters confirmed that it had been temporarily taken down after its message board came under abuse from trolls.

“Don’t worry, we totally appreciate the irony,” she chuckled.