this post was submitted on 12 Jul 2025
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While browsing the fediverse I come across more and more accounts that seem ... a bit off, a little uncanny. The stuff they post seems random, their comments slightly weird. What's going on, is the fediverse being overrun by bots? Or am I as a fanatic anti-AI person just losing my mind and seeing the enemy everywhere?

I hate the fact that I now question every interaction that seems a bit off - it seems such a stupid waste of my time and I'm afraid I might just end up blocking real people who happen to express themselves in a strange way - as a neurodivergent person I know how bad I would feel about being ostracized as 'too strange to be real'. How would you handle this?

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[–] DeathByBigSad@sh.itjust.works 3 points 1 week ago (5 children)

I don't block users, I have a "firewall" on my brain (metaphorically speaking). I over analyze every comment, its kinda like a "spot the bot" mini-game.

I estimate there are like 1/3 bots especially on very heated political memes on the front page. I'm automatically just blocking out the "voting is useless, don't vote" sentinment, very unproductive. Also idk wtf is with the "don't protest, revolt now, kill [insert name of politician] right now", like why the f would you say that on the open internet where there are government automatic data scrapers archiving all this for evidence? (Remember you can get extradited for making threats) Like jokes sure thing, but don't be that explicit lol. Fed-posting is so common lol.

The less political, the less "bot-like" it feels.

I get what you mean, that's why I always overthink every comment and scan for like everyone's profile.


Hey... Wait a minute...

GET DOWN, JOHN CONNOR. THE OP IS A TERMINATOR /j

[–] schmorpel@slrpnk.net 2 points 1 week ago (1 children)

I often rant about eating the rich. It's because I'm genuinely angry about the situation at hand, and maybe ranting online helps with getting the frustration out without doing actual damage in the real world. Which I'm sure is exactly how the powerful intend it to be.

[–] DeathByBigSad@sh.itjust.works 1 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

I mean this comment is not intended to say neither "never use violence" or "assassinate your politicians immediately"

I think the internet should be used as recruitment for peaceful methods only, but, if hypothetically when you meet up in person and decide that you want to "escalate"... well... do that in a secret basement somewhere safe, not online where any plans could be easily intercepted and easier for governments to manipulate.

I mean, for legal purposes, I'm not gonna overtly advocate violence in a serious, non-joke way, but I mean, if you decide to use force, then that's you decision, I can't tell you how to plan your actions 😉

As US President John F. Kennedy once said: "Those who make peaceful revolutions impossible, make violent revolution inevitable"

TLDR: Online forums are exactly what you described, a place to vent your frustrations. If you actually want to plan a revolt, do that IRL.

[–] prex@aussie.zone 1 points 1 week ago

Do me, do me!

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[–] dual_sport_dork@lemmy.world 2 points 1 week ago (1 children)

I await with interest the first serious accusation that I'm a bot. A very well armed bot, perhaps. I certainly type some strange things, but you guys have probably seen my hands too many times.

Unless my hands are also AI generated. Hmm.

I've already garnered the achievement of having several people on one of the Discord servers I hang around on of treating me as if I'm literally a penguin. Nobody's yet come up with a credible explanation of how I'd be able to type. (Including, surprisingly, the obvious hunt and peck gag that presents itself.)

Well, if we're living in a simulation we're all bots lol

[–] BurgerBaron@piefed.social 2 points 1 week ago (3 children)

I think we're too small a population for any nefarious motivated interests yet.

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[–] Pratai@lemmy.world 2 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

Yep. It fucking sucks. AI is going to be running the show soon. Honesty? At this point, i think it’s easier to just accept it as normal. There’s not much that can or will be done about it. We’re losing a big part of who we are.

And sadly, the wondrous artistry we humans once possessed will run far beyond most of our remembrance, and will be left to the musings of those unheard.

[–] descartador@lemmy.eco.br 1 points 1 week ago (1 children)

On Reddit, yes. Here, I don't know. But I wonder if it's possible to ensure that the fediverse stays humans only. Maybe by Introducing a captcha of sorts like 4chan.

[–] DrSteveBrule@mander.xyz 2 points 1 week ago

There is the option to tag your account as a bot, so I would assume not.

[–] AmidFuror@fedia.io 1 points 1 week ago (2 children)

You're not imagining things — the fediverse is seeing more bots and AI-generated accounts, and it's natural to feel unsettled by interactions that feel uncanny. At the same time, your sensitivity to misjudging real people — especially those who express themselves differently — is valid and important. The best you can do is set gentle boundaries: mute or scroll past what feels off, stay open to the strange-but-human, and accept that some ambiguity is inevitable. You don’t have to solve the mystery of every account — just protect your peace.

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