With the rapid advancement of technology, many traditional professions are being displaced, diminished, or entirely eliminated from the labor market. In parallel, there has been a notable expansion in the so-called “black market” of internet trolls operating on social media platforms. This informal and unregulated occupation attracts individuals to a role that is low-cost, lacks a defined career path, and requires no formal education, professional qualifications, or specialized skills. Despite its accessibility, this role poses a significant threat to societal well-being.
The primary arena for these internet trolls includes major social networks such as YouTube, blogs, Facebook, and X (formerly Twitter). Through these platforms, they pursue their core objective: to distort reality and disseminate false or misleading information. Their activities are often systematic, aiming to manipulate public perception, sow discord, deepen societal divisions, and erode trust and cohesion within communities.
Facebook represents the largest “market” for internet trolls. With approximately 30 percent of the global population actively using the platform daily to access news and information, it has become the primary arena for their operations. In Mongolia, where Facebook ranks among the top 10 countries globally in terms of active users - and leads in Asia - this platform has become fertile ground for trolls to carry out their objectives.
Internationally, trolls are sometimes employed for strategic purposes, such as shaping public opinion to maintain social stability, conducting counter-propaganda against terrorist organizations, or, in certain geopolitical contexts, working to influence or even destabilize political opponents. In Mongolia, however, researchers note that trolling activities are more frequently used to manipulate public sentiment and the social climate. Common tactics include discrediting political opponents, influencing election outcomes, pushing through decisions that serve specific individuals or groups, reversing established policies, and tarnishing reputations to gain power, authority, or positions of influence. As active users of social media, we witness these patterns unfold clearly and vividly in our daily online experiences.
State-sponsored
Trolling in Mongolia has now crossed limits and lost any original meaning it may have had. Our society is increasingly overwhelmed by blatant lies, distortions of facts, and baseless information. What began as isolated activity has become a widespread practice, with even businesspeople and marketers engaging in the dissemination of false or misleading content for selfish gain, promoting their products or services while discrediting competitors, ultimately harming one another.
When it comes to the implementation of major national projects and programs of strategic importance to the economy and society, trolls no longer operate with the nation’s interest in mind. Instead, they invoke sensitive themes such as homeland, land rights, national security, and patriotism, not to protect them, but to divide the public, provoke fear, and derail progress.
In the political arena, alliances have formed between politicians and so-called “digital mercenaries”, with troll accounts used as tools for personal gain. These actors ruthlessly attack and defame one another in the pursuit of power and position. Furthermore, individuals with journalistic backgrounds, alongside many without any professional experience, have created a surge of fake or deceptive websites posing as news platforms. These outlets, especially on Facebook, have become vehicles for promotional content, misinformation, and smear campaigns, with little regard for truth or accountability.
Even influential social media personalities with large followings, as well as journalists once regarded as credible, have come under the influence of ministers and political leaders. They now manipulate public perception, turning truth into falsehood and right into wrong, and ultimately “playing” with the minds of the public. In the end, the government itself has become deeply involved in this “dirty game”.
We have seen, time and again, how criticism or accusations directed at the government and the prime minister are met with swift and aggressive backlash. A recent example is the young team behind the Noorog.mn website, who were interrogated shortly after announcing their intention to produce a documentary about the 2024 parliamentary elections. Immediately afterward, they were subjected to coordinated trolling - smeared, defamed, and had their personal information exposed online.
It is difficult to believe that such a targeted attack came from good intentions. Trolls never move without payment. A journalist recently revealed that Facebook pages spreading content in support of Prime Minister L.Oyun-Erdene continue to spend significant sums on advertising, raising serious concerns about coordinated and well-funded disinformation efforts.
It was also revealed that an entertainment studio, owned by an individual closely connected to the head of government, has been spending significant amounts of money on distributing content related to topics such as independence, the National Wealth Fund, and black PR campaigns on Facebook. This clearly illustrates how deeply our government has become entangled in the practice of “trolling”.
Internationally, trolling is defined as the act of spreading false and misleading information online through fake accounts to serve specific interests, often with the intent to undermine a nation’s internal unity and trust. Unfortunately, what we are witnessing in Mongolia today is our own government organizing, orchestrating, and supporting activities that do exactly that.
Rather than fostering national cohesion and transparency, these actions are sowing division, eroding public trust, and hindering social development. Even more concerning is the government’s reported support for individuals operating fake accounts, those who hide behind anonymity and act as “live” trolls, actively manipulating public opinion under a veil of secrecy and deception.
Uncontrolled operation
The most effective and time-tested method of combating trolls is by enhancing public education and digital literacy. While Meta actively works to detect and remove fake accounts and troll farms, large groups engaged in coordinated disinformation campaigns, it struggles to keep pace with the rapid growth of the online “black market”. In fact, Meta reported that it removed 631 million fake accounts in the past year alone and previously shut down a troll farm operating in Nicaragua in 2021.
Around the world, several countries have adopted laws and regulations aimed at curbing trolling and the spread of misinformation. For example, Malaysia has introduced legal measures that criminalize such activities under the pretext of combating false information. However, many of these efforts have been met with criticism and resistance due to concerns that they overlap with existing legal provisions and infringe upon fundamental rights, particularly freedom of speech and expression. International organizations often approach this issue with caution, noting that overly aggressive regulation of online speech can conflict with broader global commitments to human rights.
Therefore, instead of relying solely on punitive measures, it is essential to “recharge” the public mind, improving critical thinking, strengthening digital media literacy and ensuring higher standards of responsibility and accountability within media organizations.
In Mongolia, this area remains significantly neglected. According to Head of the Investigation Department of the Cyber Crime Division at the Criminal Police J.Bilguutei, the legal and judicial framework lacks a clearly defined and regulated environment to address the issue. While complaints about defamation and the spread of false information are registered with the police and handled according to existing laws, there are no specific legal provisions dedicated to identifying, regulating and taking action against troll activity.
Even when troll accounts are identified, their true owners often remain anonymous, making it extremely difficult to establish accountability. This lack of regulation and transparency allows disinformation to spread unchecked, posing a growing threat to public trust, democratic processes and national unity.
Citizens, too, bear a share of responsibility in this growing issue. Public negligence and lack of awareness continue to enable the spread of disinformation. A recent analysis conducted by the “Facts First” network examined the comment sections of three Facebook posts shared during the 2024 parliamentary elections. The findings revealed that more than 50 fake accounts with names suggesting Vietnamese, Ukrainian and Russian origins were actively praising politicians and generating artificial support. In one instance, over 2,300 bot accounts flooded a live broadcast with negative comments, yet the true operators behind these accounts remained unidentified.
A fact-checker further noted that Prime Minister L.Oyun-Erdene’s New Year’s greeting video was “buried” in a matter of moments by a wave of likes from foreign accounts - another clear sign of manipulative tactics at play. This distorted and deceptive environment is vividly reflected in the likes, comments and distribution patterns of political content on Facebook. What may appear to be genuine public support or criticism often turns out to be artificially engineered, leaving citizens vulnerable to manipulation and misinformation.
People often label each other as trolls or “sausages”, but they may not fully grasp the real harm and far-reaching impact of these actions. Director of the Press Institute M.Munkhmandakh emphasized that false, distorted and incomplete information undermines trust in the democratic system, destabilizes the social climate and poses a threat to the overall stability of society.
The spread of fake information becomes even more dangerous as it reaches a wider audience. Lawyer at the MGT firm N.Ganbayar highlighted that research shows fake information, spread by bots and trolls, travels four to six times faster than real information. This rapid spread can deeply influence people’s psychology, beliefs and decision-making. While the Human Rights and Freedoms Chapter of the Constitution guarantees the right to seek and receive information, the pervasive presence of trolls limits citizens’ ability to exercise this fundamental right fully. As the “industry” of fake information continues to grow, the opportunity to access true and objective information diminishes.
In general, trolls represent a serious threat to human rights and freedoms. Their activities restrict the public’s ability to meaningfully influence government decisions, demand accountability, and exercise democratic control. Consequently, human rights experts and legal professionals are increasingly focused on the urgent issues surrounding trolling and its effects on society.
