Thread by @conspirator0

Earlier today, a group of eight remarkably similar aphorism-peddling accounts (@LoisyHogan, @MayyMack, @LenaAcree, @kristi_walston, @SandrMaxwell, @peggy_jamison, @BecccaPowell, and @JudithChapmn) followed one or both of us. Something sure looks familiar. . .

cc: @ZellaQuixote

@LoisyHogan @MayyMack @LenaAcree @kristi_walston @SandrMaxwell @peggy_jamison @BecccaPowell @JudithChapmn @ZellaQuixote We were previously both followed by a similar purveyor of sayings, which led to a set of 84 bots. Only one of our new examples (@LenaAcree) turned up in our original analysis, so we definitely missed some and appreciate an opportunity to round out the set.

https://twitter.com/conspirator0/status/1135687647492542475

@LoisyHogan @MayyMack @LenaAcree @kristi_walston @SandrMaxwell @peggy_jamison @BecccaPowell @JudithChapmn @ZellaQuixote Like the 84 accounts we previously found, several of our new examples have old tweets that consist of strings of punctuation marks combined with links to websites (our first example only linked Google Plus, so we missed accounts with punctuation spam tweets linking other sites.)

@LoisyHogan @MayyMack @LenaAcree @kristi_walston @SandrMaxwell @peggy_jamison @BecccaPowell @JudithChapmn @ZellaQuixote This technique works for finding the bots in the network that have old tweets; some either don't or did and have since deleted. The ones with few tweets (as well as those with old tweets that have been active in 2019) all retweet @DaHealthy and pretty much only @DaHealthy.

@LoisyHogan @MayyMack @LenaAcree @kristi_walston @SandrMaxwell @peggy_jamison @BecccaPowell @JudithChapmn @ZellaQuixote @DaHealthy By pulling accounts that either A) have old punctuation spam tweets with links or B) almost exclusively retweet @DaHealthy and throwing out accounts that don't match the pattern (recent tweets are all sayings/quotes, tweets posted via website), we found 226 additional accounts.

@LoisyHogan @MayyMack @LenaAcree @kristi_walston @SandrMaxwell @peggy_jamison @BecccaPowell @JudithChapmn @ZellaQuixote @DaHealthy Four of the accounts from our original analysis (including @Chanel_Co_, the one we tagged in the previous thread) have since been deleted, leaving 80 from that set and bringing the total present size of the botnet to (at least) 306 accounts. There may yet be some we missed.

@LoisyHogan @MayyMack @LenaAcree @kristi_walston @SandrMaxwell @peggy_jamison @BecccaPowell @JudithChapmn @ZellaQuixote @DaHealthy To reiterate a point from our original thread: these bots are actively following both #resistance and #maga accounts. A lot of folks (including people we follow) are following them back.