They can check the logged IP for each post. Two accounts same IP would point to two accounts at the same location. Then compare language, views, etc to see if the accounts relate to one or two people.
They can use different postal addresses. Home, work, parents, friends, etc.
@LPX true, I am clearly far too lazy to be one of these trolls and too unobservant and too lazy to catch them! 
. Good thing it’s not down to me.
Like most forum users I have never heard of this term before where does it come from?
That would involve way too much effort, and I’m way too lazy to have more than one profile.
I know some people do like to throw out some outlandish comments and then watch the drama unfold. Maybe they’re sock puppets.
Y’all know I speak my mind, but when I know there’s an ulterior motive behind it, ignorance is bliss 
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I can’t help but think of Sweep, Ed the Duck and Gordon the Gopher making accounts to cause havoc!
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I honestly thought this was a new kink I’d not heard of, and thought it’s strange for lovehoney to ban a kink! Lesson learnt!
Sock puppets 
Cock puppets 
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Never heard of that in my Nelly cream puff …I’ve barely had time to pop in here lately and way way behind on reviews 
glad you’re on top of it all @Lovehoney_Brenna
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What’s the benefit of having more than one account anyway? I only have one so all good here.
It‘s a fake persona. Like a badly made puppet, sock-puppet accounts are often crudely made.
Where a real person may hide behind a fake name, a sock-puppet account is one where none of the background information is real. It‘s a fictitious and constructed online personality.
Another great question
The reality today is that in certain online spaces, a single person can operate multiple sock-puppet accounts.
And groups of people, paid to operate sock-puppets and ‘bots’, can work to create artificial, apparently grassroots support online, for ideas and causes. This is known as ‘astroturfing’.
This form of ‘influence operation’ can often end up drawing in real people to engage in trolling and campaigning, and create real and lasting influence on wider society.
The aim of sock puppeteers in this wider sense can be to influence, deceive, or sow division and distrust. This might be seen as useful to some people for political ends, military ends (much less likely on here!), or commercially to trash a competitor‘s reputation, for just a few examples. And certain groups of people are willing to pay other people for this type of work.
I‘ve not seen many contributors who appeared to be sock-puppets, or bots on here so far, and most people on here seem genuine, accepting and open. So it feels like a pretty safe space to talk to genuine people.
So I‘m happy to see Lovehoney taking a stand on this issue and tightening up the already excellent forum rules
Cause it’s puppeteering as another person. Bob on one hand and Jane on the other for example, you pretend to be either one at any time
What’s a sock puppet?
Read back on this thread, a lot of people have explained in detail. I didn’t know either untill this post popped up
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Not heard of the name before, but have come across it.
Used to manage a forum, and it had a kudos voting system.
We had one guy creating several accounts, and having a conversation with himself to upvote his opinon and award himself respect and kudos.
Sad really.
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Bumping this as a reminder - creating sock puppet accounts is strictly prohibited on the forum. Creating and using sock puppet accounts will result in the suspension of not only the sock puppet account, but any ‘primary’ account as well.
Thank you
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What about accounts blatantly using AI to spew out endless stream of facts?
I find that particularly detrimental to the forum content.
I realise the challenge in policing this (as well as puppet accounts!).
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I have this image of people typing with sock puppets on their hands.
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Sticky socks? 
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