Abstract:
The research study on online vigilantism: a multi-case study of situations, interactions and effects, regarding the real-life crime being investigated and sentenced online, summarizing its findings based on qualitative research, suggests that online vigilantism is an emotional field serving its role as a parallel form of the justice system. It is a form of ritual which individuals can initiate, and then participants engage in it. It follows a repetitive pattern of actions involving preparation, performance, and punishment. Online vigilantism exercised its power through online media, leading to conflict and violence. It is comprised of four distinct actors with different roles: 1) first actor - online media influencing society 2) second actor - individuals expressing opinions online 3) weaponization of visibility and awareness - using the affordances of the internet to access information as a weapon to spread it widely, and 4) victims - those affected by the vigilante activities. There are five forms of online vigilantism according to the degree of violence, ranging from least to most extreme violence: 1) informing 2) exposing 3) flagging 4) investigating and 5) hounding. Online vigilantism is a situational process shaping from emotional field into emotional energy and expressed through proactive interactions. This may bring about several effects on actors, victims, human rights, justice system, and societal aspects. Nevertheless, there are both positive and negative aspects of online vigilantism. On the one hand, online vigilantism may cause injustice. It becomes viral justice or justice by word of mouth in the online world filled with errors, posing a risk of undue interference in justice and disproportionate punishment. On the other hand, it can serve as a parallel form of the justice system, balancing the justice system through the lens of technology. Therefore, to ensure the potential benefits of online vigilantism, it is crucial to encourage the use of online vigilantism in a positive way and limit its use in a negative way.