Beginnings in 1996
The Meow Wars began in 1996, ignited by a group of Usenet users, an early internet forum. The conflict started when users began flooding newsgroups with cat-related content, often just the word “meow,” disrupting normal conversations. What started as a playful joke escalated into one of the first known instances of online trolling and spam wars.
Targeting Multiple Newsgroups
The chaos quickly spread to multiple Usenet groups. Users from different communities clashed, and entire newsgroups became battlegrounds of non-stop “meows” and irrelevant posts. The participants overwhelmed threads, drowning out genuine discussions. Some groups tried to resist, while others simply abandoned their forums.
Escalation of Spam
As the “meow” spam intensified, counterattacks in the form of more disruptive posts emerged. The war spiraled as users began employing automated scripts to send mass messages, making it difficult for moderators to contain the situation.
The Aftermath
The Meow Wars raged for months, leaving many newsgroups unusable. This event highlighted the potential for digital platforms to be easily disrupted, and it played a role in shaping early internet moderation techniques as platforms sought to prevent such chaos from recurring.
Meow Wars: The Internet’s First Email Spam Battle ⚔️
Beginnings in 1996
The Meow Wars began in 1996, ignited by a group of Usenet users, an early internet forum. The conflict started when users began flooding newsgroups with cat-related content, often just the word “meow,”… pic.twitter.com/N2VdFQEcCY— Detective Tiger’s Stories (@TigerDetective) October 15, 2024