THE York Press has taken action against a persistent internet troll who has plagued users of our website for years.

The troll - who often hides behind the alias Anthony Gamble - has created thousands of bogus accounts to spread misleading and insulting statements. Despite The Press banning hundreds of accounts, the troll has - until now - managed to re-register and continue using a bogus identity.

Cyber security experts employed by The Press have been investigating the malicious activity for some time.

In order to avoid detection the troll has used Tor, free software designed for anonymous communication.

As well as using the name of a legitimate user - Anthony Gamble - they have created other aliases known as sockpuppets.

Sockpuppet is an internet term for a malicious user who creates an alias independent of their main account.

In this case, the sockpuppet would hold a ‘discussion’ with the bogus Anthony Gamble, often agreeing with the posted comments, when they were, in fact, the same person.

The troll has attracted hundreds of complaints from legitimate readers.

So as of yesterday, all users who try to use Tor to disguise their identity will find themselves blocked from leaving comments on The Press website.

In addition, all accounts and aliases using the name Anthony Gamble have been banned and the name - or any derivation of it - cannot appear in comments anywhere on our website.

Group editor Nigel Burton said: “We regret that this malicious individual has caused the real Mr Gamble distress and our sympathies are with him.

“Internet trolls work to undermine online communities and stifle legitimate debate.

“Today we draw a line in the sand and say: enough is enough.”

Mr Burton added: “Security experts are continuing to investigate the malicious trolling.

“When we identify this person, we will not hesitate to take further action.

“We will also pass details of the crimes they have committed to the police and the evidence we have gathered against them.”

The real Mr Gamble said: “I’ve been a subscriber to The York Press for approximately seven years and it’s been particularly distressing to have someone impersonate me on the website.

“Comments that have been posted in my name have been inappropriate and distasteful.

“I am really grateful to Mr Burton and his team at Newsquest for taking these actions to put an end to what has been a challenging time for me and also to stop this happening to other people.”