human-flesh search

English

Etymology

Possibly a back-formation from human flesh search engine.

Noun

human-flesh search (plural human-flesh searches)

1. Research at an Internet forum where questions may be posed for other people to answer.
   • 3 March 2010, The New York Times, China's Cyberposse

     Mop had a forum called human-flesh search engine, where users could pose questions about entertainment trivia that other users would answer: a type of crowd-sourcing.

2. Vigilante justice where Internet users collaborate to find people and punish them by public exposure, harassment, or intimidation.
   • 3 March 2010, The New York Times, China's Cyberposse

     Human-flesh search engines — renrou sousuo yinqing — have become a Chinese phenomenon: they are a form of online vigilante justice in which Internet users hunt down and punish people who have attracted their wrath.