Hiding behind a screen to spout malicious comments is usually free online, until you mess with the family of one of the medium’s most popular figures. The famous VTuber from the Hololive agency, Shirogane Noel, abruptly stopped her morning stream to deliver a strong message to a user who crossed all ethical boundaries by hurling insults and defamatory accusations directly at her mother.

While the streamer was sharing childhood anecdotes with her audience during a live stream, a crude comment linked her family memories with adultery attributed to her mother. The streamer’s reaction was immediate and forceful: she made it clear that being backed by a corporate agency doesn’t mean she’ll stay silent or put up with verbal attacks of that magnitude. She clarified that while she tolerates jokes aimed at her “Danchou” character, messing with her loved ones is an unacceptable lack of respect that has already been reported to the company’s legal team, ending with an ironic “thanks for the 1.5 million yen,” referring to the average cost of a defamation lawsuit in Japan.

Noel’s mentioned figure isn’t a joke or exaggeration—it reflects the legal precedent set by Cover Corporation when it confirmed collecting a settlement of exactly 1.5 million yen from a user who spread lies and vulgar speculation about the private life of one of its talents on social media. Just in the last annual report, the agency recorded 149 legal actions to eliminate cyberbullying and protect the mental health of its talents. Hours later, the talent posted a message asking her community to stay calm, acknowledging she got heated but reminding everyone that the vast majority of her followers are respectful people who know where the line is.

With Japanese agencies increasingly imposing harsher financial and legal penalties to curb online harassment, do you think these multi-million lawsuits will completely eradicate trolls, or will there always be users willing to risk their wallet for a moment of attention in the chat?