How are you dealing with your online identity?
I tend to keep my private life and my online persona somewhat separated.
This includes but is not limited to:
- keeping my real name offline
- not posting pictures of me online
How do you handle that?
Have you encountered any problems regarding that?
Do you have any recommendations?
Top comments (7)
Depending on the topics you immerse yourself in online, I think any real separation is becoming less important and more impractical. There comes a point where, by not using your name and sharing personal details and experiences, you start to miss out on some of the benefit of having an online community. I think that point comes sooner than later these days.
What exactly are those benefits you think I'd miss out on?
I do not share my name or gender on the internet.
So in terms of what @marumu said in the other comment, if I met myself online, I'd actually have plenty of information at hand.
For example, I keep a large JSON file with lots of information at me.benary.org, but this does not necessarily make it possible to find myself in real-life.
The other way round (RL ⇒ online) is pretty easy to find.
Again, the main question I have is: What exactly are those benefits you think I'd miss out on?
I think, separating your online life from your real life is important. However, I don't see the separation that easy. Sometimes, it makes sense to stay anonymous. That's when I go full-tor and do nothing which might hint to who I am. Everyone has times when they just want to enjoy full anonymity and freedom. That freedom kind of gave birth to trolls and malicious behavior, but I think it is important nevertheless. Other times, I just want to talk to people, discuss things, exchange knowledge and experience. That's when I feel it is ok to use my name, picture and share a little bit about my life. It's the stuff I would share with people I meet in a pub or colleagues I meet in the company network. Imho, it is a lot more welcoming and polite to tell others who you are.
I have never encountered any problems with my way of separation. It might change once I become the ruler of this world and try to go for the Universe next, though :D
My recommendation would be to disclose the amount of information you feel comfortable sharing. Think about how other people feel when they read who you are vs when they don't know one bit about you. How would you feel and what would you think about yourself?
btw, I'd share a pic of me on this site, too, however there is a bug and I cannot upload the image -.-
I have this bad habit of not really discerning my public life from my private life. Though my public life is my private life in the sense I'm unemployed lolz
I think, no private in public (internet)
Tails + TOR
That will not in any way help you when you are trying to keep your personal data offline.
I can (semi-)safely browse the web without a proxy to hide my personal details.
The thing I'm concerned about here is "publicly posting my full name on Twitter" or uploading pictures of me on the internet.