The Perils of the Anonymous User
While I’m not quite sure that’s the most fitting title, I’ve recently been thinking about online anonymity in regards to web applications. In this time of social networks, social media, OpenSocial and what not, I find it a bit annoying that so many people go about using these social tools as anonymous users or registered users with profiles otherwise devoid of even the slightest lick of personal information.
The all too familiar icon adorned on yet-to-be-customized Facebook profiles or those whose owners would rather not upload their mug.
Before I go off on my little rant, I will state that I am aware that some people are not comfortable with putting even so much as their full name online. That’s fine. It’s called privacy and everyone can hold their own opinion about it. I’m talking more about the users that don’t add any value, from a community management perspective. People that use and don’t contribute in a way helpful to the community. They might impart their wisdom here and there but it doesn’t help much if the community has no idea who they are. This isn’t a new concept. It stems from lurking but whereas lurking can deal anyone for any public service like this blog and the issue of reading/commenting, I am focusing specifically on users of a particular system.
People that don’t hold an identity online or on a certain social web app are inherently less personable to other users. For example, I am researching Twitter for my design of online communities computer science class. As part of this research project, I have carried out several lengthy in-person interviews with Twitter users. When I asked them about the types of people they follow and the identities those people portrayed online, they commented on how they rarely or never followed users with no bio information and/or no real name. It’s a lot easier for users on socially-geared websites to interact and establish a sense of rapport with other users if they know a bit about those people.
From my Skribit account. Look at all those anonymous suggestions. I wish I knew more about the submitter to get a better idea of where they’re coming from.
How did I ever start thinking about all of this? Ever since working on Skribit, there has been the issue of dealing with anonymous users. Internally, we’ve debated numerous times over whether to even allow anonymous users. Of course there are always two sides to a story.
Pros: No barriers to entry. If someone wants to get involved quickly, they don’t have to create an account. It’s just easier to be anonymous.
Cons: Other users don’t know who just interacted and give that interaction less credit. For example, if anonymous gives me a blog post suggestion via Skribit I might think of it as just another suggestion and I’ll get around to it eventually if it holds merit and if other users like it. Then again, if John Smith, a frequent commenter, gave me the same suggestion I would be more inclined to write that post as I have the sense that Mr. Smith is a dedicated reader and thus I tend to give his suggestion more credit.
Also, at least for Skribit, anonymous users have no way of tracking their suggestion. They can’t login and see if I’ve written about the suggestion, commented or deleted it without explicitly visiting the suggestion page.
Solution: Increase registration rates with simplified account creation and make the value-prop of the app crystal clear. Of course, that’s easier said than done. It just boils down to the user’s predispositions to sharing information online, however little it may be.
Thoughts? Do you err on the side of a strong online identity or try to stay as invisible as possible online?
You bring up some good points Paul and you’re correct, Anonymous users don’t add as much value to online communities.
I like to follow people up, I’ll read a comment on a blog post for a example, click their name to go to their site and head straight to the about page to find out more information on them, but then if I can’t find an about page or bio I get a little frustrated and usually value their opinion less.
That said I’m one of your Anonymous suggestions on Skribit as I just didn’t want to sign up to yet another thing when I don’t see myself using it regularly and it wasn’t required so I didn’t bother..
OpenID is the way to go I think, the more services implement that the less anonymous users we have.
It would be nice to have a centralized place to put personal info. There is no standard though, and everyone is trying to make money, which won’t lead to a standard.
I like having some privacy though too. If anyone wanted to find out more about me, they should be able to find all kinds of information. The best bet though would be to send me an email, im, or phone call.
In this day and age remaining anonymous online is akin to wearing a mask in public. I think people are nervous about identity theft but if an individual wants to steal your identity and are determined, there is nothing you can do but damage control after the fact. Just like in person, the more I can know about a person off the bat, the better my chances are of talking to the person. Having a facebook/twitter/etc account with zero information receives an almost immediate decline/ignore.
I’m not particularly bothered about signing up for stuff and giving information. I don’t mind if I’m going to get something back for giving up my information but if it can be avoided I wont.
It would be nice to be invisible online but I don’t think its feasable unless you are extremely careful.
I’ve also used Skribit and I didn’t even know there was the option to register, but if I had realised I would have registered.
I’d like to see far more own URL hosted OpenID users. Apart from the benefits of using OpenID, it would link ‘Adam Wilcox’ to me and my site, and in doing so, it would give you more then you personally care to know about me.
Maybe its a generational thing, to do with online identities? As the late great Douglas Adams’s said, “Anything invented before your fifteenth birthday is the order of nature. That’s how it should be. Anything invented between your 15th and 35th birthday is new and exciting, and you might get a career there. Anything invented after that day, however, is against nature and should be prohibited.”
I agree that I spend more time reading and interacting with the blogs of yourself or say John Gruber, or Matt Brett because there is a name and face to go with the writing.
I deleted my MySpace because I got tired of the scene and weirdo’s messaging me. Then I turned around and started my own website.
I guess I don’t have a problem of putting myself out there, so long as it’s in the same arena that I find people with similar interests as myself. Oddly, I feel more safe on my own site; putting myself out there and I enjoy the prospect of reaching out to as many people as I can than I ever did on MySpace or Facebook. Though, I also consider my website a hobby and MySpace as waste of time… I only joined them at the time because “everyone” was on MySpace… Bah! Bah!
For me, it all boils down to where I feel comfortable online, and how much of my information is easily available to people that [originates] in venues I identify myself with.
well, I wasn’t christened “titanium_geek”, it is a nom-de-net if you will. It’s pretty consistent, but it’s not my real life name. Still me though.
So, I’m not “annonymous”, a hit-run commenter, just a regular commenter with a funny name.
I think it is all about networking, building relationships and not just getting your name recognized across certain networks but also building a reputation that you should be proud of. A lot of popular social networks most likely have the same users registered so if I see a recognizable name I know who I am dealing with. I have many friends that are still scared of identity theft, stealing of financial information etc, which is understandable but if you are trying to build a name for yourself across the web then getting your name out there and being involved and participating in a professional way is the key. Anonymous users agravate me because if they participate in discussions they just do not hold much weight and unfortunately most of the time get looked over.
Thank you
So instead of “Anonymous”, create new default profiles with some randomly generated pseudonym. Keeps people just as anonymous, but makes other non-anonymous users feel more connected.
interesting that an intelligent young man would arrive at a reasoned conclusion so similar to the views of an old man like me :) so much for generation gaps. anonymous coward = flame wars.
i arrived a screen name (comprised of a nickname and initial) that i use consistently across the web because—it is generally available—whereas my given name is generally unavailable. best…skip
Paul,
Thanks for the post.
@skipc: I like the idea of having a “screen name” that is yours through the web, kind of like what an email should be (unique-ish) .. but yours for as long as you see fit.
Perhaps instead of trying to get everyone to use something like OpenID .. you write a bot that skips around all the masses of blogs, raking in everyone’s names, sticking them in a bigass db .. and THEN ask people to come and verify themselves, first in best dressed.
Lots of problems there, but hey .. that’ll be my new Idea post for the week :).
I think even the smallest signup barrier is barrier enough for some people - on some sites I’ll happily craft my profile to reflect who I am, but a lot of the time I want to make a quick comment and get out, never to return.
That’s where something like OpenID is fantastic, because my details are there without all the fluffing around, and I can make a contribution, without the “community building” that EVERY site wants to do lately. If I filled out a profile on every forum, blog, and social network that my friends want me to join, I could spend all my online time just keeping them up-to-date.
Paul, I find your article very relevant, as I’ve tackled the anonymity question recently. I’m an MIT grad student, and I just started a blog about the MIT experience. I’m choosing to stay ‘anonymous’ for two reasons: (i) I will be writing about stuff that happens around me, which may not always be well received by my friends, and (ii) I’m not sure what long-term impact my comments will have.
Maybe after a while I’ll find it’s no big deal. I use my real name and picture on Facebook anyway. But for now, I prefer using a pseudonym for blogs. I’ll use the same name and email address everywhere I post comments, so people can consistently associate those comments with the same person. They just won’t know my real name …
Very good post, by the way.
I have to agree that that I’m a fan of OpenId. You don’t have to spend any time registering for a site. You can jump in and post a quick comment and not worry about it. If you ever do decide to revisit the website, you login with your openid again and your history is still there.
“People that don’t hold an identity online or on a certain social web app are inherently less personable to other users.”
I completely disagree with that. Some people just don’t have time to fully commit themselves to an online community. They may be very interested in that subject and enjoy learning about it but just don’t have time to contribute in a noticeable way. The amount that someone contributes to an online community does not necessarily say something about how personable they are.
@Matt - Sorry for not being clear. That sentence means that the people without the online identity appear less personable to the other users.. not that they are less personable. Do you see what I was going for? Without the identity how is the rest of the community supposed to know what you’re like?
I dunno.. I think I’m slightly steering towards banning anonymity on Skribit-type sites altogether. I mean, I know people deserve their privacy but theres not really a lot people can do with just your name. Even so, if people are that paranoid, why not make a web nickname that everyone can recognize you by, and also, how about a blurry or cartoon-style avatar? Thats what I do on some sites I feel a bit weary about.
I think that the majority of people will find it quite hard to find a picture of my face publicly available online (but thats purely because of an incident regarding some immature school students at my old school, MS Paint and Bebo :D), and I obviously know what its like to have the p**s taken out of you online for no apparent reason and can understand why people might not want to upload real pictures of themselves. But give all your web accounts a unique nickname and a consistent avatar, and they have a web presence. Not hard really.
The problem I see is that you have to register for every webapp and site, this might become a security issue (easier passwords for easier remembrance) and just a lazy thing. It would certainly be easier if more webapps and sites supported OpenID so it would be easier to use your profile. You can make and edit one profilepage instead of changing a hundred different.
Interesting post, Paul. I am very open about my life on the internet, whether that’s through pictures from Flickr, status updates on Twitter, or even posts from my blog; I have a lot of personal information floating around that anyone can access. This doesn’t bother me in the slightest. Obviously, if it did, I could easily change this considering I am the person in control as to how much information is displayed about me. The only time I’ve felt remotely uncomfortable was when I received a message from someone I didn’t know, rather scarily pointing out the fact they could figure out where I lived from my pictures on Flickr… Er, yeah. In regards to anonymous users, I can’t say I’m a part of any online communities where this is a huge problem. But I do wonder what the point in ‘participating’ and setting up an online profile is if you’re going to feel uneasy to the extent you won’t divulge any personal information, not even a name, there.
I’m one of those guys that tends to err on the side of more privacy; however, I also have no problem giving out basic information about myself. My rule of thumb is this: If [any given piece of information] is something I would willingly tell someone in public (stranger or not), then it’s fair game online.
With that said, I tend to agree with your thoughts on anonymous users not contributing any value. One of the main reasons, in my opinion, is that they are contributing less value because they don’t seem ‘real.’ As you’ve mentioned, there’s no basic biographic information - not even a name.
I’m much more likely to value someone’s thoughts, regardless of if I actually agree with them, if I can match these thoughts to a seemingly real person with a name and a personality.
In person, we like to match a face with a name. Perhaps online, we like to match thoughts and opinions with a name.
Which is the lesser of the “two evils”, the genuinely anonymous or the fabricated profile?
Quid pro quo, Paul? You’re very interested in Web 2.0 and social networking-type sites. By extending yourself into a website, what does it offer? Likely a more defined demograph for advertisers? If your thoughts have merit, they will likely be valued on their own, not because of a (possibly fabricated) online reputation.
It would be an Utopia….
It is so difficult to get (and to give) your real name in the web (you already said ’cause identity and for security reasons) and you become a fish easy to catch for spammers and advertisers.
Its more easy to stay with a low profile and giving your “alias” as a name, also much cooler, but i rather prefer giving my username than my full name or the so temible anonymous user when interacting…
I agree with you Paul, one is more likely to interact with people online if they have an established identity. Anonymous users rarely ever feel engaged or part of the community. However, a lot of people have been trained to be “scared of the internet”, in fear of their entire identify being stolen. So I understand if they don’t want to use their real information.
This is why I have created an online pseudonym for myself. Even though I don’t particularly fear my identity being stolen (pretty much anyone smart enough could figure out my real name) I use the pseudonym to separate my public life from my private life. And even though the two overlap, it makes me feel better to know they have the ability to be distinct.
Personifying yourself on the web in order to meet other people is a great idea, open, honest, upright etc. Such a pity thought that the media upon which you do this doesn’t give a cats fidle about your integrity and will use the data to make money and achieve power in the current “social network” race. Drawn in by friendlyness and nice comments you are actually selling your perosnality to the likes of the Googles and facebooks…. people whom are just interested in the big bucks and add “social” as a bait.
I will be able to find anything on everybody and so will lots of others, now and in the future where you hae actually forgotten all about it. You are the ones loosing out in this big WWW-2.0 facade.
You make some interesting points Paul and whilst to a certain extent I agree I will add something to the debate.
I’m one of those anonymous Skribit users (one of the S3 posts in your screenshot) the reason I didn’t sign up when I posted the idea was because it wasn’t clear what I was signing upto. I assumed I would be signing my blog up for people to make suggestions to via Skribit, not signing up for an account to make a suggestion.
I think quite often people signup to something out of curiosity, to see what the service is and how they can use it so initially they don’t commit information. Once the service is trusted and it’s clear what its for and how they will use it, then they commit.
for me I think, there’s nothing to be afraid..posting real name or any personal information as long as that information I will share with people OFFLINE so what’s the different sharing it ONLINE?
There are times when I want to comment in a forum, but won’t because of forced registration. A person should identify themselves if they want to contribute though.
I’m definitely in favor of OpenID; it is very annoying to have to sign-up at each site where I want to post something, or use a service.
And, yes, those question marks on Facebook profiles are quite annoying. (Unrelated: I really like their new “you may know these people” feature.)
If you haven’t noticed, a large percentage of society is “corrupt”. Are you suggesting for a “young” individual (age 17 and younger) to supply a large/medium amount of personal information in an online presence? Even if just using your a full name in a blog such as here. - To find more information, what does it take? A little goggling and a few searches on social-networking related sites, flickr, etc.. ?
That’s something social communities have to deal with, in my opinion. From the users’ point of view, they simply want to be given the privilege and the power to decide on matters pertaining their personal information, when interacting in online communities. Its very important to understand that the risks from excessive exposure of personal information online are real, and some users are simply reacting to that very notion.
I posted anonymously to skribit after having login issues(forgetting a password and the password retrieval was temporarily unresponsive), and after you wrote a post in response to it, I’ve experienced first hand the perils of the anonymous user, not being able to track or stay connected to my idea/suggestion. While it was a one time case and I don’t blame anyone but myself, i think i was still able to add value to skribit with the anonymous post.
I remember suggesting something on Skribit anonymously a while back. Maybe one of the problems is that there’s not much incentive to sign up. When posting a suggestion, there’s only some small text on the final submission page that most people will ignore because it basically says “extra steps”.
If I wanted the widget on my own blog, for example, then I would take the extra time to sign up.
I wrote a paper on this very issue a few months ago although I focused more upon the negative social impacts that posting as anonymous poses to the online community. Namely when you have no identity you have limited repercussions for your actions and many people tend to do things that they would never dream of doing had they used their online indent or real world name. It a subject I am very interested in and am going to be researching as a big part of my masters and PhD.
Having user accounts is currently the best way for people to put a reputation behind a user, or you could do a hybrid solution like Wikipedia, but that’s kind of messy.
The choice between anonymity and registered users will likely diminish after OpenSocial and OpenID become more mainstream. To help this along, all web apps should definitely support standards like OpenID and DataPortability from the get go, because it will help speed up the use of these technologies by the users, which will eventually help all app creators to resolve the initial “perils of the Anonymous user”.
My online identity is very strong, because I want to create a reputation for myself on the web.
My blog’s name is Dean Lozarie. My URL is http://deanlozarie.wordpress.com. My real name? Yep, you guessed it. =)