Do you want to be anonymous on this forum?

[TheVillageChicken]

For those of you who wish to remain anonymous, as do I, here is a tip.

DO NOT USE THE SAME USER NAME ON MULTIPLE FORUMS OR SOCIAL MEDIA.

Yesterday, I was interested in an item in the classifieds. The seller did not leave contact info, so I simply Googled their user name and found that the user name was in use on multiple forums and even on a twitter account. A couple of clicks later, I had a name. Searched the name on White Pages and got a phone number. I now own the item that was for sale.

A while back, I got a bit annoyed at a poster who was presenting their self as a sort of golf guru. Applying the same techniques, I was able to look up their golf handicap, and just as I suspected.......................


Not trying to make a point. Just throwing out some info. Use it or ignore it....all the same to me.

[ScorpioSquared]

It is so easy in today's tech age to find people and all kinds of information. Thanks for the tip!:posting:

[JoMar]

I am not an advocate of anonymous posting on anything. If you can't own it, don't post it.

[bluedivergirl]

I am not an advocate of anonymous posting on anything. If you can't own it, don't post it.

That's not what he's talking about. He means be careful of using the same user name, because little bread crumbs you leave as you post can lead back to the real life you.

And he's right. Florida's Sunshine laws can give someone a lot of help finding you. Public records - for free - can tell me what business you may own, what your mortgage is, if your property taxes are paid. The list is endless.

[rubicon]

The OP offers sound advise.

[snowbird22154]

Have gotten sucked in the "Free" Databases and never could find something that didn't charge you. Is it possible I might get a "Link"?
Thanks

That's not what he's talking about. He means be careful of using the same user name, because little bread crumbs you leave as you post can lead back to the real life you.

And he's right. Florida's Sunshine laws can give someone a lot of help finding you. Public records - for free - can tell me what business you may own, what your mortgage is, if your property taxes are paid. The list is endless.

[tomwed]

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[Loudoll]

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I like what you wrote there.:BigApplause:

[Loudoll]

Glad I got to see that, Tomwed.

[JoMar]

That's not what he's talking about. He means be careful of using the same user name, because little bread crumbs you leave as you post can lead back to the real life you.

And he's right. Florida's Sunshine laws can give someone a lot of help finding you. Public records - for free - can tell me what business you may own, what your mortgage is, if your property taxes are paid. The list is endless.

I understand those issues but I believe there are a lot more outlets for our information. Didn't the OP express his interest was determining if a poster was expressing truth about his golf acumen? That's a curiosity search. There are sites where you can plug in an address and purchase information about the person that lives there. That is more valuable that TOTV.....IMO

[rjm1cc]

That's not what he's talking about. He means be careful of using the same user name, because little bread crumbs you leave as you post can lead back to the real life you.

And he's right. Florida's Sunshine laws can give someone a lot of help finding you. Public records - for free - can tell me what business you may own, what your mortgage is, if your property taxes are paid. The list is endless.

I think you nailed the problem,

[manaboutown]

For those of you who wish to remain anonymous, as do I, here is a tip.

DO NOT USE THE SAME USER NAME ON MULTIPLE FORUMS OR SOCIAL MEDIA.

Yesterday, I was interested in an item in the classifieds. The seller did not leave contact info, so I simply Googled their user name and found that the user name was in use on multiple forums and even on a twitter account. A couple of clicks later, I had a name. Searched the name on White Pages and got a phone number. I now own the item that was for sale.

A while back, I got a bit annoyed at a poster who was presenting their self as a sort of golf guru. Applying the same techniques, I was able to look up their golf handicap, and just as I suspected.......................

Not trying to make a point. Just throwing out some info. Use it or ignore it....all the same to me.

Thank you for this friendly reminder.

[buzzy]

Thanks, OP, for the reminder. I just pulled up a YouTube video that I had posted a year ago as an experiment. Right there was my full name, where anyone could see it if they had searched for that subject. So, I edited my @gmail account to show a fake name.

[Taltarzac725]

I am not an advocate of anonymous posting on anything. If you can't own it, don't post it.

I am very easy to identify because of my 224 613 Project fighting for access to more practical information for survivors/victims of crimes through or in libraries. This is an international effort too which I have been doing in some way or another since January 1991. There must be hundreds of thousands of e-mails and the like out there with my name on them and they pop up every once in a while on the Internet. So, there is no use in my hiding all that much. I do have safety and security concerns but just hope that the local Sheriff's offices and the Community Watch are on the ball. Us Top Ten posters in count anyway are not trying to stay anonymous.

[Topspinmo]

Anything you post on Internet and you personal information is for sale. Goggle, Facebook ect.. Sell this information they gather. How do you think you get all these popups. Randomly by accident?? Even your photos are for sale if you use free site? How do you think they make money? By selling you information. Facebook probably the biggest seller of personal information? Even the government buys it? So don't be alarmed when you surf of something on the Internet and you get annoying popups. Or the poster can find out all the information made to the public. Bottom line if you don't want your information out there don't post personal information.

For most of us we figured this out too late! We are already on the system!

Then there are the sites that will search information for fee. IMO in the near future you will have scan disk implanted and your ever move from birth will be tracked and viewing of your location live. You are already tracked by you cell phone and new car.

[rubicon]

/////////////////////////// changed my mind

[2BNTV]

I try to stay anonymous but after posting for a long time, I don't have that luxury. Anyone can find out anything, if they want to.

Since I don't post anything inflammatory and always stand by what I say, I am not too concerned. I have met several people from the forum and everyone is a reasonable person.

They are those who want to stay anonymous as they post things they wouldn't say to a persons face under the proviso "they only speak the truth". Some have said that some of us have rose colored glasses about TV and wouldn't know the truth, unless, it hit us in the face.

I agree that we disagee, respectfully.

[Taltarzac725]

My internet identity looks a lot better than it did 13 years ago. You should have seen it then. I had a particularly nasty cybersmearer/cyberstalker from 2002 through 2006 or so who had declared war on me for that period. I tried the FBI, the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office and the Chesterfield County Sheriff's Office (Virginia) to stop him but it went on-and-on. They knew him well it seemed at the Chesterfield County Sheriff's Office as he was a defendant in some white collar and sexual harassment cases and always insisted on defending himself in these. We met on Findlaw where I tried to help him out back in 2002 but I did not figure out he was the man cyberstalking/cybersmearing me until 2004 or so. He used many names on there including mine. I could never figure out who hated me that much with the constant personal attacks. It turns out he was upset with me because I could not find him just the right case to get him off his white collar criminal case. Go figure.

He has not shown up on the Internet since 2008.

I am pretty sure I was not his only long term victim as he seemed to really enjoy himself and was extremely good at saying just the right thing to make me more and more upset.

At least, the wild wild west of the internet has been tamed except on Topix.com where you still see that kind of free speech at its worst.

Facebook is very good at allowing you to delete stuff posted against you and you can report stuff that is trolling or worse quite easily.

TOTV does a good job of moderating this forum and keeping the personal attacks to a minimum and does seem to take serious trolling as something to stop.

[Bonny]

I don't worry much about it. A lot of people around the Villages know me and anyone who is a friend of mine on or off facebook, pretty much knows my life. I drink, I like to party, we travel a lot, I don't cook, hate cleaning house, love animals and they have my e-mail, phone number & know where I live.
All in all, I'm fun, but, otherwise, pretty boring. :D

[Taltarzac725]

I don't worry much about it. A lot of people around the Villages know me and anyone who is a friend of mine on or off facebook, pretty much knows my life. I drink, I like to party, we travel a lot, I don't cook, hate cleaning house, love animals and they have my e-mail, phone number & know where I live.
All in all, I'm fun, but, otherwise, pretty boring. :D

You sound fun not boring.

There are many years when I longed for not having such a colorful Internet identity. But the 224 613 Journey has not allowed that all that much and the computer was often the only resource I had to get my work out there. That and hundreds of thousands of e-mails and maybe a thousand letters and/or packages. It also does not allow me to be all that anonymous. I do think that fighting to empower survivors/victims of various kinds of crimes through giving them access to practical information is a very worthwhile cause or I would not have been working on it off-and-on since January 1991. I did inform the Sumter County Sheriff's Office that I was here around November 2005 after our move from Palm Harbor, Florida in June of 2005. I was worried about the Chesterfield County, VA cyberstalker/cybersmearer so just touched base-- so to speak-- with the Sumter County Sheriff's Office. I decided not to be a pest though like I had been with the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office which probably had put me in the fruitcake file. I know some people still do that anyway.

I still get pot shots taken at me on Topix.com but just see them as going with the work that I do. Part of my Internet identity and not worth any worry.

[Bonny]

You sound fun not boring.

There are many years when I longed for not having such a colorful Internet identity. But the 224 613 Journey has not allowed that all that much and the computer was often the only resource I had to get my work out there. That and hundreds of thousands of e-mails and maybe a thousand letters and/or packages. It also does not allow me to be all that anonymous. I do think that fighting to empower survivors/victims of various kinds of crimes through giving them access to practical information is a very worthwhile cause or I would not have been working on it off-and-on since January 1991. I did inform the Sumter County Sheriff's Office that I was here around November 2005 after our move from Palm Harbor, Florida in June of 2005. I was worried about the Chesterfield County, VA cyberstalker/cybersmearer so just touched base-- so to speak-- with the Sumter County Sheriff's Office. I decided not to be a pest though like I had been with the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office which probably had put me in the fruitcake file. I know some people still do that anyway.

I still get pot shots taken at me on Topix.com but just see them as going with the work that I do. Part of my Internet identity and not worth any worry.That's a great service you are providing to help people !! :)

[TheVillageChicken]

I choose anonymity to avoid embarrassing my dear wife.

[tomwed]

For those of you who wish to remain anonymous, as do I, here is a tip.

DO NOT USE THE SAME USER NAME ON MULTIPLE FORUMS OR SOCIAL MEDIA.

Yesterday, I was interested in an item in the classifieds. The seller did not leave contact info, so I simply Googled their user name and found that the user name was in use on multiple forums and even on a twitter account. A couple of clicks later, I had a name. Searched the name on White Pages and got a phone number. I now own the item that was for sale.

A while back, I got a bit annoyed at a poster who was presenting their self as a sort of golf guru. Applying the same techniques, I was able to look up their golf handicap, and just as I suspected.......................


Not trying to make a point. Just throwing out some info. Use it or ignore it....all the same to me.
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[TOTV Team]

Remember if you use your name as some news sites require your comment and name will be permanently indexed in the search engines.