Quiki

In any social group, one must have an identity or something to show in place of one. In physical situations, this would be your being. Your body verifies you as a person, one with whom others can interact and expect a reaction. They can trust this reaction to be yours as they have verified you as an individual with whom they are interacting. This rote interchange is something we take for granted but is one of the most useful ways we establish trust between eachother. You establish a small form of mutual trust with anyone you see or speak with, all by the very nature of interaction.

Now online, this is not so easy. There is no physical being in front of you, just the digital representation of a physical being. This digital representation of a being, while within an anonymous construct, can easily be spoofed or lied about, breaking all forms of trust you'd normally be able to create in a physical meeting. In any sort of situation in which one ought to be held accountable for their words (a debate, for instance), a form of trust is necessary. By extension, an identity is necessary.

Now, what sort of identity can one have online? If things are so easily spoofed, how does one know they are speaking with a real person, and how do they know they are speaking with the same person throughout the conversation? If there are simple ways to create an identity online, why are they not ubiquitous? What sorts of problems do they have? How can we “bridge the gap” between our online and offline counterparts.

One can use some sort of real-life identifier to connect their online persona(e) with their offline physical counterpart. This may be done via use of their real name or through identity verification with such things as a .edu email address. The problem with such systems is the permanence of the internet, and thus the permanence of your actions. A simple mistake made while drinking could follow you for the rest of your life, shutting you out from potential employment or entrance into certain social circles. Given the nature of your mistake, it may even cause familial drama.

Then how can one limit these problems while still maintaining some sort of accountable online identity? Can one even keep their on/offline lives separate?

As defined by Pseudonymity:

Pseudonymity is a word derived from pseudonym, meaning 'false name', and anonymity, meaning unknown or undeclared source, describing a state of mistaken disguised identity

When using an online pseudonym you grant yourself with two very useful things.

• an identity
• the right to vanish

It is up to you to decide which is more important. The identity can be the most useful in day-to-day interaction online, but the right to vanish is your ace-in-the-hole if you ever have a reason to jump ship. The right to vanish is the ability and right to dump your pseudonym, all things attached to it, and to carve out a new persona online. If you have created enemies, made mistakes, or just wanted to start anew, the right to vanish is invaluable.

Naturally there can be things hampering your right to vanish, such as connections to your real life identity, your inability to give up achievements that you may have had under that pseudonym, and more simple things like human error, forgetting you are not under your old pseudonym, and thus do not have access to the information that you would under that pseudonym. This could include inside jokes, IRC channel passwords, and even an online community's history. A slipup up in revealing that you have access to this information can give you away and connect you to the very pseudonym you abandoned.