4 ms·

Vic Gundotra: Pseudonyms are coming to Google Plus

26 points by joebadmo 15y ago

mindstab 15y ago
This still misses the issue by making a distinction between "real names" and pseudonyms in the first place. Fine you might now be able to go by a pseudonym, but are you still required to sign up with a Google Approved real name? Will Lennart Poettering's Google+ be unbanned? [http://0pointer.de/blog/projects/google-doesnt-like-my-name.html http://0pointer.de/blog/projects/google-doesnt-like-my-name....] Will they keep auto banning names they don't like? They seem to continue to fail to get it. :(
- SkyMarshal 15y ago
  At least one other problem is that the term Gundrotta used, 'pseudonym', implies it will be connected to their primary account and real id, rather than being an entirely separate account under a anonymous persona. Hence, it doesn't sound like it will offer dissidents and whistleblowers real protection from a government order to Google for their identity.
  - joebadmo 15y ago
    I don't understand. Why wouldn't a dissident or whistleblower just create a separate account under a fake but real-sounding name, then use their preferred pseudonym? It seems to me that the issue wasn't about anonymity from government, since that's easy with a fake name. The issue was about respecting people's choice of self-representation, which this policy does in a way that more accurately mirrors our analog procedures.
  - fl3tch 15y ago
    If you require whistleblower-level anonymity, Google properties are the last place you want to post anyway. Drop your docs in a file sharing service over Tor and send the link to some journalists. No service can be everything to everybody.
wccrawford 15y ago
Let's wait for official word, instead of rumor. This twitter-able statement doesn't really say anything except that Google is listening... It doesn't say what they heard, or what the full reaction to it is. He states that they are 'moving away' from the Real Name policy, but... Is that his interpretation of what was said, or was that actually said? We don't know. He probably doesn't even know.
- mindstab 15y ago
  I think it was said best here http://www.jwz.org/blog/2011/10/eff-declares-premature-victory-in-nymwars/ http://www.jwz.org/blog/2011/10/eff-declares-premature-victo...
  - fl3tch 15y ago
    As long as they allow pseudonyms, that is in fact a victory in the "Nymwars", which were always more about pseudonymity than anonymity. Again, if you require strong anonymity, there are far better places to publish. From what I've seen, Google requires you to enter a phone number when you create an account in the US and some other countries. You can still get a prepaid phone in cash, but the point of sale and cell tower pings can still geolocate you to a city, possibly even a few blocks, so for strong anonymity, you're better off using a service that doesn't require phone / SMS confirmation.
ethank 15y ago
Why is identity tied to a name? Identity is such a fluid construct, and the arbitrary forcing of it into First/Surname seems on one hand anglocentric, and on another hand, trying to impose on online identity the vestiges of real-world identity that we don't need on here. I would think given the discourse around online identity (i.e. http://www.juliandibbell.com/ http://www.juliandibbell.com/ and http://www.mit.edu/~sturkle/ http://www.mit.edu/~sturkle/), including feminist discourse, socio-political, etc that we would beyond this.

26 points by joebadmo 15y ago

This still misses the issue by making a distinction between "real names" and pseudonyms in the first place. Fine you might now be able to go by a pseudonym, but are you still required to sign up with a Google Approved real name? Will Lennart Poettering's Google+ be unbanned? [http://0pointer.de/blog/projects/google-doesnt-like-my-name.html http://0pointer.de/blog/projects/google-doesnt-like-my-name....] Will they keep auto banning names they don't like? They seem to continue to fail to get it. :(

SkyMarshal 15y ago
At least one other problem is that the term Gundrotta used, 'pseudonym', implies it will be connected to their primary account and real id, rather than being an entirely separate account under a anonymous persona. Hence, it doesn't sound like it will offer dissidents and whistleblowers real protection from a government order to Google for their identity.
- joebadmo 15y ago
  I don't understand. Why wouldn't a dissident or whistleblower just create a separate account under a fake but real-sounding name, then use their preferred pseudonym? It seems to me that the issue wasn't about anonymity from government, since that's easy with a fake name. The issue was about respecting people's choice of self-representation, which this policy does in a way that more accurately mirrors our analog procedures.
- fl3tch 15y ago
  If you require whistleblower-level anonymity, Google properties are the last place you want to post anyway. Drop your docs in a file sharing service over Tor and send the link to some journalists. No service can be everything to everybody.

wccrawford 15y ago

Let's wait for official word, instead of rumor. This twitter-able statement doesn't really say anything except that Google is listening... It doesn't say what they heard, or what the full reaction to it is. He states that they are 'moving away' from the Real Name policy, but... Is that his interpretation of what was said, or was that actually said? We don't know. He probably doesn't even know.

mindstab 15y ago
I think it was said best here http://www.jwz.org/blog/2011/10/eff-declares-premature-victory-in-nymwars/ http://www.jwz.org/blog/2011/10/eff-declares-premature-victo...
- fl3tch 15y ago
  As long as they allow pseudonyms, that is in fact a victory in the "Nymwars", which were always more about pseudonymity than anonymity. Again, if you require strong anonymity, there are far better places to publish. From what I've seen, Google requires you to enter a phone number when you create an account in the US and some other countries. You can still get a prepaid phone in cash, but the point of sale and cell tower pings can still geolocate you to a city, possibly even a few blocks, so for strong anonymity, you're better off using a service that doesn't require phone / SMS confirmation.

ethank 15y ago

Why is identity tied to a name? Identity is such a fluid construct, and the arbitrary forcing of it into First/Surname seems on one hand anglocentric, and on another hand, trying to impose on online identity the vestiges of real-world identity that we don't need on here. I would think given the discourse around online identity (i.e. http://www.juliandibbell.com/ http://www.juliandibbell.com/ and http://www.mit.edu/~sturkle/ http://www.mit.edu/~sturkle/), including feminist discourse, socio-political, etc that we would beyond this.