Untitled topic • Hacker News Board

#1

Post by alcazar » Mon, May 11, 2026, 3:39 PM UTC

No post body was provided.

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#2

Post by josefritzishere » Mon, May 11, 2026, 5:31 PM UTC

yes.

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#3

Post by ofjcihen » Mon, May 11, 2026, 5:33 PM UTC

I find that at least for the goofy “look up anyone and brace yourself” data hoovering companies having a super common name means my info gets muddled in with a ton of other people’s.

Everyone legally change their name to the current most common name.

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#4

Post by jkingsbery » Mon, May 11, 2026, 5:34 PM UTC

In my experience as a former astronaut, international spy, and traveler to half the countries in the world, the jury is still out.

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#5

Post by ofjcihen » Mon, May 11, 2026, 5:35 PM UTC

jkingsbery wrote: post #4

In my experience as a former astronaut, international spy, and traveler to half the countries in the world, the jury is still out.

You too? There’s so many of us I think we’re already lost in the crowd.

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#6

Post by dvh » Mon, May 11, 2026, 5:37 PM UTC

I had to quit Large Penis Club, the parking lots were too small for my automobile.

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#7

Post by nomel » Mon, May 11, 2026, 5:42 PM UTC

Of course. This was the encouraged behavior in the early 2k. There were little PSA's about it online. You never put your real info online, because there are crazy people out there that will use it.

I've tried to explain to friends and family that they shouldn't put their first, middle, and last name, all employment info, city, state, etc in their social media bio, and use the same headshot in all their accounts, but they seem to think the sociability/sanity filter that exists in their immediate circle somehow applies to the entire population on the internet.

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#8

Post by liotier » Mon, May 11, 2026, 5:47 PM UTC

nomel wrote: post #7

Of course. This was the encouraged behavior in the early 2k. There were little PSA's about it online. You never put your real info online, because there are crazy people out there that will use it. I've tried to explain to friends and family that they shouldn't put their first, middle, and last name, all employment info, city, state, etc in their social media bio, and use the same headshot in all their accounts, but…

Not everyone wants to wear a mask in public. Free speech requires anonymity and pseudonymity to remain a possibility, but most humans are just fine with a single all-purpose identity.

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#9

Post by ungreased0675 » Mon, May 11, 2026, 5:53 PM UTC

Where are some good places to plant false data?

Insanely attractive people follow me around constantly and I need some more privacy.

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#10

Post by alcazar » Mon, May 11, 2026, 5:55 PM UTC

nomel wrote: post #7

Of course. This was the encouraged behavior in the early 2k. There were little PSA's about it online. You never put your real info online, because there are crazy people out there that will use it. I've tried to explain to friends and family that they shouldn't put their first, middle, and last name, all employment info, city, state, etc in their social media bio, and use the same headshot in all their accounts, but…

The fact that you shouldn't use your real info online is clear to many. That being said, is it better to leave the fields empty, call yourself "anon," or create an imaginary online persona with inaccurate data to throw OSINT investigators off?