Derek Sivers- rare, but believable.
Want anonymity? Make a persona not a mystery
211–220 of 329 posts
Re: Want anonymity? Make a persona not a mystery
#212Ah yes... I'm Skimmington Harborough, Esq., I come from a family that made its fortune in philanthropy generations ago. This seems like a pretty straightforward mechanism for covert operatives, to generate a believable (and memorizable) cover that pulls attention away and maintains coherence. That said, as someone who prizes ethical behavior, it's not possible to practice this and remain wholly honest without some so…
People practice personas everyday of their lives, the only difference in the post is the explicit labelling of them. The avatar I present here is different to how I behave in person, or how I engage at work, my friends, my family.
Re: Want anonymity? Make a persona not a mystery
#213This is so based. Now I don't know anything anymore is the author Derek Sivers from California who now lives in New Zealand even real. Is anything on his about page even true? How are we supposed to trust it? Then again, it doesn't matter.
Re: Want anonymity? Make a persona not a mystery
#214Earlier quoted context omitted.
While little odd, it’s honestly my position that I don’t have a name; happy to explain, but that’s my position. If people are dead set on having a name to call me, just suggest they pick a name and that’s name we use; for example, today guy I have known a few weeks decided I was a “Bob” and we joked about it. It clearly limits options I have, for example, I don’t drive, but for whatever reason it’s hobby I enjoy, one…
Unfortunately "the guy who claims he doesn't have a name" is WAY more identifying than just giving a generic name. Doesn't sound to me like you're anonymous at all. This makes me think of the Nate Bargatze bit about the guy with two thumbs on one hand: https://youtu.be/Hd31dbJvGaU
Yes, you’re right that people remember me, but being rememberable to me does not make me identifiable; unlike the example you provided of having two thumbs on one hand, which clearly is an identifiable visible unique physical trait.
Re: Want anonymity? Make a persona not a mystery
#215This is so based. Now I don't know anything anymore is the author Derek Sivers from California who now lives in New Zealand even real. Is anything on his about page even true? How are we supposed to trust it? Then again, it doesn't matter.
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Re: Want anonymity? Make a persona not a mystery
#216Earlier quoted context omitted.
Maybe to some actor that has sufficient data to correlate identities. But if I introduce myself to someone with an alias or claim false traits, they will not immediately just know it’s fake unless they have additional contradicting information. Most people do not casually wear ski masks, but they tend to not lie when asked for a name.
We're talking about fingerprinting here. Even a person wearing a ski mask could give a name, they still stand out because they have a ski mask on. Deviations from the norm make you stand out, even if it's lying.
> We're talking about fingerprinting here.
I think the whole subthread is more mixed in terms of fingerprinting and social interactions. But if you only consider the the former then yes, one would probably only care about what I called "resourceful actors" to which you would end up standing out.
I was more referring to the social aspect, were if you give someone a name they will (usually) not immediately assume it is false. Thus giving a false name does not make you "stand out" unless there is already other information in play. But I'm just clarifying what I meant, considering your point was meant for a different context.
Re: Want anonymity? Make a persona not a mystery
#217Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'm really curious about the offline piece. If you're at a conference or bar and someone asks your name, what do you say?
While little odd, it’s honestly my position that I don’t have a name; happy to explain, but that’s my position. If people are dead set on having a name to call me, just suggest they pick a name and that’s name we use; for example, today guy I have known a few weeks decided I was a “Bob” and we joked about it. It clearly limits options I have, for example, I don’t drive, but for whatever reason it’s hobby I enjoy, one…
That's very interesting. I for one am intrigued by the idea, and will continue thinking about it for sure. Well done, nameless one!
Re: Want anonymity? Make a persona not a mystery
#218I had an idea for a funny little startup once: “Adopt an alter ego” Essentially a marketplace where you can buy and sell prebuilt identities - complete with associated, aged, and populated social media accounts, email accounts, pictures, websites, etc. I just like the idea of being different people online.
The main roadblock here is the crime. You would need some safeguards to make sure these people aren't real enough to receive any government benefits, or open a bank account.
I disagree. The idea that we should nerf our security tools to prevent them from being used unethically just results in people using nerfed security tools for ethical purposes, while the people doing unethical things go elsewhere for their security tools.
Put another way, if your crypto isn't used by child molesters and terrorists, it's probably not very good crypto.
Re: Want anonymity? Make a persona not a mystery
#219I don't really bother hiding anything. Anyone who wishes me harm, can figure out who I am, fairly easily. I own a home, and I'm not sure if people know how much that exposes folks. I want people to know who I am. I don't think that I have much bad about me (although a number of folks think I'm a stuffy old boomer -they're probably right). It also helps me to behave better. I was not always a stuffy old boomer, and I…
> I own a home, and I'm not sure if people know how much that exposes folks. OT but even more maddeningly, only those of us not rich enough to own our homes outright are subject to this stupidity. If you don't need a mortgage, you can just buy your home under an LLC or other entity. If you do, this becomes difficult or maybe impossible.
Well, around here, the tax rolls are public. That's how I find out who owns the crack house down the block, etc.
> difficult or maybe impossible.
For now. There's a lot of movement to expose the Principals of LLCs. Too many bad actors hiding behind them.
This is why we can't have nice things.
Re: Want anonymity? Make a persona not a mystery
#220Earlier quoted context omitted.
Sure, feel free to point out how it makes me less anonymous.
Not saying these are necessarily all yours but the cluster of accounts O__________O, billme, saycheese, wonderous, endlessly, nxzero, v2hle0thslzrav2 are all in each others top 5 or so which is usually a sign of a good match and unless you are saying that you never revealed any identifying info in any of the several hundred comments you have made there is likely some loss of anonymity. If you used a VPN consistently…
One of the advantages to being anonymous all the time is nothing is tied to an identity; not an IP address, not a physical address, etc.