Privacy and Anonymity
Sharon Chan

Privacy is a fundamental right for all of humanity; a right, which can never be taken away, or can it?

Like remaining anonymous whilst making criticisms of the government and important people, a similar sort of anonymity should be available for internet users, yet there is a distinct difference in the level of anonymity [1]. For instance, one could electronically mail an organization complaining about their services or the lack of it and sign off as ‘Anonymous’, but get an immediate reply through their mailbox saying: “Thank you for your complaint. Our company greatly appreciates your feedback. Our staff will look into the situation and reply you as soon as permitted.” Speaking about some sort of anonymity withheld, the organisation can simply trace back the customer and in this case, just beware of them. For other more complicated instances, the sender of the electronic mail might be threatened by gangsters or even harmed. Therefore, it can be said that privacy and anonymity should be appropriately examined by internet users.

A few ways of protecting one’s real identity are available to the public users at present. Some internet servers and remailers [1] are available to web users in public sites, enabling the user to remain anonymous when mailing or conversing in a chat room. Various softwares are also available to the masses to protect themselves from hackers and outsiders who might want to attain their information. The software enables the user to get rid of unwanted tracks left behind by them and also add protection to files by increasing the security [1]. Privacy and security are now viewed as interlinked; either of the two would lead to revealing the users identity which may be dangerous for the user.

To eradicate this problem, many companies are looking into developing better, more secured websites where user can not only retain their anonymity but also not exposed to the dangers of harboring hackers within their own systems unknowingly. Much work has to be put in to develop a near fool-proof system, but until that happens, one could only be extra careful when using the internet.

Reference:

3. Engelfriet, A.G. (1997). Anonymity and privacy on the Internet.

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