How Online Identities Are Affected By Online Anonymity

Social networking is the mainstream way to communicate with anyone. Teenagers are obsessed with social networking, no one calls each other unless it’s extreme circumstances or their mother. Sharing pictures, sharing life stories, and sharing opinions online has been the way of life and the norm for kids growing up with computers and smart phones. The parents to this generation have not grown up in the same environment and have different standards for online activity. In the Article “ 10 Reasons Why I Avoid Social Networking Services” written by Alan Norton, he lists why he does not use social networking services. His personal beliefs are backed up with statistics and hold true to many people in his generation but not in the younger ones.

Growing up as a lad, I was immersed in music and entertainment. I watched my aunt and uncle play guitar in a band and at church. Being pretty well versed in music myself–I played the piano, flute, piccolo and clarinet. Yes, it is safe to say music and entertainment is in my DNA making it inevitable that I follow my passion for the business. It took some time to realize the importance of following the lifelong passion in which I so dearly held on to as I conquered other paths in life.

According to Beran and Li (2007) there are six different forms of cyberbullying, which include flaming, harassment, gossip, impersonation, exclusion, and cyberstalking. The ways for this to occur have become countless, from well-known social media sites like Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter, to smaller sites that allow you remain anonymous such as Yik Yak and ask.com. The days are gone of having to be the biggest meanest kid in the schoolyard to hurt others. Now it does not matter one’s size, age, gender, or social standing to bully someone. People can now create their own anonymous personas or simply continue to bully others online after they have left school or work.

1. Any theory of personal identity should be able to solve two problems: first, the problem of individuation; second, the problem of continuity or persistence. How would you in your own words characterize these problems? Also, do these problems matter at all? Are they actually important? Why or why not?

Bully's were once were bigger and stronger than their victims, but now teenagers can hide behind a computer screen and leave hateful comments. Social media sites such as Facebook, twitter, Instagram, etc. are the outlets for teens who feel the need to put people down and publicly humiliate others where everyone can see. One would think that since these types of bullying or harassment is seen publicly by others, there would be more of an opportunity for someone to defend the victim but that's not necessarily the case. Often times bullies are publicly encouraged by their friends or others who may feel that way. This leaves potential defenders feeling too intimidated to do anything about it. Askfm, Yik Yak, After School, are a few of the anonymous websites where people can post things about others and stay completely unidentified. Many comments are made about teenagers amongst these sites and majority are negative. Its no wonder this generation has self confidence

Technology is rapidly advancing at a dizzying rate which has seen many amazing feats but has also introduced and increased the act of Cyberbullying. Cyber bullying can be defined as targeting someone using any form of technology (this includes social media) to tease, stalk or humiliate someone online (Dictionary.com, 2016). Cyberbullying is so detrimental because it encourages the targeting of an individual; It is often done in secret with the bully hiding who they are by creating false profiles or names, or sending anonymous messages. It is difficult to remove as it is shared online so it can be recorded and saved in different places. Cyberbullying has such a negative impact that research shows that there is a correlation between the violent

Amit Kumar is an IDAM Subject Matter Expert (SME) , Architect and Information Security Specialist with over 13+ years of technology industry experience. His background consists of several Architectural , Technical Lead and Leadership roles wherein he led teams of varying size through the Planning, Design, Implementation, and Deployment phases of critical IDAM based infrastructure. He also has extensive hands-on experience in the Implementation, Configuration, and Maintenance of several highly complex systems in an Enterprise Level environment.

The issue of personal identity is one of the most broadly treated problems in the philosophical community. “Who are we?” “Where do we come from?” “What makes us human?” are some of the inquiries that most people face during their lives. Consequently, because for the majority of people it is almost natural to ask themselves about the meaning of their own identity, it is understandable that most major philosophical figures have presented their own theories regarding this question (Olson). In the same manner, it is reasonable that there exist certain conflict between these ideas. One of the most negatively received theories of personal identity came from the mind of John Locke. Essentially, his theory equaled identity with a person’s

What is Identity Management? In sociological terms it is communication strategy which is goal-oriented. It operates on both the conscious and subconscious level; communicators attempt to control the impressions of other people about themselves. This is achieved by governing and effecting various impressions designed to control social interactions. It is the outward facing or presenting self, in which one manipulates their perceived image for others to discern. The concept of identity management can also effect other arenas such as professional communication in the work place and school. Similarly its effects can be perceived in the larger stage of public relations for important persons and celebrities. Identity management theory was developed on the works of Erving Goffman. It is understood that the identity management theory mentions Goffman 's contributions to social interaction numerous time since he has been the foremost cited sociologist from his research and communication studies. In understanding identity management is important to explore the concepts of the “Perceived Self” (Adler, Proctor II) and the “Presenting Self” (Adler, Proctor II). Among the myriad identities which one possesses through life, one must not overlook cultural and relational identities, as these are of primary importance in identity management as well. The presenting self is the face on shows to the outside

Social Networking has taken bullying to the extreme. Before advanced technology, children and teenagers were troubled by school bullies. Today, they are targeted by bullies via internet. Most people undergo some form of bullying in life. Growing up, I experienced the typical name calling and spiteful comments. I also dealt with minor cases of virtual bullies. These bullies are known as cyber bullies. I find this topic compelling because it’s a matter that has spiraled out of control.

Online social networks have become increasingly populated arenas for much of today’s population, especially with regards to high school and college students. Networks such as Facebook, Tumblr, Instagram, Vine, Twitter, etc., enable users to create an identity and present it to others by allowing them to share various aspects of their lives. Because individuals select their own content, the resulting representation can be either a true or imaginative reflection of the user. The attitudes, perspectives, behaviours and actions each individual chooses to present, shape their identity within the social media universe. Like most other web-based content, the pursuit of authenticity is assumed to be at the heart of these social media networks, playing an important role in our online interactions and our decisions about what web content we believe to be reliable. But, what about when the network structure allows users to create, post, and interact with anonymous identities? Anonymity eliminates the need decipher authenticity, however, it creates an issue by protecting the negative actions of empowered users.

Nowadays, a lot of people are using social media such as Facebook, Twitter, Tumbler and so on. Since the Internet has propagated rapidly, social media have progressed a lot. The generalization of the internet makes us to live conveniently and fast. People are almost using smart phones, i-phones or comfortable devices which can access to internet. These equipments make us to do social network easily. It helps contact friends, family, and other people even though they live far away. It could be, however, abused, if you don’t use properly. Especially, it is important that we understand and regulate the use of social media by young children.

In this modern era everyone is very into social media. Social media has become a part and parcel of everyone’s life. Even kindergarden students have at least a little knowledge on social media. Social media is defined as a relationship that exist between network and people. A very common and widely used example of social media would be web sites for social networking and microblogging. Examples of utmost used social networking sites are “ Facebook ˮ and “ Twitter ˮ. Nowadays coming across kids on social networking sites has become a norm. Social media is used for many purposes which are to exchange ideas, feelings, personal information, pictures and videos. Social networking sites is one of the most preferable medium for expressing

Some of the top benefits of social media over the years are that it is free to anyone, the content can get out to resources virtually immediately, and it can be delivered to a wide variety of people. For these reasons, communication through social media has become an extremely accessible and convenient way to communicate. It is also popular for those who need to be in contact with others. One example that comes to mind is a teenager who goes away on a trip to visit a friend or family. They can be hundreds of miles away but still talk to their parents as if they weren’t. Another example is a person who is shy and has a hard time making friends face-to-face, social media sites are a great way to meet people and build relationships.

Many factors including family, environment, personal experiences and thought processes etc. influence our personalities. In the changing times, as more and more people take to the internet, a new era has dawned-that of individual self expression using social media. Social media refers to the use of social networks for expression of personal thoughts, for recreation, for sharing ideas and achievements and as a medium for showcasing our talent to the world.