Has anyone actually been outed?

[Elfranko]

Lots of people name change when posting I assume for the fear of people they know reading the story. However, alot are specific scenarios that surely people who knew the situation would instantly twig anyway.
There have been loads of times I want to post something and then chicken out incase this happens and I have absolutely no idea if anyone i know uses mumsnet.

Has it ever happened to anyone?

According to most deletion messages it happens all the time

I haven’t been outed but I make sure I NC every couple of weeks.

I had a sort-of outing on the Australian version of MN, which is obviously not as big but still pretty well subscribed.

I posted a part AIBU, part vent about the way an unaccompanied child was treated on a flight I'd just taken. The mother was on the site, identified her daughter from the situation I described, and took it up with the airline.

No but it wouldnt bother me if I was outed

I thought it was more a case of potentially being recognised from the situation, and so name changing so the person can't read and see what else you've posted?

Exactly this. I've name changed over the years when I've needed/wanted to post about something very specific that might identify me in person. For example if I say I'm going to X hotel in the Maldives on X week in May, and then I say on another thread that I am a nurse, then on another I say I live in Chertsey and my DH is an accountant it doesn't take long for people to do the jigsaw if they suspect they know you.

If I've also admitted to having a terrible shoplifting habit, being an alcoholic and having an addiction to webcam sex with total strangers then suddenly being recognised is a bit of a problem.

NCing doesn't stop the potential for others to recognise you, it just means they can't trawl through your history and see what else you've posted about. I was literally just about to do it now actually, when I saw this thread. (no vodka fuelled webcam sex in underwear stolen from Ann Summers though,I promise.)

Although these days I rarely say anything identifying and I NC so often that it wouldn't matter anyway.

I haven't been outed yet, but I have recognised a parent from my child's class and a colleague of my husbands (quite a specific job) . Both times I have kept quiet and said nothing (but yes have checked their posts to make sure). I tend to only reply to posts rather than starting posts. I'm sure SIL if on here would recognise me if she read my family ones but as I can't stand her I don't care.

@Elfranko I think it happens a lot. Especially when the papers pick up stories, that then do the rounds on Facebook, etc.

According to most deletion messages it happens all the time hmm

Yes, funny how it's usually an AIBU or a Relationships thread where the OP gets a bit of a pasting and then suddenly they are concerned about having posted too much identifying information, even if there really isn't any.

She told an anecdote on here she had told me just the day before.

I've done that LOADS of times and then thought 'Shit! Bugger!'

I have massively.

I posted a picture and a newspaper made a story out of it. Long story short everyone I know knew it was me
For this reason I always NC when posting about certain things and thankfully I had NC for that so it couldn't be linked to any of my other posts. Phew!

How do you name change again? I keep meaning to try it but forget how to do it.

I have very few close friends so I doubt it! 😂

There's one I recognise because of the way she talks but I haven't told her and don't read her posts if I recognise it's her as I respect the privacy.
There's another I suspect because of the way she types but again haven't said anything and don't know the person well enough to take note of what she's saying in rl or on here

This always fascinates me. How many millions of people in the UK and people recognise each other on here! I've always felt so anonymous.

I have been, under a different user name. Had posted early hours of the morning in Relationships, got amazing support - work colleague found the thread, put 2 and 2 together and printed it off for the team to read/ gossip about.

@GertrudeCB that's disgusting behaviour!

A few years ago i had a thread wrote about me the details and everything it made me sick to read it and worse when i heard the posters description of me. It was horrible

I have, twice. The first time was just over 4 years ago, I posted asking if it was normal to get texts from school at 8-9pm at night and the first reply to my post was "I just got that text too!" Turned out it was a mum who had a child in my daughters class and we got chatting and now we're really close friends

Second time wasn't so nice. I posted about something I was angry about, somebody identified my situation (Although I've no idea how or who!), told someone else who signed up to Mumsnet purely to call me out and totally outed me by using my full name and several other people who were involved full names too I had no idea who the person was who recognised me so I had to ask MNHQ to delete my entire posting history because I'd previously posted about some very private, personal things

I have, on an old username and the person who recognised me told me she was going to tell my MIL everything I had said.
I feigned ignorance and she listed everything I had posted that proved it was me, because it all connected.
She was cray cray.
Then I’ve had this username for about 5 years now and don’t know if anyone knows who I am. Hello if you do!

Yes, SIL found out I was on here, and her and her friends spent hours trawling through threads to find me. Which they did. I'd not long had a dc so it didn't take a huge amount of imagination to work out what boards I might be on.

I suspected so posted a few dummy facts, which made it pretty obvious.

I now name change regularly.

8 years ago I turned up to a toddler group in a dress that got he outed from an S&B thread in which we all started wearing dresses

I don't think so.. But if I happen upon one of my old posts I recognise my writing style.

Time for another name change.

I bet I won't be the only one

Once I posted about the names we'd given our dc and more than one person contacted me to ask if it was me. Mumsnet deleted my posts for me asap, I namechanged and it's never been an issue since.

I have been a long while back. I would rather people did not.

Hasn't happened to me but I fear that it will do. I share a lot of personal stuff on here - relationship stuff, health worries. Things I don't feel comfortable talking to anyone in RL about. I post a lot of trivial stuff too but I wouldn't want any thing personal linked back to me. Definitely not. That's why I change my username very regularly. I'll also maybe change small details of a story if it's particularly niche or outing.

Anonymity is so important to people using forums like this.