Sock puppeting.

[ScarahStratton]

Can I ask how MNHQ are going to deal with this, given that technology now means that it is perfectly possible to post simultaneously, from 2 different devices, showing 2 different IP addresses?

Is it going to be ignored? Or do you have plans afoot to deal with this?

I'm currently Tippexing the wankers off my laptop screen, but it gets complicated. I'm typing this through a 2cm gap atm.

Paisan.

What happened to Stratters?

I won't ask, I don't know what happened but I hope she is alright. I hope I'm not missing something obvious and it was me who upset her or something...has been known I can be that thick.

Another forum I use (I know, I know) has a hide poster option and it didn't break the Internet. It did reduce the frequency of obnoxious trolls and feuding posters. They do allow name changing, but anyone can click your profile and see your namechange history. It's permissible to create a second account in order to go anon for sensitive posts, but not for sockpuppeting or trolling.

Oh, and hiding a poster hides their posts after they namechange too.

If hiding a poster also hides their namechanges that would mean that nobody could ever namechange for privacy ever again.

In the t&c's they say name hanging for sensitive posts is acceptable and it's done by creating a separate account rather than changing your name on your everyday account.

REally? I've never heard of that.

Seems odd if that is hidden away in the t&cs and not commonknowledge

Also, if hiding one hid all, it could be used maliciously. it would mean you could put together all those scraps of information about a poster that get let out over time. Some NC periodically to avoid build up of readily discoverable personal information.

If hiding one meant hiding all, I would dereg and start again. And use the site in a totally different way (eg less sharing of experience, nothing identifiable about whereabouts so no use of MN local, changes to disguise all personal info).

MN have made it so that OP highlighting does not carry over when you change name.

They seem to be happy to preserve the ability to namechange for anonymity.

If you namechange within the same registration then you can't use it maliciously because it would take MNHQ less than a minute to see that it is you.

MN endorse name changing to some extent with the name change competitions at halloween etc

If you name change for reasons of privacy, you could continue to do so but you'd have to reregister with each change.

Zilly, it is in the T&C --and is common knowledge as it arose out of threads asking how to post anonymously because the subject matter is sensitive. Admin clarified that multiple accounts were officially frowned upon as a measure to prevent sock puppeting and trolling but that a caveat would added about anon accounts for privacy reasons.

Thanks, Hester, but I don't understand why you would need to have another account to name change for privacy. If you name change within your one existing account, surely that is privacy enough? Dont tell me it isn't!

Right now if you namechange within your existing account it is private - only MNHQ can tell that it is you.

Hester's suggestion that blocking someone blocks all their namechanges would make it un-private.

Oh, I see; that is very complicating then. Thanks.

That's a huge argument against a Hide Poster option then.

It's not an argument against "hide poster".

It's an argument to say that hiding should only hide that specific name, not all names associated with that registration.

If your nemesis does a Christmas namechange, you'll have to hide them again.

Fair enough, that would work.

It's not a suggestion for here, just a description of how I've seen it done elsewhere, Zilly.

Ah, OK. If you can see everyone's namechange history anyway on your other forum then there's no privacy question to worry about.

Oh, sorry, Hester I got my knickers in a twist and thought you were talking about here when you were talking about there.