No more anonymous forum trolls?

[Threnn]

Actually, I'd be interested to see just how much raw, accurate data can be harvested online from obtaining someone's IRL powerword from a forum. If anyone wants to have a go at me as an example, feel free, and share with us.

Illi, googling your RL name, your twitter account is the 8th link down. Click on that, and I've got your city. Now I add that into the search, and your twitter account moves up to #2. Below that is linkedin, which, yeah, brings up a bunch of people with your name (or longer versions of) in your country. However, the third one on the list is an exact match. And I'll metagame a bit, because you've mentioned what it is you do for work here: that third hit is you. Which means I can see where you work. Click on the link to that company, and (unless you're in a branch office), I can see your work address and their main phone number.

It's not a ton of info, no, but there are some assholes out there who'd find it hilarious to call you at work and, well, be assholes. Or, if they couldn't get through to you directly, waste the time of your receptionist or co-workers while they tried.

It took me longer to type this up than to find that info.

(Oh, by the way, I did, also, find some hot chicks.)

[Tarq]

I encourage everyone who's uncomfortable with this policy or other aspects of RealID to contact Blizzard and politely and logically explain their position. If this is at the level of account cancellation for you, then I doubly encourage you to do so, because nothing talks like money.

[Fells]

Please, please do not call or open petitions regarding this. Please use the forums. Please. The GM department has no sway over this decision. The Devs are watching the forums for feedback.

[Beltar]

This new system has nothing to do with curbing trolling.

Go go World of Farmville?

The question now is, will the shitstorm (and this is the biggest stink by far that I've ever seen get raised over a Blizzard decision in 5 1/2 years of WoW) cause Kotick et al to back off, or is the socially-connected battle.net unstoppable like Skynet?

[Bricu]

Please, please do not call or open petitions regarding this. Please use the forums. Please. The GM department has no sway over this decision. The Devs are watching the forums for feedback.

Jeni makes a brilliant point. This is a decision made by higher ups. The folks answering the phones are just that: Folks who answer phones. Attacking them doesn't make a point, it makes one look like a flaming asshole.

[Aelflaed]

Pretty sure this is just step one of taking Battle.net/Facebook integration past just Starcraft II.

As such? I'm highly, highly dubious that anything will change, but I guess I can hope, right?

[Bricu]

Pretty sure this is just step one of taking Battle.net/Facebook integration past just Starcraft II.

As such? I'm highly, highly dubious that anything will change, but I guess I can hope, right?

Their legal fine print is longer than the actual post.

[Chrystenise]

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Just copy paste the top part and send to all the media. Maybe this will change Blizzards mind =)

<3

[Aelflaed]

For Fells

Yorkie Puppy vs. Water Bottle

(listen to this with sound if you can. Really.)

[Illithias]

Illi, googling your RL name, your twitter account is the 8th link down. Click on that, and I've got your city. Now I add that into the search, and your twitter account moves up to #2. Below that is linkedin, which, yeah, brings up a bunch of people with your name (or longer versions of) in your country. However, the third one on the list is an exact match. And I'll metagame a bit, because you've mentioned what it is you do for work here: that third hit is you. Which means I can see where you work. Click on the link to that company, and (unless you're in a branch office), I can see your work address and their main phone number.

It's not a ton of info, no, but there are some assholes out there who'd find it hilarious to call you at work and, well, be assholes. Or, if they couldn't get through to you directly, waste the time of your receptionist or co-workers while they tried.

It took me longer to type this up than to find that info.

(Oh, by the way, I did, also, find some hot chicks.)

Looks like I should start expecting some telephone calls from the internet in the near future...

In all honesty, this is exactly my intention - I'm reasonably aware of which information I have available online (I used to live with a Security/Crypto fiend who now works for Google in Zurich...), but for the most part, I'd say an absolute minimum of 90% of internet users do not fully understand the extent of their information online or how to ensure a level they wish.

I'm seeing a lot of posts of people saying "Oh, it's difficult to find info with just a real-life name" or "I use my real name all the time in/on X, Y and Z, and I've been fine", which is missing the point entirely. Difficulty is relative to the amount of effort someone's willing to expend on the matter. And while most people can enjoy relatively peaceful existences on the internet, it's not impossible to find drama on the internet without looking for it. Internet drama is not an opt in. Hell - I'd be concerned what may have happened if my identity had been readily and easily available back in '06-'07 when I trolled the forums mercilessly. Some people take internet drama very seriously.

There's innumerable other little satellite issues to these - for example, for every few John Smiths, there's someone with a unique name. Threnn was able to find me in minutes, with only a slightly uncommon name. When I get around to changing my last name to my maternal family name, I will be unique in that regard - I currently can't find that name configuration at all via Google. And I know of someone else in real life who is the only person who comes up in Google via that name.

Ultimately, I'm just elaborating on aspects of the issue I'm sure most people are already aware of. It's something which is likely not to affect me muchly at all if it goes ahead in it's current incarnation, but concerns me in regards to other people. And hey - if they change for the worse and make the changes retroactive, I can show people how to get all their historical posts deleted.

tl;dr - Illi says shit about online security you're already aware of, and invites you to call him at work.