Exercise 5.1: The many faces of you

Make a list of all your online identities

Do you show multiple identities or are you consistent across all instances?


I can divide my online identities into three: private, study-related and work-related. My private online identity is informal and relaxed but would contain details of commercial transactions and credit card details. My study online identity is Masters coursework-oriented and my work online identity is professional and quite formal.



What does your "persistent identity" online say about you, and what shouldn't it say?

I've tried to keep the details of my 'persistent identity' (those over which I have some control) as simple and brief as possible: name, gender and age range, location, employer and education provider. I don't want my online persistent identity to reveal personal information such as names of children, partners, parents etc, financial or medical history. Neither do I reveal my likes and dislikes etc because I don't want to be bombarded with unsolicited offers or information.



Analyse and comment on other aspects of your 'persistent identity' across all those multiple identities.


For privacy and safety reasons I prefer to keep as much control as possible over who has access to information about me. I've responded to the digital era "by affecting a Luddite position, using a twentieth century model for "official identity" (less is more") as the guide for policy in the twenty-first" (Jordan, Hauser & Foster, 2003. p.28). My three multiple identities or 'personas' allow me, to some extent, to decide who should know what. However I've noticed that, as I become more relaxed and familiar with online communities, the boundaries between private, study and work identities begin to blur. I've also become more comfortable with online shopping and bill payment, risking insecurity and purchase decision privacy for convenience.

It may be worth noting that, as far as the commercial aspect of my persistent identity goes, I have two other identities - two daughters who share my credit card - which may confound the creation of a consistent commercial online profile for me.

Reference:

Jordan, K, Hauser, J & Foster, S., (2003). The augmented social network: building identity and trust into the next generation Internet. First Monday. Retrieved September 2, 2009, from http://www.uic.edu/htbin/cgiwrap/bin/ojs/index.php/fm/article/view/1068/988