Po’ailani
Photo Essay
Anonymous
The internet has given people the confidence to say things online but not in person,
anonymous or not. They pretend to be something or someone they’re not and hurt others, they
send unknown messages that some can’t trace. Doing this affects people because they don’t
know how to act when they meet face to face.
There are many different reasons why people use the internet, some use it as a way of
communication, and others sometimes abuse the ability to use the internet by bullying, stalking
and hacking. Over the past couple of years as more and more people use the internet, it has
affected how people talk to each other in person. Online dating has become a very popular thing
over the years, kids, teenagers and adults are able to talk to anyone that is online and many
relationships are online and require the internet to keep in touch.
Being anonymous gives people the chance to speak their mind. Some people might have
a hard time saying something to someone else’s face so they will try to say it anonymously,
whether it is online, on a sheet of paper or anything. But letting people go anonymous is also a
bad thing, some may go on crazy rants about a subject that bothers them, some will try to be
someone they’re not, and some will try to hurt people by being anonymous.
Stalking, cyber bullying and hacking has become a problem, stalkers go online
anonymously and verbally and emotionally abuse and steal one’s self and information. Some
find information about them online or hack into their computers using viruses, and follow them
wherever they go. These people can emotionally hurt someone and threaten them to the point
where they are too scared to walk out of their doors.
An example of stalking is the case of Philip Markoff, the “Craigslist killer”. According to
the NY daily news, Philip Markoff used Craigslist to help him find people and get money. He
answered ads from prostitutes and met up with them, robbed them and killed them. Philip
Markoff used the internet as a way to find his victim and hurt them. He has been accused of
murdering Julissa Brisman and is also being charged for a kidnapping and robbery.
People steal others identities for different reasons like money, medical information,
social security and other personal things. They do this so that they don’t have to pay for certain
expenses and so that they can make money. Hackers have thought of different ways to get
someone’s information, by emailing and putting viruses into a program.
An example of identity theft is this one case when a woman’s sister used her credit card
and name to buy personal products and commit crimes. Because of this, this woman was denied
housing and had to get her fingers printed and had to fax the information of the crimes to the
police department. Her sister is now in jail serving time for all the crimes she has committed.
Being anonymous has affected things because its communications are unfiltered and
there is no privacy. There are online threats and fear is caused, violence has increased because of
the threats enacted. Information is often misleading over the internet or anything having to do
with a text. Some people will take information and twist it, making it a bigger deal than it should
have been.
Images by Po’ailani