The internet has opened a new frontier of information sharing and communication. We can find someone or some information in mere seconds. We can communicate with billions in mere clicks. We can make or break our reputation in one meager posting.

Years ago, when the internet was in its infancy, and the web was the gopher system, I noticed an interesting phenomenon. Individuals who were very introverted or anti social in real life sometimes took on a whole new identity in the cyber world. I personally like to be a straight shooter, and prefer my cyber identity to match my real persona.

This phenomenon was especially apparent on bbs', forums, and mailing lists. Especially in the online Muslim community, people who didn't exist on campus or in communities, were very prominent online. Cyber shaikhs issuing cyber khutbahs and fatawas. I would always email some of these cyber personalities with .edu domains, "hey I am on campus all the time at all the meetings, lectures and activities, how come I never run into you"
The benign ones simply had a much different cyber personality than real life. People carried themselves online in ways that conflicted so much with their real life personalities. Because they could. because the keyboard and monitor were protective barriers to real social interaction, fears and consequences.

I remember two scenarios that were funny yet illustrated the online alter egos. I was a moderator on a bbs years ago and noticed some unsavory contact between a gentleman and a young lady (and I mean young). I contacted the young lady's brother to notify him of concerns about what was going on. I then received threatening messages from the gentleman. After doing a little bit of investigative work, I emailed him back and said I would be down the street from his house on such and such a day and time and would welcome a face to face discussion(or him at least not hiding behind his keyboard with such threats). Of course he didn't show.
Similarly, a little pest who bid for and never paid for something from me on ebay and then gave me negative feedback (not sure how Ebay let that one go), emailed me months later offering to mutually remove the negative feedback. I said sure, just pay what you owe and we are all set. He responded with some nice words. Again, a little investigative work, and I sent him his address, phone number, the names of his family members, and an invitation to cut the crap. I didn't hear from him again.

Later, the malignant forms of cyber alteregos popped out, email addresses by individuals run by groups or organizations with agends. Fake names and fake emails. Hacked email/moderator accounts.

The beauty of the internet was with a little investigative work, we could find out who was really who. Just track the login ips for the user domains.

Things have become much more complex, but yet the trouble has gotten much worse. The New York Times had a wonderful article about Trolls that highlights the pheonomena.

It must be exciting for people to feel they can do what they want online. Extort, threaten or just harass others.

Just because you can do something, and not be prosecuted for it, doesn't mean you should. The old adage do unto others as you would have others do unto you should be applied in all settings, especially online. Unfortunately nothing can be done about these cyber threats until each and every individual takes it upon themselves to be responsible and accountable.