GirlChat #541788
Re: I still get nervous about all this.
Posted by lgsinmyheart on 2011-October-17 21:31:27 EDT, Monday
In reply to I still get nervous about all this. posted by AK47 on 2011-October-17 04:17:33 EDT, Monday
There are two different worries here. Let me see if I can address them separately.
I use TOR and I never do anything illegal, ever, but I still get this nervous feeling that someone is going to find out.
Unless someone is over your shoulder, this should not be a worry. Or at least should not have to.
Always visit GC on SSL (https).
Use a different browser or at least browser profile for GC and GL related browsing than you use for the rest of your browsing.
Use TOR for the most traffic you can (it can be impractical on some things, admittedly - and the benefit specific to GL is that it prevents traffic analysis even from ISP logging. To you to assess how much your other browsing is benefited by your usage of TOR. Are you planning a Spring or Occupying in your city?).
And of course, don't use the internet for accessing illegal stuff like Webe Web, or even for legal but stupid stuff like setting up your dates.
But this worry is general and impersonal.
Someone is going to realize I am a paedophile. I just don't want to deal with that. I really do have a great life. I may decide to put it at risk when I am older for activism but for now, while I still have my youth, I just want to enjoy my life and have fun.
This worry is personal and specific.
Related to what you do online, all I can say is don't provide identifiable material. Read the welcome posts; and follow all the links. They say essentially everything to be said about how not to provide, or confuse, identifiable things. I have no problem saying that I am a French citizen living in Pakistan; but others would have it. That is still not as identifiable as when you say cities or states, or provide in general further data. Don't give them info they shouldn't have. Then you'd be all right.
Of course, this also implies to keep your GL accounts and the rest of your online life separate. The mail address you use for GC, apart from being secure, should not be the same you use for your mail with your friends, family or job (unless you're out). It should not be associated to any account in a different forum or on a socnet (unless you're out and part of the purpose of the account is preaching / debate / activism).
In time you will likely make friendships here. You decide your pace. You decide if anyone of them has proven their reliability enough that you trust them with any means of communication not exclusive to GL issues, such as personal mails, IMs or phone numbers; or with info that links directly to the person you are offline, like socnet profiles or photos of yourself. I know of no person here that absolutely denies all of these to everyone else. But I also know of no person that gives this to everyone and has survived to tell (except Markaba, but he was already out).
It has always been a broken, missing or weak link in any of these that has outed posters. Except for keeping accounts separate, all involve a deal of discretion, so it is NOT easy to balance. But what is easy is to be aware and when in doubt, err in the side of caution.
Maybe this is immaturity? I hate the word, but I don't know how to describe it.
No, it's just that you never encountered this before.
Every time I finish a GM I don't want to post it. I make myself anyway. I have this nagging thought that says, "someone is going to put two and two together. Even with all your safeguards they are going to realize who you are through your posts. It is only a matter of time." I literally write here on GC and on VoA different than I normally do, I use TOR, and I keep identifying personal info hidden, but it still nags the shit out of me.
Read the security/outing posts again.
If in doubt, don't post it. Save it for a later decision.
And if more in doubt, insert falsehoods. Do you really believe that Sancho went to New York this summer?? HAR-HAR you're gullible!!!
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