Anyone who’s worked for a large corporation has probably heard “there is no reasonable expectation of privacy”. This applies to computer data, conversations, telephone calls, etc. The Federal Government is most known for this practice and with good reason. They have secrets and data which can be gravely damaging to life and/or industries.
The Chicago Tribune posted an article discussing a case in Illinois where the identity of a forum poster was released by their ISP over disparaging remarks they made. There have been similar cases like this in the past and it always starts a debate over anonymity online. Is it justified, is it a free speech right, is it hall pass to skewer others? Can it be unfairly damaging? The short answer to all is yes.
Honestly, anyone who has any digital smarts about them knows better than to use their assigned IP address. Is it right? No. Is it ethical? No. Does it provide a guarantee of not getting caught? No, but it sure will hinder any traces and probably will result in wasted time by the justice system once the IP address goes overseas. We aren’t condoning this activity but rather making a point. How much money does it take to file a defamation suit? How much court costs are involved to include investigation, etc.? If it involves international traces the cost increases exponentially. The best point of attack is to have the administrators of the forum take down the post or have the courts order them to take it down. Most of these cases are the results of litigation popularity in the US. Everybody wants to get rich off a lawsuit and we are opportunist in a America.
If someone speaks badly of us on a forum or attempts to spread a horrible rumor the first course of action is to ask the administrators to take the posts down. It takes 10 seconds to do it. If it a threat, same resolution. The internet makes everyone a tough guy, because of the anonymity of course. People put too much value into what is said online by mere mortals when they should be concerned with more important and tangible issues.
