Ronald J. Angel, Catherine E. Rudder. Rosa Haritos, Pilar Nicole Ossorio. Susan S. Ellenberg, Sue Leurgans. To launch a formal discussion of the ethical, social, legal, and commercial dimensions of anonymity on the Internet, a AAAS conference gathered some 40 experts from a number of fields, including the social sciences, law, technology, philosophy, and commerce. On 21 through 23 November at the University of California at Irvine, participants from such organizations as the American Civil Liberties Union, the U.S. Department of Justice, and Human Rights Watch gathered to share their perspectives on the uses and abuses of anonymous communications on the Internet.
Anonymity is a very complex issue that needs more exploration.
This conference was a fabulous start. Research presented at the conference showed that the biggest barrier to the Internet being used as a marketplace is consumers' lack of trust regarding privacy. Technology that ensures anonymity and pseudonymity could help alleviate their concerns. Cottrell invented and manages Mixmaster, an online service for sending anonymous communications. Cottrell discussed that he finds it worrisome that most people do not realize that their Internet activities can be monitored if they do not use anonymizing technology.