Anonymous: what is anonymity and what is needed

We all heard such a definition as anonyms. What is this word, where it occurs and from which language appeared - is described in the article.

Meaning of the word

According to the dictionary of foreign words, included in the use of the Russian language, the anonym is a nameless, unknown person who for some reason or other has wished to remain so. Most often, such a definition is found in letters and various messages, when the author or group of people wished to remain incognito. There is a logical question - if they decided to act as anonymous, what is hidden in their messages? Most often it is a manifesto or other information that can damage their status or even life if the interested people find out who published it.

Literature

In the writers' world, anonyms are rare, even if the author does not want to disclose his name, it's enough to take a pseudonym. After all, even the most specific of them attract less attention than the absence of such.

Donations

Another area where it is more expensive to do without anonymity is denunciations, slander and so on. Usually this happens in close or closed collectives, where disclosing information about who exactly "laid" the rest can be cruelly punished - the army, the school, the institute, etc. Or in the event that in the concealment of some unpleasant facts The authorities are interested and one has to complain to those who stand above their positions. So we figured out who the anonyms are, what they do and why.

Love Messages

Sometimes it's completely impossible to tell directly about your feelings to another person. The reasons for this may be mass: the fear of failure, the usual indecision or the case when you are certain that reciprocity, unfortunately, will not get. And it is then that often people resort to the help of anonymous love letters and other messages. Of course, they can not correct the situation, but they bring some relief to the author.

This was very popular at all times, but especially in the XIX century in a secular society. Even when there is no special need for secrecy, anonymity gave letters a mystery and charm. And often this is what the anonyms sought. What is love is a complex matter, but sometimes it is the illusion of the inaccessibility of the object of lust that makes it even more desirable.

Law

Hiding a name is also necessary during the commission of some illegal things, whether they are extremist manifestos calling for violent actions, or criticism of the ruling regime. Fortunately, the latter is not pursued in all countries.

And yet it is worth remembering - the calculation of anonyms is sometimes not such a difficult task. Everything depends on the level of his preparation and kind of actions. From the latter directly depends on whether he will be sought and with what efforts. Or methods. Handwriting, paper, style (if it's a letter or a note) can give knowledgeable people a lot of information. But in our time, when mentioning anonymity is often meant the Internet and everything that is associated with it.

the Internet

The Internet has realized the dream of many people about unlimited communication, especially in the first years of all the fact that no one will know anything about you without your will intoxicated.

But times have changed, and for various reasons anonymity on the Internet as such is less. Perhaps this is for the best - this situation makes some people think about what they say and write on the Web.

More and more often people ask themselves whether it is possible to find out the anonym on the Internet. As in the case of the real world, it all depends on who will look for and for what actions.

If it is a question of finding a wrongdoer with whom you did not agree in a virtual discussion, then this is hopeless. Maximum, what information will be obtained, this is the notorious IP-address, but it is possible to determine only the approximate location of the person and the provider. True, there are methods of social engineering, but it is worth remembering - if you appear on the threshold of his house, intending to "talk heart to heart," then from the point of view of the law you will be wrong.

A separate topic that worries many is the search engines. Rather, their monitoring and information gathering services for subsequent findings and targeted advertising. Most people do not like this fact, but this information is not available to attackers.

Another category of users who are worried about anonymity are hackers. They really have to hide in virtual space, using all available methods: proxy servers, P2P networks - to commit their illegal actions by connecting to foreign access points, etc. But even with the maximum protection from time to time they appear before the law, Because law enforcement agencies are already available much more technical means to find a certain person on the Internet.

However, there are special search engines and browser extensions that prevent the collection of various information about users.

But as for the pronunciation, the word "anonymous" stresses on the penultimate syllable.