Do you feel comfortable disclosing your real name?

I think Deepak, we must ensure others privacy and self respect. When someone is hesitant to reveal his/her real name there must be reasons behind and we must not be judgmental. A true netizen must never disclose some personal data which includes real names as well. Today we are most vulnerable and while you do not have any bad intention there might be someone who has! You never know! And it requires a long time and conviction you trust someone whom you meet on net. So, we MUST respect individual's feeling. If you ask me, I have let out my real name on many occasions to my close friends. My name and surname is very common and there are thousands with the same. Having said this, I do not give out any further of my personal details like address, phone number and so on. Certainly, we could run risk of higher dangers! And its better to be safe than sorry, isn't it?

I would not think it as hiding the name Deepak. It's more like people disclosing thier particulars which they are comfortable with, be it their name, their age, city and so on. They may be some who have had bad experiences and they may be some who would like to safe and not have bad expereincess. At the same time i havve never been judgmental in this regard and would always respect thier need for privacy.

I think people dont want to disclose their real names because they are afraid of stalkers and identity theft and stuff like that. I've found,however, that real stalkers tend to stalk in real life instead of the internet. hmm. weird. My name is Shilo by the way.

Hello deepak! Hmmm, I was wondering who's that person is..heheh.. As far as I remember, I give you my real name when you asked me right. My username is my real name either although the last name is my married name. I guess others would thought it would be too dangerous to give their real name to someone they don't really know. I heard there are lots of incidents about that but I don't know what. Maybe some stalking or something.

hello Dpk.....Well I guess every person who mylots is entitled to his or her privacy because this is a universal site and people all over the world have access to it.I guess this is the very reason that mylot itself has made provision for each mylotter to have an avatar so that each person can mylot peacefully and freely under cover of the avatar name.I think this is the reason why mylot is so popular among every one. Of course those who want to mylot using their real name can also do so freely,and some people even have their real life picture as their avatar.Its all a matter of personal choice I guess.... I too have an avatar name,though most of my close friends know my real name.I suppose its for the sake of preserving the true identity for their own personal reasons that they do not disclose their real name.Also some people may not be interested in making online friends.But dont you worry Dpk ,with over 1 lakh members on the list,even if a few are not ready to disclose their identity to you,you should not be disheartened,but on the other hand you should take it as a blessing in disguise,since it will be difficult for you too to remember all their names...... ...........

I agree that many members are not very comfortable about disclosing their names to other members. There are bound to be many reasons for this.First of all they may like to remain annonymous, which gives them a certain amount of comfort.I had a niece who was harassed by some youngsters after they came to know her real name and city.She had to change her id and start all over again. So I guess people are vary of the trouble that they might encounter by being too frank and open

Hi Deepak, You know I am using my real name Sudipta, here. I have no problem about using my real name but its my pix that I am scared of using. Everyday on mylot I see so many people posting their pixes and I feel tempted too, but discretion warns me against it. In my personal email too, I have never used my photos. I think of the internet as the universe itself and we really do not know how someone may tamper what information from where and use it how. The worst I think are photos…with computer imaging so advanced and prevailing, photos can be misused at random and we may not even be aware of it.

hi dpk...well i think that you hit it..they want their privacy..nothing else...and wondering also if those people who disclosed their names here are really their true names??..in my opinion i really respect anyone's privacy and their respective motives of not telling their real names...i think everyone have their own personal reasons...

A lot of people have alredy given their views on this.....I liked what mimpi1911 had to say. I feel that people mostly avoid giving out real names because they feel unsafe. There could have been earlier occasions when giving out real personal info must have caused them trouble. Anyone could misuse your information....for nay reason....even for fun. Yes, it is hard to trust a person who does not reveal his/her real identity to you and asks to be friends with you. But i feel that you could be net friends and share opinions...you need not know a person for that. At times you discuss stuff on mylot that you do not wish to share with certain relatives and friends....so being anonymous saves you the embarassment.

Sarah Beth is the name i Wish was my real name. I hate my real name.I use Sarah ruth beth because when I became a member , there was a Sarah Beth here already, Now I love the Ruth I added.There is only one real close friend who knows my real first name.and the only reason I told him was because I felt bad using Sarah and not him not knowing it isn't the name on the birth certificate.We have been friends for at least a year. And I liked that he wasn't upset when I told him that Sarah isn't my real name. so I told him and of course he said he likes my real name but he still calls me Sarah because I prefer it.I had another freiend who told me his real name but I told him when I think of him, I use his username.

I am usually quite concerned about safety, but in the case you mention - disclosing our name - I have no problems. When I send a PM or respond to one I sign it with my name, not with arkaf. Mostly because if I am sending or receiving a PM it is for/from a mylot friend. Secondly what harm will come from others knowing it? It's not like I'm disclosing my address or phone number. However, I think that in some cases people are quite used to their nick names and use them as an habit and not with the intention of not giving their real name.

Hello again... I'm a little cautious when it comes to sharing something about me on the Internet. For example, here in Mylot. It took me awhile before I got the courage to share my real name to a couple of friends I've met here. And I've given thought about it, weighed the consequences and decided to go for it. As for my reason for hiding my real identity behind a username, I still like to leave a little mystery about me. Mylot is a big whole new world, but there's still a chance that someone out there does know me. And sometimes in our discussions, we can't help but pour out our deepest emotions, our hurts and pains. And if I combine that with revealing who I really am, then it's hello being totally vulnerable for me.

Hi Deepak i normally dont mention my name at mylot but friends i exchange PM and mails from hotmail/gmail. they not only know my name but sure lot more than that if u have trust, there is no harm in sharing this info Take care

Hi Deepak, I think it depends on the individual, if somebody had some bad experience they definitely will cautious for disclosing their name. Normally I do not ask anybody's name but if we exchange some PM, mostly the other parties disclose their name by themselves (I prefer to interact with females more, may be this is one of the reason) I have given my real name here and in the beginning I was really new in sites and didn’t realize the dangers so I have given my real name everywhere. So later when I realized the dangers in net, I changed my real name in some sites (even though I am not active there) and I felt in mylot it is not necessary. If somebody not ready to reveal their name to you, don’t feel bad about it, let them know about you more and they will definitely tell their name by themselves. So have patience.

Hi deepak! I really have no problem disclosing my real name if someone will PM me. I guess, some mylotters just want to remain anonymous and have some privacy. I do understand that most of us are private people and will not disclose any personal information unless they trust the other person. Some have been using this site as an avenue to share and release their personal feelings,problems,etc..that is probably why they don't want to be identified. Take care and have a wonderful day! lovelots..faith

Hi I never mind disclosing my real name here. Infact my username itself is having my name. I do understand some people here dont want to disclose their real name its upto them. Happy myloting.

In your avatar you did not give your own photo.It's a picture of a baby.That means you are hiding your face.Similarly most of myLot members don't want to disclose theier real name.Every myLotter have some friends and among them some are very close.I think if you don't know the real name it does not matter.We are not doing penfriendship.Without knowing name we have close friendship to each other.Perhaps it's my first contact with you.In future you may be one of my best friends of mine. With best wishes--bhanusb.

I dont mind sharing nicknames, but since my first name is very rare..i don't like sharing it i dont know why, but what if a potential stalker just happens to decide to stalk you? wouldnt you feel weird that someone you've never met knows your name? :\ just an opinion, and for surnames, same reason ^__^ interesting discussion

Hello my friend dpk262006 Ji, Well, I would like to go into response by thinking, was there any concept adopted to use userID's name not-rael ones. How it happened. In fact, as I remember, my hubby's first time account was opened in yahoo for email purpose by one of his friend's son , and same is alive and active even today, and later on many places, taht he had to maintaine a file for that. Suppose, you , I and anyone member here for taht matter open an account, by real name, who is stopping us, till it has not been used by another user. No body is going even to stop you to post your real photo as well. To put you on record, today only my friend request was acceded and I found a PM adding friend's Email ID, which I never asked Everyone, is privacy concious. Let's be transparent. I would have followed you, if you would have disclosed your identity at start of this discussion introducing . may god bless you and have great time.

Hello Dpk :) A natural thing about which to wonder. I am not hesitant to give my real name, but I know that some people have had bad experiences with stalkers and such when they give out their full names. I think those kinds of fears and the warnings on TV and such about revealing to much personal information is why they hesitate. I see nothing dangerous to anyone, though, about giving out at least their real first name. A good discussion! Karen