Editing 1279: Reverse Identity Theft
Warning: You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you log in or create an account, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.
The edit can be undone.
Please check the comparison below to verify that this is what you want to do, and then save the changes below to finish undoing the edit.
Latest revision | Your text | ||
Line 8: | Line 8: | ||
==Explanation== | ==Explanation== | ||
β | {{w|Identity theft}} is the criminal method of assuming the identity of an unsuspecting person, usually to get credit in their name. While this is done deliberately, the comic introduces the idea of ''reverse'' identity theft: An older person with little knowledge of computers involuntarily uses another person's {{w|email address}} because | + | {{w|Identity theft}} is the criminal method of assuming the identity of an unsuspecting person, usually to get credit in their name. While this is done deliberately, the comic introduces the idea of ''reverse'' identity theft: An older person with little knowledge of computers involuntarily uses another person's {{w|email address}} because he or she supposed it to be their own. Since most email addresses follow a generic pattern, they simply adapt the pattern to conform with their own name, unaware that someone with the same initial and last name already owns the address. |
Most internet users face at some point the message that their desired email address is "already taken". Because email addresses must be unique and only a limited set of characters is allowed, people with common names usually add numbers to their name. The comic suggests that elder people might easily forget that they had to take, for instance, <code>[email protected]</code> when they signed up. Instead, the person would tell everyone that their address was <code>[email protected]</code>, since that follows the generic pattern and is the most intuitive assumption for them. They are in complete ignorance that the address belongs, in fact, to whomever claimed it first. In this case, the address belongs to [[Randall]] himself. (In case you're wondering, yes, <code>[email protected]</code> is Randall's email according to [http://blog.xkcd.com/2007/07/ the xkcd blag].) | Most internet users face at some point the message that their desired email address is "already taken". Because email addresses must be unique and only a limited set of characters is allowed, people with common names usually add numbers to their name. The comic suggests that elder people might easily forget that they had to take, for instance, <code>[email protected]</code> when they signed up. Instead, the person would tell everyone that their address was <code>[email protected]</code>, since that follows the generic pattern and is the most intuitive assumption for them. They are in complete ignorance that the address belongs, in fact, to whomever claimed it first. In this case, the address belongs to [[Randall]] himself. (In case you're wondering, yes, <code>[email protected]</code> is Randall's email according to [http://blog.xkcd.com/2007/07/ the xkcd blag].) | ||
Line 31: | Line 31: | ||
[[Category:Internet]] | [[Category:Internet]] | ||
[[Category:Identity Theft]] | [[Category:Identity Theft]] | ||
+ | |||
+ | Note from Editor: I have a hyphenated 1st name and 2 mid-names, and I use all of those initials then my last name. |