In the past few weeks, some 'experiments' have been going on via the craigslist "casual encounters" posting area. These experiments have crisply underlined the risks of the substantial volume of "blind trust" that exists on the Internet today. Folks all-too-frequently email and call and meet people they don't know from Adam (or Eve). Especially as it concerns online dating, there's some material risk here. Risk that can be managed and mitigated, but often is not—as the tales below demonstrate all too scarily.
The first experiment was created by blogger Simon Owens. Mr. Owens posted a series of fake ads, and tallied up statistics about the responses based on the assumed poster identity. His results are not entirely surprising, but interesting regardless. While we might assume that his interest was in part libidinous, his subsequent reporting of his results suggest it was also academic*. From here, things got messy.
Be advised that while I have taken efforts to ensure that the individual links below do not contain any pictures that might be considered offensive, they do contain language that might be considered offensive, and there are links on the pages that will connect you to NSFW content.
The next exercise (I think it clearly was not an 'experiment') was conducted by blogger Jason Fortuny. He posted an ad and then proceded to publish the responses he received, including personal information from the respondents, and any pictures received. A copycat blogger, cosmicjohn, did likewise in another geography, also posting the responses, in toto, online.
Although I've been known to play one on occassion, I am not an attorney. So I won't attempt to discuss the legal ramifications of what these experiments hath wrought. The folks at Wired seem to think that these guys have crossed the line. We'll presumably know in due time.
As a member of the craigslist community, we at TrustPlus find the posting of the respondents' personal information deeply disturbing. The potential downside for some of these respondents is substantial, and will presumably include job losses, divorces, and community scorn.
Blind trust online can clearly be risky. It can also be dangerous. At TrustPlus we believe you shouldn't have to ever rely on blind trust when you're online, and in the not-too-distant future that risk will be largely eradicated.
While there's no excusing the capricious dispensing of personal information by the respondents, there certainly are common-sense processes and tools—such as ours for craigslist—available to help manage potentially risky, blind-trust interactions online.
Shawn
with a nod to Scott
* As far as I know, Mr. Owens did not share any personal details about his respondents.
