
Ask HN: How about an anonymous social network? - mythriel
Over the last weeks(since all the crazy stuff regarding the NSA) I was thinking of this startup that would be an anonymous social network. Well not 100% anonymous, your profile would be public&#x2F;private with your data but everything you do and all your comments to other people will be anonymous(messages encrypted even in the database based on tokens). This would also validate the idea behind you will get real answers to your questions, real and honest feedback to your photos and so on. What do you guys think of this idea, is it a valid startup?
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krapp
It's an interesting idea. The number of 'throwaway' accounts on HN suggests
there might be some value to a network where now and then a comment or thread
couldn't be traced back to an account.

It doesn't mean at all that you would necessarily get more valid answers to
your questions. If that were true, the boards on 4chan that aren't /b/ would
be glittering beacons of civilized discourse. People given the mask of
anonymity can act more truthfully but also deceptively because they don't bear
the consequences of identity.

Of course, there's public anonymity and there's anonymity to the mods and
anonymity in the database. If the NSA wants to know who's who in your network,
encrypting messages and hashing IPs probably isn't going to keep them at bay.
What will the server logs tell them, for instance? Or packet sniffing? Or
planting a mole on your staff?

If you allow file and image uploads by anonymous posters, you WILL inevitably
wake up one day and find a ton of child porn, that's just how anon rolls
sometimes. How will you deal with gore, porn and copyrighted material? When
someone makes a threat against another user and posts personal information
about them, will you go to the police? Under what conditions would you as an
administrator violate the anonymity of your users?

Maybe only allow the anonymous posters to post text, or make certain that the
mods can tell which account it really is (although this by definition makes
the system less secure for users.) Either way, I think you'll need to be
prepared for trolling and mischief, have your moderators ready with a clear
set of guidelines, and even a few rather fascist options available like
blocking Tor if need be.

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ishener
Why not just have a social network where you required _not_ to provide any
real information about yourself. You must create an anonymous virtual
identity.

Another idea I once had was an anti-social network called "strangers". In this
network you add people you know as friends, and all of their activity is
hidden for you, and all your activity is hidden for them. You can only
discover and interact with complete strangers.

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arh68
What would your profile look like? I'm a little confused. At first glance,
does this add any features past what 4chan has already done? It's 100%
anonymous and you get real answers (though I think we've got different
definitions of 'real'). I think if you can make 4chan "a nice place to visit"
with your friends' photo/text updates with the same all-data-expiring-soon
policy, you've got a niche.

I'm also reminded by CupidWithFriends, though that's a slightly different
concept.

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mythriel
from what I see 4chan is not a social network :)

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krapp
It is, but their idea of society differs from the norm...

