Is Anonymity Really Necessary?

IP banning is not uncommon in email servers, and other servers.
It is usually done where an ISP does not take action to stop abuse flowing out of their network.
The innocent users of the IP can become 'collateral damage'. It is then up the those users to pressure their ISP to take action against the abuser(s).

It is very simple.
If a server admin sees unacceptable volumes of abusive traffic coming from certain IPs, the abuse is reported to the ISP owning the IP. If the abuse is not stopped, then the IP(s) get banned.
The admin doing the banning has to weigh up the costs of the ongoing abuse v. the costs of blocking innocent users of the IPs.

As far as Linden Labs we are require to provide our real life information and be truthful or be in violation of the TOS but I bet there is ways around even this. But if you're doing anything around lot of lindens this may be become a issue.
Personally I haven't tried nor am I interested.

At the end of the day we all know that you can merrily set up an account in SL without providing any form of RL identity whatsoever.

As far as I'm aware this "loop hole" isn't just restricted to the Free/Anonymous accounts where an RL name of "Mickey Mouse" and an email address of [email]Micky7723772@hotmail.com[/email] will get you through the door.

If you want to appear more trustworthy, register a full account but pay with a Pay as You go Visa or Master Card.. heck cancel the card every time you've paid tier and re-enter every time you want to pay tier.. and legally as far as I'm aware - all LL is allowed to know about you after you've deleted your card details, is that your name is Mickey Mouse and you live in Disneyland.

To be honest, you don't have to have a Phd in semantics to understand the difference between anonymity in world, and data protection/privacy in RL.

LL makes a big deal about marketing SL as a new business environment. We all own our own IP, we all have the potential to make RL money - or so we're told.

Unfortunately however, most business people do require the knowledge that if a contractual obligation fails, they can seek recourse in the RL courts. Thus both parties need to have the confidence that when the sh*t hits the fan there is a trail which will allow them (albeit via LL), to seek damages.

Ok, so in a world of micro payments, we're not really going to court to reclaim the 20 cents we paid for some bad hair or a poorly fitting nipple ring. However given LL's apparent aspirations for SL as the commercial environment of the future, we do need to think about the bigger picture.

I've noted that in defence of a completely consequence free SL, some people quote the latin adage "caveat emptor".

Don't get me wrong, in the Rome of Julius Caesar this was thought of as a good maxim.. although so was beating your slaves regularly to keep them obedient.

In 2008 however, we expect the law to protect us to a certain extent from thieves, frauds, and anyone else who may seek to take advantage of us.

It's strange indeed that a virtual environment and a population which prides itself on being the precursors of a glorious new age would be content to subsist in a framework which even creaky old RL finds unacceptable.

Obviously this is only really a commercial perspective. For all those who are here to pursue personal fantasies and escapism only, then ignore everything I've said..

Yes, because of all the stalkers in here with a need to control and follow others, anonymity is necessary in SL.

Every social forum I've ever seen, that hasn't been about discussing something from RL anyway, has broken down irretrievably when non-anonymity is introduced.

Essentially, the reality short-circuits everything, wiping out anything else on the community. You could have been an involved and contributing member for years, but as soon as someone posts a picture of their real selves looking beautiful, it's all forgotten.