RealID to come to the Official Blizzard Forums

[Kicksome]

I'm not a fan of this as all, and it would prevent me from posting on the WoW forums. Many of us have pretty serious careers and the last thing I need coming up in a Google search of my name is a video game. It's a hobby of mine, and something that wouldn't be well accepted in my professional network.

Big mistake, IMO. If they link armory to RL names, I may be done with the game for good.

Yeah, how long will it be until Employers not only do background checks, facebook, myspace etc.. checks, but also start checking video game forums to see how you're spending your time before they hire you.

[Kicksome]

Could you imagine how pissed people would be if they added the realid name to all the OLD posts - lol.

[zenga]

1) I'm going to delete any posts I've made on the wow forum. (about a handful).
2) I'll refrain from posting on the wow forums.

I decided not to jump on the band wagon of social networksites. I decided long time ago to keep my real identity separated from my virtual identity. I decided not to use my credit card online for 'entertainment'.

It's a personal choice to keep my privacy private. Not so much because I have to hide anything, but rather because I like to keep control over such things. It was for me already a huge step to submit my rl information upon creating a blizz account.

While I support the effort they make to keep the forums troll free, with more valuable info, ... it's a bit pointless imo:

One can buy the game in a store with simple cash, as well as a gamecard, no identification needed whatsoever. If one's real name is john doe he can simply make an account under a jane doe name. This while 13 year old kids might post under their real name (even if parents 'agreed to supervise them').

I dunno, but they seem to open new candy stores every other day for people with bad intentions.

[ILikeTwins]

I can tell you right now that this is the sort of thing that will cause me to cancel all of my wow subscriptions. If they want to expose everyone's true identity to internet data miners then that's fine but leave me out of it. I believe this is going to be a HUGE mistake on their part. May people won't care as they already have their names plastered halfway across the internet but I guarantee that there are many people like me that never joined facebook because they are worried about it coming back to bite them somehow (they couldn't care less if your identity is stolen or if you don't get a job because of them as long as they have their adverstisers). Since my opinion doesn't really matter to Blizzard then the only thing I can do to protect myself is not play their game anymore.

[Kicksome]

I think another big problem we'll have... Search engines...

Let's say someone google's your full name. The worldofwarcraft.com is such a "powerful" website that I bet real names will start showing up in results - probably first.

e.g. You meet someone, and they later google your name to check you out. First results come up on the wow.com forums about how Shamans need to get buffed, and how BS it is that Pallys are OP. Nice first impression, even if it's not really you.

[balderrdash]

This is just a terrible idea, I was hoping it was April Fool's. I think I've posted three or four times on those forums, and complain about them as much as anybody, but this is an awful solution.

[Asuka]

Let's say someone google's your full name. The worldofwarcraft.com is such a "powerful" website that I bet real names will start showing up in results - probably first.

I just googled my posting alt's name on the o-boards.

1st google link was my armory.
2nd link was all of my posts.
3rd link was some site on threadmeter with my posts.
4th was totally unrelated to wow. Thanks to RealID, I now know that my posting alt is named after a bunch of rocks. I used the random name generator when creating that alt.

[Tehmuffinman]

Bashiok added some clarification

SRC: http://forums.worldofwarcraft.com/th...&pageNo=34#667

One important point which I don't believe has been relayed yet is that the switch to showing RealID on the forums will only happen with the new forum systems we're launching for StarCraft II shortly before its release, and a new forum system for World of Warcraft launching shortly before the release of Cataclysm.

All posts here on the current World of Warcraft forums, or any of our classic Battle.net forums, will remain as-is. They won't (and can't) automatically switch to showing a real first and last name.

All posts in the future on the new forum systems will be an opt-in choice and ample warning will be given that you're posting with your real first and last name.

[Daeri]

How long before the real name is shown on armory as well ? :P

The new message notation system will be fun too.

[Fat Tire]

Bashiok added some clarification

SRC: http://forums.worldofwarcraft.com/th...&pageNo=34#667

This is insane!

Wonder what would happen when an account gets hacked and John Smith is plastered all over the boards linking to gold/porn, whatever. If the original owner didnt want his name lambasted in public could he/she have a defamation suit? Now a days most employers also include a 'google' facebook,myspace etc. background search on you when you apply for a job.