Canadian Judge Orders Disclosure of Anonymous Posters 250
debrain writes "The Globe and Mail is reporting that Google and a newspaper called The Coast must disclose all information they have about the identity of individuals who posted anonymous comments online about top firefighters in Halifax. The story in question is titled 'Black firefighters file human rights complaint,' and there are some heated opinions in the comments."
Re:From TFA (Score:4, Interesting)
"Anonymous" on the internet (Score:4, Interesting)
Posting anonymously on the internet is much like yelling something from the middle of a crowd. Most of the time no one cares who yells it. Even if they do, chances are they may not be able to track down the person who did the yelling. But if you're going to go out and shout things, you should be prepared for consequences (like the guy next to you decking you), even if there's a sign at the perimeter of the crowd saying "All shouting is anonymous."
If someone cares enough to track you down for posting something stupid online, and you've made it POSSIBLE to track you down (instead of using a disposable e-mail and an internet connection that doesn't link back to your name), then maybe you deserve to pay some price for your comments. Especially if there's no legal protection behind the "Post Anonymously" checkbox.
Re:From TFA (Score:5, Interesting)
Even more interestingly, many people in Canada fail to realise how great our privacy laws are, and how fortunate we are not to be living in the United States.
Personally, probably because I was born and raised in Canada, I wouldn't give up my right to privacy in exchange for the US idea of freedom, in which theory is very different from practise.