MS Bans " offensive" Gay Gamertags

Kotaku


Well, I' d post more on this shocking development, but I' ve got a game with KY Jelly Beans, xX Bloody Fartz Xx, OsamaBinModdin and WaTzUrCupZize, we need to discuss the breaking down of the moral fabric of society.

Seriously... who does Live think they' re kidding with this one? When every other person on Call of Duty 4 has THIS [8==D] as their clan tag....

While the whole ' Gay' issue is quite archaic, I' m more interested in why someone would use their full first name and last name in their gamertag? It' s not exactly the smartest of moves.

I' m more interested in why someone would use their full first name and last name in their gamertag? It' s not exactly the smartest of moves.

Why' s that? People see my name in real life and yet somehow I survive. I use my real name on forums and still somehow my life has not been impacted in a negative fashion. My " Gamer tag" (I really hate that term) is not my real name because it was already used (from when I had Live on the original Xbox). it did not let me restore it because it had been so long and I couldn' t remember the password or some such and I just chose something else.

Don' t be afraid of the world, man. Don' t be afraid. Everything will be OK. I promise.

I' m not paranoid Joe. But there is such a thing as being smart about what you divulge to random strangers - especially in the online world. Take a network security course and you' ll see how sometimes it' s incredibly easy to obtain anything just from a name.

And it' s also one of the rules in the XBL code of conduct:

Don' t give out information that personally identifies you (such as your real name, address, phone number, credit card number, etc.) while you' re playing. This includes voice chat and the names you create for your gamertag or mottos. This information could be used by other players for illegal or harmful purposes. Also, don’t give out the personal information of other players.

You could gain a lot with just an IP address. But in order to really hide, I' d have to let no one know my name EVER. That means I couldn' t sign or request any legal documents, I couldn' t get mail, etc.

Please indicate how having my name plastered all over the internet has worked against me. I don' t publish my address. I wouldn' t be afraid to put a picture of my car with its license plate showing, though.

From your sarcasm, I can see that you' re not really getting the point. I' m not saying anyone who divulges their first/last name on the internet is going to be a victim of identity fraud.

Just as everyone who speeds in cars doesn' t crash. Yet that doesn' t necessarily make speeding safe.

In the event something does happen, why make it easier for someone to take advantage of you? This isn' t just my opinion either. It' s a widely accepted security practise to not divulge personal information. It' s like the ABC of security.

But anyway, we' re off the point now.

But I know my boss' name. So do a lot of other people. You need more than a name to get away with identity fraud. A forum I participate in REQUIRES your real name to even join. Nobody on that forum has experienced any bad things because of it, and we have over 5,000 members. A lot of people (though not all) who publish reviews and articles on the internet and in real magazines/newspapers use their real names. I' ve used my real name when publishing articles in international publications. I imagine I piss off a lot of people, so if anyone ever wanted to screw someone over good, I bet I' d be a prime target.

More like the ABC' s of paranoia. Don' t get me wrong, I' m not saying everyone should use their real name, just that it' s not as dangerous as you seem to think. I have been the victim of credit card identity theft, and that was not due to me using my real name anywhere on the internet. Instead, it was an unscrupulous employee at Nintendo of America who stole my card information after I ordered something from there.

" William Edward Toms"

Good luck trying to find me, no less anything of value about me.

...No seriously. I will be majorly impressed if you can find anything beyond a stark MySpace page.

I believe im more or less the one and only guy with my name. maybe there is one or two more, but not many, im the first if you google me

There' s too many people with my name. a person in my class at college had the same full name as me, except for one letter in the last name, then another guy had the exact same first and last name.

"If you knew how good I am you would think I'm modest."

I believe im more or less the one and only guy with my name. maybe there is one or two more, but not many, im the first if you google me

So you are the guy that wrote a customer feedback on amazon' s uk page on April 10, 2002 saying how much you hate Amped and that is not similar to SSX??

On topic, but then kind of sliding right back off it again... what kind of parents, knowing that their child is already going to be saddled with a surname like Gaywood, would then add more fuel to the teasing fire by naming him Richard? Let' s see... something for homophobes to pick on, check... something suggestive of an erection, check... let' s name him Dick, too, for the trifecta.

So you are the guy that wrote a customer feedback on amazon' s uk page on April 10, 2002 saying how much you hate Amped and that is not similar to SSX??

That would be me

Richard Gaywood the 3rd. lol

"If you knew how good I am you would think I'm modest."

ha! I didn' t even think about " Dick Gaywood" . Wow, elementary school really must have sucked for that guy.

I got banned for 3 days because in my profile I put " (friends name) is a fag" .