It’s easy to forget that one of the primary appeals of the early internet, beyond endless information, chatrooms and porn, was anonymity: Nineties and early Noughties users were drawn to the idea that they could be anyone, doing anything, shedding each new identity by simply logging off. It was a freedom rarely afforded in “real life” and while it came with its down sides (ease of abuse, lack of accountability), it meant agency and control for those in need of escape. Posting, sharing, and then disappearing was the fundamental rhythm and the greatest draw for millions of users.
Of course, this capacity slowly dissolved with the arrival of mainstream social media, and the new appeal of creating a digital shop window for our in-person selves. As soon as 2007, Myspace was already old news and losing to Facebook. The noughties and early 2010s were dominated by this, in retrospect, rapid lurch towards logging on and logging every digital detail, traceable back to a real person. As time went on, and more of ourselves were placed online, the need to erase our paper trail grew at the same rate as our inability to do it.
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