Thought Press.

I remember in the 90s when my mother told me I should never give out my name or information out online, for you never know who’s on the other end. How things have changed. Today with social networks like Facebook and Myspace, people are not afraid to post their most personal information online. Is there a chance we may go back to our 1990s cautiousness when the Internet was just beginning?

There are a new services now that take some of the worry out of meeting people online. Welcome to the 21st century where online reputation can be established, just like one establishes credit. First, you can secure your online identity using Trufina. In less than five minutes you can establish an online identity by giving information such as your address, name, birthday, and last for digits of your social security number. Trufina then accesses public records and asks multiple choice questions only you know the answers to, like what county you live in, the value of your home, and previous locations you may have lived. After this process you’re given an ID that you can share with anyone online, proof that you are who you say you are. Trufina even does a background check on you and will display any criminal records you may have. All this is free.

ID secured. What about reputation? Opinity is fairly new and will not only confirm your identity through Trufina, it allows you to verify your membership on scores of sites, online communities, and commerce sites. Soon they will be introducing features allowing one to show certifications and training, verify ownership of your blog, even show work experience, web pages, education, and community relationships. Others can also review and rate you, giving their experience dealing with you through certain communities and sites, adding to your online reputation. It’s all about security and building a reputation people can trust. Both Opinity and Trufina makes it easy to request an ID/reputation from someone else. You can view mine under the “about” tab of this blog. I think with the quickly expanding web, online trustworthiness will become increasingly important.