Source: Self 
Single vs Multiple vs Anonymous Identity
Source: Self produced with information (University of Southampton, 2017)
In this digital world, we all own an online identity. Which of the 3 types of online identities is yours? Identities are like a coin with always two sides, the good and the bad. No matter which type of identity we own, there’s no running away from its cons.
Why multiple online identities and why not?
A recent research showed that two out of five employers look at job applicants’ online profiles such as Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn at the recruitment stage. (Philip Landau, 2013) As a university student, looking for prospective jobs in the near future, I strongly feel that establishing a professional online identity such as a LinkedIn page is crucial to portray my professional image, especially when recruiters now are very likely to lurk around our social media accounts. With multiple online identities, I can express myself freely and genuinely, yet limiting privacy to a few audience.
Source: Google
Nevertheless, there are also some who feels that its more genuine to hold a single identity. One good example is Mark Zuckerberg, who once said “Having two identities for yourself is an example of a lack of integrity.” (Michael Zimmer, 2010) Yes, I agree that having more than one online identity may compromise our image of being ‘true’ but there is no fault in being true to yourself and protecting yourself from unwanted judgment from the public right?
How to protect your online identity?
Having multiple online identities may be advantageous but we also face higher risk in losing them to possible identity theft. Here’s how to protect yourself!
Source: YouTube (Donna Bryant, 2014)
Am I still single (identity)?
Source: Self
In the image above, it shows the various online identities I have personally. Needless to say, its pretty obvious I have multiple online identities.
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References
2013. Theguardian. [Online]. [20 November 2017]. Available from: https://www.theguardian.com/money/work-blog/2013/dec/11/job-applications-social-media-profiles-scrutiny
2010. Michael Zimmer. [Online]. [20 November 2017]. Available from: http://www.michaelzimmer.org/2010/05/14/facebooks-zuckerberg-having-two-identities-for-yourself-is-an-example-of-a-lack-of-integrity/
2017. Futurelearn. [Online]. [20 November 2017]. Available from: https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/learning-network-age/3/steps/263025
Jennifer Lee 
Hi Jennifer,
I agree with you that having multiple identities allows us to have a clear line of separation between personal life and work. Years ago, there was a news about a NTUC assistant director being fired because of her racism Facebook post. And in the mid of 2016, there was also another incident where an Australian marketing consultant was fired just one weeks into the job for making offensive comment on his Facebook. All this incidents shows that having a multiple identities will reduce the negative impact it has on that person. Even though it might be troublesome to manage multiple accounts, in the end it will be worthwhile.
You mentioned the quote by Mark Zuckerberg. If an individual with the same core beliefs have multiple identities, does that means lack of integrity?
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Reference:
http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/aussie-expat-fired-after-offensive-facebook-rant
http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/ntuc-assistant-director-sacked-for-racist-remarks
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Hi Huilin,
Yes I have also heard of the above news that you mentioned! Also, referring to the quote by Mark Zuckerberg, yes, by that statement, he meant that with more than a single identity, it means a lack of integrity. Personally, I feel that an individual with the same core beliefs but has multiple identities, means that s/he chooses to portray different sides of him on different platforms, also meaning that he portrays different beliefs. Im not sure if that means a lack of integrity since on a daily basis, we already change our tones and censor our contents to suit audience of different needs! That is just my two-cents, how bout yours?
Hope to hear from you soon and cheers mate!
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To me, with multiple identities doesn’t means we have different beliefs as we are just choosing certain part of our identity to portray depending on whom we interact with. Just because we want them to see the most appropriate side of us. Digital identity can be just a portion of our real life identity that we have created to represent ourselves online. It’s like when we are completing different tasks on hand, we are completing with the same beliefs of ours, just that using different method 🙂
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