Facebook's Real Name Policy: Bye-Bye, Max Mustermann?

• Author: Sandra Schmitz
• Position: Ass. iur. LL.M, Ph.D. candidate at the Interdisciplinary Centre for Security, Reliability and Trust (SnT), University of Luxembourg.
• Pages: 190-204

2013

Sandra Schmitz

190

3

Abstract: Facebook requires all members to

use their real names and email addresses when join-

ing the social network. Not only does the policy seem

to be difficult to enforce (as the prevalence of ac-

counts with people’s pets or fake names suggests),

but it may also interfere with European (and, in par-

ticular, German) data protection laws. A German Data

Protection Commissioner recently took action and

ordered that Facebook permit pseudonymous ac-

counts as its current anti-pseudonymous policy vio-

lates § 13 VI of the German Telemedia Act. This pro-

vision requires telemedia providers to allow for an

anonymous or pseudonymous use of services inso-

far as this is reasonable and technically feasible. Irre-

spective of whether the pseudonymous use of Face-

book is reasonable, the case can be narrowed down

to one single question: Does German data protection

law apply to Facebook? In that respect, this paper

analyses the current Facebook dispute, in particular

in relation to who controls the processing of personal

data of Facebook users in Germany. It also briefly dis-

cusses whether a real name policy really presents a

fix for anti-normative and anti-social behaviour on

the Internet.

Facebook’s Real Name Policy

Bye-Bye, Max Mustermann?

by Sandra Schmitz, Ass. iur. LL.M, Ph.D. candidate at the Interdisciplinary Centre for Security, Reliability and

Trust (SnT), University of Luxembourg.

© 2013 Sandra Schmitz

Everybody may disseminate this ar ticle by electroni c means and make it available for downlo ad under the terms and

conditions of the Digita l Peer Publishing Licence (DPPL). A copy of the license text may be obtaine d at http://nbn-resolving.

de/urn:nbn:de:0009-dppl-v3-en8 .

Recommended citation: S andra Schmitz, Facebook ’s Real Name Policy: Bye-Bye, Ma x Mustermann?, 4 (2013) JIPITEC 3, 190

Keywords: Facebook, Real Names, Data Protection, Personal Data, Germany

A. Introduction

1 One of the appealing integral characteristics of the

Internet is anonymity, meaning the ability to con-

ceal one’s identity while communicating.1 The real



context, if we speak of anonymity, this also encom-

passes the use of pseudonyms. On the Internet, users

often use screen names, i.e. pseudonyms, when they

post messages, chat or are otherwise communicat-

ing. The advantage of using a pseudonym instead of

remaining completely anonymous is that while con-

cealing one’s real identity, it is possible for third par-

ties to recognise that different messages are written

by the same author. Pseudonyms allow the alloca-

 

is not known to the public. Even where real identity

becomes important for the recipients of the commu-

nication – for example, on online auction sites like

eBay – the real identities of users are not revealed

to the general public. Only where a contract of sale

is established will the anonymity of seller and buyer

be lifted to allow the performance of the sales con-

tract. Of course, there are also online transactions



as banking transactions, for example. However, re-

cently Internet service providers like Google (in re-

lation to their Google+ service) and Facebook have

forbidden the use of pseudonyms, demanding from

members that their online identity be the same as

 

2

More than the world’s larg-

est social network, Facebook in particular is a huge

data-mining machine capturing and processing ev-

ery click and interaction on its platform. Obviously,