How do I know it's really you? April 11, 2010 3:45 PM   Subscribe

Has anyone ever been caught or suspected of impersonating another MetaFilter member at a meetup or online?
posted by HotPatatta to MetaFilter-Related at 3:45 PM (134 comments total) 2 users marked this as a favorite

For what it's worth, it's not difficult to do.

A while ago I met for lunch with two people on another blog/community I frequent, who both knew each other from beforehand. They thought it'd be hilarious to fuck with me by pretending to be each other, and impersonating each other's (very different) online schtick. They switched back and forth a couple of times—at different points, they each pretended to be both different people, claiming the other was just some lurker—and it took me a good forty minutes and a bottle of wine to establish comprehensively who was who.

It's pretty funny as long as it's kept juvenile.
posted by Fiasco da Gama at 4:09 PM on April 11, 2010


No
posted by Jessamyn at 7:10 PM on April 11 [+] No other comments


posted by kuujjuarapik at 4:13 PM on April 11, 2010 [56 favorites]


see, right there. kuujjuarapik is pretending to be not_on_display.
posted by gman at 4:14 PM on April 11, 2010 [4 favorites]


I would have gotten away with it too if it weren't for you meddlesome [!].
posted by kuujjuarapik at 4:17 PM on April 11, 2010 [5 favorites]


My first meetup ever, alan pretended for quite a while to be a non-mefite. Not quite the same thing, I suppose.
posted by cortex (staff) at 4:43 PM on April 11, 2010 [1 favorite]


I am not now, nor have I ever been a pair identical twins trying to create a single identity in order to pull off the biggest jewel heist in history


we're triplets
posted by The Whelk at 4:45 PM on April 11, 2010 [4 favorites]


IIRC, somebody was impersonating a certain mefite via twitter.
posted by chillmost at 4:46 PM on April 11, 2010


I don't know who she was impersonating, but Marisa Stole the Precious Thing once came to a meet-up in Iceland disguised as a dude.
posted by gman at 4:47 PM on April 11, 2010 [17 favorites]


Hey! I didn't make this MetaTalk post! Who the heck is impersonating me? I DEMAND A SPEEDY BANNING!
pøsted by HotPatatta at 7:48 PM on April 11 [+][!]


Hi guys, just dropped in to see what's goin' on.

Please don't ban me.

posted by Salvor Hardin at 4:49 PM on April 11, 2010


my username has a lowercase j.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 4:50 PM on April 11, 2010 [10 favorites]


Here's an example of someone posting as another mefite at a meetup.

Heh. That was a great night.
posted by sambosambo at 4:51 PM on April 11, 2010 [7 favorites]


Damn, too late to be original.
posted by Salvor Hardin at 4:53 PM on April 11, 2010


At least once person pretended to not be themselves, but that's probably a weird stone best left unturned.
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 4:56 PM on April 11, 2010 [1 favorite]


That typo and awkward sentence were written by someone who was not me.
posted by Alvy Ampersand at 5:06 PM on April 11, 2010


Good idea, thanks!
posted by Brandon Blatcher at 5:12 PM on April 11, 2010 [1 favorite]


More importabtly, has any of the banned SEO assholes ever come to a meetup?
posted by nevercalm at 5:16 PM on April 11, 2010


they have their own meetups but they call them "Important Networking Opportunities."
posted by The Whelk at 5:19 PM on April 11, 2010 [3 favorites]


"importantly." More importantly, I'm sober.
posted by nevercalm at 5:20 PM on April 11, 2010


Have I ever told the story of how Horace Rumpole suggested the idea for the show that became Mythbusters? Man, I owe everything I have to that guy.
posted by asavage at 8:26 PM on April 11 [+] [!]

Oh, come on, Adam, nobody wants to hear that old story.
posted by Horace Rumpole at 5:26 PM on April 11, 2010 [24 favorites]


If you're ever concerned about a Mefite's identity, check their hands. They will be covered in fingerprints.
posted by turgid dahlia at 5:28 PM on April 11, 2010 [3 favorites]


But those aren't MY fingerprints.
posted by The Whelk at 5:29 PM on April 11, 2010


Whoa, what's with the "no other comments" thing after Jessamyn's comment? I've been gone for a couple days, did I miss some major site change?
posted by phunniemee at 5:33 PM on April 11, 2010


And are no other comments, not anymore. We're just ghosts in the mainframe.
posted by The Whelk at 5:34 PM on April 11, 2010 [1 favorite]


Perhaps this is a naive question, but why would anyone bother?
posted by zarq at 5:40 PM on April 11, 2010


Good god, youse guys are annoying.
posted by koeselitz at 5:47 PM on April 11, 2010


phunniemee: “Whoa, what's with the "no other comments" thing after Jessamyn's comment? I've been gone for a couple days, did I miss some major site change?”

No, that was just kuujursdasdeakiscdskikik, who thinks he's hilarious. See how his comment is right below what looks like jessamyn's? He posted the bit that appears to be jessamyn's comment, too.
posted by koeselitz at 5:50 PM on April 11, 2010


I tell people I'm dhoyt.
posted by klangklangston at 5:50 PM on April 11, 2010 [1 favorite]


I have a hard enough time remembering who I'm supposed to be to begin with.
posted by grapefruitmoon at 5:53 PM on April 11, 2010 [5 favorites]


Not quite the same thing, but somebody once mistook me for some mefite called HotPatatta.
posted by newpotato at 6:06 PM on April 11, 2010 [3 favorites]


phunniemee: "Whoa, what's with the "no other comments" thing after Jessamyn's comment?"

The 'no other comments' thing is from Mefi Navigator, a fantastic greasemonkey script that adds all sorts of functionality.
posted by graventy at 6:10 PM on April 11, 2010 [1 favorite]


I did. Once.

Fell in love, got married. Still don't have the heart to break the news.

Now, as for the person I impersonated... well, he's away "on vacation". A long vacation.

4 years on Friday.
posted by purephase at 6:20 PM on April 11, 2010 [4 favorites]


Grumblebee and I are the same person.
posted by Evangeline at 6:26 PM on April 11, 2010


As a joke number of years back, I introduced myself to as ParisParamus to cyrusdogstar.
A few second or two afterward, I fessed up and bought him a drink.

Apart from that, the community's tight enough where somebody would know something was up; given that the members are pretty low-key in real life, there's even less reason for anyone to masquerade as a specific user.
posted by Smart Dalek at 6:32 PM on April 11, 2010


I don't know, I've never been to a meetup.
posted by Artw at 6:39 PM on April 11, 2010 [2 favorites]


I often impersonate anonymous in my personal life, but it's not intentional.
posted by UbuRoivas at 7:00 PM on April 11, 2010 [2 favorites]


Just so long as it doesn't end up like that Cronenberg movie, and you and your double end up making freaky surgical instruments and stuff.
posted by Artw at 7:02 PM on April 11, 2010 [1 favorite]


I'm impersonating myself right now!
posted by blue_beetle at 7:23 PM on April 11, 2010


Who will post the 41st joke about impersonation?
posted by koeselitz at 7:27 PM on April 11, 2010


More importabtly

That is how I'll say it from now on.
posted by nola at 7:31 PM on April 11, 2010


I'm not a human, but I play one on MetaFilter.

(41st?)
posted by deacon_blues at 7:33 PM on April 11, 2010


If a tall man appears at a meetup and announces that he's Thomas J. Wise, you'll know that something has gone wrong, somewhere.

(It would be pretty eponysterical, though.)
posted by thomas j wise at 7:34 PM on April 11, 2010 [1 favorite]


If you don't have the balls to show up, I'm perfectly fine letting someone else take your place.
posted by eamondaly at 7:35 PM on April 11, 2010


Has anyone ever been caught or suspected of impersonating another MetaFilter member at a meetup or online?

No, I've never been caught. I mean nobody. Nobody has ever been caught.
posted by DU at 7:37 PM on April 11, 2010 [4 favorites]


This has absolutely nothing to do w/the topic at hand, but the "Double Down" is finally making its debut at a KFC near you.

Carry on.
posted by HP LaserJet P10006 at 7:39 PM on April 11, 2010


This has absolutely nothing to do w/the topic at hand, but the "Double Down" is finally making its debut at a KFC near you.

This is why they hate our freedom.
posted by deacon_blues at 7:41 PM on April 11, 2010


Impersonate another member? The mere inkling of the notion of the suggestion of the thought would never have crossed my mind.
posted by Hardcore Poser at 7:45 PM on April 11, 2010 [2 favorites]


We are legion.
posted by flabdablet's sock puppet at 7:47 PM on April 11, 2010


despite noting and understanding kuujjuarapik's joke, I still found myself marveling that asavage's comment had no favorites.
posted by 256 at 7:49 PM on April 11, 2010


not only am I not myself at a meetup, I'm not myself online. figure that out!
posted by HuronBob at 7:59 PM on April 11, 2010


I'm a sporadic presence at meet-ups, where I struggle to make small talk until I've had enough tiny beers to launch into narcissistic rambling diatribes. Yet recently crush-onastick called me "interesting." So to whomever is impersonating me, keep up the good work!
posted by hydrophonic at 8:01 PM on April 11, 2010


I got called out as being a sockpuppet once, and now I wish it were true.
posted by shakespeherian at 8:09 PM on April 11, 2010


Hail Satan
posted by Damn That Television at 8:09 PM on April 11, 2010 [1 favorite]


I don't know, but I'm...dubitable.

posted by indubitable at 8:06 PM on April 11 [+] [!]

posted by dubitable at 8:10 PM on April 11, 2010


I refuse to comment on the grounds that it might incriminate myself.
posted by deborah at 8:29 PM on April 11, 2010



I don't know, I've never been to a meetup.
posted by Artw


LIAR

posted by The Whelk at 8:32 PM on April 11, 2010


LIAR

posted by The Whelk


Wow, I had no idea the photos of me from that meetup came out so nicely!
posted by estlin at 8:37 PM on April 11, 2010


WHO IS THAT?
posted by Artw at 8:40 PM on April 11, 2010


I am every mefite. it's all in me.
posted by The Whelk at 8:41 PM on April 11, 2010 [6 favorites]


hey wow, The Whelk found a picture of Artw's nefarious impersonator
posted by idiopath at 8:42 PM on April 11, 2010


You can tell because in reality I am a bit chubbier, more glasses wearing, have less hair and am a bit beardier.

This in no way represents the progress of a prossess of metamorphasis that strikes every single make Seattle nerd, eventually turning them into the same person.
posted by Artw at 8:44 PM on April 11, 2010


They all eventually become Bob?
posted by The Whelk at 8:47 PM on April 11, 2010


I'm honestly afraid to go to a meetup. I'm afraid I wouldn't be very welcome.

Now, I write that, and I think, "Wow, dude, you're sounding like a total douche here. Afraid to look people in the eye in real life and own up to what you write on the site?" Yeah, kinda. I'm just a dude that needs a hug like everyone else.

April 20 in Seattle, huh? Should I take the leap and risk Blazecock punching me?
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 8:49 PM on April 11, 2010


April 20th in Seattle? Naw. Blazecock will be way too mellow.
posted by The Whelk at 8:49 PM on April 11, 2010


Ahh, yes. 4/20. It'll be as if I've thrown a smoke grenade for camouflage.

A wonderful, totally awesome smoke grenade.
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 8:58 PM on April 11, 2010


OK, you should totally do a meetup, theres just one thing - after they do the Gooble Gobble song and bring you the loving cup it's very important you srink from it and don't, say, freak out and throw it over everyone, because things can go very badly at that point.
posted by Artw at 8:59 PM on April 11, 2010 [1 favorite]


huh he huh...grenade.
posted by The Whelk at 9:00 PM on April 11, 2010


Drink from it. DRINK from it. I do not know what srinking is, and for all I know it could set them off, so whatever it is don't do it. Gooble gobble.
posted by Artw at 9:01 PM on April 11, 2010


Dude you're hogging it.
posted by The Whelk at 9:04 PM on April 11, 2010


We totally accept you...and stuff. one of must, one of crust, one of bust one must crunch!
posted by The Whelk at 9:05 PM on April 11, 2010


Should I take the leap and risk Blazecock punching me?

I don't punch people, but I have impersonated myself. In my defense, I wasn't at a meetup.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 9:13 PM on April 11, 2010


One of must? One of us, one of us, gooble gabble.
posted by klangklangston at 9:18 PM on April 11, 2010


I don't punch people

Lover not a fighter.
posted by The Whelk at 9:19 PM on April 11, 2010


I have impersonated a person impersonating me if that counts.
posted by JohnnyGunn at 9:20 PM on April 11, 2010


Lover XOR fighter.

Hey! I just invented a Japanese computer game.
posted by Artw at 9:27 PM on April 11, 2010


Nope, needs panty shots.
posted by The Whelk at 9:28 PM on April 11, 2010


Lover not a fighter.

And I have a full set of teeth to prove it!
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 9:39 PM on April 11, 2010 [1 favorite]


I was impersonated once, but I don't know if it was a MeFite doing it as he was never caught. He didn't go to a meetup though. It was an extremely disturbing thing to happen and to this day it makes my blood boil just thinking about it.

Alright, gonna go smash something.
posted by dobbs at 9:40 PM on April 11, 2010


IN WHICH THE WHELK CAN A SEVERE MORAL DILEMMA CONCERNING THE MAKING OF A JOKE
posted by The Whelk at 9:41 PM on April 11, 2010


Artw: “Drink from it. DRINK from it. I do not know what srinking is, and for all I know it could set them off, so whatever it is don't do it. Gooble gobble.”

No, no, I'm pretty sure you meant "shrink from it."
posted by koeselitz at 9:54 PM on April 11, 2010


I suppose, in order to avoid this misstep, you just have to be yourself. Everyone knows how easy that is.
posted by amtho at 10:00 PM on April 11, 2010


Way back when Monkeyfilter started up, a bunch of people signed up as well-known Mefites. Miguel, mathowie, and (I think) Wendell were all fakes. Only ever been to one meetup though, and pretty sure everyone was who they claimed to be. daShiv was taking photos so we'd have evidence of shenanigans.
posted by tracicle at 10:21 PM on April 11, 2010


You can tell because in reality I am a bit chubbier, more glasses wearing, have less hair and am a bit beardier.

This in no way represents the progress of a prossess of metamorphasis that strikes every single make Seattle nerd, eventually turning them into the same person.


Seattle? No wonder everyone in Los Angeles gives me that look.
posted by davejay at 10:24 PM on April 11, 2010




mathowie? Mathowie. Mathowie? mathowie.
posted by The Whelk at 10:26 PM on April 11, 2010


You realize, of course, that every meeting for the next two months will have at least one person pretending to be HotPatatta. Even the ones in other countries. There will also be a sockpuppet called HotPattatta, HotPattata, HotPatattta, ad nauseum.

All of which will be made more hilarious when we find out HotPatatta is really Jessamyn.

Sorry: jessamyn
posted by davejay at 10:26 PM on April 11, 2010


mathowie? Mathowie. Mathowie? mathowie.

Then he appears in the mirror behind you and, I dunno, tells you about recliner bicycles or something.
posted by Artw at 10:27 PM on April 11, 2010 [1 favorite]


"Good god, youse guys are annoying"

"No, that was just kuujursdasdeakiscdskikik, who thinks he's hilarious. See how his comment is right below what looks like jessamyn's? He posted the bit that appears to be jessamyn's comment, too."

"Who will post the 41st joke about impersonation"

Don't look now, but I think koeselitz's account has been hijacked by a humorless killjoy.
posted by Rhaomi at 10:53 PM on April 11, 2010 [4 favorites]


Wait, somebody with a sense of humor has been using my account?

What the fuck?
posted by koeselitz at 11:05 PM on April 11, 2010


Besides, I happen to think it's fucking hilarious when I intentionally fuck up a hard-to-pronounce username.
posted by koeselitz at 11:06 PM on April 11, 2010


Oh? What was your username supposed to be?
posted by davejay at 11:39 PM on April 11, 2010


I need a real life sock puppet
posted by infini at 1:12 AM on April 12, 2010 [1 favorite]


Then he appears in the mirror behind you and, I dunno, tells you about recliner bicycles or something.

YOU ARE A GENIUS.

Wait, you mean recumbent bicycles. Never mind. You had my hopes all fired up about some kind of La-Z-Boy on wheels with pedals, because I would like one of those.
posted by loquacious at 2:18 AM on April 12, 2010 [1 favorite]


The person impersonating me has a much better username.
posted by ob at 2:26 AM on April 12, 2010


One of the benefits of a robust web presence is that people can't do this easily.
posted by Meatbomb at 3:45 AM on April 12, 2010


I suppose that this MetaTalk thread had a fair amount of impersonation going on, but it might not be quite what you had in mind.
posted by Johnny Assay at 5:23 AM on April 12, 2010 [1 favorite]


gurgles, snorts, and tries to damp the belly laughs upon reading the demo thread...

wishes i wuz there then
posted by infini at 5:47 AM on April 12, 2010


huh, possible new April Fools-for-next-year thing? A thread where all the usernames are the same?
posted by The Whelk at 6:01 AM on April 12, 2010 [1 favorite]


I regularly impersonate the main character of a TV show nobody remembers.
posted by The Winsome Parker Lewis at 6:24 AM on April 12, 2010


Can't loose that way.
posted by The Whelk at 6:25 AM on April 12, 2010


not a bad idea The Whelk, imagine a team where everyone has the same name ;p

"We are The One"

hmm, sounds a little scary that
posted by infini at 6:29 AM on April 12, 2010


We are metafilter. We will add your collective content and snark to our own. Self-linking is futile. We are metafilter.
posted by The Whelk at 6:32 AM on April 12, 2010 [1 favorite]


And we are legion.
posted by flabdablet at 6:38 AM on April 12, 2010


There was this instance of someone impersonating quonsar, but that particular way to do it no longer works.
posted by TedW at 7:28 AM on April 12, 2010


I disagree with Jessamyn, and she and I were both at the meetup were this sort of thing took place. It was discussed ad nauseum when it happened over 5 years ago, so it is searchable.
posted by terrapin at 9:18 AM on April 12, 2010


I don't know, I've never been to a meetup.

Well ArtW, after a comment like that, I am confident you will show up at one one of the ones coming up real soon now.
posted by whatzit at 9:28 AM on April 12, 2010


I disagree with Jessamyn

The comment saying "No." is actually not by me.
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 9:29 AM on April 12, 2010


floam: Wouldn't it be awesome if you were reading a meetup thread and then you see that apparently zarq showed up and there's a bunch of pictures of some creepy guy everyone thinks is you with a weird goatee palling around with everybody? I can't imagine not freaking out. Seeing how this would be quite easy to accomplish, it seems to me it'd be an attractive target to somebody that's a little crazy.

Great. Thanks. Thanks a lot. Now I have something else to worry about. :D

MeFi has tens of thousands of users, even if only .0001% of them are crazy enough to do something like that, it's still a few pretendulators.

Note to potential pretendulators: I'm really not that interesting. Boring, really. There are plenty of other MeFites who are probably more interesting than little ol' me.

*cough*


:D
posted by zarq at 9:41 AM on April 12, 2010


Actually, I lied. That was totally me. Just screwing with you.
posted by jessamyn at 10:13 AM on April 12 [17 favorites +] [!]


Jeez, jessamyn, way to unravel the deception! Next thing you know I'll be admitting that I'm really Horace Rumpole.
posted by The Winsome Parker Lewis at 10:18 AM on April 12, 2010


wait a minute, i have favourites set to be invisible, how am I seeing the ones after j/Jessamyn's name

*feeliing screwed*
posted by infini at 10:24 AM on April 12, 2010


I am Jason Kottke.
posted by nickmark at 10:38 AM on April 12, 2010


I'm Spartacus
posted by The Whelk at 10:38 AM on April 12, 2010


I'm confused, and from calcutta
posted by infini at 10:49 AM on April 12, 2010


I am the egg man
posted by The Whelk at 11:02 AM on April 12, 2010


hardboiled, eh?
posted by infini at 11:24 AM on April 12, 2010


I've certainly never impersonated another MetaFilter member at a meetup. Only at a few hookups.
posted by and hosted from Uranus at 12:19 PM on April 12, 2010


Do credit card applications count?
posted by Splunge at 12:37 PM on April 12, 2010


I've paid some dude to pretend to be me at meetups while I sit at the bar and drink quietly.
posted by dirty lies at 12:39 PM on April 12, 2010


and hosted from Uranus: "I've certainly never impersonated another MetaFilter member at a meetup. Only at a few hookups"

I am reminded of a snippet of conversation I overheard outside a bar recently:

"the problem with boner pills is that it is really difficult to pretend you are strangers who ran into one another at an airport for more than an hour at a time"
posted by idiopath at 12:39 PM on April 12, 2010 [2 favorites]


My new schmoopy nickname for Jessamyn is HotPatatta.* It would have been kuujjuarapik, but I can't pronounce that without the proper medications.

*No, it isn't.
posted by not_on_display at 2:44 PM on April 12, 2010


 
posted by y2karl at 2:53 PM on April 12, 2010 [1 favorite]


The comment saying "No." is actually not by me.

And I assume you frown upon such things?
posted by morganannie at 2:54 PM on April 12, 2010


I frown upon a lot of things; this is pretty small potatoes. But yeah, if I thiught someone was really trying to spoof me, that's sort of not okay
posted by jessamyn (staff) at 3:11 PM on April 12, 2010


But do small potatoes make you frown?
posted by The Whelk at 3:19 PM on April 12, 2010


I think small potatoes are nice because they boil faster.
posted by morganannie at 3:22 PM on April 12, 2010 [1 favorite]


I thought spoof comments were blocked a while ago if they looked like the real byline (some regex magic or something).
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 5:20 PM on April 12, 2010


It's a fairly weak block. It'd be hard to put together a really, really bulletproof regex, and thankfully it's not something that's really been a recurring problem in any case—aside from very context-specific joke threads like this, it doesn't really come up.

If we caught someone trying to actually pull something shitty with the fake-comment trick, that would be a bad day for that someone.
posted by cortex (staff) at 5:30 PM on April 12, 2010


Hey - nobody tell cortex what I just did there.
posted by UbuRoivas at 6:27 PM on April 12, 2010 [1 favorite]


I think it was jonmc who said that someone was impersonating him, as jonmc, in some way.
posted by StickyCarpet at 7:28 PM on April 12, 2010


yeah, on twitter.
posted by UbuRoivas at 8:12 PM on April 12, 2010


It's well enough known that one best srinks in a recliner bicycle, and that so doing on the night of a full moon is an efficacious ward against meetup sockpuppetry.
posted by mwhybark at 8:22 PM on April 12, 2010


IIRC, there was a MeTa thread a long time ago where Matt set things so all comments were anonymous. Mayhem ensued.
posted by Mid at 9:36 PM on April 12, 2010


Pssst. You can tell which ones are the fakes if you have the Grease Monkey Script for numbered comments.

I never go to meet-ups for fear my Secret would be revealed.
posted by Secret Life of Gravy at 6:14 AM on April 13, 2010


gravy recipe or Whelk's eggs?
posted by infini at 6:35 AM on April 13, 2010


Secret Life of Gravy: Pssst. You can tell which ones are the fakes if you have the Grease Monkey Script for numbered comments. ¶ I never go to meet-ups for fear my Secret would be revealed.”

Without meaning to, I think you've just accidentally let slip the secret to your delicious life-gravy: lots of Grease and a Monkey.

I am going to go try this recipe right now.
posted by koeselitz at 3:32 PM on April 13, 2010


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