Hypothetical Scenarios

[Snaggletooth]

Some few weeks ago, we had a discussion about our posts being subject to be "googled up" on a computer somewhere. And having been assured this was the case, our moderator urged a good sense approach that we should never expose enough information in our posts that a visiting googler may coincidentally recognize the situation as applying to someone known. It has been suggested that this might even be a violation of §7216 privacy statute. I had two seminar instructors confirm that a casual conversation unintended to disclose the identity of a client might inadvertently be recognizable to a listener and that would indeed be a violation.

A good example is a thread I started earlier this evening, "Moldy Oldy Credits." If you read the background information, and this client exists in a moderate population center, most of you will agree that the information is specific enough to possibly identify my client to a casual layman who googles the site.

I have therefore falsified most of the specific information, in particular, circumstances, numbers, and dates. I will create (perhaps from a real client) a scenario entirely fictitious, but will do so in a way that will get the question answered nonetheless. There will be no trails of circumstances, numbers, dates, events, etc. that can identify my client, even to a local query. I have also created characters with dead-end identies, favorites might be Shifty-Eyed Sam, MegaConglomerate, Inc., Willie Whippersnapper, BubbaTruck, and others.

I encourage others to consider the same strategy when posting.

[JohnH]

Good idea. Next time I post a question, the client will be Snaggletooth Surveying, Nashville Nursing Home, Edsel Earthworks, Courduroy Frogleg Diner, or some other unlikely term. Thay way nobody would be able to guess anything about the company or even how I came up with the name...

[thomtax]

While I understand the stand of the board operators and respect it, with the current format of everything being open to the public and search engines, I am seriously going to have to think about whether I am willing to take the chances of posting anything significant to the board. This saddens me since I have found it to be very helpful at times, in adjusting my thinking in the right direction. Plus the humorous stories, sometimes.

I wonder if this may explain why many of the older members are no longer posting to the board. Is it worth taking a chance of running afoul of the "newer meaner IRS"?

LT

[Nashville]

Respected View

Thom, I respect this view and would hate to see long-time good people such as yourself stop posting. The original post is from someone who makes no secret about who he is and repeatedly has told others "anyone in Manchester can find me." This targeted identity makes it doubly-important that he take precaution not to implicate the existence of his clients' situations when making a post.

I think everyone might feel more comfortable if the site couldn't be googled. However, this runs counter to the presentation goals of its sponsor, without whom we wouldn't even have this board.

However, looking at the big picture, even if TMI went to the expense of putting this board "out of reach" of search engines, would that mean that we could then portray specific situations for specific clientele just because we felt "safe?"

Ethically, I think the answer is "no" and their privacy should remain intact whether visible to the googlers or not. Having spoken this, I don't see why we can't continue presenting questions and using scenarios as we have -- we just need to be sure and keep the real issues germane to the discussion, and cloud up any auxilliary information which could give away our clients' identity to a query.

So far, this discussion has centered around identity protection from the "googler." It has not addressed protection from possible taxing authority analysts, informants, or whistleblowers.

[JG EA]

And so, we need to be a little careful. When fellow posters want more specifics about us or the situation - be general. But still, we live in a free country and there is still freedom of speech protected by the courts. If people can injure a person on-line with specifics and be totally above the law, why can we not still freely exchange ideas to help our clients. I do wonder at the authorities hitting at our industry so hard. It is perhaps just the age old making of more laws because of the lawbreaker - who won't change - and hampering the efforts of the law abiding - who try to not break laws.
I think this board can still be just as helpful - I do wish it couldn't be accessed by just anybody, but there is nothing we can do about that I suppose.