[STUDENT POLICY BRIEF] Has the time come to end anonymity on social media?

By Lorenzo Ancona, Gabriel Karl, Arnau Martì & Wiktor Samek

The Digital, Governance and Sovereignty Chair publishes, on a regular basis, the finest essays and papers written by Sciences Po students in the course of their studies.

This Policy Brief has been selected as one of the best works written during the course taught by Pr Florence G’sell “Comparative Approach to Big Tech Regulation” in Spring 2023.

In contemporary times, anonymity may appear to be anachronistic. Present-day technical solutions have exposed us significantly to surveillance by both private and public actors. Additionally, our digital identity has become a commodity delivered and used by Big Tech companies. Concurrently, issues concerning disinformation and user verification can create an impression of anonymity as potentially perilous to our society and democracy. Social media platforms are a prime example of these phenomena, highlighting how crucial it is to protect our privacy and identity. In our paper, we demonstrate that anonymity remains a valid tool for safeguarding our privacy on social networks. We recognize the inherent limitations of anonymity, but instead of using them as a reason to completely reject the concept, we endeavour to adapt them creatively to construct better regulatory models. Consequently, relying on the contextual and pseudonymous nature of modern digital anonymity, we propose an innovative solution that merges anonymity with the requirement for verification and an adequate level of privacy and control over users’ data by themselves.

Our recommendations draw on academic research and legal frameworks, with a primary emphasis on the European Commission, which is the target of our address. At a general level, we urge European institutions to perceive anonymity as an opportunity to create a more privacy-focused environment on social media. To ensure compliance with the provisions of the Digital Market Act (DMA) and General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the EU should enhance the adoption of Privacy-Enhancing Technologies and establish autonomous data trusts. The EU must also ensure coherent interaction and interpretation between the DMA and GDPR. We encourage EU institutions to investigate digital identity solutions as a potential approach to addressing verification issues, while maintaining privacy and anonymity.

We believe that public solutions such as the European Digital Identity can be applied in this realm, but not as a mandatory means of user authorization. Instead, we recommend developing a policy of interoperability with private stakeholders that offers EU citizens a range of options tailored to their specific needs. All of these measures will significantly strengthen the position of regular citizens vis-à-vis social media platforms, without putting too much valuable private information under the control of any other central authority, using anonymity in a modern, responsible way.

Lorenzo Ancona has a background in Political Science and Digital Communication and is currently doing an internship as Digital Policy Analyst. He is keenly interested in the transformative potential of digitalization as a vehicle to strengthen democracy and catalyze citizen participation. His research revolves around the intersection of technology and societal values, digital transformation for government and innovation for democracy.

Wiktor Samek is a second-year master’s student in the Digital, New Technology, and Public Policy stream and an intern at the OECD Digital Government and Data Unit. With a background in political science and law, his primary areas of interest revolve around the impact of technology on the development of contemporary political identities, the involvement of the state in the digital economy, and the concept of digital identity.

Gabriel Karl has a background in international relations, comparative politics, and European affairs. A graduate of the dual degree program between Sciences Po and Columbia University, he was able to engage with both American and European perspectives on a variety of topics central to international affairs. He is particularly interested in the digital transformation of governments and the impact of open data on public policy.

With a background in economics and sociology, Arnau Marti is currently pursuing a master’s degree in public policy and innovation at Sciences Po’s School of Public Affairs. Having worked as a research assistant and member of government programme teams in Latin America, his interests lie in macroeconomic policy innovation. His latest research focuses on energy transition and sustainable international trade and finance.