Online Madness

[clair_de_lalune]

A friend directed me to this news article. Apparently, a woman in Japan was playing a game online in which she had a virtual husband, who was a man she didn't otherwise know living in a city 620 miles away. Her virtual husband suddenly divorced her virtual self with no explanation and she got angry - so angry that she logged onto the computer as

Comments

[alwaysholly]

LOL a bit cuckoo. She shouldn't do any time for it. Good grief.

[ms_arithmancer]

The world is infinitely strange...

If I were the guy I would not want a trial. I mean, he would have to testify, right? I would prefer to maintain my online anonymity. Her response seems a bit over the top to me.

[clair_de_lalune]

--I would prefer to maintain my online anonymity.--

Yes, me too.

--Her response seems a bit over the top to me.--

Having seen how online things affect people, though, it doesn't surprise me. It's ultimately no different than someone getting angry with a friend for teaming up against them in a real game, for example. Perhaps her response was childish and petty, but the emotions are not less real because the friendship is online, I don't think.

[ms_arithmancer]

You could be right. The specific way she did it, though (killing his character, symbolically the online self of the guy in the online context in which the "know" each other) is something I think I might find more creepy than other possible forms of retaliation. Though of course it might simply be the biggest way she could think of to inconvenience him.

[clair_de_lalune]

Hmm...you could be right that it's extra creepy because of that aspect. I'm not sure it's different from someone who cuts an ex- out of every photo, though. Personally, I think that's crazy, simply because of the time required for it, but it's also like erasing someone's existence - is it creepy because of that or is it just a relatively harmless way to take out anger?

[cynodd]

It's the whole story about marriage that makes it sound crazy. That's the crazy part, that it makes it sound like a virtual murder of a cheating virtual husband. If it was just "a woman got a man's password to an online program and went in and deleted his account and is being charged with a crime related to electronic data manipulation" would we think it was so crazy?

[clair_de_lalune]

--If it was just "a woman got a man's password to an online program and went in and deleted his account and is being charged with a crime related to electronic data manipulation" would we think it was so crazy?--

Yes. First, she didn't delete an account of any real consequence, like a bank account - it was a game, which makes it inherently more silly. Second, she didn't hack into his account, which would certainly be illegal - he'd given her the password. It seems to me that he is ultimately responsible for whatever she does with his password. For example, I'm responsible for the content of my blog here. If I gave my password to someone and they posted something that was a violation of the terms of use on this site, I would be responsible for that. I don't see a difference.

[jaderabbit]

I have mixed feelings about this. Killing somebody's character seems like stalking, and it's not a bad basis for a restraining order (provided they have those in Japan). But five years seems excessive. I don't think you get that much for killing somebody's dog.

It doesn't really seem like hacking to me if you're using a password that someone gave you. And although it may not matter in a crime, I think the man's being disingenuous. You never, ever give your password to anybody. EVER. What was he thinking? And if he complained quickly enough, surely the game company could have restored his character from a backup server?

[clair_de_lalune]

--And if he complained quickly enough, surely the game company could have restored his character from a backup server?--

That's what I was thinking. Surely the webmasters (or whatever they're called) who run the game could have reversed what she'd done, so there would be no permanent "harm".

[wimble_mimble]

Can I just say that I love the internet! You are never short of pointless drama! ;)

I mean, I can see charging her for electronic hacking... but is it really hacking if she was given the password? And five years seems so excessive!

[clair_de_lalune]

--Can I just say that I love the internet! You are never short of pointless drama! ;)--

*lol*