Anonymity and Helplines

Many helplines want to protect the identities of their callers but the reasons vary:

• Some helpline users may not seek help if they fear identification
• Lack of identifying information may thwart a "rogue" helpline worker from making inappropriate contact with a caller. Similarly, mistakes over record security are less serious.
• If identifying information isn't needed for the service you offer, not keeping it may help you comply better with the spirit and letter of any "data protection" laws or policies.

Anonymous Servers

There are various types but the most useful allowed helpline Callers to have a new, untraceable address. The main problem was of reliability. Anonymous Servers for email are usually run by individuals as a hobby. As such, their independence of large organisations (including helplines) was often perceived as extremely trustworthy.

Unfortunately, there were problems of continuity. Powerful organisations (such as the Church of Scientology) mounted legal attacks to trace users who they had a problem with. The most famous server anon.penet.fi was accused of facilitating paedophile activity. The final nail in their coffins was the pressure of preventing use for junk email or "Spam". Currently, there are no Anonymous Servers available that are suitable for helpline use.

Net Services is currently in the early stages of researching a project to provide an anonymous server facility that will avoid the pitfalls by restricting access to helpline callers only.

The Net Services "Local Anonymity" technology

This brings the anonymising process in house so you are no longer reliant on an external Anonymous Server. The caller's real email address is replaced by an anonymous address on the screen, in print outs, etc. Currently, this is available as an extension to our HelpMail products.

We're also close to releasing software that will do this for all standard mail programs (EG: Outlook Express, Eudora, Pegasus, etc).