Quarter of internet users post anonymously: Pew poll

36% of the respondents said that they did not use websites that asked for their real name.

Quarter  of all Internet users have posted comments anonymously, a poll conducted by Pew Research Center revealed on Thursday.

Of the total number of people who responded to their survey, 18% of the adult internet users said that they tried to mask their identity while the same percentage of respondents said they used fake and untraceable usernames.

It was found that young people were more likely to post anonymously, with 40 per cent of people between 18-29 years of age claiming they posted without revealing their names.

However, the study revealed that people who posted anonymously were likely to have more of their personal information on the internet.

Last month, news website Huffington Post said that it would not allow people to comment anonymously on its website, saying that trolls kept getting more aggressive and uglier.

36% of the respondents to the Pew survey said that they did not use websites that asked for their real name.

Huffington Post founder Arianna Huffington said at a conference in Boston, "I feel that freedom of expression is given to people who stand up for what they say and not hiding behind anonymity.”

59% of the people, however believe that it is not possible to be completely anonymous on the internet.

One of the regular commentators on The Express Tribune's website, Nandita recently explained her reasons for posting on the website in a blog.

"The reason I have continued commenting here is because I have come to admire certain fellow commentators.  I doubt I’d ever meet this diverse a group offline."