Bonum Certa Men Certa

Wookey, Intrigeri, Cryptie & Debian pseudonyms beyond Edward Brocklesby

posted by Roy Schestowitz on Jun 24, 2024

Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock.

When Shaya Potter was expelled from Debian, he continued his career using the same name. Yet when Edward Brocklesby (ejb) was expelled for hacking, he seems to have vanished, raising questions about whether he really existed at all.

The discussion about Brocklesby has stirred up questions about some developers with unusual names.

Having an unusual name or a pseudonym doesn't automatically imply wrongdoing. In some ways, these names may attract more attention to the person's activities but on the other hand, if it is a pseudonym, which isn't always the case, it allows them to avoid responsibility for their mistakes.

The first name that came up is Wookey. Many people have met Wookey in real life at events, therefore, we can associate the name with a face. Wookey has written a page on his web site explaining how he changed his name to Wookey and it is a single family name without first name.

I've always been called Wookey - ever since I went to the sort of school where they just use your surname when I was a kid. Eventually I decided to make it official (by Statutory Declaration) and drop my first name, so since 1987 I've been 'Wookey' (no forenames or initials).

The first person to verify Wookey's identity with PGP was Chris Rutter, one of the Debian fatalities. Given Rutter's age at the time, he was only 18 or 19, he may not have had a lot of experience with authenticating passports and similar documents. Nonetheless, he did send a report about the case to the account manager who relayed the feedback to debian-newmaint-discuss:

To: Debian NM List <debian-newmaint-admin@lists.debian.org>
Subject: AM report for Wookey
From: Craig Small <small@eye-net.com.au>
Date: Thu, 22 Feb 2001 11:31:47 +1100
Message-id: <20010222113147.A11916@eye-net.com.au>

ID --- GPG key signed by Chris Rutter <cmr@debian.org> As an additional step, I asked Chris if the applicants full name is 'Wookey' as he attests. Chris emailled me a GPG signed mail saying that he has seen official documents stating this is his real name. ID step passed.
[...]

Another interesting case is that of Intrigeri ( Debian profile). People can look through the Debian New Maintainer discussion to see who signed the key and how they were satisfied to accept the name Intrigeri.

In the world of FSFE, we had an employee of the French government, Amandine Jambert, using the pseudonym cryptie. This was a situation that raised complex ethical concerns. Madame Jambert subsequently resigned from FSFE. In fact, a lot of people have resigned from FSFE over the years.

The notion that we should trust somebody's name based on the identity documents they carry implies we are putting our trust in the institutions that issue those identity documents. In practice, there have been various cases around the world where state actors have created fake documents. Stolen documents are not easy to get but it is not unheard of either.

Therefore, instead of worrying about people who have chosen unusual names or pseudonyms, maybe we need to take a lesson from the X files: Trust No One.

Other Recent Techrights' Posts

"I Hated Working at IBM. They Were the Most Unfriendly People."
Don't forget what Watson the son did to a poor woman on a plane
Staff Union of the EPO (SUEPO) is Taking the New Pension Scheme (NPS) to an International Tribunal (ILOAT)
SUEPO wants more EPO staff to participate in collective action
Stella Assange and the Legal Team Speak to the Media a Day After WikiLeaks Founder Julian Assange Arrives in Australia
Published yesterday by a number of mainstream publishers
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
[Video] The 'Dangerous Precedent' (Jen Robinson on Assange Plea Bargain)
Published 3 hours ago in Australia
Microsoft is Losing Its Grip on Bulgaria
now may be a good time to look into statistics from Bulgaria
LinuxSecurity.com Back to Relaying Anti-Linux FUD From Microsoft, Using Microsoft Chatbots That Recycle and Add Permutations to the FUD
They're killing the Web every time they do this
 
IBM: So Long, Suckers. Your Free OS is Now Proprietary. Pay IBM or Else.
almost exactly a year after turning RHEL into proprietary software
Vista 11 is Doomed and Despite Lack of Adoption Microsoft Already Speaks of Vapourware ("12")
"Microsoft has pulled a Windows 11 update after users reported boot loops and startup failures."
ChromeOS Reaches Highest Share in Years at the World's Most Populous Nation, Windows Now at All-Time Low of 13%
We're talking about India today
[Video] "It Is Incredible That Julian Assange Survives"
There was a positive and mutual relationship between Wikileaks and Dr Jill Stein
Never Assume That Because the Law Exists the Powerful Will Follow the Law
Who's going to hold them accountable now?
Nearly a Month Has Passed and Nobody at the Debian Project Even Attempted to Explain What Seems Like Back-dooring of Debian (and Hundreds of Distros That Are Debian-Derived)
I can cynically guess that only matters when a user with a Chinese name does it
[Video] Julian Assange Explains Wikileaks' Logistics
predating indefinite detention
IBM Was Never the "Good Guy", Just a Self-Serving and Opportunistic Money- and Power-Hungry Monopolist, Living Off of Taxpayers' Money (Government Contracts)
The Nazi Party of Germany was its second-biggest client at one point and now it's looking to profit from the work of slaves
State of the News (and Depletion of Journalism Online, Not Just Offline)
Newspapers are not coming back and the Web is not coming back either
GNU/Linux Consolidates in North America
Android rising a lot this year, too
[Meme] More Monopolies Granted While Patent Examiners Die (Overworking for Less Compensation)
Work more; Get less
IRC Proceedings: Thursday, June 27, 2024
IRC logs for Thursday, June 27, 2024
RIP Daniel Bristot de Oliveira, Red Hat death
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
European Commission fooled by IBM Red Hat merger risk to source code
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Links 27/06/2024: Black-Lives-Matter-Poster-Related Lawsuit, Misinformation and Propaganda by Chinese Userfarms
Links for the day
Gemini Links 27/06/2024: Rogue Legends and Old Computers
Links for the day
[Meme] They Think of Their Business Partner, Microsoft
Think.
At the Cusp of Productivity
Work in progress: a critique of terms of service (ToS) in "modern" computing
The Free Software Foundation (FSF) is Becoming More European Than the Google- and Microsoft-Funded 'FSFE' (Fake 'FSF', a Case of Identity Theft)
The Board of Directors of the FSF is now all European as far as women (3) go
[Meme] Meanwhile at IBM's Headquarters
Old white men can find common themes to laugh at in IBM
IBM's Board is a Men's Club, Unlike the FSF's, But Red Hat/IBM Are Trolling the Community Using the "Diversity Shtick"
CoC-fighting over diversity to distract from their own failings
John Gilmore, Cofounder of the Electronic Frontier Foundation, Joins the FSF's Board
it's already riling up the Microsofters and misogynists
Links 27/06/2024: Microsoft's Chief Brand Offices Kathleen Hall to Leave, The Beauty of Blogging, Ukraine Updates
Links for the day
Microsoft Got Lost in Bermuda
based on far too little data
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Wednesday, June 26, 2024
IRC logs for Wednesday, June 26, 2024
Microsofter Throwing Stones in a Glasshouse Again
"Life is imitating art" and if you're a BS artist, your life must be BS
Far Too Young to Die
He seemed to be healthy
Virgin Islands, Marshall Islands, Guam and Other American Satellites Drift Further Away From Microsoft
So even US-controlled islands are moving away from Windows, little by little...
Let's Encrypt is Dying in Geminispace (Now Down Very Sharply to 6%), More People Self-Sign as They Certainly Should
Abandoning a fake security model?
No More Justice for Assange?
Not the site anyway
[Meme] "No News is Good News"
2 days have passed and still not a word
Northern Mariana Islands May Have Been Taken Over by Debian!!
The place is strategic for military reasons (like a giant aircraft carrier with running water)
Birthday With His Family
Julian Assange was born 3 July 1971
Julian Assange on Cryptographically-deniable Block Storage Device (aka Marutukku)
An oldie
Links 26/06/2024: US State Department Controlling YouTube, Artificial Intelligence (AI) Hype on the Brink as "Losses Balloon"
Links for the day
GNU/Linux Back Above 4% (in statCounter)
happened minutes or a few hours ago
Free Assange! (by Alexandre Oliva)
Reprinted with permission from Alexandre Oliva
Julian Assange & Debian: was he a developer?
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Links 26/06/2024: More on Hey Hi (AI) Bubble Fading, RIAA Steps in
Links for the day
Gemini Links 26/06/2024: UAF Botanical Garden and YouTube Workarounds
Links for the day
Microsoft Market Share Falling to New Lows in Aruba
Being below 20% in America is the exception, not the norm
Streaming in a Few Minutes: Julian Assange Press Conference
They test the microphone now.
[Video] Julian Assange Arrives Safely in Australia
even the person on the air cried
Debian Project Still Has a Lot of Explaining to Do...
Assange was actually a Debian Developer
[Meme] When Ian (of Debian) Was Still Alive
I wasn't always a Debian Developer...
"Julian Assange is Free"
Published ~34 minutes ago
GNU/Linux Userbase Surging in Iceland
Maybe there's something big going on, like people deleting Vista 11 in droves and installing GNU/Linux instead
Jennifer Robinson: "After 14 years of legal battles, Julian Assange can go home a free man”
She explains the implications for the general freedom of the press
Judge: Assange Leaves Court 'A Free Man'
on his way to Australia now
Julian Assange verdict: guilty, not guilty or blackmailed
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
12 Months Ago the FSF Said It Would Issue a Statement on IBM Taking RHEL Proprietary
Statement never happened
Sheriff of Cork & Debian Edward Brocklesby or Brockelsby Street confusion
Reprinted with permission from Daniel Pocock
Microsoft's Bing Fall From 2.6% Before LLM Hype to Just 0.79% Right Now in Russia
statCounter's data
[Meme] Speaking Truth to Power (Still Easier in the West Than in Russia/BRIC)
Different people, different outcomes
Over at Tux Machines...
GNU/Linux news for the past day
IRC Proceedings: Tuesday, June 25, 2024
IRC logs for Tuesday, June 25, 2024
The Plot to Silence (or Deplatform) Techrights
This past month I've been spending time working on the text of an online publication
[Meme] Julian Assange's Lawyers Need to Ensure Assange Maintains Freedom to Publish
Let's ensure he can continue to publish
"Conviction for a Crime he Did Not Commit," Said Jennifer Robinson
Robinson is the kind of woman accomplisher we should look up to
Trying to Make Blogs (Independent and Mostly Decentralised Platforms) What Comes After Social Control Media
Social Control Networks 'stole the thunder' of blogs, but can we get back to blogs?
Julian Assange Has Landed
There will probably be some press interviews some time this month or next month