Content

• To step
• Part 1 of 2: Creating an identity
• Part 2 of 2: Finishing your profile

Facebook is probably the most important way for most people to connect with others, share what they are experiencing, make new friends, and rediscover old friends. Yet it can sometimes happen that you want to know what is happening on Facebook without sharing your likes, comments, and messages with everyone you know, while still wanting to come across as a "real" person. Then you need an "alias", an anonymous fake account with just enough friends and activities to appear real.

To step

Part 1 of 2: Creating an identity

1. Choose a name. Your alias name can be whatever you want. You can be as unobtrusive as possible with a name like Kees de Jong, or you can stand out with a weird name like Aloysius Halfmouw. But watch out: the stranger the name, the less likely people will believe you are "real". Because the name Aloysius has not been in the top 50 of most common baby names for a long time!
   • Whatever you choose, there are no restrictions on people with the same name on Facebook.
2. Create an email account with your new name. Use an email service such as Yahoo, Gmail or Hotmail to create an anonymous account. Not only are they free, but you also need a court order to reveal the identity behind the person with the fake name.
3. Add photos of your life. Anyone can have a name, but photos tell the story. If there's no photographic evidence of it, it hasn't happened.
   • Don't use images from Google, or images from websites with ready-to-use photos or other websites - you could easily fall through the basket, courtesy of Google Images. To test whether your image can be discovered quickly, go to images.google.com and drag your image into the search field. If it can be found on the web, Google Images will be able to find it.
   • Some possible alternatives are relationship websites like Zoosk or Match.com, Flickr, Tumblr and even that "other" social media website Myspace.
   • Don't use other Facebook accounts because the advanced facial recognition algorithms used can accidentally tag someone and get caught red-handed. This can cost you your fake account, as well as your real account!
   • If you are a teenager or in your twenties, you can search for images on Vampire Freaks, but they can be discovered with Google Images.
   • When you've found a suitable profile photo, have other photos of that person ready for later use. If you are using multiple people who should pass for "you", pay attention to details such as nose shape, lips, skin tone, hair style and color, height, weight, eye color, and other features.
   • Many people use child photos as a profile picture for Facebook, or even pictures of a cat, their favorite soccer team, or even a bush - you don't have to use a face image as a profile picture at all.

Part 2 of 2: Finishing your profile

1. Build your alternative life. If you are working on your alias profile you will need to choose a place or community.
   • Your alias can live in the same municipality as you, or on the other side of the world!
   • Search for elementary schools, high schools or higher education in that area and add them to your page.
   • Choose multiple things for each category of interests. With music, you can choose bands that you think fit your character's style.
2. Make up your alternative personality! Talk about yourself - but remember, you're not talking about who you really are, you're making up a character. You can be younger than in real life, or older. You can even be of the opposite sex!
   • The more details you add, the more convincing your fake account will be. But be careful with the "game" you play.
3. Add people. Look for people in your alternate character's hometown who seem interesting. If he / she has a lot of friends it is even better. The goal is to build a network of "friends", and by finding people who have many friends you accomplish two things:
   • First, if the list of friends is huge, they probably have no idea who all those people are. Look for their main interests, and then when you send a friend request, you can say something like, "Hey, remember me? We met at the concert last week." They will then assume that you have met and accept the request.
   • And second, when they have that many friends, you will soon have mutual friends - even friends who are not very well known. That way you can say, "Hey, remember me? I was with ... at the concert last week".
   • Befriend people of both sexes. That way you develop a nicely balanced profile.
   • Don't add people you know! If a lot of people are going to say you're a fake, just ignore them and keep going. Keep adding and getting to know people by chatting and messaging.
4. Keep refreshing. Update your profile picture every now and then, and keep going to supposedly events in your area.
   • Set up accounts on Twitter, Yelp and Instagram and log in from a variety of locations near you. This stream of new information gives the impression that you are completely real.