Secret, Confession pages and more: 2014, the year of anonymity

Most of us are glued to social networks, updating what we did to what we plan to do. Some even put out forthright opinions, but raw honestly is something that can be quite tricky. Isn’t it hard to speak your mind with your true identity attached to something? Well, it is, arguably for most of us.  Maybe that’s why we’ve seen a sudden surge in apps that let you protect your identity whilst letting you speak your mind. Yes, from Secret and Whisper to random Confession pages and Rooms, we’ve seen it all. In fact, even bigwigs like Facebook are mulling over a Secret-like app. Let’s take a quick look at the app that helped make the year all about going anonymous. Secret Secret has become a new way of sharing your thoughts with others. In fact, it has become the most popular gossip rag in Silicon Valley. Founded by two ex-Google employees, you can share your true opinion, join communities and also make new friends, all without disclosing your real identity. It is mostly dominated by tech-enthusiasts. The app is available for download for Android and iOS users on Google Play store and Apple App store, respectively. [caption id=“attachment_246240” align=“aligncenter” width=“640”]  The Secret app[/caption] Whisper Whisper is yet another place to connected with like-minded people and express your true self, without telling anyone who you are. You can send out whispers with photos, respond to anonymous whispers and there’s also the option for private messaging. The Whisper anonymous app is more popular among teens. It is available for Android as well as iOS users. Confessions page Confession pages is yet another trend that has been catching up over the years and saw them gain traction this year. “I’m a compulsive laundry room thief,” said one Facebook confession while “I’m the reason the ‘Public Urination is Illegal’ signs were put up at Coyote Village,” said another. Such anonymous admissions were popping up on confessions pages on Facebook as well as Twitter. Some worrisome than others and popular among teenagers or users in their early-20s. Some confessions were worrisome and even linked to famous universities. Anonymous confession posts varied from sexual fantasies and revealing one’s sexual orientation to cyber-bullying and hate comments and more. [caption id=“attachment_243004” align=“aligncenter” width=“640”]  Facebook Rooms[/caption] Rooms Putting an end to the buzz around Facebook developing a Secret-like app, the social network announced Rooms. “One of the things our team loves most about the Internet is its potential to let us be whoever we want to be. That’s why in Rooms you can be ‘Wonder Woman’ — or whatever name makes you feel most comfortable and proud," Facebook had explained in its blogpost. The app is nothing but a smartphone spin on chat forums that were popular venues for online discourse in early Internet days. Rooms serve as virtual settings for photos, videos, and text posted in the spirit of taking part in a conversation about chosen topics. Those who create rooms can make participation invite-only or post public links to join. Besides, there are several other anonymous apps such as YikYak, Cloaq, Gossup, Viper and so on.