[originaltext] (16)Internet anonymity has a long and controversial history—

(16)Internet anonymity has a long and controversial history—it’s a unique feature of the web that has provided additional levels of safety for whiftle-blowers and human rights advocates, but it’s also given rise to the Internet cheating and a host of other evil behaviors that come from expression without much fear of consequence. Currently, anonymity is most common on Internet forums and within comment sections of websites, where allowing people to post without their identities has become controversial. Mainstream social networks have generally discouraged anonymity. But for people whose workplaces or families disapprove of their political leanings or sexual orientations, the benefits of real names are less clear.(17)On Social Number, which launched in December and already has thousands of registered users according to the company, individuals sign up and pick a long number that becomes their identity on the network, which doesn’t rely on names or usernames like other sites. Users can then post about topics and have discussions ranging from reducing your carbon footprint to dealing with a bad boss to atheism. The CEO of the company, who goes by MK and declined to provide his full name citing anonymity concerns, said the anonymity is crucial to the site’s success.(18)MK said the organization will protect the anonymity of the site’s users, which now include self-professed members of the hacker group Anonymous, but they will not permit discussion of illegal activity on the site.
16. What is the speaker’s attitude towards Internet anonymity?
17. When was Social Number launched?
18. What can be learned about Internet anonymity from the passage?