Bloggers' identities may be revealed

I stumbled across this article in my internet travel today and wanted to share it with you; of course, this doesn't really apply to any of you because we all blog with integrity! But I wanted to pass it on:

Google reveals blogger's identity after Vogue model's 'skank' insult.

Miss Cohen, 37, went to the Manhattan supreme court to discover who had attacked her so she could sue for defamation. The Skanks in NYC blog featured photos of Miss Cohen and described her in a series of unflattering terms....In what may prove a far-reaching ruling, Joan Madden, a New York supreme court judge, rejected the blogger's claim that the blogs were a "modern day forum for conveying personal opinions, including invective and ranting" and should not be treated as factual assertions. The judge quoted a ruling by a Virginia court in a similar case that said that anonymous online taunters should be held accountable when their derision goes too far. Google said it had complied with the ruling by supplying the blogger's IP and email addresses to Miss Cohen's lawyers. The blog was removed as soon as Miss Cohen took legal action. Read more...