Google Plus to no longer ask for 'real' names following privacy concerns

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ANI Washington
Last Updated : Jul 16 2014 | 2:10 PM IST

Google Plus has reportedly stopped asking people for their 'real names' after receiving complaints that the policies put users at risk.

The real-name policy, which was introduced with the launch of Google Plus, was designed to create a network that looked like Facebook.

Journalists and privacy advocates criticized the policy for exposing people who had valid reasons for wanting to use pseudonyms.

The company stated that they have gradually relaxed restrictions on the policy, allowing YouTube users and brand pages to pick any names they want.

However, Google admitted that they know that the names policy has been unclear, and this has led to some unnecessarily difficult experiences for some of the users.

The company stepped forward to apologize for the inconvenience people faced, and hope that this change is a step toward making Google Plus the welcoming and inclusive place that we want it to be.

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First Published: Jul 16 2014 | 1:55 PM IST

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