A new research paper has uncovered flaws in the anonymization system used on the popular Economics Job Market Rumors (EJMR) forum, allowing the authors to identify the IP addresses and locations of thousands of its users.
The paper, authored by Florian Ederer, Paul Goldsmith-Pinkham, and Kyle Jensen, relied on publicly available data from the EJMR website. The forum allows users to post anonymously using a four-character randomized username generated from their IP address. However, the researchers discovered biases in the randomization scheme that enabled them to reverse-engineer the IP addresses of around 47,000 users, linking over 4.6 million posts to their locations.
Implications of the Research
The findings have several important implications:
- Anonymity online is challenging – EJMR believed their system protected users’ identities, but the research shows anonymization schemes can be flawed. Internet users should be aware their anonymity is not guaranteed.
- Toxic speech at elite institutions – Over 10% of EJMR posts came directly from IP addresses at top universities, contradicting the claim that it’s not representative of academia. The share of abusive EJMR content was shown to be lower from universities than residential IPs, but still present.
- Inequality in economics continues – Analysis of posts supported existing research showing ongoing gender and racial bias in economics. For example, the share of problematic content was higher in forums focused on women economists.
- Policy changes needed to improve economics culture – The pervasiveness of EJMR usage at all top departments implies sitting by is inadequate. Concrete steps like codes of conduct may be required to reform discriminatory behaviors.
Future Impact
The EJMR forum responded to the publication by strengthening its anonymity protections. However, the paper demonstrates that even specialists can underestimate the challenges of guaranteeing online anonymity. As more communications occur digitally, individuals, corporations and governments must improve their understanding of privacy tools.
Economics as a field also needs to have an open discussion about the implications of this research. It provides quantitative support for long-standing calls to address the climate, particularly around gender and race, in economics departments. Promotion of diversity and adoption of clear standards for conduct will continue to be important steps for the profession.
Overall, these findings will likely prompt economists to reflect carefully on how EJMR and similar venues reflect their values and shape the experiences of their peers. That sort of introspection has the potential to drive cultural changes that make economics a more welcoming discipline.