At least four Redskins players became the victims of online identity hoax.
Alias Sidney Ackerman used pictures of an internet adult entertainer (C.J. Miles) to portray herself and the reason believed was so "Ackerman" could gain conversations with pro athletes. Most of the conversations occurred through Twitter but in some cases, pictures were sent to players cell phones not denying the fact that the pictures were not her own.
"Ackerman" never asked for money or benefits but she is a diehard Redskins fan. Several players attempted to meet with her but none succeeded, this arose suspicion on the ability that "Ackerman" could be fake.
The players believed it was all for attention and to be able to talk to them personally.
Another unverified Twitter account using a picture of Miles was found but claimed to be a "new sports fan." The account owner said that he/she just wanted to be friends with famous athletes and they wouldn't be able to meet in the real world.
Philip Daniel the team's director of player development was the one who warned the players about "Ackerman" and hopes to raise awareness to players about the truth of the surreal social media.
I believe that people tend to create different identities online, like the one "Ackerman" created, because they could not be happy with their lives and how they think other people see them.
Creating a different identity, with a different look and personality is easy to do online, since the person behind the new identity never has to show who they are. By creating that scenario, it could lead to making their life a little happier, since the results they see and the feedback they get is mostly positive.
The problem is that it is only the online version of themselves, and those people creating the online identities could become addicted to their online persona, these results can cause problems for the believers who think the fictitious identity is the real official person.
