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Hiding Behind (False) Names, Titles, Or Kunyahs That Hide The Identity Of A Person

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Al-Muhaddith, the carrier of the banner of Jarh wa Ta’deel in our time, Ash-Shaykh Rabee, advised the Salafis in everyplace about a number of affairs that are extremely important to the Da’wah Salafiyyah, and those who ascribe to this most blessed manhaj. From the affairs that the Sheikh spoke about is the affair of evil of people posting on the internet, hiding under unknown screen names. He stated:

……by Allah no one hides his [real] name except a person of evil. Astaghfirullah! Astaghfirullah! Why are you hiding your [real] name?! If you have the truth with you then announce your name, if you have falsehood with you then fear Allah! Don’t speak! There is no reason to hide your [real] name, no reason whatsoever, this is something unknown with the Salaf…”

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After looking into the benefits of posting with one’s real name, the following things come to mind at first glance:

1. One will take his time, contemplate, and think deeply before posting.

2. We will know the level of the writer’s knowledge and manhaj.

3. There will be no hastiness or unnecessary rush in spreading things before confirming them and referring them to the people of knowledge.

4. Writing under one’s real name will bring about a sense of responsibility and accountability for what is being written.

5. It will reduce excessive writing and spreading (of things devoid of benefit)

6. It will restrict the writing and the offering of advice to the people of knowledge and their students, and not just every Tom, Dick, and Harry will post.

7. It will put forth the people of knowledge and make clear their true position and their true right and authority with regards to guidance, education, and criticism.

8. It will allow the Salafee manhaj to be seen in its beautiful form and complete shape, by way of knowing the narrators and their situations and personalities.

9. We will be able to apply the Sharee’ah ruling on the opposing ones, those who stubbornly resist (the correct path), and the liars.  We will be able to confirm and verify reports if we know the individuals, but this ability will vanish or dwindle so long as we do not know them, or they are anonymous.

10. There will be an increase in beneficial posts with knowledge, clarifying the manhaj, and weak posts or those devoid of benefit will decrease.

11. We will nobly remove ourselves from the ways of the biased partisans and people of secret movements and organizations, and we will oppose their stealth and hiding behind nicknames or kunyahs when their attributes and poisons become known.

12. We will spread clarity and mutual truthfulness, two attributes that are from the foremost attributes of the Salafee manhaj.

Written by: ‘Ubayd ibn ‘Abdillaah ibn Sulaymaan Al-Jaabiree
Former professor at the Islaamic University of Al-Madeenah 1423/7/21
Source: SalafiTalk.net (translation by Moosaa Richardson) and Sahab.net

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Al-Muhaddith Muhammad Naasirud-Deen Al-Albaanee dicussed this issue of the of those who hide behind pseudonyms, and unknown kunyahs in at least two of his writings.

In the introduction to his book An-Naseehah (pg. 5) he refutes one called Hassaan Abdul-Mannaan, he states:

And it has become certain to me that he began to circulate his books, in the end, after his reality was uncovered, and his affair exposed, under the pen name Abu Suhaib Al-Karamee!! Going to extremes in trickery, and Talbees (deceit)! and drowning in misguidance and Tadlees (deception)!! Rather after that he circulated books with his introductions and checkings without any name or Kunyah!!

So in this quote of Al-Muhaddith Al-Albaanee he describes this act as trickery, deceit, misguidance, and deception. May Allah grant us safety from such attributes.

He also states in the introduction to Adaabuz-Zafaaf (pg. 8):

And in this introduction I do not want to turn once again to the refutation of his treatise, and the clarification of all that is in it from his errors, mistakes, and false allegations, and in the end his his seeking assistance from one of the enemies of the people of the sunnah and hadeeth, and the callers to Tawheed who are well known by this, he is none other than Habeebur-Rahman Al-Athamee, the one who hid behind the pseudonym (Arshad As-Salafee) because of his cowardice, and his lack of scholarly and literary courage, he hid behind it in his book: Al-Albaanee, his anamolies, and errors.

So the Muhaddith of this era described it as an act of cowardice, and if the people of cyber tadlees truly believed that that which they were upon was the truth,then they would never hide behind these screen names and as the scholars of hadeeth mentioned about this: ‘Rather his avoiding identifying him is something that places suspicion in the heart.’

Source: http://www.salafitalk.net/st/viewmessages.cfm?Forum=9&Topic=5498

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• Sheikh ‘Abdul-‘Azeez Al-Bura’ee Regarding The Use of Actual Names on the Internet… (Must Read)