EA opts Origin users out of “real-name sharing” after complaints

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Electronic Arts is opting all users out of the 'real name sharing' option on its Origin gaming service following complaints that some users may have been entered into the program without their consent.
The option to 'show my real name on my profile' (as opposed to just sharing an online handle) is buried in the privacy settings for every EA Origin account, as it is for many other gaming networks. But Randi Lee Harper, the founder of the nonprofit Online Abuse Prevention Initiative, recently noted in a Twitter thread that her real name was being shared via the account without any opt-in.
Harper said anecdotal reports and spot checks of others with Origin accounts showed that the setting 'has been seemingly randomly enabled' for a number of other Origin users. Accounts created between 2013 and 2015 seem to have more likelihood of having the option enabled by default, Harper said, but she added that she 'can't find any kind of commonality in the data. It seems so random.' (New accounts created today default the real name sharing to be off.)
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