I knew about the comment problem from another article I read on another blog. That is why I do not have an avatar. You never know what people may use it for. Especially that most commenters leave comments annonimously they can easily get your e-mail and leave their opinions under your name.
Jason´s last blog ..What is going on with WordPress?

If Twitter were to add an “Online Now” indicator I would probably be in a rush to find the “invisible” feature that goes along with it just like with ICQ.
Extreme John´s last blog ..8 Reasons Follow Friday Sucks

If Twitter ever had an “Online Now” Link I would definitely never log into their interface again. Opting to post to it solely from Friendfeed or some other website or… just cancel the account all together.

One would hope that id they did add it, them they would give you the option to hide your online status like Facebook does. Only then would I use it.
Robert Owen´s last blog ..Friday Funny: The Correct Answer?

I agree the Gravatar abuse you describe is not only possible, but all too easy. I think the reason we don’t see the abuse taking place is that there’s no benefit to the perpetrator. Something like spamming comments benefits the perpetrator by spreading site-link. Impersonating a Gravatar is just petty malevolence. Then again, I guess if you really have it in for someone. . .
A Vecchioni´s last blog ..Penny Games

Ohh…This Gravatar thing can cause serious problems ! I just hope that people where we comment don’t disclose my Email address.
Tech-Freak Stuff´s last blog ..How to prepare yourself for Shifting from Blogger to WordPress?

[...] Disturbingly easy Gravatar impersonation and more internet fun by Christie [...]

You have a brilliant mind because we think alike LOL:)
I did think about that gravatar issue but like Doug said if a person
was stupid enough to do that they would only set themselves up to possibly be the most hated blogger on Earth. As wordpress expands and our sites become more valuable we are entrusted with people’s info so I think it’s a given to never use any information to harm someone and yes that means even your ” enemies ” I also am glad that we haven’t seen this and when I first read this I said to myself she should of kept that one a secret but from the comments I can see bloggers are some THINKING people
Thanks stumbled
John Sullivan´s last blog ..Facebook for GOOFS my new book

I never considered the possible comment impersonation. There’s no way to hide the email we us to comment since every blog we comment on gets it. I fall way behind on my comment duties and I’m not sure it would be a bad thing. They would almost certainly spell better than me and probably gain more friends

I hope Twitter never reads this post and gets the “online now!” idea. That drives me crazy about Facebook. I log in for a minute and get three people wanting to chat for an hour. Yahoo started that with their email so I’ve all but stopped using it. Being online shouldn’t mean you are available, just very busy.
Brian D. Hawkins´s last blog ..Chasing The Guru Ghost

[...] her views and I am glad to say, most of her views match with mine! Her recent topic about the Gravatar Impersonation literally shook me! She makes me feel at home when I comment on her blog which is the best thing [...]

I’ve actually just done a post on blogging identity theft where someone stole Mitch’s identity to leave a comment. He/she was hoping for an easy ride to the top commentator widget. Too bad I caught the low life out and delinked him.
Sire´s last blog ..The Reason Behind Your MLM Failure

Great post, and great comments too. I have never thought about gravatar impersonation, but it is the unexpected threats that are most dangerous.

I ran across this article while searching for something and had to share some information, even though months later. I hope you see it. It is very easy to steal someone’s identity and impersonate them. It is happening to several people commenting on wordpress blogs as we speak, including me. Sometimes they just right click and copy the image and save to use in their gravatar account. Sometimes they just use the ID or online name of the person. The most recent impersonation of me I found is using the email account that I closed and have been watching for, due to my email account being hacked and my suspicions as to who it is. There are only 4 blog sites I’ve used that email address at. The person spoke vulgar in my name and said I love NAMBLA which I found out is a pedophile group, clear slander and illegal. The man I suspect has exposed email addresses and IPs of those he considers his enemy, on his blog, not mine though. He posted the name, address and phone number of a PI and asked his readers to harass him. Still he is allowed to continue his blog. He also posted the picture of a convicted pedophile and in white type so it is invisible, typed the real name of one of his perceived enemies. He since deleted it but it comes up every time someone google’s either his name or his online ID. Still he continues. I am the latest on his enemy list because I have shared proof of certain things and reported him. I posted there a few times before I realized what kind of man he really is because an article caught my attention. His latest trick is to have found a way to post as multiple people and not have any email hash showing in the address for the gravatar, even though the email is required there, so they can’t be compared to other known gravatar IDs.

Just a heads up because abuse is rampant and needs to be stopped.