Reporting Anonymously: What Works With a Pseudonym

Can you report online hate anonymously? Many people hold back because they fear the other person will find out their name. In short: with platforms and with Hass-Hetze, a lot works with a pseudonym. For a request for prosecution (Strafantrag) and for court action, you need your real name. This guide shows what works where, what the other person can find out and how to protect yourself.

In acute danger, call 110, even if you would rather stay anonymous. You can talk to someone without giving your name at any time: the Telefonseelsorge (crisis line) on 0800 111 0 111, around the clock, in German.

Can you report anonymously on platforms?

Usually you report through the reporting function in the app, so with your account. Look for “Report” next to the comment, post or profile, often behind three dots. The labels sometimes change. The platform then knows who reported.

What the reported person learns is governed by the EU Digital Services Act (DSA): if a platform removes or restricts content, it must give the affected user a statement of reasons. It only names you as the person who reported if that is strictly necessary (Art. 17(3)(b) DSA).

For notices of illegal content under Art. 16 DSA, a notice is meant to include the name and email address of the person submitting it. Content that points to child sexual abuse is an exception. The platform must tell you its decision, and you can file an internal complaint (Art. 20 DSA). More in Digital Services Act: What Platforms Must Do About Online Hate.

Can you report to the police anonymously?

In principle, you can give the police information about crimes without giving your name. For offences prosecuted ex officio, such as incitement to hatred, threats or stalking, the police can then investigate on their own. But an anonymous tip has limits: the police cannot ask you follow-up questions, and you won't hear how the case is going. Online police forms differ from one federal state to another. How reporting online works is explained in Report a Crime to the Police Online.

A Strafantrag cannot be anonymous. Insult, defamation and malicious defamation are usually only prosecuted if the injured person files a Strafantrag. For that, your identity and your wish for the offence to be prosecuted must be established (Section 158(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, StPO). No name, no Strafantrag. The deadline is three months, see Strafantrag: Deadlines, Form and the Difference from a Criminal Complaint.

Will the accused person find out my name?

You should expect so. The accused person's defence lawyer can inspect the investigation file (Section 147 StPO), and it usually shows who made the report. But you can protect your home address:

• If there is reason to fear that giving your address would endanger you or others, you should be allowed to give another address where you can be reached instead of your home address (Section 68(2) StPO).
• If there is a danger to life, limb or liberty, even your identity can be kept secret (Section 68(3) StPO).
• You can apply to the residents' registration office for a block on disclosure (Auskunftssperre, Section 51 of the Federal Registration Act, BMG). Then not just anyone can get your address from the population register.

Tell the police right away when you report if you are afraid the person will find out your address.

How anonymous is a report to Hass-Hetze?

• Name: a pseudonym is fine. You don't have to give your real name.
• Email address: we need it for the confirmation link, and the law firm contacts you through it later. Feel free to use an address that does not contain your name.
• Preview without your name: a suitable cooperating law firm first sees a preview without your name, contact details or files. Only if it accepts does it see everything.
• We don't read your report, except where there are signs of misuse or errors.
• The other person learns nothing from your report. We don't contact them. Only if you later decide on a step yourself, such as a cease-and-desist letter or a criminal complaint (Anzeige), will they find out, and usually learn your name too.
• Under 16: you give the name and email address of a parent. That person has to consent and only learns what kind of hate it is and on which platform, not your description.

Important: a pseudonym does not make you invisible. Your description can still make you recognisable, for example through profile names, links or details of the incident.

Where can you get help without giving your name?

• Nummer gegen Kummer: 116 111, Monday to Saturday from 2 pm to 8 pm, free and anonymous, for children and young people, in German.
• Telefonseelsorge: 0800 111 0 111, around the clock, free and anonymous, in German.
• Hilfetelefon Gewalt gegen Frauen (helpline for women affected by violence): 116 016, around the clock, free and anonymous, in many languages, also for relatives.
• juuuport: young people advise other young people online at juuuport.de, in German.

Where are the limits of anonymity?

• Strafantrag: only with your real name.
• Cease-and-desist letter, lawsuit, application for a contact ban: as a rule, you need your real name for these. A law firm will discuss with you how to protect your address.
• Giving evidence as a witness: witnesses have to give their personal details, with the protection options described above.
• Screenshots: they often show your own profile name. Don't edit them anyway. An unaltered screenshot is worth more as evidence. With Hass-Hetze, a law firm only sees files once it accepts your case.

Frequently asked questions

Will the person find out that I reported them to the platform?

Under the DSA, the platform only names you in its statement of reasons if that is strictly necessary. Nobody can completely rule out that someone guesses from the context who reported.

Do I need my real name for Hass-Hetze?

No. A pseudonym is fine, and your email address does not have to contain your name. For some legal steps, the law firm will need your real name later.

Can I file a Strafantrag anonymously?

No. For a Strafantrag, the identity and the wish to prosecute of the person filing it must be established (Section 158(2) StPO).

Can I report for a friend?

On the platform, you can report content even if you are not affected yourself. But only the injured person can file a Strafantrag, or their parents if they are a minor. More in Witnessing Online Hate: What You Can Do to Help.

Report your case

You can report it through our form, with a pseudonym and an email address without your name. If you say yes, your report goes automatically to a suitable cooperating law firm (Kooperationskanzlei) as soon as one is available. The legal assessment comes from the law firm, not from us. If there is no suitable firm right now, you get an email with other places to turn to straight away. Deadlines keep running: you can always file a request for prosecution (Strafantrag) with the police yourself.