Are friend codes really personal information?

[cheat-master30]

As you should have known, the majority of official Nintendo forums have a ban on sight objection to friend code sharing, but would you really consider friend codes personal in the first place?

For one, you cannot trace IP addresses to location in many places, and if you tried to trace an AOL or many such ISP IP, you would just end up at the ISPs server facility. And if you tried to with a public network, you could not find the actual users.

Besides, is it really possible to decrypt a friend code?

[Luis]

Friend codes are bad? I don`t get the AOL, ISP, and the IP part. Your saying friend codes are like giving out phone numbers and e-mail address?

[NintenDan]

Well, I think not as you cannot find any age or address or bithdate or name in there, and the same goes for E-mail and that. There are special codes for a DS and Game set, so it is pretty hard to steal it if you have the game but not the DS, and vice versa...

[cheat-master30]

No, the opposite. Tracking down a friend code would most likely track down the Internet Service Provider of the gamer, as in the AOL company headquarters.

[NintenDan]

I really don't know. Why would people have an interest in getting another's code...?

[cheat-master30]

Good point. Also, what if the code was tied to the DS? How could that help if someone could then sell the game/DS at some shop or sale to who knows what person?

[NintenDan]

Interesting point also... But most people would delete everything off the game, so it looked brand new...

[cheat-master30]

Personally though, I also think Nsider is overreacting as how would Nintendo be sued for it if Cnet and IGN (who's sites allow friend code sharing) have not been?

[NintenDan]

Yeah. One of these weird things about Nintendo I guess... Speaking of whcih, I might go to the website, see if anything's new!