"There are reasons that there are such strong First Amendment protections on the Internet," says Marc Rotenberg, executive director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center. "People should be given wide latitude to express their opinions, even if others feel it's offensive or constitutes libel."

From rants about the rich and famous to accusations about a corporation's shady practices, opinion is certainly well represented on the Web. Many people feel free to post comments anonymously, confident that the targets of their ire can't trace them through Internet service providers (ISPs). In most cases, they're right. Laws governing the Internet generally protect ISPs more than they do companies or individuals that might be maligned. Comments that could be considered libel in newspapers or magazines often flow freely online.