SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) — Officials at Google Plus and Facebook are trying to ban the use of pseudonyms, and a project titled “My Name is Me” is fighting back, with the claim that many people have legitimate reasons not to use their real names online.

“People who need to feel safe online, people who have been in domestic violence situations or whose political or other views are unpopular in their community, feel much safer using a name other than the one they were born with,” said Jillian York with the San Francisco-based Electronic Frontier Foundation.

KCBS’ Tim Ryan Reports:

York said they are simply exercising their right to freedom of speech.

“While these are companies that absolutely have the right to do what they want under the First Amendment, we as the users also have the right to fight back,” she said.

Online discussions about this are heating up. One argument those who oppose pseudonyms online claim is that such anonymity makes it difficult to combat crimes including cyberbullying.

(© 2011 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)