The Case of User 4417749
On August 9, the New York Times published an article that discloses
the identity of User 4417749. Her name apparently is Thelma Arnold, she's 62 years old and she likes to research her friends' medical conditions.
How to Identify this User from her Searches
A lot of the searches from this user are, as the NY Times writes, for family members with the same last name. Interestingly, she also searched for the term "paranoia". (Just because you aren't paranoid, that doesn't mean they won't release
your searches on AOL, though.) Many searches related to Lilburn, Georgia appear. The user
searched for single men in the 60ies and places to retire for persons older than 55, also for womens' underwear. At this point, we already know that this user is a woman, probably in the 60ies, living alone, from the area of Lilburn, Georgia.
Only 14 people in Lilburn have the last name "Arnold". Half of them are male.
Several other terms appear that make this user's identification easier, but even if you miss them, there's only 7 people to call and ask. While I don't know what the NY Times did to confirm the identity of this user, calling few select
people from the area and asking seems likely.
Privacy Considerations
The story of user 4417749 and her real identity were published in a major newspaper. Therefore, keeping the link secret is no longer necessary or possible. Also, her searches contain nothing to
be ashamed of. Furthermore, I assume Ms. Arnold gave permission to the NY Times to publish their findings. This is why I haven't censored the User ID and name in this case.