I get your general point about trying to encourage others to respond to one's question by participating in the forum via posting reviews. There are however a number of specific points you make which are questionable. The first is the issue of credibility and how one attains it. You seem to suggest that one review creates instant credibility. However, some folks here have expressed the view that a legitimate reviewer is someone who has 20-30 reviews. By that measure, they would not consider you a legitimate reviewer and, by your logic, might not feel comfortable responding to questions you post. Also, is credibility earned once and forever, or does one have to work to maintain it? Is someone who posted one review 10yrs ago, or 5 reviews, that last of which is 7yrs old, still legitimate today? For all we know, a hacker could have accessed the account of a retired hobbyist. So, I would suggest that legitimacy, or "bona fides" to use your words, are not as simple as you make it seem. Besides, if you don't think there are more than a few fakes reviews (good and bad) around here, I have a bridge to sell you. If you're just going by review count, how much credibility should a writer of fake reviews be given.
The second point I would take exception with is the notion that posting under an alias automatically creates suspicion. As one of the user of aliases you presumably refer to in your post, I have my own reasons for posting that way instead of using my regular board name, just like you have your own reasons for not having written a review in 7yrs. Using an alias doesn't necessarily imply any sinister motive on my part, anymore than you not writing a review in 7yrs makes you less "bona fide". Let's face it, whether you use an alias or not, we're all anonymous to most people here, with the exception of the more popular providers. Hint, when I use an alias, you're not the one I'm hiding from; you don't know who I am anyway.
The last point I take exception with in your post is the notion that bona fide posters responding to the questions of other bona fide posters makes the board more "secure", which I take to mean that sensitive information is kept away from unreliable agents. If you're concerned about posting a reply that could expose say a provider or agency to LE, does it matter whether the original poster is using an alias or has 500 reviews and using his own name? If you post, all the folks without "bona fides" can still see your reply. So, the only real way to keep such sensitive information secure would be for bona fide posters to communicate sensitive information only to each other via PM. So, technically, the only way to keep the board "secure", is to keep all sensitive information off the board.
Rather than separate the world into a good and bad halves, I would suggest you should use your good judgment when deciding to post a question or reply to one. If you chose to respond only to posters who have x number of reviews, it's your prerogative but keep in mind that answering a post is not a personal favor to the OP, it could be information that benefits the entire community.
