Moderator requests deletion of 7000 posts

[sanction9]

I definitely would not delete the posts. If it's not important for others to see those threads/posts, then you can always just move them somewhere else where only you can see them, in a private forum accessible only by yourself. If your former mod can't access her old account, and those posts aren't returned in any search results, she's not going to know if you deleted them or not. For that matter, she wouldn't know even if you left things as they are, unless someone else with access to the threads ratted you out. Anyway, if nothing else, this way you wouldn't have to worry about post counts being affected.

If you want to keep the threads available to others, then yeah, maybe just delete any of her personally identifying info. Not sure what software you're using, but you could probably just use your spam tools to mass delete/replace some of that. But unless her posts contain info like her real full name, places where she can be reached, other sites she moderates or websites or companies she owns or manages, etc., then there's probably, in reality, little information that someone could use to establish her real identity for some malicious purpose. I've found this to be the case with most of the people who make these kinds of demands, who seem to think that their little personal anecdotes make them stand out in some unique way.

 

[KimmiKat]

That moderator should've never posted TMI info anywhere on the board. If she had something personal to say and only needed to direct it to someone, it should've been handled in PMs.

 

[Steve Freides]

Our terms say that anyone who posts retains copyright but also that they grant an unrestricted and unlimited license for us to use their posts as we see fit. I believe the wording is something that came with our XF.

-S-

 

[FTL]

Our terms say that anyone who posts retains copyright but also that they grant an unrestricted and unlimited license for us to use their posts as we see fit. I believe the wording is something that came with our XF.

-S-

The key word here is "irrevocable", which is indeed in the boilerplate legal text that comes with XenForo, so they can't force you to remove them.

 

[Medievalist]

I don't hard delete content.

I would allow her to edit or (soft) delete her own posts.

 

[Philpug]

We don't delete posts. Period. Now in Mod areas, we will hide/archive threads especially when we are adding and removing Mods. If she cared about the site and the health of it, she would understand. I am sure her 7000 posts (wow a lot in the mod section) have some very good information for future moderators.

 

[Skybound]

We have this in our T&Cs.

By posting on the forum you agree that the information/image/content will be displayed on the site. We are not bound to delete posts/content should you wish to withdraw from the forum.

 

[DigNap15]

Its well known that posts on forum become the property of the forum
I would tell her to just leave if they want to.

I'd even close their account bfeore they start deleting the posts manually.

 

[DigNap15]

There's a better way which is in accordance with GDPR

GDPR (ico.) states the following: How do I ask for my data to be deleted? You should contact the organisation and let them know what personal data you want them to erase.

Your right to get your data deleted

You can ask an organisation that holds data about you to delete that data and, in some circumstances, it must then do so. This is known as the right to erasure. You may sometimes hear it called the ‘right to be forgotten’.

ico.org.uk

As I said earlier I would honour the request and that is the correct way to do it.

There is a difference between personal data and posts
Did she post her name and adress and phone number?
If so remove that.
leave the rest

 

[FTL]

Its well known that posts on forum become the property of the forum
I would tell her to just leave if they want to.

I'd even close their account bfeore they start deleting the posts manually.

Agreed. Handily, XF is already preset to lock posts after a short time, so they can't go postal on them anyway.

 

[KimmiKat]

I remember deleting a post on WHT. But that was due to an accidental post due to keyboard crapping out on me and inserting some BS stuff. Few days later I was demoted from mod status.

Its well known that posts on forum become the property of the forum
I would tell her to just leave if they want to.

I'd even close their account bfeore they start deleting the posts manually.

 

[zappaDPJ]

I'm not aiming this at anyone in particular but I think it's worth stating that your forum rules have little or no bearing to the OP question when it comes to geographic location's PII/data privacy rules.

It's all very well saying do this or don't do that but on the odd occasion someone makes a legitimate request and follows it though with a complaint to the regulator you might come to regret ignoring the regulations.

While I agree the majority of forums fly under the radar as far as the regulators are concerned I'd also ask is it really worth taking the risk when these requests can be fulfilled satisfactorily in a manner causing minimal disruption?

For info, here's the UK's ICO list of recent offenders: https://ico.org.uk/action-weve-taken/enforcement/

 

[craigForo]

Soft delete?

 

[SaN-DeeP]

Lol, Sounds funny, domain owner decides right conclusion.
End of TOPIC..


***Take care of same before you are bombed*** with idiots

 

[rhianna]

There is a difference between personal data and posts
Did she post her name and adress and phone number?
If so remove that.
leave the rest

No personal data. We are both located in the US, but even if we weren't I understand the GDPR Right to be forgotten to be about personal data, not general posting on a forum about events in your life without any identifying personal data. Is this correct?

 

[FTL]

No personal data. We are both located in the US, but even if we weren't I understand the GDPR Right to be forgotten to be about personal data, not general posting on a forum about events in your life without any identifying personal data. Is this correct?

Then 100% deny her request. There's not even a moral reason here to do this. She has no right to ask this and is just being bloody minded.

 

[Pete]

No personal data. We are both located in the US, but even if we weren't I understand the GDPR Right to be forgotten to be about personal data, not general posting on a forum about events in your life without any identifying personal data. Is this correct?

Correct. As noted, the suggested route would be to review their posts, scrub any personally identifiable content, then bid them a good day.

 

[Oldsmoboi]

I would request only specific posts and only then remove the identifying information.

Where her argument falls down is that if anyone quoted her post, that information would still remain on the site, so she'd have to identify every time someone quoted her also. It will also cause a problem because it will destroy conversation threads and will be a significant issue for you.

In short, make the burden so heavy on her that she gives up.

We never remove content wholesale like that.

 

[truthingtotruth]

I don't think this should be viewed as a matter of one law or another law in another region or any of that technical stuff.

This is a community of free members, isn't it? I mean, what is the true spirit of this community. Is it viewed as a kingdom style of hundreds of years ago when the king/queen ran the community as he/she wished, or are we going to view this community more in the sense of a sort of semi-democratic style.

As the question was actually put to the community members I tend to think somebody feels there is a democratic feel in the air around here --- virtual air, that is.

So what is the spirit of the request? The spirit strikes me as a human being feels some unsafe element might be involved here, if some sort of private information is left behind when the human departs permanently from the community. No matter in what area of the forum that information is located. Hacking is so sophisticated there isn't any true security that is 100%.

On the other hand the continuity issue that has been raised can be viewed as a valid point.

Is there any possible way using a search tool that certain really private stuff could be removed in some manner without breaking that continuity thinking?

 

[LeadCrow]

No personal information or voluntary disclosures that have a justifiable reason to be rescinded after their initial submission? No further action necessary.
Otherwise, limit removals to specific examples or since user is no longer mod maybe assign a staffer to evaluate her post history and cherrypick deletions on her behalf.

If its anonymization of old activity thats sought, user could use a new identity and abandon the old one or the opposite in either form (ie keep the identity but reassign all old posts to another/guest account, or preferably reassign old posts in separate batches to multiple accounts specifically assigned to dilute the original authorship of posts and make it hard to identify the original account that posted them if the recipient accounts' ip adresses are cleared).