Is This Legal?

[janverbeem]

Just wanted to email a member through his profile page and this message showed up.

IMPORTANT: To prevent malicious use, all emails sent via this form are logged and the contents recorded and available to the administrators. DO NOT email user names, passwords or any personal details.

This means that administrators read our mails and PM's?Ever heard about privacy?

[transam]

Hmmmmmmmm, bit disturbing if true. Sorry admin for all my PM's.

[janverbeem]

Hmmmmmmmm, bit disturbing if true. Sorry admin for all my PM's.

Just click on someones profile, who has the email function enabled ,and then click on "email me" and look what is written at the top of the page.Indeed a bit scary if you ask me.

[george]

This is a standard disclaimer coming with the IP.Board software we use on the forum. We do NOT read or monitor members PM's or emails.

[a99az]

Hmmmmmmmm, bit disturbing if true. Sorry admin for all my PM's.

Just click on someones profile, who has the email function enabled ,and then click on "email me" and look what is written at the top of the page.Indeed a bit scary if you ask me.

Simple way around this don't use the TV forum. Or post you own e-mail address on the open forum for people to contact you in privet.

Edited August 2, 2011 by a99az

[transam]

Hmmmmmmmm, bit disturbing if true. Sorry admin for all my PM's.

Just click on someones profile, who has the email function enabled ,and then click on "email me" and look what is written at the top of the page.Indeed a bit scary if you ask me.

Simple way around this don't use the TV forum. Or post you own e-mail address on the open forum for people to contact you in privet.

But But But l would loose my days entertainment. ( privet is a bush, think you mean private )

[janverbeem]

This is a standard disclaimer coming with the IP.Board software we use on the forum. We do NOT read or monitor members PM's or emails.

Ok,but since the disclaimer is there it must be that the administrators have the ability to monitor or read them if they want to,not?Otherwise I don't understand why the disclaimer would be there anyway.

[wandrinstar]

Privet is a Shrub. Or perhaps the next silly name for an SUV.

[george]

This is a standard disclaimer coming with the IP.Board software we use on the forum. We do NOT read or monitor members PM's or emails.

Ok,but since the disclaimer is there it must be that the administrators have the ability to monitor or read them if they want to,not?Otherwise I don't understand why the disclaimer would be there anyway.

Technically it would be possible for a forum admin (or your ISP when it comes to emails) to dig into an email database, but I can assure you that I have other things to do.

[Spoonman]

I was under the impression that add-on soft was required to enable admin to read pm's, I too have seen this disclaimer on other forums that openly admit to monitoring PM's, seems strange I.P would add the disclaimer if the functionality is not here to start with.

[transam]

This is a standard disclaimer coming with the IP.Board software we use on the forum. We do NOT read or monitor members PM's or emails.

Ok,but since the disclaimer is there it must be that the administrators have the ability to monitor or read them if they want to,not?Otherwise I don't understand why the disclaimer would be there anyway.

Technically it would be possible for a forum admin (or your ISP when it comes to emails) to dig into an email database, but I can assure you that I have other things to do.

Let's hope other admin with the accessibility tools follow your lead. PM's are personal, and personal means personal.

[sbk]

well, to be honest, until we saw this thread, myself and the other admins were unaware such a notification and abilities existed. As george states, we all have better things to do than read your emails or PMs. Like washing my hair. Or rather, I wash my hair. The other admins probably do things like cut their toenails

[petercallen]

I do not believe that george or the administrators are reading our PM

I do believe someone else is reading the PM

A word i have used several times in a private PM as far as i am concerned has had the spelling changed

How can this be unless someone is reading and editing the PM

[Mario2008]

Seems it only applies for sending emails, as for PM's I have never seen that warning and the warning only mentions emails and not PM's.

[Crossy]

A word i have used several times in a private PM as far as i am concerned has had the spelling changed

How can this be unless someone is reading and editing the PM

In the same way the 'naughty word filter' on the main forum works, a machine is 'reading' your PMs and substituting a non-offensive version. AFAIK this does not happen to emails but I've not tested it. Or if it's a non-offensive word that's having the spelling adjusted perhaps it's your automatic spelling correction add-on.

[petercallen]

A word i have used several times in a private PM as far as i am concerned has had the spelling changed

How can this be unless someone is reading and editing the PM

In the same way the 'naughty word filter' on the main forum works, a machine is 'reading' your PMs and substituting a non-offensive version. AFAIK this does not happen to emails but I've not tested it. Or if it's a non-offensive word that's having the spelling adjusted perhaps it's your automatic spelling correction add-on.

The word has been changed to wank-r everyone knows what it means anyway

[Phil Conners]

A word i have used several times in a private PM as far as i am concerned has had the spelling changed

How can this be unless someone is reading and editing the PM

In the same way the 'naughty word filter' on the main forum works, a machine is 'reading' your PMs and substituting a non-offensive version. AFAIK this does not happen to emails but I've not tested it. Or if it's a non-offensive word that's having the spelling adjusted perhaps it's your automatic spelling correction add-on.

The word has been changed to wank-r everyone knows what it means anyway

These kind of words are indeed renamed automatically by the forum software. I think the main reason is that this kind of language lowers the search engine ranking.

[ExpatOilWorker]

This is a standard disclaimer coming with the IP.Board software we use on the forum. We do NOT read or monitor members PM's or emails.

It that entirely true George? I once got a PM and a certain word was blocked out. For good reasons I can say what word it was but it was a door made out of a certain type of hardwood.

[Crossy]

This is a standard disclaimer coming with the IP.Board software we use on the forum. We do NOT read or monitor members PM's or emails.

It that entirely true George? I once got a PM and a certain word was blocked out. For good reasons I can say what word it was but it was a door made out of a certain type of hardwood.

That will have been the naughty word filter at work, that particular Thailand forum is replaced by <URL Automatically Removed>.

[ExpatOilWorker]

This is a standard disclaimer coming with the IP.Board software we use on the forum. We do NOT read or monitor members PM's or emails.

It that entirely true George? I once got a PM and a certain word was blocked out. For good reasons I can say what word it was but it was a door made out of a certain type of hardwood.

That will have been the naughty word filter at work, that particular Thailand forum is replaced by <URL Automatically Removed>.

Meaning that PM's are monitored, contradicting what George is saying above.

[dantilley]

No-one manually goes through reading all PMs and replacing the offending Forum's name with <URL Automatically Removed>, it happens automatically (as hinted in the replacement text). So they're not monitored, just subject to some automatic filtering.

[ExpatOilWorker]

No-one manually goes through reading all PMs and replacing the offending Forum's name with <URL Automatically Removed>, it happens automatically (as hinted in the replacement text). So they're not monitored, just subject to some automatic filtering.

Same-same, but different. Nobody ever mentioned that monitoring meant that Big Brother was reading every single PM, but electronic monitoring is still monitoring IMHO.

Then again, the Chinese seems to agree with you and they have certainly NEVER read a single Google mail.

[Phil Conners]

The word "monitoring" suggest some nefarious purpose, with logging of the activity and possible repercussions.

What happens here is just an automatic feature of the forum software, used my most forums on the Internet in one form or another. In this case "bad words" such as wanke_r are changed so that it does not have a negative influence on the search engine ranking of the forum. This happens automatically and is not logged anywhere or reviewed by anyone.

As for not allowing links to that other site - you don't expect Tesco-Lotus to allow advertisements for Big-C in their store, do you? Same here. It's simple logic and nobody makes a fuss about it. I don't understand why you see this as such as big problem.

[ExpatOilWorker]

The word "monitoring" suggest some nefarious purpose, with logging of the activity and possible repercussions.

What happens here is just an automatic feature of the forum software, used my most forums on the Internet in one form or another. In this case "bad words" such as wanke_r are changed so that it does not have a negative influence on the search engine ranking of the forum. This happens automatically and is not logged anywhere or reviewed by anyone.

As for not allowing links to that other site - you don't expect Tesco-Lotus to allow advertisements for Big-C in their store, do you? Same here. It's simple logic and nobody makes a fuss about it. I don't understand why you see this as such as big problem.

Nobody are making a fuss about anything, just an open debate about what is monitored and what is not.

I don't see how the content of PM's can affect search engine rating. Public post, of course yes have to obey forum rules, but why also PM?

I am sure you are allowed to have a discount coupon from Big-C in your wallet when you walk into Tesco-Lotus.

[transam]

The word "monitoring" suggest some nefarious purpose, with logging of the activity and possible repercussions.

What happens here is just an automatic feature of the forum software, used my most forums on the Internet in one form or another. In this case "bad words" such as wanke_r are changed so that it does not have a negative influence on the search engine ranking of the forum. This happens automatically and is not logged anywhere or reviewed by anyone.

As for not allowing links to that other site - you don't expect Tesco-Lotus to allow advertisements for Big-C in their store, do you? Same here. It's simple logic and nobody makes a fuss about it. I don't understand why you see this as such as big problem.

Nobody are making a fuss about anything, just an open debate about what is monitored and what is not.

I don't see how the content of PM's can affect search engine rating. Public post, of course yes have to obey forum rules, but why also PM?

I am sure you are allowed to have a discount coupon from Big-C in your wallet when you walk into Tesco-Lotus.

Tend to agree. If l send an email to anyone l can write what l like cos nobody else will see it unless it is forwarded so l cannot see why a system is reading my personal stuff.

[Crossy]

I just sent myself an email via the Thaivisa profile page containing a certain URL and assorted profanities, the naughty word filter does NOT operate on emails so we can reasonably assume no monitoring is taking place other than that performed by your ISP.

It does certainly operate on PMs presumably because the PM system uses the same input system as the main forum.

[cdnvic]

Mails are an external conversation so the filters cannot be applied. In the mechanics of forum software, private messages are actually just another thread on the forum that only you and the recipient are allowed to view, so the same filters apply that would to any other posts. The messages cannot be read by moderators unless they are invited to the conversation by one of the participants. At that point their presence becomes visible to all parties in the conversation.

Nobody is covertly reading and editing/censoring private conversations. Aside from the technical roadblocks, the amount of time and resources it would take is enormous, and as it is we are stretched to deal with the public posts which can be thousands per day.

In an extreme legal situation could an IP board (or any other forum software) admin gain access to your emails sent through it? Yes. So could your ISP, or any server that email routed through on it's way to the recipient, and the recipient's ISP and email provider. In many countries it is illegal to intercept or read mail while in transit, or that has transited through a server, but in a case where a court orders such the administrator is obligated to so, and that is why the disclaimer is in place.

If you want private email don't use a third party system (Forums, Hotmail, Yahoo, etc) and get encryption software.

http://www.garage.com/resources/reference/internet_email_privacy.shtml

(some off-topic posts were removed)