Look, adding a ToS is a decent idea. Like all other ideas, it will be addressed when some volunteer has time. If there's a lawyer out there interested in donating some time to the site, email the mods.

http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2008/09/14/article-1055756-05515BB50000044D-320_468x417.jpg

"Kestas is Australian, BTW."

Ahhh, cool. I don't think they have laws there so he'll be ok.

When YJ sends you "A/S/L/IQ", you know you're not obligated to respond, SYnapse.

SYnapse, I think you committed WebDip treason.

Synapse is an agent provocateur, the French don't have a word for that, just like entrepreneur, no wonder they are all communists !!

"Why do I feel like somebody's watching me, and I get no privacy?"

Nice Rockwell reference!

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Nineteen-Eighty-Four-George-Orwell/dp/0141393041

You are really making a mockery out of one of the greatest books ever by posting it over this...

I know this probably sounds stupid but "What is data?"

I mean, I know that data protection act protects my personal details like date of birth, address, email etc, but is a PM from me to another member data?

@MoW - after a long day making a good living showing my man-boobs I like to give my clients a few freebies. What's your screen name on transworld again, I'll give you a discount.

""Kestas is Australian, BTW."

Ahhh, cool. I don't think they have laws there so he'll be ok."

Australia - Lawless outpost of banditry and rogue web developers. ;)

I suspected as much.

Nineteen Eighty-Four is a dystopian novel by George SYnapse, published in 2013. The novel is set in Kestasia (formerly known as Australia), in a world of perpetual flame-war, omnipresent moderator surveillance, and public mind control, dictated by a political system euphemistically named User Moderation under the control of a privileged Mod Team elite that persecutes all individualism and independent thinking as "spamming".

The tyranny is epitomised by 'Big Jmo', the quasi-divine Mod Team leader who enjoys an intense cult of personality, but who may not even exist. Big Jmo and the Mod Team justify their oppressive rule in the name of a supposed greater good.

The protagonist of the novel, Winston Blankflag, is a member of the User Group who works for the Ministry of Truth (or Minitrue), which is responsible for propaganda and historical revisionism. His job is to infiltrate online forums posting messages of "truth" which are so laughable in their apparent inaccuracy that they actually assist the Mod Team in covering up a range of genuine conspiracies, by undermining the credibility of those who support the conspiracy theories Blankflag is "exposing". Blankflag is a diligent and skillful worker, but he secretly hates the Mod Team and dreams of rebellion against Big Jmo.

:( Can't I even get a cameo as a purveyor of misinformation?

Jamiet+1

All users are equal, but some are more equal than others.

There is a list of things that are classed as protected data. These are your religious political affiliations, sexuality, trade union membership, age etc.

Please show me where I and every other member were asked out religious and/or political affiliations, sexuality preferences, trade union memberships, and age.

I'm a bit disappointed to see some people, including JMO and Ramsu, trolling this particular discussion.

Trolling, you ask?

Yes, trolling. The facts are that some people are either interested in or expecting privacy on the internet, while others are neither interested in nor expecting privacy. For the later group to attempt to trivialize the concerns of the former is disrespectful, and adds nothing to the discussion.

I'll avoid opining on data security issues related to this forum for now, but I'm really disappointed in a couple of you for trolling like this. Please think of something friendly and constructive to contribute, or else stay out of it and let the adults sort out the privacy thing.

@ bo_sox: You send me PM's regarding your sexuality all the time. Are you really happy with the mods reading that stuff?

" The facts are that some people are either interested in or expecting privacy on the internet, while others are neither interested in nor expecting privacy. For the later group to attempt to trivialize the concerns of the former is disrespectful, and adds nothing to the discussion. "

Trivializing the blatant misunderstanding of people is perfectly acceptable.

I *want* a million dollars to fall in to my lap...but all the bitching in the world won't make it happen.

People that have an completely unrealistic expectation of privacy on a privately-owned web site need to have their whining and complaining appropriately smacked down so that they can live their life with *realistic* expectations.

I'm not trolling Al, like I think I explained pretty clearly, the burden of privacy online is on the individual. It's your responsibility not to give out data you don't want others having. I don't understand how doing my best to explain to you why online information isn't and never will be secure is being taken as trolling. I think you of all people would understand that the burden of privacy falls on the user. You indicated that your email had been broken into, and that you use TOR in previous threads. Those are ways you are protecting your information, so kudos to you for taking steps to secure what you feel is important. There's nothing wrong with that at all. It's when people like SYnapse start complaining about site features and the moderator team because they got caught breaking site rules that I stop responding respectfully.

Synapse was caught breaking site rules when you checked his PMs? Interesting....

Ummm.... I do?

I don't recall, but whatever. That's irrelevant. In that case I gave that information up willingly.

This whole thing is just as pathetic as this whole NSA thing is. Do you guys seriously think that the things you send across a PRIVATE site are not going to be read by someone on occasion? Do you think the things you say on your phone aren't going to be monitored? Neither the NSA scandal nor this mini-"scandal" (really, it's not worth calling it a scandal) are surprising at all.

I don't see why this is a big deal nor do I see why this is surprising some of you. As weird as things have been lately the mods aren't fighting anyone. They do a good job and if there are a couple that *can* read your messages if they deem it necessary for whatever reason, great. I trust them to do that the right way.

If they don't do what they're supposed to do, go to vDip. Expect things are any different there. Be disappointed.

"stay out of it and let the adults sort out the privacy thing."

Synapse must be thrilled at being called an adult for the first time in his life.

Mr. JMO,

I would like to apologize for accusing you of trolling, though of course you must have realized I didn't mean it as a personal attack.

A second reading of what you had written earlier was actually quite illuminating. I can see from your last post that you really seem to have given the matter some thought and have a greater-than-average understanding of online privacy. You will have to accept my apology.

I apologize on behalf of Synapse as well. I commend you for your patience in dealing with him.

Hopefully someone of your abilities will be appointed to provide oversight to some of the national intelligence committees that have seen so much recent discussion. Please let me know if there are any further amends that I need to make. Given how much and how frequent trolling is of this particular topic, you can understand how I might have been tempted to over-react.

Lol that was a brilliant post Jamiet99UK.

No need to apologize Al, I've done enough trolling that I haven't been called out on. I do thank you for rereading my post. Please don't apologize for SYnapse, his actions, however poor, are his own responsibility and despite a few loudmouths the community really is pretty easy to work with.

Sadly those interested in information security and digital forensics don't want to touch those political hellholes of intelligence communities. Which is why you have old politicians in congress responsible for overseeing policies on an information media that they don't understand.