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Improvements in Forum Privacy

John Pierce

Administrator
Staff member
Joined
May 5, 2006
Messages
1,777
imported post

In response to a number of PM's and emails, I would like to clarify exactly what information that moderators have access to and announce a change to the forum software that will protect and enhance the privacy of member data.

Moderators have the ability to do the following (and ONLY the following):
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- Edit posts
- Delete posts
- Close threads
- Open threads

The primary concern that people contacted me about was whether or not moderators had access to personal information such as email addresses. The answer to this is a resounding NO!

However, up until today, moderators did have access to the IP history of a poster. After talking with members who were concerned about the uses to which this data could be put, I have arranged with WowBB to have the forum customized so that this data is no longer available to anyone except myself.

This change went into effect as of 12:10PM, May 15, 2008.

I hope this assuages the fears of those who contacted me. Mike and I will always strive to make this forum as welcoming as possible for all gun owners!
 

ilbob

Campaign Veteran
Joined
May 9, 2006
Messages
778
Location
, Illinois, USA
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I think some members are worried about things that are not a real problem.

Why not just turn off IP logging altogether?
 

sprat

Regular Member
Joined
Dec 17, 2007
Messages
184
Location
, Florida, USA
imported post

Thank you

I for one have been a victim? is that right word of a over zealous moderator.

I am fully trained smith with over 20yrs experience, with military training in the same field. I no longer work in that profession, but of course I work on my own stuff and give internet advice, for what that is worth. one month ago some smart ass punk moderator didn't like the way I commented on someone who didn't know dick about what he was doing( the internet is full of wannabe's) the next day my IP was posted with my personal info. in case your wondering it was at gunco.net four days later it was gone/removed. I have also stopped giving advice

I believe in what goes around comes around! and it will

sprat
 

AbNo

Regular Member
Joined
Jun 8, 2007
Messages
3,805
Location
Shenandoah Valley, Virginia
imported post

ilbob wrote:
I think some members are worried about things that are not a real problem.

Why not just turn off IP logging altogether?

In case of troublemakers and to a lesser extent, hackers, albeit mostly only sloppy ones.

It's also useful for finding people using multiple accounts.
 

longwatch

Founder's Club Member - Moderator
Joined
May 14, 2006
Messages
4,327
Location
Virginia, USA
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AbNo wrote:
ilbob wrote:
I think some members are worried about things that are not a real problem.

Why not just turn off IP logging altogether?

In case of troublemakers and to a lesser extent, hackers, albeit mostly only sloppy ones.

It's also useful for finding people using multiple accounts.
Oh well, it was sweet when I found that guy from Cabelas trolling and posting on multiple accounts, but thems the breaks.
 

BobCav

Founder's Club Member
Joined
Feb 7, 2007
Messages
2,798
Location
No longer in Alexandria, Egypt
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AbNo wrote:
ilbob wrote:
I think some members are worried about things that are not a real problem.

Why not just turn off IP logging altogether?

In case of troublemakers and to a lesser extent, hackers, albeit mostly only sloppy ones.

It's also useful for finding people using multiple accounts.
Yep or for confirming that two posters are NOT the same person.
 

Pointman

Regular Member
Joined
Feb 18, 2008
Messages
1,422
Location
, ,
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It is actually a problem for those who surf while at work. Perhaps a person takes a five minute break, and instead of smoking they read OpenCarry. Somebody tracks the IP back to the employer and reports them for "being rude" or something, and now they're in hot water for no reason.

If the employer had a problem with the employee taking a fiver, they'd scan their firewall logs and know about a problem before anyone else.

(And in case you're wondering, I screw off all the time, but I'm the network guy, so nobody knows....)
 

deepdiver

Campaign Veteran
Joined
Apr 2, 2007
Messages
5,820
Location
Southeast, Missouri, USA
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Wow. I'm just not worried about it. I don't say anything on public forums that I wouldn't say in real life. Actually I often say less because the effort of conveying all the non-verbla aspects into a comment sometimes takes more effort than it is worth, so I just don't post anything at all. Track my IP back it comes up to Charter internet. Ooops, I let it slip. Given that I don't say anything on forums I wouldn't say in real life, if I say something here that would be PC for a search warrant to obtain my home/business addresses from the IPs, I've probably also said it somewhere else too already opening myself up for a problem.

Regardless I don't foresee a problem. Yes I own firearms. Many people know I own firearms. I shoot my firearms at public ranges and with many other people so many people know what kind of firearms I own. I'm pissed off at the way the gov't is being run on every level. My legislators know this. I write letters/emails to my state and federal legislators as appropriate and personally talk to the mayor and city council members. My opinions on all sorts of gov't matters have been well and soundly put out there in the public venue.

Many people talk on here about freedom, responsibility and standing up for our rights. Well, I know that Thomas Paine didn't publish Common Sense under the pseudonym "Paineinthecrown'sbutt '76" and wear a mask when he handed them out. He had his opinion on freedom and he stepped forward and freely, publicly stated that opinion. All the men who founded this nation did, all the men who signed the Declaration of Independence and the US Constitution did as well. I do post under a pseudonym to prevent personal harrassment from the casual user, but anyone who wants to take the time can surely track me down. Also, as a former forum admin and mod, I do know that access to IP addresses is often the fastest way to spot certain problems on the forum and we have taken away that tool from the mods.

But hey, as I said, I don't have a horse in this race as I'll tell you and anyone else the same things in real life that I'll tell you on the forum. It is those who cannot honestly say that that concern me more than the mods and admins of this forum having my IP address.
 

Rains

Regular Member
Joined
Feb 20, 2008
Messages
65
Location
Reno (Northwest), Nevada, USA
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I concur with Deepdiver. I personally wouldnt post anything here that I wouldnt agree with or defend if it came up on the street.

I look at it this way: we all need to express our ideas on here as if we were all face to face, because at the end of the day, nothing posted on this forum really means anything. It's all in how you responsibly apply what is posted on this forum in the day to day world which will spell the fate of Second Amendment rights.

If people are worried about their privacy on this web site, perhaps they should spend about 5 minutes on Google. Some may be flat amazed at how much of their personal information is out floating around. The other kicker is that all the information is typically put there by the person in the form of entering your name and information on almost any web site. Sure, they have privacy policies, but your name eventually works its way through the 'approved affiliates' of the parent company, and ends up on some website or another, regardless of how careful you are with your information.

I dont have any problems explaining myself, either. If youre curious as to who I am or anything else, the simplest way is to ask :p
 

imperialism2024

Regular Member
Joined
Jun 7, 2007
Messages
3,047
Location
Catasauqua, Pennsylvania, USA
imported post

deepdiver wrote:
Wow. I'm just not worried about it. I don't say anything on public forums that I wouldn't say in real life. Actually I often say less because the effort of conveying all the non-verbla aspects into a comment sometimes takes more effort than it is worth, so I just don't post anything at all. Track my IP back it comes up to Charter internet. Ooops, I let it slip. Given that I don't say anything on forums I wouldn't say in real life, if I say something here that would be PC for a search warrant to obtain my home/business addresses from the IPs, I've probably also said it somewhere else too already opening myself up for a problem.

Regardless I don't foresee a problem. Yes I own firearms. Many people know I own firearms. I shoot my firearms at public ranges and with many other people so many people know what kind of firearms I own. I'm pissed off at the way the gov't is being run on every level. My legislators know this. I write letters/emails to my state and federal legislators as appropriate and personally talk to the mayor and city council members. My opinions on all sorts of gov't matters have been well and soundly put out there in the public venue.

Many people talk on here about freedom, responsibility and standing up for our rights. Well, I know that Thomas Paine didn't publish Common Sense under the pseudonym "Paineinthecrown'sbutt '76" and wear a mask when he handed them out. He had his opinion on freedom and he stepped forward and freely, publicly stated that opinion. All the men who founded this nation did, all the men who signed the Declaration of Independence and the US Constitution did as well. I do post under a pseudonym to prevent personal harrassment from the casual user, but anyone who wants to take the time can surely track me down. Also, as a former forum admin and mod, I do know that access to IP addresses is often the fastest way to spot certain problems on the forum and we have taken away that tool from the mods.

But hey, as I said, I don't have a horse in this race as I'll tell you and anyone else the same things in real life that I'll tell you on the forum. It is those who cannot honestly say that that concern me more than the mods and admins of this forum having my IP address.
That about summarizes my views on it. Though I do censor myself from time to time on certain topics in order to avoid casting a bad light on OCDO.
 

deepdiver

Campaign Veteran
Joined
Apr 2, 2007
Messages
5,820
Location
Southeast, Missouri, USA
imported post

imperialism2024 wrote:
deepdiver wrote:
Wow. I'm just not worried about it. I don't say anything on public forums that I wouldn't say in real life. Actually I often say less because the effort of conveying all the non-verbla aspects into a comment sometimes takes more effort than it is worth, so I just don't post anything at all. Track my IP back it comes up to Charter internet. Ooops, I let it slip. Given that I don't say anything on forums I wouldn't say in real life, if I say something here that would be PC for a search warrant to obtain my home/business addresses from the IPs, I've probably also said it somewhere else too already opening myself up for a problem.

Regardless I don't foresee a problem. Yes I own firearms. Many people know I own firearms. I shoot my firearms at public ranges and with many other people so many people know what kind of firearms I own. I'm pissed off at the way the gov't is being run on every level. My legislators know this. I write letters/emails to my state and federal legislators as appropriate and personally talk to the mayor and city council members. My opinions on all sorts of gov't matters have been well and soundly put out there in the public venue.

Many people talk on here about freedom, responsibility and standing up for our rights. Well, I know that Thomas Paine didn't publish Common Sense under the pseudonym "Paineinthecrown'sbutt '76" and wear a mask when he handed them out. He had his opinion on freedom and he stepped forward and freely, publicly stated that opinion. All the men who founded this nation did, all the men who signed the Declaration of Independence and the US Constitution did as well. I do post under a pseudonym to prevent personal harrassment from the casual user, but anyone who wants to take the time can surely track me down. Also, as a former forum admin and mod, I do know that access to IP addresses is often the fastest way to spot certain problems on the forum and we have taken away that tool from the mods.

But hey, as I said, I don't have a horse in this race as I'll tell you and anyone else the same things in real life that I'll tell you on the forum. It is those who cannot honestly say that that concern me more than the mods and admins of this forum having my IP address.
That about summarizes my views on it. Though I do censor myself from time to time on certain topics in order to avoid casting a bad light on OCDO.
I self-censor all the time, especially if someone really ticks me off. I write my peace, think about it, consider if I would actually say that to someone if they were standing in front of me and if not, I delete it without posting. I probably do that at least a few times a week. Sometimes it helps me work out my frustration, sometimes it helps me get my thoughts on something organized to make a cohesive argument. But either way, I try very hard to not let the the supposed anonymity of the internet effect anything I post.
 

Pointman

Regular Member
Joined
Feb 18, 2008
Messages
1,422
Location
, ,
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deepdiver wrote:
I self-censor all the time, especially if someone really ticks me off. I write my peace, think about it, consider if I would actually say that to someone if they were standing in front of me and if not, I delete it without posting.
I try to decide if it positively adds to the conversation. If they were in front of me, they'd know what I was thinking.
 

JoeSparky

Centurion
Joined
Jun 20, 2008
Messages
3,621
Location
Pleasant Grove, Utah, USA
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Jim675 wrote:
I don't worry because no one knows who I am.

I am the wind. Now close your eyes. No one sees the wind leave.

And right after that on MASH, Hawkeye lets all know that the "Wind has broken his leg!!!!"

Hope your luck is better

JoeSparky
 

Carnivore

Regular Member
Joined
Aug 29, 2008
Messages
970
Location
ParkHills, Missouri, USA
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Wishing for privacy in 2009? (YEA RIGHT !!)My fingers are connected to the same brain that my tongue is connected to, and sometimes that may not be a good thing, but if i'm gonna type it, you can bet I would voice it in the same crowd..

If i'm the biggest fish someone needs to investigate, then I'm glad I could be of service. then maybe they'll be leaving some good person alone.
 
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