If You Really Knew Me Thread

ladyhawk00

We have had several requests to remove posts that were on this thread. The things shared on the thread were extremely personal. I believe some people were not aware that MFP forum posts are automatically indexed by public search engines, making posts available to anyone on the internet, and subsequently regretted making such information available to those outside of MFP.

Because many of the posts that users are requesting be deleted were quoted multiple times, it is not feasible to simply remove the posts. In light of this, and the sensitivity of the subjects discussed, we have decided to remove this thread. While the thread did not violate forum rules, I think everyone can understand the desire to protect those members who posted personal information that they do not want made public outside MFP.

Thank you for your understanding.
Ladyhawk00
MyFitnessPal Forum Moderator

therobinator

I didn't happen across the thread in question, but have seen mention of it in various places.....my thought is that this is why forum posts should only be viewable to people who are members of, and logged into, MyFitnessPal. The forums should not be publicly indexed and/or Google searchable.

BigBoneSista

I didn't happen across the thread in question, but have seen mention of it in various places.....my thought is that this is why forum posts should only be viewable to people who are members of, and logged into, MyFitnessPal. The forums should not be publicly indexed and/or Google searchable.

Then how would people find the website if its not publicly indexed or searchable? Isn't that why most website are done that way until they become very popular and the website can pay for itself? Just asking?

therobinator

Then how would people find the website if its not publicly indexed or searchable? Isn't that why most website are done that way until they become very popular and the website can pay for itself? Just asking?

I am not suggesting that the website itself, or the food database, etc. as a whole not be publicly searchable....just the content of the forums I meant. But to bounce off your idea.....most forums have at least some sections that are for members only....maybe MFP can at least do that much?

SHBoss1673

I didn't happen across the thread in question, but have seen mention of it in various places.....my thought is that this is why forum posts should only be viewable to people who are members of, and logged into, MyFitnessPal. The forums should not be publicly indexed and/or Google searchable.

I disagree. We should all be aware that forums are public, and you must use judgement and caution when posting. If you don't want something to be public, don't post it in a public forum, I don't know why this is an issue for some people, it's no different from anything else that's publicly viewable such as a bumper sticker or a tee-shirt. If you don't want people to see an opinion, don't put it somewhere that the general public has access to. Alternatively, you could post without giving out any easily identifiable information, I.E. don't upload pictures, don't put any PII (Personally Identifiable Information) in your profile...etc. Then you could post whatever you want and nobody would know who you are.

therobinator

I disagree. We should all be aware that forums are public, and you must use judgement and caution when posting. If you don't want something to be public, don't post it in a public forum, I don't know why this is an issue for some people, it's no different from anything else that's publicly viewable such as a bumper sticker or a tee-shirt. If you don't want people to see an opinion, don't put it somewhere that the general public has access to. Alternatively, you could post without giving out any easily identifiable information, I.E. don't upload pictures, don't put any PII (Personally Identifiable Information) in your profile...etc. Then you could post whatever you want and nobody would know who you are.

I agree that, at present, people should be fully aware that everything on MFP is publicly available/searchable and act accordingly, but I still feel that, like many other forums on the internet, there should be some section(s)....and by that I mean a subsection of the posting forums...that are for logged in members only. This way, people can be a little more open and candid without having to worry about the whole world having access to it. Like you said "If you don't want people to see an opinion, don't put it somewhere that the general public has access to." -- so there should be those few sections within the public forums that the general public doesn't have access to.

SHBoss1673

I disagree. We should all be aware that forums are public, and you must use judgement and caution when posting. If you don't want something to be public, don't post it in a public forum, I don't know why this is an issue for some people, it's no different from anything else that's publicly viewable such as a bumper sticker or a tee-shirt. If you don't want people to see an opinion, don't put it somewhere that the general public has access to. Alternatively, you could post without giving out any easily identifiable information, I.E. don't upload pictures, don't put any PII (Personally Identifiable Information) in your profile...etc. Then you could post whatever you want and nobody would know who you are.

I agree that, at present, people should be fully aware that everything on MFP is publicly available/searchable and act accordingly, but I still feel that, like many other forums on the internet, there should be some section(s)....and by that I mean a subsection of the posting forums...that are for logged in members only. This way, people can be a little more open and candid without having to worry about the whole world having access to it.

That's something in the works, Mike is working on private group functionality as we speak. No idea when it is to be released, but he is working on it.

Jitteryspork

The thing is though, after reading this discussion.. even after a "members only" forum section is created, all a person would have to do is create an MFP account to have access to these threads. Of course many "predators" or lurkers wont go through the hassell of creating an account on this ONE website to see this ONE secret forum section, but it is possible that there are those out there who DO have the TIME and the WANT to do such a thing. This forum will have to be heavily moderated to avoid bashing from other members.

ladyhawk00

The thing is though, after reading this discussion.. even after a "members only" forum section is created, all a person would have to do is create an MFP account to have access to these threads. Of course many "predators" or lurkers wont go through the hassell of creating an account on this ONE website to see this ONE secret forum section, but it is possible that there are those out there who DO have the TIME and the WANT to do such a thing. This forum will have to be heavily moderated to avoid bashing from other members.

The private groups section will likely have an invite only requirement or some other limitation on who is able to post in a specific group.

Carl01

While I can understand that many may have regretted posting what they did in a public forum there also are many that finally had a dark burden either lifted or started to be from their hearts.
I hope all those that posted will be able to move forward in their lives and keep that healing/growing process going.

Personally speaking about friends I have here and adored before reading what they wrote can say how much more I care about them and understand why they are the amazing people they are.

TDGee

While I can understand that many may have regretted posting what they did in a public forum there also are many that finally had a dark burden either lifted or started to be from their hearts.
I hope all those that posted will be able to move forward in their lives and keep that healing/growing process going.

Personally speaking about friends I have here and adored before reading what they wrote can say how much more I care about them and understand why they are the amazing people they are.

You NAILED it!!

ladyhawk00

I just wanted to add here, I realize that removing the thread upset some people, and I understand why. It was a very touching thread, and frankly I'm glad so many people feel comfortable enough on MFP to open up like that. It was a difficult decision to remove the thread, we worried about it all day.

But in the end, I know how I would feel if I had shared something so personal without the knowledge that it would be available on public search engines. The kind of information many people shared could be quite damaging. And since users do not have the option to edit later or delete their own posts, it was really the only option to protect everyone.

If users would like to create a new thread on the same subject, personally I think that's fine - but there should be a notice at the beginning that it will be available to the public, not just MFP.

therobinator

The private groups section will likely have an invite only requirement or some other limitation on who is able to post in a specific group.

Exactly -- on others sites that I have been on, for example, you have to either have been a member of the site for a certain amount of time, or have to have had a certain minimum number of posts, or have to be invited into the private area, etc.

therobinator

Whoops - duplicate post.

charityateet

Although I didn't post in the original thread, I did read quite a few of them......and I want to thank everyone who was brave enough to post for their honesty.

I feel like the saying everyone is fighting their own battles is more true than ever.

ruffledviolet

I agree with the idea of having posts have the option of being viewable by everyone/members only/friends only.

I also wish I could edit posts that are older. I don't understand why this isn't allowed to begin with. But if the first option isn't do-able. I would risk posting what's on my mind at the time of the discussion and then going back a week or two later to edit/remove it. Just so that it could not be google-ed. I understand that it may still be accessible through their cached pages, but it's still less publicly out there.

timeforme23

If users would like to create a new thread on the same subject, personally I think that's fine - but there should be a notice at the beginning that it will be available to the public, not just MFP.

I wish I had seen the original thread, I would restart it myself. Anyone want to repost and get it going again?

SHBoss1673

I agree with the idea of having posts have the option of being viewable by everyone/members only/friends only.

I also wish I could edit posts that are older. I don't understand why this isn't allowed to begin with. But if the first option isn't do-able. I would risk posting what's on my mind at the time of the discussion and then going back a week or two later to edit/remove it. Just so that it could not be google-ed. I understand that it may still be accessible through their cached pages, but it's still less publicly out there.

there's actually a pretty solid reason for this.

If people were allowed to edit their threads any time they wanted, you'd have all of these topics that people could edit, it would ruin the flow of any particular topic. Yes, there is the point of fixing mistakes, but it's a fluidity thing, you see it in a lot of message boards. If someone really wants to remove their post, all they have to do is report it, and we (the moderators) will remove it if it's warranted (it usually is). The only reason to keep a post even after a request is if it's vital to the thread, in that case we'll work with the user to edit it as best we can to make it more to their liking.

ruffledviolet

I agree with the idea of having posts have the option of being viewable by everyone/members only/friends only.

I also wish I could edit posts that are older. I don't understand why this isn't allowed to begin with. But if the first option isn't do-able. I would risk posting what's on my mind at the time of the discussion and then going back a week or two later to edit/remove it. Just so that it could not be google-ed. I understand that it may still be accessible through their cached pages, but it's still less publicly out there.

there's actually a pretty solid reason for this.

If people were allowed to edit their threads any time they wanted, you'd have all of these topics that people could edit, it would ruin the flow of any particular topic. Yes, there is the point of fixing mistakes, but it's a fluidity thing, you see it in a lot of message boards. If someone really wants to remove their post, all they have to do is report it, and we (the moderators) will remove it if it's warranted (it usually is). The only reason to keep a post even after a request is if it's vital to the thread, in that case we'll work with the user to edit it as best we can to make it more to their liking.

On other forums that I've been on editing is allowed, and isn't much of an issue. Except when someone says something stupid, and an argument starts, etc. but I don't think that would really be an issue on MFP... I mean what's the worst that could happen on a diet/fitness forum? I think the benefits outweigh the risks - but I'm not an expert.
I know about the reporting thing, but I would feel funny asking for help from a mod for some things. I feel like I should have the right to edit my posts on my own. I was also mislead by the fact that there is an option to edit posts, but that option doesn't last. So when I started posting here, I was under the impression I could go back and edit them. My mistake.
And that isn't going to stop me from posting here. I don't care all that much if my posts show up in search engines, but now I will not invite real life friends/family to MFP because I would not want them to add me and go back and look at things that I have posted in the past and see that I struggle with an eating disorder, etc.

Just my opinion. It may not be right, it's just the way I would prefer it to be.