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MNHQ

Mumsnet Data Breach - FAQs

234 replies

JustineMumsnet · 08/02/2019 11:49

As lots of the same queries re the data breach are reappearing we've made an FAQs page Do let us know if there's anything important we've left off. We'll keep updating this document as soon as we have further any further info. Thanks.

EDITED BY MNHQ AT 17.15 ON FEBRUARY 8: We're now as sure as we can be that the total number of accounts affected by this breach was 46. We will be contacting these users within the next hour or so.

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WinterHeatWave · 12/02/2019 16:20

@JoanneMumsnet

I think the tagging solution needs further thought.
There are subjects that you know a specific poster can assist with, or help with where ragging them allows them to know there is a thread that could do with their help, or interest them. Removing the tagging option removes this easy method.
It would also limit MNHQ, and nightwatch tags.

Please think harder about that before implementing.

MakeItAmazing · 12/02/2019 08:02

@WhatTheNightBrings - I had a message to say I had received a PM but I hadn't. Or at least there was nothing in my inbox.

LightAsTheBreeze · 12/02/2019 06:22

I also thought most people deactivated tags, it’s bad enough when someone starts shouting at you on a thread, I don’t want them invading my inbox also. So as long as the deactivate button is still there I am not bothered about the tagging

HaventGotAllDay · 12/02/2019 06:15

Most people deactivate tags surely? I rarely respond to being either tagged or, in the olden days, having a question barked at me while my own post was bolded back at me
I'm on a chat forum not Jeremy Paxman.

I didn't receive that email that I was told I was being sent a few pages back btw.

I still have 2 accounts on the go, this one, and my original one that I can't access.

HankNPat · 12/02/2019 06:06

Tokyo, you can always PM them to alert them that there's an interesting thread they might want to contribute to.

And tagging doesn't work anyway if the recipient of the tag has deactivated tag alert emails. I don't have it turned on, so wouldn't know if someone's tagged me - unless I actually see my name tagged on a thread.

MrsSchadenfreude · 12/02/2019 00:02

I still can’t log in on chrome. I enter my email address, it recognises me, says welcome back, and then changes to an old email address that I no longer use. So obviously the password isn’t going to match. The old email address is greyed out as well, and I can’t change it back to the new one. I think I might just give up.

TokyoSushi · 11/02/2019 22:40

Please don't take away the tagging! How would we ask knowledge people to comment on threads otherwise?

RoseAndRose · 11/02/2019 21:58

"To resolve this issue we have a proposed workaround which will mean that people can only send @ mentions to other people posting on the thread in question"

That wouid be a shame. As one of the uses is to call a poster (such as one of the subject experts) to a thread they have not yet posted on.

WhatTheNightBrings · 11/02/2019 21:58

@MakeItAmazing - what was the issue you had a few months ago?

MakeItAmazing · 11/02/2019 19:41

I'm starting to wonder if the issue I had a few months ago was a pre curser to this one and that MNHQ should have taken it more seriously and looked deeper.

Smotheroffive · 11/02/2019 19:28

I also think its something that shouldn't take away from bigger issuesas its totally unrelated and is down to user error, not only that it removes functionality that others benefit from, like pointing to a thread (when dynamic linking doesn't work), but then that's a separate issue being able to post dynamic links, that actually is an ongoing issue.

WatcherOfTheNight · 11/02/2019 19:20

@JoanneMumsnet ,I was just going to say what @prettybird has regarding @ function .
Also,would that mean we couldn't @ anyone at HQ if they've not commented?

Would it be possible to have something that gives users who've posted on thread as the first option? Like an autocorrect would ?Then we would have the option to ignore the prompt if need be & still @ whoever we want to point to the thread .

caughtinanet · 11/02/2019 19:14

@joannemumsnet

You have much bigger issues that worrying about posters who don't understand how tagging works, seriously don't waste your time on workarounds for grown adults who can't type a username properly, that can't possibly be anywhere near the top of your to-do list imo

prettybird · 11/02/2019 18:49

Sad @JoanneMumsnet - that workaround would then make it impossible to point someone to a specific thread. Sad

Especially given that it's impossible to generate a link from the app (unless you go through a complicated process of emailing it to yourself to then generate a link that you can copy & paste) so the easiest thing to do is "shout out" from the relevant thread via the @ user name .

MattFreisWeatherReport · 11/02/2019 17:21

Thanks @NellMumsnet but I'm not using a mobile. I'll try it again later though.

Smotheroffive · 11/02/2019 16:36

That's useful Joannemumsnet ! Both!

MNHQ
JoanneMumsnet · 11/02/2019 16:30

@Temporaryanonymity

I often get an email telling me that someone has mentioned me on a thread, but when I go there it isn't me. I thought it was a weird quirk but I am thinking it might not be now.

Thanks for flagging this, @Temporaryanonymity - we can see that a number of people have asked about it, both here on this thread and in emails to us.

The issue here is that when somebody partially @ mentions someone's username and that name matches with a real user's current or previous username, it will send that user a notification.

This isn't a bug and it's not related to the data breach in any way, but obviously it's causing some problems when the wrong user is notified.

To resolve this issue we have a proposed workaround which will mean that people can only send @ mentions to other people posting on the thread in question - we'll update you here as soon as this fix is released, but it should be within the next few days.

Long term we have a more sophisticated solution which will auto-suggest a username, but for now we hope this temporary workaround will help.

HankNPat · 11/02/2019 15:22

NellMumsnet, thanks, I can also confirm my username list is now back to alphabetical - with no duplications (that I've noticed!). And, of course, nobody else's NNs have crept onto my list (they hadn't anyway). Much appreciated.

governess, if you check out the FAQs page, which NellMN linked to, MNHQ have stated that they reported themselves to the ICO on Thursday - see screenshot.

Mumsnet Data Breach - FAQs
Smotheroffive · 11/02/2019 15:21

governess I guess you've not read the updates or received an email then?

MNHQ
NellMumsnet · 11/02/2019 15:15

Hello, we have investigated and now have an answer to the password questions posted by @Latinfortelly @tavannach @AwdBovril @BBInGinDrinking @MattFreisWeatherReport.

This issue turns out to have been a separate problem — it is not related to the breach. We have just released a software change to fix it.

In a previous upgrade, we made changes to the Account settings page on mobile that meant you got a mistaken “You have been successful” message when you tried to change your password.

The password change has always worked properly on desktop browsers.
We have now implemented that functionality on mobile.

Thank you for flagging the issue to us.

governess · 11/02/2019 13:48

I guess you already know tat you need to report this to the ICO and also possibly CISP will need to know. Do not ignore either of these - and serious breaches can incur fines of globa turnover - and you dont want that.

Smotheroffive · 11/02/2019 13:34

Thanks Nellmumsnet my list is now back to its former state.

MNHQ
NellMumsnet · 11/02/2019 11:42

Thanks for all the feedback on the nickname history list.
To the best of our knowledge, there is no link between how your nickname list looks and the login issue that affected 44 accounts.

After people raised the issue, we released a software change on Friday to simplify the list, which should account for any changes you’ve seen. This took out some duplicates, but not all.

Having looked at it again this morning, we agree that having any repeats of nicknames is unclear. We are releasing a further change to the software that should make the list a simple summary of known nicknames associated with your account. We will add this info to the FAQs page.

We notice some users are reporting seeing nicknames they don’t believe they have used before. In these cases, please email [email protected] and tell us which username is wrong, along with a screenshot, and we will look into this as a priority.

WhatTheNightBrings · 11/02/2019 07:36

Thank you for your honesty at 15.43 Justine. It does help.

plattercake · 11/02/2019 04:55

I changed my registered email address after the incident was announced, but then got completely locked out and neither of the email addresses I have used will allow me access. What do I do about that?!

I have re-registered and didn't have any personal data on the site but did use different names to stop me being identified from my posts. I don't want anyone to make the connections.