Meet the Other Phone. Child-safe in minutes.

Meet the Other Phone.
Child-safe in minutes.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Site stuff

Join our Innovation Panel to try new features early and help make Mumsnet better.

See all MNHQ comments on this thread

MNHQ here: Mumsnet’s approach to data protection and GDPR

99 replies

KateMumsnet · 10/05/2018 14:08

As lots of you will know, May 25 sees the introduction of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) - a new law covering data protection and privacy. As with any company that works with data, we’ve done some work to ensure that we’re fully compliant with GDPR. If you’d like to know more about what we’ve done, read on.

We have reviewed and updated our Privacy Policy and provided a page of Frequently Asked Questions.

We’ve made it easier to edit or delete the information you give us when you join Mumsnet -- your registration data. This might be no more than a username and an email address; you can have a functioning Mumsnet account with just those two things. However if you also told us your name, age, sex, how many children you have, and/or your postcode, it’s now easier to see how to edit or delete that information in your ‘My Account’ page.

The ‘My Account’ page is also where you can delete your Mumsnet account (although we would prefer you not to, obviously). Deleting your account will not delete your posts on Mumsnet but it will delete all the registration data associated with your account.

By popular request, we will not be deleting Private Message archives as originally planned.

If you receive any Mumsnet newsletters, you can unsubscribe using the link at the bottom of the email. If you have a Mumsnet account you can also subscribe and unsubscribe to any or all of them here.

As you use Mumsnet you might see a new notice that tells you when cookies are being used.
You can find details about how we use cookies in our Privacy Policy and FAQs. But in a nutshell, we use cookies to:

  • improve your experience by, for example, remembering that you have logged in and that you like reading threads top-to-bottom;
  • show you more relevant content and ads; and
  • gather aggregate information about how many people visit Mumsnet, how often, and what they look at while on the site (aka analytics).

Long-standing Mumsnet users may remember the Profile Page functionality that we rolled out to users many years ago. For now we have decided to default all existing public Profile Pages to ‘private’, so that MN users who have put personal information on their profiles have a chance to review and delete it if they want to. You can check whether you have a Profile Page, and edit or delete it over here.

If you’re looking for the My Photos page: we’ve suspended this for now - it wasn’t working well and needs a complete revamp. Any photos you had previously uploaded have been deleted from our systems.

In terms of MNHQ’s internal processes, we have put further restrictions in place around which staff members have access to Mumsnet users’ personal information.

We're emailing all our members to let them know about these changes. As ever, we really welcome your feedback. Do add comments below or email [email protected] if you have any thoughts, questions or concerns.

OP posts:
Coffeecupofmilk · 16/05/2018 13:55

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

EBearhug · 16/05/2018 13:57

On our decision to delete private messages after 60 days, we’re going to see how people feel about our this

I think as long as there's a warning at the top of the PM screen to this effect, it would be fine by me. But I don't use PMs often.

LapdanceShoeshine · 16/05/2018 14:18

I don’t have many PMs, but some of the ones I do have are very useful/interesting & I would prefer not to have a time limit on them if poss Smile

Lougle · 16/05/2018 14:25

"That they’re only looking at info provided at sign up, not including what we post on the boards as to whether it is personal data and indeed even sensitive personal data."

You know that when you post on MN, apart from one or two special exceptions, all your posts are not only accessible via search on MN itself, but via Google? When you sign up to MN, it expressly stated that the copywrite for your posts is given to MN. Any suggestion that any post you make on MN is personal or sensitive has been considered and discounted by the fact that you have been told very clearly that you will be broadcasting it to the WWW. It is not for MNHQ to decide what to do with that data - that data will only exist if you decide to publish it by posting.

Coffeecupofmilk · 16/05/2018 14:26

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Lougle · 16/05/2018 15:08

One of the six lawful bases for processing personal data under GDPR is consent. Despite the fact that, for the most part, forum posts are not personal data nor sensitive personal data, even if they were, surely clicking "Post", knowing that MNHQ clearly declares that all such posts are publicly available and searchable across the whole of the internet, constitutes consent to publish. Furthermore, they have added specific reassurance that if someone has an "Oh-no" moment, they will take down the post. I think MNHQ are in the clear on this one.

Coffeecupofmilk · 16/05/2018 15:24

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

sandymumsnet · 16/05/2018 15:59

@Coffeecupofmilk

Hi sandy

Could you answer this

you allow us to use your posts in perpetuity.

In Kate’s post as I think it contravenes GDPR. And could you answer my question as in if you can foresee a time when someone asks for posts to be deleted and you refuse?

Also can you advise if info previously provided at sign up, such as first name, has now been deleted?

Hi Coffeecupofmilk

Thanks so much for your feedback. Our view is that posts are not private data - although anonymous they are visible to everyone on the internet. Our Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions make this clear, but we'll continue to keep open minded on this. And irrespective of the legal definition of private data, we would never withhold deleting a post without good reason.

As part of the changes we've made for GDPR, we've now made it easier for you to change any of your account details including the deletion of your name by going to the My Account page.

Ardant · 16/05/2018 16:37

Please could you take a look at my question up-thread if you get a chance?

I think a lot of us wouldn't expect you or your admins to keep chat, 30 day, or OTBT posts longer than the length stated on those areas.

There's a feeling that it disappears and it doesn't help with the sensation that one of your admins could identify someone if they put their mind to it.

coffeecupofmilk · 16/05/2018 16:37

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Lougle · 16/05/2018 17:10

"I think a lot of us wouldn't expect you or your admins to keep chat, 30 day, or OTBT posts longer than the length stated on those areas.

There's a feeling that it disappears and it doesn't help with the sensation that one of your admins could identify someone if they put their mind to it."

That I completely agree with. If you say it 'goes', it should go. There is a dramatic show of 'moving threads somewhere more permanent' when they're deemed to be important/supportive/valuable, so threads that aren't moved should be genuinely gone.

sandymumsnet · 16/05/2018 17:47

@coffeecupofmilk

I disagree re personal data but that's the nature of law Smile

Can you advise if information previously given at sign up such as first name has been deleted ?

Hi coffeecupofmilk Info such as first name has not been deleted - although we're happy to take a view on this. Sorry if you've already clocked this but you can delete it yourself by going to the My account page.

Thethingswedoforlove · 16/05/2018 18:01

I am still referring to some PMs from years ago. I would be terribly disappointed to lose them- one in particular holds a great deal of significance for me. I don’t support deleting them especially after such a short period. I understand the sentiment but if someone has taken the time to send a PM then surely it is more specialist in its being wanted? Individuals are free to delete PMs at any time.....

coffeecupofmilk · 16/05/2018 18:05

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

CookPassBabtridge · 16/05/2018 20:36

Could the people wanting to keep PMs just copy and paste somewhere? Notepad on phone or PC.

QuoadUltra · 16/05/2018 20:45

Opinions expressed on a public forum aren’t personal data, even if they are personal opinions.

It’s the collecting and holding of data about our real selves that is ‘personal data’.

OhYouBadBadKitten · 16/05/2018 21:31

Cook I have a lot and because they don't thread it would take a long time. It's nice too, to have them on mn, it makes it easy to look back and reply or refer to them.

Glaciferous · 16/05/2018 21:45

Could the people wanting to keep PMs just copy and paste somewhere? Notepad on phone or PC.

This would probably take me a week, if I had no other work to do. You have to go into each message individually and copy and paste, both inbox and outbox.

Glaciferous · 16/05/2018 21:46

Also deleting PMs in no way helps MN become GDPR compliant. These are analogous to emails surely and I don't see any email providers telling us our emails are going to self-destruct after 60 days. Imagine the trouble that would cause!

FiveGoMadInDorset · 16/05/2018 21:46

I like my PM's have useful info on them

ChoccyJules · 16/05/2018 21:56

I have had a lot of useful advice on PMs and would very much like to keep them for reference. As a PP said, copying them elsewhere would take a lot of effort. If however it turns out that they are going to go, please can we have notice as I will want to copy a lot of them.

BalloonFlowers · 17/05/2018 07:32

Id like to keep my PMs, please.
I don't use them often, but they are usually very helpful when they are used.

FlaviaAlbia · 17/05/2018 09:51

I'd like to keep my PM's too

AlpacaLypse · 17/05/2018 11:32

I deleted a lot of PMs at Jeffreygate, and wish I hadn't now. I keep all my personal and business emails (apart from advertising etc obviously) and would rather it was my decision which to keep and which to throw than yours.

OhYouBadBadKitten · 17/05/2018 11:38

Me too Alpaca.

Swipe left for the next trending thread