Visitor messages showing on searches

[Shewie]

No biggy really but thought I'd mention it.

Depending on what you're searching for, sometimes you get one or two hits which are visitor messages sent between two members. I know that we can all see them anyway by clicking on the users profiles, so there shouldn't be anything strictly private in there, but they are an off board conversation possibly for a reason.

Just thought I'd flag it

 

[Toddy]

I've flagged this for the Admins, Rich. I don't think that's the kind of thing that ought to come up in searches either.

cheers,
Mary

 

[Shewie]

Just noticed one of my PMs came up in a search again so thought I'd bump this

 

[British Red]

Not the one with puppies. egg whisks and candyfloss in I hope?

 

[Shewie]

Not the one with puppies. egg whisks and candyfloss in I hope?

Thankfully not, I managed to delete that one a while ago

 

[Ed]

Cheers for the heads up

It seems that the search function is working as intended. I've had a look at the code and it seems that when you do a basic search it will search through all areas that your account has access to, which includes visitor messages and your own PMs. You wont be able to search other peoples PMs or any of the private forums that you do not have access to (like the full members forums if you are not an FM)

Bottom line -> If you can read it, you can search it.

Ed

 

[Toddy]

So does that mean that ordinary Joe Public won't get those messages coming up on his google search ? They'll only show for members ?

cheers,
M

 

[Ed]

Thats a very good question Mary.

Search engines use bots (known as spiders) to gather information from servers, we try and block them and have put certain security in place to stop them accessing certain parts of the forum, but its a game of cat and mouse .... they always come up with new ways around our security.

Some things may come up in a google search (ie those things that any joe public can read on here), but they shouldn't have access to members only stuff. This isn't always the case though as its not hard to make a bot/spider that is a member here (just need a username and password coded into the spider). But .... clicking on the link by joe public will bring them here and if they themselves have no account, then they can only access the stuff any non account user can access.

But ... (yes another but) Google also archives stuff on their own servers, copying things their spiders find, so it is not impossible that certain info is archived there, which is one of the reasons the admin try and keep on top of them and try to keep them out of certain areas.

Ed

 

[Shewie]

I understand what you're saying Ed but should I be able to see private messages between two members, neither of which are in my friends & contacts page ?

For an example do a general search for message and see what comes up

 

[Tony]

You need to spell this out for me a bit more. Visitor messages although not on the public forum are public by their nature, anyone with the permissions to view a profile can see visitor messages and because they have permission to see them they come up in searches.
People should not be able to see Private Messages between people as they do not have permissions to view them, I can't see PM's and when I search it searches everything.
Are you getting PM's showing up in your search? If yes can you send a screen shot to me and I'll forward it to VB

 

[Shewie]

You need to spell this out for me a bit more. Visitor messages although not on the public forum are public by their nature, anyone with the permissions to view a profile can see visitor messages and because they have permission to see them they come up in searches.
People should not be able to see Private Messages between people as they do not have permissions to view them, I can't see PM's and when I search it searches everything.
Are you getting PM's showing up in your search? If yes can you send a screen shot to me and I'll forward it to VB

If I do a search for "message" for example Tone, page two of the results looks like this ....

At the top there are two results which I think you're right in that they look like visitor messages, but if I click on that users profile, the message I'm seeing in the search isn't there in the conversations.

Why would we have permissions to see visitor messages anyway Tone ? Would it be better to only see messages from those folk in your Friends or Contacts page ?

It's no biggy but just thought I'd raise it incase it catches somebody out.

 

[Tony]

There might be some way of changing it but I think the main point is visitor messages are public, only PM's are private, if anyone wants to keep things private then don't do visitor messages, use PM's. If no on could see the VM's then they would be PM's, I think members can turn off VM's, or at least I'd be able to at admin level for the usergroup.