Forum posts and data protection.

timbo58

Just getting some other POVs here if I may?

Apologies if it's in the wrong place.

Scenario:
Forum owner gets requested to delete a user.

Deletes user, no problem.

Ex users posts still exist.

Ex user now demands the posts are deleted also and quotes the DPA 1998 as the governing legislation.

Owner feels that to delete the posts is:
Likely to screw up/disjoint threads.
Very costly in terms of time.

The terms of the forum don't specifically state who owns the posts or what happens in this scenario.

My own personal opinion from my limited knowledge of the DPA is:
That forum posts are implicitly the property of the forum once made.
Unless they contain information which could personally identify an individual are not in contravention of the DPA.

i.e. a post would have to name them in full with a geographic/email address, phone number, photo, next of kin details, military service number, national insurance/NHS number etc etc.

What do others think?
I don't see it's incumbent on the forum owner to jump through hoops because someone merely claims 'xxxx' is subject to the DPA.

cally6008

If I get asked to delete a user, I also delete their posts.

The difference is that posts on my forum are adverts.
The posts get deleted as otherwise members have no way of contacting the person who posted the advert (if that makes sense).

Valli

FWIW I think that, if a poster has elected to provide those personal details in a post (and I mean any detail, not all of them) then it's his/her own responsibility as he/she elected to make that data public on a open forum.

Jivesinger

I don't know very much about the DPA I'm afraid so I may be wrong, but consider this analogy:

I write a letter to The Times and they publish it.

A year later I then wish I hadn't written the letter. However I'm pretty sure I dont have any rights under the DPA to force The Times to immediately recall all copies of the paper with my letter in, or even to take it off their website.

So if I've chosen to publish my views online, I imagine my rights are similarly slim.

timbo58

Frankly I cannot see any personal information within the postings the person has made so I think it's best to leave the threads in.

You can just imagine what a busy forum would look like if every tom !!!!!! & harry decided to quit and had the right to delete every word ever written after posting about 500 posts and threads!

paddyrg

People misunderstand the data protection act, the scope is very specific and quite narrow. He is just bandying it about as 'something that sounds legal and clever'. It is about ensuring PII is managed diligently in business, not so some Muppet can withdraw comments made in a public forum.

timbo58

Indeed, I think the claim is BS after spending all day pretty much perusing the DPA/ICO site.