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Updated GDPR policy and new Terms of Use

  • 03-12-2018 1:13pm
    #1
    Boards.ie Employee Posts: 5,461 ✭✭✭✭✭Boards.ie: Mark
    Boards.ie Employee


    Hi all,

    Since the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018 came into effect on May 25th we have been keeping an eye on its impact on Boards, and for any new information and legal guidance that comes to light.

    Boards, as a service, needs content in order to be useful, and the negative impact of our current policy of deletion in response to erasure requests has been quite significant. Just look at the original GDPR thread in Feedback, for example, which is completely illegible and has been rendered completely worthless to any future reader.

    Of course, protecting users' rights to control over their personal data is of utmost importance to us. To balance these two elements, we will be changing how we handle erasure requests from this point onwards.

    When we receive an erasure request, we will anonymise all of that user's personal data which is known to us. This anonymisation will render the data incapable of identifying the user, either on its own or in combination with other data we hold, meaning it is no longer “personal data”. This means that we will replace a user's username with a randomised character string within each thread. This character string will be replaced by an alternative string in a different thread. In this way, it will not be possible to use breadcrumbs of information to identify a user.

    As is the case now, if you have included personal data such as your name, e-mail address or other personal data in a post, please contact us at [email protected] with the link to the post to request this data be redacted. We will delete personal data in posts if it is notified to us in this manner.

    We will also delete personal data from your user profile in the database, which will result in the closing of your account, as Boards needs certain pieces of personal data in order to be able to provide a service.

    Approaching Boards' 21st birthday, we have delved into some threads from down through the years and it would be a tragedy to lose content that provides some insight into Irish society, thinking, and outlooks at those points in time. I'm sure many would agree that we love archived footage thanks to Reeling in the Years, and threads of old can provide a similar snapshot. Just look at the threads created in response to 9/11; the 8th Amendment Referendum; the Grenfell fire; the moment Johnny Sexton knocked over a drop goal against France to set us on our way to winning a Grand Slam; heavy snowfalls; and ongoing threads such as the Brexit Discussions; those regarding Donald Trump; and many more historic threads.

    Taking these steps in relation to GDPR will allow us to ensure users' rights are protected, while enabling us to preserve content and continue to provide content, information, and discussions to users.
    Post edited by Shield on


«13456

Comments

  • Boards.ie Employee Posts: 5,461 ✭✭✭✭✭Boards.ie: Mark
    Boards.ie Employee


    In addition to this review, we have updated our Terms of Use, Privacy Notice, and Cookie Policy, which you can see on the dedicated pages.

    Terms of Use: https://www.boards.ie/content/terms?site=desktop
    Privacy Notice: https://www.boards.ie/content/privacy
    Cookie Policy: https://www.boards.ie/content/cookie


  • Registered Users Posts: 25,323 ✭✭✭✭Timberrrrrrrr


    I'm sure some will moan about this decision but personally i think it's a great work around, no more "blank spaces" where once there were posts. It was getting to a point where some threads would be unreadable anymore due to full deletion of a user's posting history.


  • Moderators, Social & Fun Moderators Posts: 28,633 Mod ✭✭✭✭Shiminay


    If the Catholic Church is allowed to claim that their Baptismal records are a matter of historic significance and are therefore exempt from deletion requests (as they told me when I asked for them to remove me from their records), then the same must be said for Boards.ie's long list of conversations about the every day and the extraordinary of Irish life over the last 20+ years.


  • Registered Users Posts: 4,425 ✭✭✭sioda


    This is a great step tbh. Well done lads. The amount of large threads ruined by mass deletion is significant.


  • Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 2,492 ✭✭✭pleas advice


    Ironic that these issues were discussed in that original thread, and the current solution suggested, I wonder was someone reading over a cached copy of the thread...


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  • Closed Accounts Posts: 689 ✭✭✭ Seth Spicy Miser


    What is the plan for posts that have been quoted?


  • Boards.ie Employee Posts: 12,597 ✭✭✭✭✭Boards.ie: Niamh
    Boards.ie Community Manager


    The username in a quoted post will also be anonymised with the same random string of characters as the users posts in that same thread.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 907 ✭✭✭Under His Eye


    Are currently deleted posts going to be resurrected?


  • Boards.ie Employee Posts: 5,461 ✭✭✭✭✭Boards.ie: Mark
    Boards.ie Employee




  • Closed Accounts Posts: 5,017 ✭✭✭ Philip Enough Omelette


    Mark, 56 was the answer when I last asked you for figures for the number of users that had requested deletion. I wonder has this number increased greatly for this change in policy?

    https://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=107664230&postcount=948


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  • Administrators, Social & Fun Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 74,687 Admin ✭✭✭✭✭Beasty


    Mark, 56 was the answer when I last asked you for figures for the number of users that had requested deletion. I wonder has this number increased greatly for this change in policy?

    https://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=107664230&postcount=948

    Without being privy to the details, I think it needs to be recognised there was lack of clarity over exactly what GDPR meant when it was introduced, and I am guessing a lot more thought has ben given to it once people were seeing real life examples (I'm talking generally rather than Boards-specific here).

    Bearing in mind Boards does not have a legal budget (certainly nothing that could cope with a challenge to new EU wide legislation) I suspect it was a case of discretion over valour

    Equally now we've seen these laws start to bed in, and the behaviour of other organisations (many of whom could afford expensive legal opinions and court cases to protect their business models), I suspect it's a bit easier to get a positive legal view, certainly than it was 6-7 months ago.


  • Registered Users Posts: 8,566 ✭✭✭corks finest


    ...
    Understand all that but the banner "our terms of use etc keeps popping up each time I access boards


  • Registered Users Posts: 8,566 ✭✭✭corks finest


    ...
    Yes got that,but I have agreed umpteen time's,but the banner keeps popping up


  • Registered Users Posts: 737 ✭✭✭vargoo


    Your "solution" was suggested years and years ago and you said it wasn't possible.


  • Posts: 21,679 ✭✭✭✭ Kimber Fluffy Dashboard


    Mark are you saying that for future requests the name will be replaced with a string of letters but the content of the post will remain?


  • Administrators, Entertainment Moderators, Social & Fun Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 18,695 Admin ✭✭✭✭✭hullaballoo


    Admin: Don't quote the OP, please.


  • Registered Users Posts: 45,160 ✭✭✭✭Bobeagleburger


    Good to see a solution in place. Well played.


  • Boards.ie Employee Posts: 5,461 ✭✭✭✭✭Boards.ie: Mark
    Boards.ie Employee


    Mark, 56 was the answer when I last asked you for figures for the number of users that had requested deletion. I wonder has this number increased greatly for this change in policy?

    https://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=107664230&postcount=948

    I wouldn't say greatly increased. Slightly over 100 now, which is a slowdown compared to the last time this was talked about. However, the negative impact of the deletion of posts is something that we have been concerned about, especially as we started to reflect on threads that have been created on Boards. As Beasty mentions, there is greater clarity too, which allows for additional legal advice and solutions to be put in place.
    Understand all that but the banner "our terms of use etc keeps popping up each time I access boards

    Can I double check that you are clicking on the agreement part of the banner?
    vargoo wrote: »
    Your "solution" was suggested years and years ago and you said it wasn't possible.

    Hi vargoo, the Feedback rules state that you need at least 100 posts and an account that's at least 3 months old to post in Feedback, but I will respond to this one contribution. This solution has taken a significant amount of development work, something that may not have been possible in previous years. Many things have changed over time as a result of legal advice (the Closed Accounts feature, for example) and technical improvements.
    Mark are you saying that for future requests the name will be replaced with a string of letters but the content of the post will remain?

    That's exactly it. The name is replaced by a string of characters per thread. So if you post in the Irish Rugby thread, it will appear as one "username" after an Erasure request, but your contribution within the Trivial Things That Make You Happy will be attributed to a different string of characters.


  • Registered Users Posts: 1,083 ✭✭✭Louche Lad


    I keep clicking on "I agree" but the notice doesn't go away. (Using the Android app.)

    Is this a bug, or is it meant to persist? It's very annoying as it obscures the bottom 30% of the screen.


  • Registered Users Posts: 973 ✭✭✭November Golf


    Louche Lad wrote: »
    I keep clicking on "I agree" but the notice doesn't go away. (Using the Android app.)

    Same here. Its gotten so bad, i've started looking for the "i dont accept the changes" button.


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  • Registered Users Posts: 1,083 ✭✭✭Louche Lad


    Louche Lad wrote: »
    I keep clicking on "I agree" but the notice doesn't go away. (Using the Android app.)

    Is this a bug, or is it meant to persist? It's very annoying as it obscures the bottom 30% of the screen.

    Now gone at last, so if someone's done something then thanks.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 689 ✭✭✭ Seth Spicy Miser


    The username in a quoted post will also be anonymised with the same random string of characters as the users posts in that same thread.

    Thank you. The previous method didn't work very well, as some quoted posts still remain even after the user exercises their rights under Article 17.


  • Boards.ie Employee Posts: 5,461 ✭✭✭✭✭Boards.ie: Mark
    Boards.ie Employee


    The mobile app is no longer supported and appears to handle cookies erratically. We looked at it a little after receiving the comments above. It appears that if you can log in, accept the notice, and then visit a couple of threads that it will remember your preference after closing the app. But this isn't necessarily a consistent fix.

    We recommend using touch.boards.ie rather than a mobile app for browsing Boards on your phone.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 5,017 ✭✭✭ Philip Enough Omelette


    I wouldn't say greatly increased. Slightly over 100 now, which is a slowdown compared to the last time this was talked about. However, the negative impact of the deletion of posts is something that we have been concerned about, especially as we started to reflect on threads that have been created on Boards. As Beasty mentions, there is greater clarity too, which allows for additional legal advice and solutions to be put in place.


    Thanks Mark for the clarification. Would you have a figure for the number of posts that have been deleted? It must be in the hundreds of thousands.


  • Registered Users Posts: 13,084 ✭✭✭✭Kirby


    Does this actually comply with GDPR though? Just deleting/randomizing the posters name?

    Leaving the actual content of the post which contains personal information about the person and their views would seem to contradict it from a legal standpoint. After all, it says "All data." Not some data.

    People can still be identified by the content of their post. In some cases quite easily. People often state where they are from, their age, their sex, their hobbies, the team they support, etc. in their posts. Surely this information would be classed as private information that a request for deletion would warrant removing?

    Even forgetting about the content of the post, what about the style of the post?
    I can think of dozens of posters who would be instantly recognized by their manner of typing alone.

    I feel the need to give an example of this and the easiest one would be Pighead. We all remember him. Randomizing his name would do little to stop somebody from identifying him. I could rattle off a dozen more examples but I feel the point has been made.

    While I appreciate the desire to keep old threads intact, from a legal standpoint I'm not sure this holds up. Even if it did, what about the spirit of the legislation? The bit in the legislation regarding pseudonymization or full anonymization of names is the bit I think you have latched on to.....but it also states that somebody has the right to have ALL data about themselves erased.


  • Administrators, Social & Fun Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 74,687 Admin ✭✭✭✭✭Beasty


    The site has obtained further advice and clearly believes this is in line with the law.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 7,070 ✭✭✭Franz Von Peppercorn


    Good work. Something suggested on the old Gdpr thread by myself and others.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 7,070 ✭✭✭Franz Von Peppercorn


    Kirby wrote: »

    People can still be identified by the content of their post. In some cases quite easily. People often state where they are from, their age, their sex, their hobbies, the team they support, etc. in their posts. Surely this information would be classed as private information that a request for deletion would warrant removing?

    That stuff is in fact edited by mods already.
    Even forgetting about the content of the post, what about the style of the post?
    I can think of dozens of posters who would be instantly recognized by their manner of typing alone.

    I feel the need to give an example of this and the easiest one would be Pighead. We all remember him. Randomizing his name would do little to stop somebody from identifying him. I could rattle off a dozen more examples but I feel the point has been made.

    Well he keeps talking in the first person but pighead doesn’t identify a natural person.
    While I appreciate the desire to keep old threads intact, from a legal standpoint I'm not sure this holds up. Even if it did, what about the spirit of the legislation?

    The spirit of the legislation wasn’t to go after sites like this but websites that sell on information to 3rd parties mainly.

    The last thread introduced a lot of unwarranted hysteria.


  • Registered Users Posts: 11,589 ✭✭✭✭Necronomicon


    The mobile app is no longer supported and appears to handle cookies erratically. We looked at it a little after receiving the comments above. It appears that if you can log in, accept the notice, and then visit a couple of threads that it will remember your preference after closing the app. But this isn't necessarily a consistent fix.

    We recommend using touch.boards.ie rather than a mobile app for browsing Boards on your phone.

    It's still happening to me, and I've been using the site pretty consistently today. The notice is still appearing in a thread I've visited 6-7 times during the day. Using touch.boards.ie.


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  • Administrators, Social & Fun Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 74,687 Admin ✭✭✭✭✭Beasty


    What? She posts here?
    I am sorry but that is personal info I cannot reveal;)


This discussion has been closed.
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