Private messages?

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charlie b

Moderator
Staff member
Location
Lockport, IL
Occupation
Retired Electrical Engineer
If there is a way for me, as a Moderator, to read a PM sent by one member to another, I do not know how to do it. I strongly suspect that it is not possible.

That said, despite any expectations of privacy that anyone might entertain, it is possible for a member receiving a PM to share the message with anyone else.
 
charlie b said:
If there is a way for me, as a Moderator, to read a PM sent by one member to another, I do not know how to do it. I strongly suspect that it is not possible.

That said, despite any expectations of privacy that anyone might entertain, it is possible for a member receiving a PM to share the message with anyone else.


Point well taken...

My question really relates to whether or not the moderators/administrator or any one else has access to PMs sent between members?
 

charlie b

Moderator
Staff member
Location
Lockport, IL
Occupation
Retired Electrical Engineer
I can't speak for the Administrator, though I suspect he can read anything and can change anything.

The Moderators have access to a "Control Panel" within the Forum Administration Tools. From there, I was able to find your email address and your selections with regard to Browsing Options. I appear to have the ability to change your avatar, your signature, and your profile picture. But I could not find any method of reading the PMs that you sent or received. That is all I know.
 

Jim W in Tampa

Senior Member
Location
Tampa Florida
I see no reason you could not pm someone and give them your e maill address and if they give you theres then anything private would be just that.Seems your mad at someone,hope its not me.
 

Smart $

Esteemed Member
Location
Ohio
Pierre C Belarge said:
Charlie
Thanks for the quick response and taking your personal time to look that up for me. :smile:
FWIW, I have been the administrator of another vBulletin, php based forum where I had access to virtually everything, including PMs, and as I recall, access to PMs could also be given to individual moderators, if so desired.
 

iwire

Moderator
Staff member
Location
Massachusetts
Smart $ said:
FWIW, I have been the administrator of another vBulletin, php based forum where I had access to virtually everything, including PMs, and as I recall, access to PMs could also be given to individual moderators, if so desired.

Thanks, that is pretty much what I figured, as far as I know none of the mods have been given that access....and I have no interest in looking at PMs.

If you really desire privacy I recommend any method other then the internet.

I don't know how or why but one day I received in my email in box the entire contents of someone elses email in box.
 

Dennis Alwon

Moderator
Staff member
Location
Chapel Hill, NC
Occupation
Retired Electrical Contractor
iwire said:
I don't know how or why but one day I received in my email in box the entire contents of someone elses email in box.

Uh oh, I really didn't mean all those nasty things I said in those PM's. I was taking heavy medications at the time. :grin:
 

dereckbc

Moderator
Staff member
Location
Plano, TX
P,

I do not know how to look at PM's, there is not an option for MOD's to do that I know of. However I am confident Admin's can if they have motivation to do so.

You are a smart guy and should know there is no such thing as private communication with respect to electronic media in just about any format you can think of unless you are using encryption technoloy. Even with encryption it can be cracked if resources are spent.
 
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roger

Moderator
Staff member
Location
Fl
Occupation
Retired Electrician
I agree with Charlie and Bob, as Moderators we can not access others PM's and like Bob, I wouldn't want to have this ability.

So, those that wish to can trash us all they want in PM's and we will never know it, have a party. :grin:

Roger
 

Dennis Alwon

Moderator
Staff member
Location
Chapel Hill, NC
Occupation
Retired Electrical Contractor
roger said:
I agree with Charlie and Bob, as Moderators we can not access others PM's and like Bob, I wouldn't want to have this ability.

So, those that wish to can trash us all they want in PM's and we will never know it, have a party. :grin:

Roger

Nah, I rather trash you where everyone can read it. :grin:
 

mdshunk

Senior Member
Location
Right here.
I am quite familiar with vBulletin software, and it does not have the capability for anyone, as it ships "out of the box" to read other people's PM's. Doesn't matter if they're an admin, mod, or whatever. There are a couple of "hacks" out, as they call software modifications for vB, that can be added to the base software to give this capability. Given the general 'no frills' nature of this site, I can't imagine that it has been installed. That said, there's no way to know from only looking at the front end.
 

infinity

Moderator
Staff member
Location
New Jersey
Occupation
Journeyman Electrician
mdshunk said:
I am quite familiar with vBulletin software, and it does not have the capability for anyone, as it ships "out of the box" to read other people's PM's. Doesn't matter if they're an admin, mod, or whatever. There are a couple of "hacks" out, as they call software modifications for vB, that can be added to the base software to give this capability. Given the general 'no frills' nature of this site, I can't imagine that it has been installed. That said, there's no way to know from only looking at the front end.


Marc, just curious, where do you use vBulletin software?
 

mdshunk

Senior Member
Location
Right here.
iwire said:
Well I did see you hanging out by the door. :wink:
I was leaving the computer a while back, maybe even more than once, so I left myself logged in and went to the modcp login screen. I just left the computer sit idle at that screen. I figured that would throw whoever was looking at the "who's online" screen for a loop.
 

LarryFine

Master Electrician Electric Contractor Richmond VA
Location
Henrico County, VA
Occupation
Electrical Contractor
charlie b said:
. . . I could not find any method of reading the PMs that you sent or received.
Of course, Charlie could be lying just to lull us into a false sense of security. ;)
 
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