Personal details

Some members have been including their e mail and phone numbers in open posts, please remember that the forum is open to all who may use your details to spam your inbox with useless messages.

The PM (personal message) function of the forum is all that you need to use, any personal data can then be passed to interested parties without any or limited risk to yourselves.

The forum can not and will not be held liable if you are targeted by spam emails because you have openly given the address.

The forum can not and will not be held liable if you are targeted by spam emails because you have openly given the address.

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as a side note, has anyone noticed a lot less junk emails arriving in the last few weeks?

To be honest yes I have just realised now you mention it, I did get loads before. Daily would be up to 20, not many now though.

Interesting

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-12154118

The numbers on this are beyond comprehension.

An excellent point Manator. I've PM'd a few people to suggest they remove these details from posts. There are people (I use the term loosly) out there who use 'bots' (I think they're called) to trawl websites for phone numbers and email addresses. they then sell the lists they create.

Putting your details on a post on any public access site is asking for tons of spam and 'sales' calls.

Perhaps you could modify the swear filters to look for phone numbers and emails and filtet them out (or at least highlight them to ask the poster if they really want to go ahead)?

Cheers Manator,,,

but what about the "Find an electrician" thread where a lot of us have put our info??

but what about the "Find an electrician" thread where a lot of us have put our info??

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As a business you are bound to have to advertise your details, and should expect some junk in return.

Perhaps you could modify the swear filters to look for phone numbers and emails and filtet them out (or at least highlight them to ask the poster if they really want to go ahead)?

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Or perhaps 'natural selection' may kick in and if they do daft things like putting their details on an open forum they will learn with all the crap they get!

Most of the information is targeted against individuals and not companies or traders, but not all.

It is common to leave spaces in between numbers on a phone list to stop bots from auto scanning, the same with emails, if you leave a space between the @ the scan fails to copy the email. Anyone who uses the address manually can remove the space to send the email.

I have, for quite some time, been looking at the ways available - to protect members' details, for those who consiously choose to put them on an open forum.

One that stood out was the "e-mail Recaptcha" image before an e-mail address is revealed.

Unfortunately- this system don't work on forums. :_|

But I am still looking guys. (no doubt Spambots would still get through these).