[yellowted]

Hi, I just read a post about someone suspected to be from this site calling the police to another members house because they thought they were suicidal, and was wondering

• how safe is my personal information on PC,
• who can access it
• what safeguarding mesures are in place to prevent this happening?
• does PC have an obligation or requirement to report safegarding issues or illegal deed claims to higher authorities?
• if so which ones?

[Speed3]

I would like to know also. It was my privacy that was breached.
All my neighbors saw, it was awful.

Good question. Well I'm not a moderator just a member here, but here's my hunch:
(Feel free to correct or delete post if said moderator comes to answer.)

Based on my computer knowledge some websites can find out your ISP (Internet Service Provider) from your IP (Internet Protocol) address. Your ISP however has your address, name and telephone number --they provide your internet connection afterall (ie. Comcast, Verizon etc.)

In the Privacy Policy it states this:
(Link: Privacy Policy | About Us )

"Server log information – When you use Psych Central services, our servers automatically record information that your browser sends whenever you visit a website. These server logs may include information such as your web request, Internet Protocol address, browser type, browser language, the date and time of your request and one or more cookies that may uniquely identify your browser."

PC does not HAVE your personal information so relax. Almost every website can see your IP, it's how the internet works, I ask for a website's address and they receive mine so it knows where to go.

BUT

Privacy Policy ALSO states:
"Psych Central only shares personal information with other companies or individuals outside of Psych Central in the following limited circumstances:

We have a good faith belief that access, use, preservation or disclosure of such information is reasonably necessary to (a) satisfy any applicable law, regulation, legal process or enforceable governmental request, (b) enforce applicable Terms of Service, including investigation of potential violations thereof, (c) detect, prevent, or otherwise address fraud, security or technical issues, or (d) protect against imminent harm to the rights, property or safety of Psych Central, its users or the public as required or permitted by law."

The rules forum section states this:
(Link: http://forums.psychcentral.com/rules...-1-2012-a.html)

"Inappropriate Content
This is, first and foremost, a self-help support community. That means if your message (post or PM) isn't about offering support to another person or asking for it, it's potentially not appropriate for our community. Specifically prohibited from our community:

Messages containing suicidal threats or suicidal actions
Messages containing or condoning illegal acts"

And then in the 'Terms of Use' in which we all agreed to when we signed up it states:
(Link: Terms of Use | About Us)


"2. Member Conduct.

(A) Member shall use the Psych Central Network for lawful purposes only. Member shall not post or transmit through the Psych Central Network any material: (i) which violates or infringes in any way upon the rights of others; (ii) which is unlawful, threatening, abusive, defamatory, libelous, invasive of privacy or publicity rights, vulgar, racist, obscene, profane, or is otherwise objectionable; (iii) which encourages conduct that would constitute a criminal offense, gives rise to civil liability, suggests or condones any terrorist act or activity, or otherwise violate any law;"

"4. Monitoring.
Psych Central shall have the right, but not the obligation, to monitor the content of the Psych Central Network, including chat rooms and forums, to determine compliance with this Agreement and any operating rules established by Psych Central and to satisfy any law, regulation or authorized government request."

[DocJohn]

As I replied in the other thread, we are not a crisis service, so we do not reach out to law enforcement or others. We encourage our members to use the local services within their community if they are in crisis. We do not contact authorities proactively nor have we ever been served with a court order to provide authorities with information on our members.

DocJohn

It has less to do with the private personal information you have in areas of the site and more to do with information you post publicly in the forum or chat.

I'll use an example of someone on another website. He revealed his first name, his career, and the state in which he lived. Using only this information, I was able to find his full name, his daughter's full name, his address, phone number, and a legal dispute between him and one of his patients. And that was just searching on google.

My advice... Use pseudonyms for people you mention in forums and in chat. Be somewhat vague about your career (e.g., if you're a professor of economics, leave out the bit that you're the Department Head of Whatever University). Refrain from revealing the city in which you live (unless it's as populated as New York). You may even want to refrain from revealing the state in which you live. Do not post any news clips from the city in which you live or mention that such-and-such event happened near you. Do not post any information that can easily be found in news clips (birthdays, military/college graduation, tragedies, obituaries, fundraisers, and so on). It's very easy to use a date, a first name, and search term to find the original news clips which hold even more personal information. Lastly, don't post pictures that contain revealing information (pictures of buildings with the address number on the building, pictures of cars that show the license plate, etc.)