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Let's talk about data
TheMix
Posts: 3,130 Boards Guru
in General Chat
Hey everyone :wave:
By now, you hopefully all know that we’ll soon be moving to new boards (if not, head over to this thread for more). We’re excited about the move, not least because it’s a great chance for all of us to talk about what we all want from this space
If you haven’t taken our new boards survey yet, we’d love to hear your thoughts!One of the topics we’d like to talk about is data. To be more specific, your personal data as a member of the community.
Now before you see the length of this thread and close it, think of it like this: looking after your personal data is a lot like eating kale. It might not be the most appealing thing, but it’s really good for you! Bear with it
If you need an extra boost, try this as a relaxing soundtrack to your reading!
A healthy serving of kale
Before we get going, let's quickly explain what we mean when we say ‘data’. We're talking about two things: personal data and sensitive personal data. Here’s what those terms mean...
What is personal data?
Personal data is basically any information that can be used to identify you. This includes things like your name, address, IP address, phone number etc.
In this thread, we’d like to cover 2 questions:What is sensitive personal data?
Sensitive personal data includes more personal info, like your gender, sexual preference, political or religious beliefs, medical info etc.
1. What data does The Mix collect from you as a member of the community and how do we use it?
2. What are your rights around how The Mix’s collects and uses your personal data?
This is hopefully the start of a discussion – we’d love to hear your thoughts on this topic and are eager to have a conversation :yes:
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As you probably know, we're big fans of anonymity here at The Mix. We believe that it should be as easy as possible to ask for support, no matter what the issue. We’ve seen that asking for lots of personal data can make it harder for people; how many of you would use chat or the boards if we asked you for your full name, address and phone number (for example)? What about a newbie?
We want you folks to be able to get in touch with us and each other without having to give us too much personal data. So, we try to limit the amount of data we collect.
What data do we collect?
The data we collect depends on which community service you use:
In the community, we don't record any sensitive personal data other than what you write on the boards or in chat. Boards posts are visible to everyone on the internet, but if you ever want a post deleted you can drop us a line via PM or email (info@themix.org.uk). Chat transcripts are stored privately on a secure server in the EU and only the staff team can see them. We don't share chat transcripts with anyone outside the community team here at The Mix.
It's worth remembering that other parts of The Mix (e.g. the helpline and counselling service) record different data.
Why do we collect this data?
- Your username lets you use the boards or group chat without using your real name. It means you can be anonymous. We also use your username to work out how many people use group chat – this helps us adapt group chat to your needs and also helps us talk to funders.
- Your password keeps your account(s) secure; only you have access and no-one else can post as you or read your PMs on the boards.
- Your email address is used for resetting your password if you forget it and can be used to get boards notifications when people reply to your threads etc. It’s also what you use to log in to group chat (because you can change your group chat username). We may very occasionally send out emails to boards members with news about the community (like the new boards for example). You can opt in or out of these admin emails in your user settings.
- Your date of birth helps us understand who is using the boards and keep things safe. For example, if we notice that someone is significantly over 25 (e.g. 35 or 40), we usually drop them a message letting them know that The Mix is really for people 25 or under and help them find an alternative place to find support. The same goes for someone who’s much younger than 13, as the boards isn’t the best place for young children.
- Your IP address is recorded just in case we need to take some action against your account. For example, if an account is a spammer, we will ban the account and sometimes ban the IP address(es) it used (particularly if it’s from Russia or Pakistan – where most of our spam originates). It’s also used for bans from group chat. Banning people isn't something we like doing, but it's a useful way to keep the space safe.
Apart from your username, only the staff team has access to your personal data and only you have access to your password(s).
In very rare circumstances, we may choose to share some of this data with the emergency services if we believe someone is in immediate, life-threatening danger and we have enough information. You can read more about our confidentiality policy here.
You may not know it, but as members of the EU, we’re all about to get some of the strongest data rights in the world! In May, there’s a new chunk of law being brought into force across the EU. It’s called the General Data Protection Regulation (or GDPR).
These new laws mean that as a user of The Mix, you’ll have a lot of control over your own data.
Note that these apply to every company and organisation in the world that collects your data (e.g. Facebook, Google etc.) and are still likely to apply even after the UK leaves the EU.
Here are the key principles:
1. Consent
The Mix has to keep our terms and conditions simple and easy to read (so not like most!). It must also be as easy for you to withdraw consent as it is to give it.
2. Data Breach Notification
If The Mix gets hacked and/or our data is stolen, we must notify you of any risk within 72 hours.
3. Right to access
You have the right to know whether your personal data is being processed and how. You can also ask for a copy of all your personal data for free (to be delivered within one month).
4. Right to be forgotten
When your personal data is no longer relevant to its original purpose, you can ask us to erase it.
5. Data portability
You have the right to obtain and reuse your personal data for your own purposes by transferring it across different platforms/systems etc.
6. Privacy by design
The Mix must include data protection from the very beginning when designing apps, websites, platforms etc. We must make sure data is stored securely.
Just one final thing to mention here. The new boards will be hosted on servers in Canada because the company that makes the software – Vanilla – is Canadian. Because The Mix is based in the EU and most of you are EU citizens, all those laws above still apply :yes:
But it’s important to know that some Canadian laws will apply too. This means we can’t guarantee that your data won’t be accessed by the Canadian government or intelligence services if they legally get access to the servers (although this is highly unlikely).[/FONT]
As we mentioned, we're keen to hear your thoughts. So if you have any questions, concerns or opinions, feel free to post them below!
Finally, if this has piqued your interest in what data different organisations and companies collect about you, we'd thoroughly recommend this 8-day data detox. It'll take you on a journey through your data self and teach you how to start taking control of your digital life.
Enjoy!
Emma, Aife & Mike
Edit: Been told that James actually wrote most of it.
The Mix
~ Belle