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Discussion Board Changes
TheMix
Posts: 3,330 Boards Guru
Hello Community,
We wanted to follow up on our previous update shared in January about upcoming changes to the Community, including the introduction of Pre-Moderation, Age Verification and opening hours for the Community Discussion Boards.
These updates are about making sure the Community continues to be a safe and supportive space for everyone. We are aiming to have it all in place Monday 30th March.
What will be changing?
Age Verification
As shared with you previously, we will be introducing age verification to make sure the people using our spaces are within our age range (13–25) and to help keep everyone safe.
From Monday 23rd March, age verification will be available for all existing members to complete by using YOTI. This process does not store photos or personal images and has been carefully tested to meet safeguarding and legal requirements.
All Community members will need to complete age verification by Monday 30th March to continue using the Community.
Pre-moderation of Discussion Boards
From Monday 30th March, the Discussion Boards will move to a fully pre-moderated system. This means posts and comments will be reviewed by our team before going live.
This additional step will help us respond more effectively to high-risk content and meet requirements under the Online Safety Act. As you are aware we are really pleased to have been able to take on new Community staff to ensure we are able to approve posts as quickly as possible.
Boards Switch-off
From Monday 30th March, the Discussion Boards will be unavailable overnight from 10pm-9am.
This change is to encourage engagement during times when staff are available to provide support, and to help reduce the risk of members posting in crisis overnight when there is no Community staff available to respond.
We understand these are significant changes and hope the changes will have minimum effect on your use and enjoyment of our discussion boards. If you have any questions or concerns, you can reply on this thread or submit a question anonymously via this Google Form: https://forms.gle/sobYaEUFBXKFAqWF7
Please note that it may take a few days for us to respond while we work with internal teams to get back to you with the right information, but we will aim to do so as soon as we can.
Thank you for being part of our Community and making it a welcoming and engaging place!
The Mix Community Team
Comments
what if community members dont have id? how can we do this? bc i cant afford a passport etc.
sry if that sounds darft but community members who are not as fortunate in being able to afford it. what are we supposed to do bc i cant afford a passport rn n ive tried getting a provisional but bc of my mh n physical health i cant.
@eylah you can get an ID from Yoti or birth certificate works
✨ 𝒯ℋℐ𝒮 ℐ𝒮 ℳℰ ✨
i don’t even have yoti downloaded. n i don’t even know where mine is. so it’s impossible.
oh no
This is perhaps the worst idea, in the history of idea's, maybe ever. No accessibility questions have been answered, despite there being 2 months since the announcement. Like @eylah says, ID can be an issue for people, and all the mix says is we hope this has minimal effects on boards, whilst entirely uprooting boards.
agreed @Nathan . like id love to stay on the community but bc of this yoti thing idek if its possible. wish we was told when this was happening instead of fully at once.
I suspect i'm wasting my energy here, and if i ask any more questions they won't get answered. Yet people have one week to sort out age verification/ID when those initial questions are still sitting there after 2 months without an answer?
And if the boards are pre moderated anyway, whats the use in blocking all posts overnight? Why not just approve them in the morning as was suggested on the other thread about this. The posts won't go through until they're checked anyway, so whats the logic in switching them off entirely vs just approving them in the morning as other pre modded sites do?
@eylah for what its worth you should be able to take a selfie to verify your age which wouldn't require a physical ID, but i appreciate you might not be comfortable with this, as many aren't. But if you are and you want to stay on it may be an option for you.
also you guys mentioned you’ll get back to us asap. we have a deadline for the identification etc. what if its after that? then we wont have our access to the community.
thankyou @independent_ . appreciate you replying back to me. n i appreciate it. ❤️
@eylah i second that actually. It’s a major change, and there is one week to do it. Some less active members may not even see that in time let alone be able to action it.
What happens to people’s accounts that don’t stick to this incredibly short deadline? Either because they didn’t know, their questions weren’t answered, or for accessibility reasons as it may be (which we don’t know since that question wasn’t answered). Are they deleted? If so, last time there was mass account deletion, people were given weeks notice and sent multiple emails to remind them to take the action needed.
ETA: and what happens if someone’s currently on a break and they can’t actually access their account to complete the process? Surely that’s unfair, regardless of the reason for the break.
A passport is also going up to over £100 now, and I’m not being funny but Eylah’s comment above about affordability is a real concern for some.
That's affordability questions, because selfie age predictors isn't always 100% accurate and sometimes ID will be needed, that has been ignored, and basic accessibility questions that have been raised by multiple users, across several months that have also been ignored.
especially when you’re having to pay bills n afford food etc ( for me anyway. ) it ain’t easy. but i 100% agree.
@eylah you might be able to get a PASS card much cheaper, but from what i know you have to confirm your identity to get one of those too. But it is worth checking out citizen card etc. Not that i suspect it would come through in time.
The fact I’m having to share this from my own knowledge is a bit crazy. Making such an important post at 8pm at night and being unable to answer questions for a “few days” when the deadline itself is literally a few days really is not what i think anyone meant by transparency
so on monday we have to verify ourselves.. but its now the weekend n we havent heard anything back. this is just wonderful isnt it 🤦🏼♀️
The cool thing about staying up to date with all things cyber security and data science related is the fact i get to read up fun, emerging and very recent news stories like this:
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Spain: AEPD fines Yoti €950,000 for unlawful processing of biometric data | News | DataGuidance
Heya all - a response with hopefully all the answers to your questions/points will be coming out by the end of the day (or early tomorrow latest) as it is being written up now
thankyou @Leyla .
yeah I am not doing this
To be honest with all of the ongoing changes while I may not be able to speak for everyone, I can agree with what users are saying on here especially with the whole yoti ID thing. I think for a site that is meant to be easily accessible, I worry that these new changes when implented fully will put off a lot of new users and regular users coming onto here. I think we need some proper clarification on this more. I think something that I find is say and hopefully it would never happen, but if a security breach or cyber attack were to ever happen, then those photo ID's are vulnerable to be being used in the open. Maybe I am not thinking on this very logically but it is a thought to consider.
Hello again Community.
First of all, just to acknowledge that change affects everyone in different ways, and whatever you're feeling is real and completely valid!
Even though change can bring new beginnings (and in this case, we hope, a safer and more secure Community), it can also mean something's ending, and we're saying goodbye to what feels familiar. That can bring up emotions like sadness, frustration, anxiety, or grief for some people.
If you're finding this hard, please know that's okay. Try to give yourself permission to feel it and take the time you need to process things. We really appreciate everyone taking the time to share feedback and ask questions while we work through this together.
We've collated all of your questions and have some answers below:
What if I don't have ID or can't afford something like a passport?
We understand that not everyone has access to a formal ID. As a backup, we use Yoti's selfie verification, which our testing shows is generally accurate.
If you run into any issues, please contact us via email at community@mhi.org and we'll do our best to help you access the platform.
Why haven't accessibility questions been answered yet?
We're really sorry about the delay. We've raised accessibility concerns with our platform provider and are waiting on updates while they work on fixing remaining issues.
We didn't anticipate the technical problems that affected the discussion boards, but we're actively working to resolve them as quickly as possible.
Could you use keyword filters instead of human moderation?
We already use spam filters, but keyword filters alone aren't reliable enough to catch all harmful content and the nuanced ways in which this could show up.
Because of the Online Safety Act and the fact that this is a platform used by young people (including those under 18), we need to take stronger steps to keep the space safe.
What if I use selfie verification but it gets my age wrong?
If the system doesn't correctly recognise your age, please email us and we'll work with you to make sure you're not excluded from the Community if you're within the correct age range.
Why were DMs removed?
We had reports of DMs being used inappropriately, and with limited team capacity, it's safer to remove them altogether to protect users.
Are we going back to the previous version of the boards?
We won't be returning to the previous layout. Pre-moderation requires the updated version, and our platform provider has recommended staying on it to reduce technical issues.
We've shared your accessibility concerns with them and are looking into creating a user guide for the community.
What about accessibility issues with live selfie verification?
Thank you for raising this. We recognise that live photo verification can be challenging, especially for visually impaired users or those with other accessibility issues.
We'll work with individuals on a case-by-case basis to make sure technical barriers don't prevent access to the service.
Why not allow softer alternatives to age verification?
Our safeguarding team did explore other options. However, age verification is a legal requirement, so we do need to implement it.
Why are Boards closed overnight if posts are pre-moderated anyway?
This is due to safeguarding risk. If someone posts while in crisis overnight and doesn't receive a response, that could be unsafe.
Closing the boards during these hours helps us manage that risk more responsibly.
What happens if I miss the ID verification deadline?
If you're having trouble completing verification in time, please get in touch as soon as possible.
We'll always try to support people through the process, especially if there are valid reasons for delays.
What if I'm currently on a break and can't access my account?
Anyone who is currently on a break will be contacted directly, so you won't be missed.
Will Saturday Support Threads be replaced?
We know these were really valued. From April, we'll aim to run a Support Chat at the same time each week instead.
If we don't have enough staff to run it on a particular week, we'll provide an alternative (like a quiz), and this will always be shared in the weekly schedule.
Thanks again everyone for all being a part of our community and communicating your questions with us!
The Mix Community Team.
So, is every post getting a response from staff? Because I still don’t get why they can’t be approved in the morning - still allows people to vent. Most online communities have limited if not a lack of mod cover overnight (the one I moderate is the same) but all posts are picked up in the morning and responded to then - most people know this and don’t expect a response. Even childline allows posts to be submitted overnight for approval the following morning. I’m not being funny but this is the only place some people have to get their thoughts down, and if a post helps them to get their thoughts out, it could very well prevent a full blown crisis.
In addition, will crisis posts (or ambiguous ones) be approved and then responded to publicly, or declined with a DM?
In fact, will all declined posts receive an immediate DM with the reason why? Can problem words be edited out by mods so the post can then be approved?
And i shall ask again - how do both of these changes work for chat? Will people need a boards account to access chat to ensure they are age verified, and will chat messages be pre modded (if not, this is NOT a suggestion)
Just wanted to give a couple thoughts as ive been in the background or have "left" before a lot of these changes were made and as a younger user myself, although im now 17 Ive been here since I was 13 so wanted to give my thoughts. Im not too sure how to use this new text sending thing though so idk how far im gonna get.
This is a different reason to previously given? No? Also I feel this isnt a reasonable response considering that its contradicting the posts about how many new staff the mix have gained to allow for premoderation to happen.
Surely if everyone has to read a "user guide" to know how to use a community they will just find elsewhere? If a young person is struggling thats the last thing they will want to do just to be able to know how they can reach out. It feels contradictory considering the mix has always been about being supportive and welcoming yet "wait a sec you may need to read a user guide first"?
Surely eitherway they dont get a response? What will the boards look like to users when they are "closed"? Its understandable that staff cant be hired to pre-moderate during the night however the mix has always been busier during the evening - nighttime period as thats typically how it works (or at least does me personally and im sure others too)
I feel all these changes just seem very out of the blue considering when the merger happened it felt like there was lots of reassurance against too much change happening yet now I barely recognise the mix compared to how it was before. And I think this is whats upsetting us long term users.
The boards and chats are already so much quieter than they used to be when I joined and this feels personally for me (and I imagine others) that its because of all these changes not making the community feel as much as a community as well as also not feeling as welcoming.
If age verification is happening for the boards is this translating over to chat? Is it going to be a case of if you have a chatwee account you have to have a boards account? As i feel that wont be fully feasible either considering some people wont be able to accommodate that.
I understand fully about legislation changing etc as although its not the same ; I have placement in an early years setting and the policies, and legislation is always chopping and changing yet if its all changed which is requiring all of these changes suddenly - then why is none of these changes seemingly reflecting onto other charities?
Additionally, this is the first I’m hearing of the reason for the removal of DMs being due to reports of them being used inappropriately. Why wasn’t this stated on the previous threads, and instead it was stated only to be due to the OSA.
I think adding to what was just said but surely if all this was so much of a problem it would've all been implemented ages ago considering the fact that the boards used to always get trolls, people being targeted, chats having constant trolls etc? No? There was just the extra security methods put in place which ended up working until all of these changes have now suddenly started being introduced a year or two later
Seconded on the spammers and trolls. That was an issue from years ago, I remember there was one who kept coming back yet even then, these things weren’t brought in.
i dont like these new changes in my opinion... i feel like along with myself people are just gonna leave and go to a different community like side by side. well im not 18 yet so i cant access side by side until i do.
Hey everyone, thank you so much for your questions and responses.
To reply to what has been asked around the reason for turning off DMs, the reason for this was that we knew that even with positive use, there was still a level of risk that came with any space we did not routinely moderate as a Staff Team. This meant there was a potential of DMs then becoming a space where personal boundaries are unclear or safeguarding risks could go unnoticed by our staff team. Indeed, we had seen those space being used inappropriately.
Disabling DMs was also part of a wider safeguarding approach and in line with guidance from organisations such as The Online Safety Act (2023) and the UK Council for Internet Safety (UKCIS), which recommends limiting private messaging in open online communities to reduce risk for children and young people
@Sian321 I think im just confused as to why the response on this post was different to that. Also if it was in line with the online safety act 2023 then why was the change only made in 2025
Hope you don't mind, but i took a quick tour down memory lane to the DM removal thread, and I had a jolly good read of it, and I can't help but notice that @independent_ and @Chloe are 100% right. At no point in that entire thread was any mention made of "reports" of DM misuse. Instead, the Mix claimed disabling DM's was in line with "guidance from organisations such as The Online Safety Act (2023) and the UK Council for Internet Safety (UKCIS)" and "following the expert advice of our IT, Security, and Safeguarding teams, as well as guidance from the UK Council for Internet Safety (UKCIS)". So, i must admit to being quite surprised by this sudden different reason given for it almost 1 year later.
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Secondly, how can people post anyway at night. Nothing can be posted until a mod approves it, and no mods are gonna be online at night to do so. So closing boards overnight to stop crisis posts, when posts can't even be made at night anyway is interesting logic to say the least.
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And thirdly, about pre-moderation requiring this new update, i'll take your claim that the old design can't handle pre-moderation of user posts and raise you one.
This is from October 2025 where all my posts had to be manually approved for a day due to "spam filter". This is what popped up and what i sent to the mix to show them the problem i was having. I quickly grabbed this snippet from that October 12th dm to show it here. If this isn't premoderation, i don't know what is.
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Fourthly, Support threads was a slower paced, more calm support style, compared to the faster paced chatwee support chats. Personally support threads are my favourite. Support chat for me anyway simply just doesn't match up to thread's and to those who prefer slower paced support, is a massive downgrade.
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And fifthly, surely accessibility questions should be answered ASAP and resolved, before any changes take place? Especially given the fact that boards has many disabled users, and accessibility is sort of also a legal requirement under equality act law?
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And finally, does that fact that mere days ago your chosen provider Yoti was found to have broken the GDPR data protection laws and fined 950,000 euro's for data protection violations, change your confidence in the system at all? Specifically it was fined for breaching article 9 (unlawful biometric processing), article 5.1(e) (excessive data retention), and article 7 (invalid consent).
this is just getting more ridiculous. this isn’t same community that when i joined in 2024. all these things etc it’s just like it’s not a community anymore.
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thankyou though for explaining abt the id situation. rly appreciate it <3.