Can moderators read private messages

[toby101]

Can you as moderators ready private messages that are sent between two members, and if so are they affected by grounds of being banned.

[Styx]

Can you as moderators ready private messages that are sent between two members, and if so are they affected by grounds of being banned.

Toby, you just red flagged yourself and yes, they can read them. I am pretty sure of that.

[LovnTheFuzz]

VBulletin does not have an 'automatic' way to do this. It would require a 'hack' patch... iirc. The only other way would be manually viewing the database.

A moderator? No

Administrators can read them - but very few actually know how, and have to have 'permissions' to do so.
The server owner can read them and the data center staff can probably read them as well.

From a legal standpoint? If you sign onto a site such as this - and they do not state in their privacy statement that PM's "may be viewed by administrators", they are making themselves liable to any user suing for privacy invasion.

As far as being banned, if you say for example were harassing or threatening me by PM, i can forward those PM's - and yes of course, you could be banned.


So take that info for what it's worth to you.

[toby101]

The only reason why I was asking this question was I heard on another board people getting banned for such private messages. I myself don't use them, but in the rare cause I do. I don't really like people reading what I write, when i don't really know about it. But this day and age, you almost are expected it to be read.