profile information

[dans]

Ted

when I was looking for my companies position on Google yesterday I got an output from my profile on PH which contains the details as well.

This is a bit of a security worry. Is there any way in which readers profiles can be stored to prevent their being read by search engines. It would not take a very enterprising burglar to think of putting the details in of the kind of car they'd like to nick together with the pistonheads name and they'd get a nice list of owners and their respective email addresses / numbers and employers....not a big step from there to finding out who they are and where they live.

Now you have a dedicated box can this be covered by SSL at login?

cheers

Dan

[M@H]

I think there's a simple meta tag you can put at the header of such pages anyway that instructs search engine spiders to ignore the page... might be an easier option.
Cheers
Matt.

[rthierry]

Dan,

I have just done a search in Google on my username, i.e. 'rthierry' and found my profile on Pistonhead.com (not .net). Also, I tried a search on somebody else's username (picked up Flasher) and the search was not successful. Considering that you have to be logged in order to see your profile, I doubt that anyone else could see it. One way to check this - and I am going to do just that - is to close all your browser windows, start a new session a go straight on google...

Will report later!

:buonce:

[rthierry]

bugger it didn't work !

Everybody will see that I have a Smart...

[PetrolTed]

I appreciate your concern about the information being available to scrotes, but taking it out of search engines won't stop it being revealed here.

I think the bottom line is only reveal as much as you want. Reveal your cars but not your full identity or vice-versa?

[M@H]

quote:
Dan,

Considering that you have to be logged in order to see your profile, I doubt that anyone else could see it.

And the answer is.. you don't have to be logged on..

[dans]

Fair point ted, was really wondering if there was a meta tag type solution as somebody has proposed, I think it is easier to search for "profile cerbera pistonheads south east" on google than go through the site.....

Just thought as you had the poll to get info out of customers on demographics it might encourage them to give more if it was safer. the information is valuable so if Google can get it so can a bot.

Dan

>> Edited by dans on Thursday 7th February 12:14

[rthierry]

Sorry Matt,

Some days, I'd better shut up !

[McNab]

Google gave me three whole pages on the Pistonheads McNab. Fame at last! Does it matter a damn?

>> Edited by McNab on Thursday 7th February 20:02

[cirks]

Just for fun I thought I'd try searching for 'Cirks' and ended up with the following:

http://members.aye.net/~racerx/cp_ericcirks2001.html

As Cirks is an abbreviated version of my surname this guy is no relation. At least one of his interests is the same as mine although I'm somewhat worried about the dubious look of his vehicle. Not quite as nice as a 450SE !!