Hi, I would like to ask if the following is true: Anonymization meets GDPR requirements for removal of personal data. Once anonymized, no data remains in the Discourse server to identify who you are or about you. Are the IP address and email of a user retained after anonymization? Is a site ad…

The code which does the anonymization: discourse/app/services/user_anonymizer.rb at main · discourse/discourse · GitHub discourse/app/jobs/regular/anonymize_user.rb at main · discourse/discourse · GitHub It will: Username is changed to: anon#<random number> password made random (and invalid) na…

In this case, I assume emails includes/also means PMs? From a legal perspective, can a user be told that the process of anonymizing is GDPR compliant or are the waters still muddy on this matter?

PM in discourse are just private discussions, they are posts with really limited visibility. They are anonymized in the same way as the more public posts. The “invites and emails” I mentioned are the email messages send out by discourse for various actions. For example email notifications about rea…

[image] elmuerte: Reversal is basically impossible, but user information can remain in individual posts Mostly. I have been able to partially recover an account by renaming username back to what it was prior to being anonymized and reattaching the user email and reactivate account. Seems to…

This is very useful to know! Thankfully, we do not have many users requesting what they call “deletion” but since GDPR is or can be an issue I wanted to gather as much information as possible.

Depending on how strict your data retention policies are, you may also want to disable Log anonymizer details as well: <a class="lightbox" href="https://global.discourse-cdn.com/meta/original/4X/7/5/8/758da9809351250239d18f16ded86945dd1bfab7.jpeg" data-download-href="/uploads/short-url/gLVnaCxAJlKbh7xbx8QeeCT8nXx.jpeg?dl=1" title="This screenshot displays the 'All site settings' page within a Discourse administration panel, allowing configuration of the site's appearance, functionality and user experience, with a particular focus on log anonymisation details. (Captioned by AI)">[This screenshot displays the 'All site settings' page within a Discourse administration panel, allowing configuration of the site's appearance, functionality and user experience,…

Oh, that is very nice! Will definitely pass this information up the chain of command :slightly_smiling_face:

Question About Anonymizing Users and GDPR

Product Support

JammyDodger June 30, 2025, 7:39pm 7

Depending on how strict your data retention policies are, you may also want to disable Log anonymizer details as well:

Unchecking that makes sure not to keep a record of the original user details in the staff logs.

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Question About Anonymizing Users and GDPR

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