Feature Request: Warning Before Replying to PMs with Mixed User/Staff Participants

Feature
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Hi,

I am a moderator over on Ubuntu Discourse.

In moderation workflows, it’s common to start a private message (PM) with a user, and then later add the @moderators group to get input from other staff.

The problem is: once moderators are added, all replies in that thread are still sent to the original user as well. This can lead to mistakes — a moderator may reply thinking they’re speaking privately with other staff, but the message is actually sent to the user too.

Feature Request:

A simple warning or visual indicator when replying to a PM that includes both staff and regular users. Something like:

:warning: “Your reply will be visible to all participants, including [@username].”

Or a confirmation prompt when replying to a PM thread with non-staff users included.

This would go a long way toward preventing unintended disclosures or awkward situations.

Has anyone found a workaround, or is something like this already planned?

Thanks in advance,
Rubi

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The image shows a section of a discussion forum interface with options for responding as a linked topic, using a whisper mode visible to staff, and toggling the topic bump. (Captioned by AI)
The image shows a section of a discussion forum interface with options for responding as a linked topic, using a whisper mode visible to staff, and toggling the topic bump. (Captioned by AI)1204×430 51 KB

Have you ever tried selecting Whisper Mode when posting, so that the message is only visible to the staff?

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We’ve got a theme component that help here: GitHub - discourse/discourse-whisper-warning: This component better distinguishes a public reply from a whisper.

Certainly something we can consider bringing into core if there are others who would find this valuable.

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That is very useful, but unfortunately it does not seem to be enabled.

I will check with the site admins about this.

Thanks!

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We found and enabled this setting.

Thanks for the speedy and helpful responses.

Rubi