# Obfuscate the quote author when a user is deleted

**URL:** <https://meta.discourse.org/t/obfuscate-the-quote-author-when-a-user-is-deleted/387199>\
**Category:** Feature\
**Created:** [October 30, 2025, 5:18pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/obfuscate-the-quote-author-when-a-user-is-deleted/387199 "2025-10-30T17:18:16Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Showing post:** 17

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Moin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/meta/user_avatar/meta.discourse.org/moin/32/554653_2.png) [@Moin](https://meta.discourse.org/u/Moin)\
**Post date:** [November 6, 2025, 4:58pm UTC](https://meta.discourse.org/t/obfuscate-the-quote-author-when-a-user-is-deleted/387199/17 "2025-11-06T16:58:32Z")

</div>

> [@tobiaseigen](#):
>
> It’s not even possible to delete a member once they have begun participating in the forum.

Why not?

From my understanding, you cannot delete users with more than 5 posts and posts older than `Delete user max post age`.

> <https://github.com/discourse/discourse/blob/6982c053f65478e38c76cb20815788d6416e147e/app/models/user.rb#L365-L365>

```ruby
is_staff? && # the user who wants to perform the deletion is staff and
        (
          user.first_post_created_at.nil? || # the user didn't create any post OR
            !user.has_more_posts_than?(User::MAX_STAFF_DELETE_POST_COUNT) || # the user didn't create more than 5 posts OR
            user.first_post_created_at > SiteSetting.delete_user_max_post_age.to_i.days.ago # the user didn't create a post older than defined by the setting
        )

```

But you can temporarily (or even permanently) increase the `Delete user max post age` site setting to delete all the user’s posts using the button on their admin page. I don’t see a reason why you cannot delete the user after doing that.  
I also remember a Discourse forum that was closed last year where deletion was offered before it was shut down. Many long-standing members appreciated this offer as they were angry with the company. It was pretty sad for those trying to save their posts of the past 20 years, because once a topic author was deleted, their replies were no longer available either.

---

_[View the full topic](https://meta.discourse.org/t/obfuscate-the-quote-author-when-a-user-is-deleted/387199)._