*** General user warnings ***

[Karlo Bala]

I'm sorry, but I don't understand what the problem is at all. Could someone explain to me in 3 simple sentences?

[Ras]

Could someone explain to me in 3 simple sentences?

This forum is hosted for free by ChessUSA. Since we are not paying hosting customers, we cannot demand any serious hosting support. That's only two sentences, but now it's three.

[Karlo Bala]

Could someone explain to me in 3 simple sentences?

This forum is hosted for free by ChessUSA. Since we are not paying hosting customers, we cannot demand any serious hosting support. That's only two sentences, but now it's three.

Thanks

What exactly does "serious hosting support" mean?

[Ras]

What exactly does "serious hosting support" mean?

If something goes wrong, you can expect the hoster to resolve things in a way that is useful for you. For example, ChessUSA as US company doesn't really have Polish customers. Therefore, they react to hacking attempts from Polish hackers by just blocking any access from Poland. Problem solved for ChessUSA. However, this in turn also shuts out any legitimate access from Poland, such as our Polish posters on Talkchess. With serious hosting support, that wouldn't have happened.

Another issue is that we all are blasting our login passwords over the web in clear text because there is no https on Talkchess. That's a disaster waiting to happen once any mod or even admin logs in e.g. over some foreign wifi hotspot. ChessUSA doesn't care because there is https on ChessUSA for the shop.

However, that's even a security risk for ChessUSA because it's the same server as Talkchess. If a hacker gains admin access to the forum and re-purposes the forum to send out spam emails, the server IP will be blocked by many other mail servers world-wide, which means that ChessUSA won't be able to send e.g. invoice emails to their shop customers. It's just that the ChessUSA shop owner doesn't understand that danger.

[flok]

Those fines are limited to a percentage of your income.

Wrong. Up to 20 million EUR or 4% of your annual revenue - whichever is higher. Read the GDPR, it's right on their website! Obviously, that is only the upper limit and not the likely actual fine. That's why I wrote "theoretically". But a few thousand EUR would be realistic here. Nothing that would ruin you, but pretty nasty nevertheless.

And, of course, you would be warned first. And since we at talkchess have really fine moderators (I'm serious about that), a nasty posting would not survive very long anyway.

GDPR is not about postings, but process compliance. Upload filters, which will come, are not about removing a single copyright violating post, but about the duty to make sure it cannot happen again.

Well, the guy I consulted (you could say GDPR is "his day-job") must be wrong then.

[Ras]

Well, the guy I consulted (you could say GDPR is "his day-job") must be wrong then.

Seems so, or you misunderstood him. But hey, why do you ask random people instead of just looking up the legal text? You want to read GDPR Art. 83.4, 83.5, and 83.6: https://gdpr-info.eu/art-83-gdpr/

[flok]

Well, the guy I consulted (you could say GDPR is "his day-job") must be wrong then.

Seems so, or you misunderstood him. But hey, why do you ask random people instead of just looking up the legal text? You want to read GDPR Art. 83.4, 83.5, and 83.6: https://gdpr-info.eu/art-83-gdpr/

No that would be stupid. I know nothing about legal things nor how to intepret them. It would be dumb to try so. Better ask someone whos educated in this (hint).

[Ras]

Better ask someone whos educated in this (hint).

Well, then try to find someone - your last contact doesn't qualify. Although I'm astonished that you pretend that "whichever is higher" is too difficult for you to understand, and that it's actual meaning is "whichever is lower".

[smatovic]

...

..

In general there is the 'Splinter-Net' going on, Russia, China as forerunners, also India, EU implements its own laws for all kind of platforms, USA? Not sure how this will play out on a global scale for open platforms.

***edit**

TalkChess with ~2800 registered members is IMO at the border-line for a platform that has to apply several EU laws for teleservices...

--
Srdja

[KLc]

I can assure you from professional experience that GDPR compliance is incredibly complicated and demanding. There needs to be someone who’s officially responsible for the content, and I can’t imagine anyone who’d be willing to do that without professional background or a corporation with lawyers behind. For this reason, whereas universities may have been the place for such things back in the 80s or so, it’s today impossible to host this at a university (legally!). To get this clear: GDPR is a right and correct thing. But the risk for a just for fun chess forum with (anonymous) international people around who’re (by cultural background etc) not that sensitive to hate speech things etc. is just too big.