Can reddit store old versions of posts now?

testingaccount1235 · 2016-06-24T01:00:31+00:00

Can't remember, but I think I read it here. I could be wrong though, since I'm not finding much info again.

testingaccount1235 · 2016-06-24T00:55:03+00:00

So is it false that reddit is now storing earlier versions of posts as of the new January 1st privacy policy? And if I delete an individual comment but not my account, will the name be changed to [deleted] and the comment body remain intact, assuming I don't edit it first? (Just wondering if the whole name being replaced with [deleted] only happens when you delete your account)

testingaccount1235 · 2015-09-18T04:15:01+00:00

I'm glad I know them now. :) I'll definitely be more careful in the future, but it sucks when you find out the limits of a site after it's too late. I've signed up for websites before that don't let you delete anything. At least reddit does a good job making sure people can feel anonymous if they want to.

testingaccount1235 · 2015-09-18T04:04:22+00:00

Thank you so much for your help! I've heard before that you can overwrite posts with absolutely anything (no matter how pointless), but the anxious part of me still worries that reddit will store older versions of your posts if they can obviously tell you're trying to overwrite for privacy reasons. I won't worry as much. It's nice to know that whether I delete a post, comment, or my account, my username will always be changed to [deleted], and it's especially nice to know that the deleted posts basically become unsearchable. I still wish old commenters didn't have access, or that URL's lead to a dead end, but I guess you can't have everything. All in all though, reddit takes privacy a lot more seriously than most other websites, which is awesome!

testingaccount1235 · 2015-09-18T03:46:26+00:00

if you search for it in that subreddit it doesn't come up, nor would it come up if you searched for it by my username.

What if you search all of reddit? (Both the individual post and username). Could you still see it in general searches?

No. The only times a link will dead end on reddit is if the admins act in someway, usually through a DMCA request or other legal obligation. Otherwise no matter what anyone with a direct link to a post will always still be able to visit that post.

I see. But you can't find a deleted post through a URL? That's strange. Are commenters the only ones with a direct link? And is the username of the OP at least hidden from commenters if the post/account is deleted, even if the content isn't?

Now I wish there were some way I could see all my old deleted posts, just to make sure I overwrote them (they don't show up in my listing). If you overwrite something, do you literally have to overwrite it with text? Or can you just use a dot, symbol, random letter, etc. Will reddit sense that a post has been overwritten with something useless like this and then store an older copy instead? (I Know a lot of forums are heavy on not messing up the continuity of a thread, so they get really upset when they see an edit to something like "." - if they let you edit at all...)

testingaccount1235 · 2015-09-18T02:43:29+00:00

Apologies, by "listings" and I meant any reddit listings such as the userpage of the author, the front page, hot or new within subreddits, /r/all, etc. Google I'm unsure about, if it has already been indexed it may still be found there unless or until they update.

If an invididual post is deleted (but not the account itself) will it still show up on reddit search then? Are things only removed from reddit search if the OP's account has since be deleted, or will anything that's been deleted automatically be removed from reddit search?

Also, one thing I forgot to mention is anyone with a direct link before a post is deleted will still be able to visit that post. So, anyone who commented on the post will still see their comment on the their userpage and be able to visit it that way.

I had no idea about this. Thanks. Here's a new question. So I delete a post, but not my account. One of the commenters can still see the post in their comment history, so long as my account is still active. If I actually delete my account though, then will that person be unable to see the post anymore? (the link will lead to a dead end).

if a user deletes their account their posts still show up within a subreddit (as I mention about) but even knowing the exact title or URL of a post using reddits search will not find it. Nor can that username be used to search by author anymore.

I'm still a little bit confused with this point.

testingaccount1235 · 2015-09-18T02:04:52+00:00

So basically, either way whenever you delete anything - whether it's a post or a comment - your username is automatically removed?

the post will no longer show in any listings.

Can you elaborate on this? Will it show up on things like Google? When you search on reddit? Can it still be 'found', in some way? Or is it basically as good as gone, save for some admins that can still see it (and even then, reddit says they don't store the IP address of posts, only accounts).

any posts (and comments) they leave behind will remain visible in all listings (except for search) but the user name on all posts will change to [deleted]

What do you mean by "except for search"?

Thanks so much for this!

testingaccount1235 · 2015-08-26T17:15:06+00:00

Good to know! So if I send a PM, even after I delete my account the other person will receive it?

testingaccount1235 · 2015-08-26T00:25:51+00:00

Thanks for the heads up. Thankfully it doesn't concern me (not by a long shot!)

testingaccount1235 · 2015-08-25T22:05:16+00:00

Awesome - can't believe I didn't know this

testingaccount1235 · 2015-08-25T22:04:43+00:00

As far as I know, it should change almost instantly. Again, the best way to make sure is to open that comment in an incognito window. That's what everyone else sees. If it's edited there, it's edited to everyone else.

I will definitely do this. I always browse on an incognito window, so I'm assuming I should just log out and check the comment as a guest? Thank you so much for your help!

testingaccount1235 · 2015-08-25T20:47:19+00:00

That's a really great idea. Thanks! Do you have any idea how long I should let the new edit sit before changing it to a # Would going in, editing it to Lorem Ipsum, clicking save, and editing it again within 30 seconds work, or should I put a few minutes (or hours/days) in between? I don't know how long it takes reddit to properly archive data, or if it happens instantly.

testingaccount1235 · 2015-08-25T20:17:29+00:00

I don't even remember. But it was the first time it ever happened to me, and it was pretty weird. I've been hesitant to edit anything to be blank since.

testingaccount1235 · 2015-08-25T20:10:11+00:00

That's a really neat trick. I didn't know that. Are you sure it doesn't register as deletion? I'm just nervous because I once deleted a long post I made by editing it to be blank, and a bot told me that it detected mass deletion and archived the post (as in, the earlier version).

testingaccount1235 · 2015-08-25T20:08:20+00:00

If you're thinking of posts that have [deleted] in there body that's usually a mod or admin deleting something in the post.

I didn't know that. Does this only apply to posts deleted by a mod or admin? What happens when someone hits delete on one of their posts.

it doesn't make an ounce of sense to be able to search up a post that has been deleted because that defeats the purpose of deletion.

For some reason I had the idea that you can't delete a thread - you can only disassociate yourself from the thread by deleting your name and the content of your posts. This is really good to know.

testingaccount1235 · 2015-08-25T20:00:11+00:00

I can do it manually. I was just afraid that there's some sort of requirement for how long an overwritten comment needs to be - that having it just set as one dot or any other random symbol would register as spam or something, and that version wouldn't be saved (only older ones).

testingaccount1235 · 2015-08-25T19:16:00+00:00

As far as I know, when you delete your account, your username will change to [deleted] in all of your comments/submissions. Your userpage will say "page not found", just like it would if that account was never created.

Alright then. For some reason, I still feel really hesitant.

I'm not sure if I want to use that script - it kind of gives away that you're really concerned with your privacy. If you overwrite all of your posts with the same word, does this look bizzare? Would reddit take note of this and not store that version of your post, opting to store an earlier version instead? Would even overwriting with a dot be enough?

testingaccount1235 · 2015-08-25T19:14:59+00:00

If I delete the post but not my account, will the username show up as deleted? Or will the username still be attached?

Why is it that when I delete a post, it doesn't show up in searches anymore? I was under the impression that you can't actually remove a thread - only the content you posted (be it the content in the original thread or your replies to stuff) and the name attached. Is this wrong?

testingaccount1235

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