This wasn't intended to be a standalone "thing", just a short conversation which flowed from the original thread topic.

I think this is probably worthy of a new thread rather than a red-herring discussion here.

One thing I do think would be reasonable though is a notification / reminder to members that their comments here ARE potentially visible to the public. I suspect that many here are not only unaware, but have a false impression that it is private.

Based on how many upload requests there are, I doubt a line in the "Rules", or "FAQs", would do the trick. Although... now I come to think of it, maybe that's EXACTLY where it should be.

All torrent pages and most of the forum sections have always been public, and everything that could be potentially bad for your privacy are already forbidden through the rules.

For anyone having trouble with a particular torrent, the forum is not even the most suitable place to come for help, the helpdesk is faster and more convenient.

So to be clear it's not that I disagree with you that it should not be public, I just don't think it is really necessary, that wouldn't exactly shield anyone from anything. Anyone can buy an account at any moment and have access to the whole forum, including the parts that are not public.

Being aware that your activity is subject to monitoring is all you need for you to follow the appropriate opsec practices, the forum being fully closed should not change what anyone feel comfortable to say in it.

Besides, your question could just as easily - and in my opinion far more appropriately - be asked the other way: "What happens here that the rest of the world needs to see?"

This forum is linked to a private, members only, website. I'm not aware of any physical private members club that publishes its members' conversations, meeting minutes, etc., for the world to see, nor any credible groups demanding this is unjust.

Maybe consider making forum posts less easy for the entire world to see in various search engine search results?