A private login is not enough to make a community privacy-first. Privacy needs to shape the purpose, commercial model, product configuration and everyday governance.
Purpose checklist
- Can members understand why the community exists?
- Is each information category connected to a stated task?
- Are unrelated future uses excluded unless separately assessed?
- Is public information kept public rather than unnecessarily gated?
Collection checklist
- Is every required profile field genuinely required?
- Can eligibility be confirmed without storing the underlying detail?
- Are optional fields labelled and private by default where appropriate?
- Are precise location, demographic or behavioural fields avoided unless necessary?
Audience and access checklist
- Can members see the audience before contributing?
- Are administrators divided into least-privilege roles?
- Are temporary and group roles reviewed?
- Do search, notifications and exports preserve permissions?
Choice checklist
- Are privacy, directory and notification choices easy to find?
- Are alternatives presented without dark patterns?
- Is departure explained before confirmation?
- Is support available when a case requires human judgement?
Commercial model checklist
- Who pays for the service?
- Does the provider sell personal information or behavioural advertising?
- Is community activity combined with cross-site profiles?
- Do contract terms match the public privacy position?
Analytics checklist
- Which decision requires evidence?
- Can aggregate or qualitative information answer it?
- Who can access raw data and for how long?
- Could the measure become employee, resident or member surveillance?
AI checklist
- What precise purpose does AI serve?
- Which content and provider are involved?
- Are prompts or outputs retained or used for training?
- What human review, correction and appeal exist?
- Can the organisation disable or limit the capability?
Portal Page’s principle is that private community content should not automatically become training material. Any moderation assistance still needs documented controls.
Retention checklist
- Does each information category have a trigger, period and disposal action?
- Are legal holds and formal records handled separately?
- Are dormant accounts and expired groups reviewed?
- Do backup and restoration processes respect deletion?
Change checklist
- Do new features, integrations and processors receive privacy review?
- Are material changes communicated clearly?
- Can members raise concerns through an accountable route?
- Are policy, contract and product behaviour kept aligned?
Use the privacy by design page for explanation and the data ownership page for roles, portability and lifecycle. Obtain professional privacy and legal advice for the implemented service.