How Private is Private, on Ancestry?

[cresser]

Hi all,

Approximately, a month ago now, I made my tree on Ancestry private. I was sick and tired that anyone, who wanted to, could just visit my records and nick whatever they wanted and didn`t have the courtesy to say `Thanks`. So I went private. Today, some geezer from Dunchurch swipes a picture, no thanks or nothing. So I went to see his tree, guess what ..........yep. So I sent him a message stating my feelings and asked how he had been able to do this, I have also contacted Ancestry because this is just not good enough. I await with baited breath, a reply from either. Mmmmm!

[Elaine ..Spain]

If you have set it to private then no one should be able to view either your tree or media files. Maybe he copied the image before you made your tree private.
Also bear in mind that all public trees are copied to another website named Mundia - www.mundia.com
When you change the status of your Ancestry tree to private, then the Mundia tree should be deleted - but I am not sure if this is instant or whether there is a delay. Might be worth checking Mundia to make sure your tree is not still viewable.

[Guy]

If you have set it to private then no one should be able to view either your tree or media files. Maybe he copied the image before you made your tree private.
Also bear in mind that all public trees are copied to another website named Mundia - www.mundia.com
When you change the status of your Ancestry tree to private, then the Mundia tree should be deleted - but I am not sure if this is instant or whether there is a delay. Might be worth checking Mundia to make sure your tree is not still viewable.

It might be now but certainly for a while all Ancestry trees were available on Mundia with no restrictions.

One should remember though that everything on the internet is accessible to those who hell bent on access.
Cheers
Guy

[Elaine ..Spain]

It might be now but certainly for a while all Ancestry trees were available on Mundia with no restrictions.

Guy, are you saying that private trees were also accessible via Mundia?

[Anne in Carlisle]

He might have copied it from someone who already had it either from you or by nicking it themselves. I don't put much on the internet at all but it hasn't stopped a lot of people displaying my grandparents' marriage photo and I'm certain I have the only actual paper copy of it! I'm not really bothered by this but I try not to let too much escape!
Anne

[bcbrit]

Hi Cresser,

When I changed my tree from public to private ( about a year ago) it took about a month to show as private.


I wonder if that is the case with you ?

bcbrit

[vera2013]

Hello Elaine

Just searched for my mother on Mundia (have a private tree on Ancestry) and there she is along with a photograph.

Looks like information is limited to BDM but there is my full tree of people.

EDIT just read some FAQ's. I think the reason I was able to access my tree was because I used the same username/password as for Ancestry as can anyone else who I have given permission to access my Private tree. There is, however, a possibility that others can access via Mundia if the profile on Ancestry does not contain dob ?? and thinks your deceased. This is where it lost me.


Vera

[taffyfrog]

I no longer put any family photos anywhere on the net

[kylejustin]

i would say that while your tree was public, he got the image then, or someone else had it from you at that stage, you've made the tree private, but the picture is still out there, so he copied it from someone else's tree.

when you click on an image in a public tree, it tells you who the original person to upload it was, and who else has 'attached' it to their trees. as long as it is 'attached' though. if they saved it to their computer, and then uploaded it to their tree, you wouldn't be credited as the original owner of the image.

as far as mundia goes, i can't comment, because my tree was private before the site came along. but once you make a tree private (at the time i did it) within a day you could still find my tree in the public search, but once you clicked on it, it would come up with the 'contact the owner' option. it took some time for the tree to disappear from the public search though, even though no one could access it.

[Guy]

Guy, are you saying that private trees were also accessible via Mundia?

Yes
Cheers
Guy

[cresser]

Thankyou all for getting back on this. I must admit that, before this post, I had never heard of Mundia, and although I did go to that site, I did not bother to register. Some very good ideas as to how stuff does get pinched, and most are common sense, it`s the red mist of anger, that clouds my thoughts when this sort of thing happens though, but I do appreciate everyones opinions on this, cheers. cresser.

[margaretmarch]

Thankyou all for getting back on this. I must admit that, before this post, I had never heard of Mundia, and although I did go to that site, I did not bother to register. Some very good ideas as to how stuff does get pinched, and most are common sense, it`s the red mist of anger, that clouds my thoughts when this sort of thing happens though, but I do appreciate everyones opinions on this, cheers. cresser.

What has got me seeing the 'red mist' is people who have annexed all my work and tree details into their tree incorrectly and even when you point it out to them they will not delete it. Since at least two people have done this I have made my tree private and have just checked on Mundia and can see the tree on there but have not been able to delete it.

Could someone look up Samuel Charles Harper 1789 -1859 and see if the tree looks open please?

Margaret

[Elaine ..Spain]

Margaret, there are 14 trees for that person! How many people are in your tree?

[margaretmarch]

Margaret, there are 14 trees for that person! How many people are in your tree?

I've sent you the links for the two that feature the person mentioned.
Margaret

[Elaine ..Spain]

Reply sent!
Trees are totally private.

[margaretmarch]

Reply sent!
Trees are totally private.

Cheers Elaine and thanks!
Margaret

[PhotoFamily]

Yes, I was recently notified that some documents had been copied from a private tree. I'm sure it was copied from someone who had copied it from me. Unless the intermediate tree downloads it, then reloads it (so ancestry thinks they have submitted the record) then the original submitter will be notified when it is copied (unless various other flags have been turned off - there are a lot of flags on ancestry...)

I don't keep living people on ancestry. I don't post photos.

[foxyloxy]

Thank Goodness I have never posted a tree online. Yet have seen many trees of what supposed to be parts of 'my' trees with ancestors often married off to people who they never married and/or having children they never had.
I do 'connect' to others researching and have several I know personally who are researching the same lines but I must admit I am very careful when it comes to people making contact now as so much is shared online and many people don't seem to have any concept of private and think nothing of posting information about living people be it the correct information or not.

Recently seeing my own name ( well my given name) along with the 'family line name' which is incorrect as it is my maternal line and they have me down as my uncles child and I only give my own given name to people I am in contact with directly and normally only after several email contacts.

[cresser]

Hi Foxyloxy,
Similar to yourself, I have very recently discovered my maternal Grandmother on someones tree, along with her 9 siblings, which surprised me a bit because, having met my G/M on very many occasions, and as a kid, dug her garden up so much it looked like the Somme,(Absolutely no disrespect meant here), I knew for a fact that she was an only child!!. This person had also added just one of her two sons, her husband and her Father - who`s name was wrong. I have sent him three messages via Ancestry, and not had the courtesy of a reply to any of them. The last one I did say that I would now stop trying to help him correct his tree, and that it was up to him if he wanted to go in the wrong direction, he is only fooling himself!!. It did annoy me though that he had pinched stuff from my tree without a word, the only satisfaction I have is that he is mucking his tree up . Cheers, cresser.

[Janet]

I have found the best way to correct a wrong tree is to make a very public statement which at least alerts others to the possibility that a tree is wrong. I found one side of my tree on Ancestry recently with my Great Grandfather married to two people and fathering children several years after he had died. I just left a very direct statement asking if they had realised their mistake. I have had no reply, but my comments are there for all to see and will remain there. It annoys me that people are so blinkered but that's life sometimes.

Janet