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IDProjectCategoryView StatusLast Update
5442Composrcore_cnspublic2024-08-04 22:11
ReporterPDStig Assigned ToPDStig  
PrioritynormalSeverityfeature 
Status closedResolutionwon't fix 
Summary5442: New notification type to let users know when staff SU'd into their account
DescriptionWe should add a new notification type that allows users to be notified when someone uses SU to gain access to their account.

Notification is enabled by default for all users via email and web notifications.

While I cannot 100% confirm, given the nature of the GDPR, I can reasonably assume this is something they would require. And even if they did not require this, I believe it is the ethical thing to do to implement such a feature for transparency; users have the right to know when staff access their account via SU especially considering actions done when under SU appear as that member.
Additional InformationBe sure to document this in the core Privacy Policy hook as well.

Also, make sure the notification clearly documents what this means and that staff do NOT have the user's account credentials (it is a feature that the highest level of staff typically can do). And that if they believe the SU access was not warranted, they should contact (site email address) immediately. The notification should also tell the member who SU'd into their account.

Also also, a JavaScript confirmation box should appear when attempting to SU as a member warning of the implications of doing so (member will be notified, and SU is a tool that should never be used without just cause / for ill purposes such as to damage the reputation of members).

Make sure this works correctly when hard-coding "keep_su" in the URL as well.
TagsType: Legal compliance / Privacy
Attach Tags
Time estimation (hours)
Sponsorship open

Sponsor

Date Added Member Amount Sponsored

Relationships

duplicate of 5848 Not AssignedGuest Increased consideration around SU feature 
related to 5443 ResolvedPDStig Forced email and web notification when staff edit a member's notification settings 

Activities

PDStig

2023-12-19 00:37

administrator   ~8136

Last edited: 2023-12-19 00:37

Impossible to do without creating infinite loops: get_member was designed to return the SU'd member, and we cannot rely on GLOBALS because keep_su_strict will prevent us from knowing which staff member did the SU at all. Changing any of this will bug-up sessions and member cache.

Chris Graham

2024-08-04 22:06

administrator   ~9083

I know this is closed, but I wanted to write that I'm not a fan of this one for a couple of reasons:
1) It's always going to be the case that user data could be accessed without them knowing, so it's creating a false sense of privacy by giving a partial picture. Someone can always just look in the database, and in the real world it is going to happen because people look in databases and can't help see what they see. Staff could also always hack the code to remove the feature, so as a user I would also not necessary trust the notification as being particularly accurate.
2) I don't like the basic conception of the implementation. It's hard for me to communicate exactly why I don't like it, but it resolves around some combination of rushed staff just doing boring innocent admin stuff (like checking to see if there's a bug), combined with potentially trigger-sensitive users who respond badly to stuff they don't really understand. I think it's reasonable to try and achieve a balance because "not scaring users" and "not inconveniencing staff" are just as legitimate design considerations as "informing users about data", especially when no data was actually accessed.

I am going to create a new issue that is similar but I think more reasonable and manageable.

Issue History

Date Modified Username Field Change
2023-11-14 05:47 PDStig New Issue
2023-11-14 05:47 PDStig Status Not Assigned => Assigned
2023-11-14 05:47 PDStig Assigned To => user4172
2023-11-14 05:48 PDStig Tag Attached: Roadmap: v11
2023-11-14 05:48 PDStig Tag Attached: Type: Legal compliance / Privacy
2023-11-14 05:49 PDStig Additional Information Updated
2023-11-14 05:51 PDStig Additional Information Updated
2023-11-14 05:53 PDStig Additional Information Updated
2023-11-14 05:54 PDStig Additional Information Updated
2023-11-14 05:57 PDStig Relationship added related to 5443
2023-11-14 06:01 PDStig Additional Information Updated
2023-11-14 06:02 PDStig Description Updated
2023-11-14 06:03 PDStig Description Updated
2023-11-14 06:05 PDStig Additional Information Updated
2023-11-14 06:07 PDStig Additional Information Updated
2023-12-19 00:37 PDStig Status Assigned => Closed
2023-12-19 00:37 PDStig Resolution open => won't fix
2023-12-19 00:37 PDStig Note Added: 0008136
2023-12-19 00:37 PDStig Note Edited: 0008136
2023-12-19 00:37 PDStig Tag Detached: Roadmap: v11
2024-03-30 03:37 PDStig Project Composr alpha bug reports => Composr
2024-03-30 03:44 PDStig Category General / Uncategorised => core_cns
2024-08-04 22:06 Chris Graham Note Added: 0009083
2024-08-04 22:11 Chris Graham Relationship added duplicate of 5848