gdpr
Can i request a religious forum to delete my posts for GDPR compliance?
<p>It's a forum discussing religious stances and personal practice.</p>
<p>Is it possible to request posts to be removed along with the account registry?</p>
<p>As i understand it, forums in general don't have to delete the content and so i wonder if forums dedicated to religion are treated in the same way.</p>

<p>The GDPR means that people can process and store your data only on a legal basis, and that they have to document their processes and their compliance within the rules.</p>
<p>They can process data</p>
<ul>
<li>based on your (informed and revocable) consent,</li>
<li>in accordance with a contract with you,</li>
<li>if required by law,</li>
<li>to safeguard the vital interests of others (likely not applicable),</li>
<li>as a government agency (almost certainly not applicable),</li>
<li>and finally in a balance of legitimate interests.</li>
</ul>
<p>The first bullet point is the easiest for them and for you, until you ask them to delete. Then they have to use another justification. A forum may argue that keeping discussion threads intact outweighs the desire to have them deleted. Here it <strong>may</strong> matter that data about religious beliefs is one of the specially protected categories. This might shift the balance of interests.</p>

<h2>Religious forums are not special</h2>
<p>There are no special rules for a forum that deals in religious speech. If a normal forum may retain your posts, then a religious forum may too.</p>
<p>They have to remove all identification of you if you exercise your right to be forgotten, but can do so by anonymizing your posts.</p>
