A few update versions ago, vBulletin added a new feature to the message board software that allows members to leave each other "Profile Visitor Messages" aka "Visitor Messages". Quite a few members have been confused by this feature, mistaking it for Private Messages. There's a big difference. Profile Visitor Messages are visible to anyone who visits a members Profile Page. Private messages are visible only to the sender and the receiver of the message. This can easily cause some unintended publishing of information. My question: Should I disable Profile Visitor Messages altogether? Is this a useful feature?
Profile Visitor Messages I vote to disable the Profile Visitor Message option. The unwary think they are sending a private message that will only be read by the recipient. It is a shock to learn that anyone who logs on to the recipient's profile can read that person's sent and received Profile Visitor Messages.
Voting is 12 to 1 against, and I agree. I'll disable the profile public messages feature. Private messaging will remain available as before.
