Periodic reminder that the "Direct Message" / "Private Mention" function here is dangerously broken with confusing semantics.
- Anyone mentioned *anywhere* in the body of a PM gets a copy.
- "Disabling" PMs in your profile merely means YOU never see messages sent to you; senders can still send them, with no error indication.
- Nothing is encrypted, which means administrators on any instance that processes a message can see them.
I strongly recommend using something else for private messages.
On my versions, you can modify at the top whether a post/response is public, followers-only, or direct.
I've never assumed any DM-ing on any social media platform is secure or encrypted.
It's just a place to move a conversation if it's going to crowd the feeds of others uninterested in what you're talking about.
If you wanna talk to your spy ring, join a MMO, form a party, and speak in semi-coded language. 
@Hawkmoon @mattblaze Gotcha. I think about how so many didn’t know who they were dealing with at the other place in dms with me and it’s like those dms were all over the place. The no dm here appeals to me.
Different subject but still pertaining: do you think people can say “mastodon” openly at the other place formerly Twitter or would that need to be a dm thing over there so they don’t get their account suspended?
Dunno, I came here from Reddit,not that place.
Matt Blaze
Akhenatobi & Meritaten etc.
Hawkmoon