[Privacy issue] How to hide the detail of my reviews (from Host)

Answered!
Zheng-正-0
Level 3
Mountain View, CA

[Privacy issue] How to hide the detail of my reviews (from Host)

I just checked all my reviews received from the Hosts, it really freak me out.

 

1. It has the location and time, could know when and where I went since I started using Airbnb.

 

2. It has the full content of the review, and it totally out of control. I do not want the host mention too much personal details of me but no ways to control.

 

3. It has the link to my hosts, and anyone could reach to my host and possible to get all my stay details.

 

Please advice how I could control my reviews details.

 

Thanks!

1 Best Answer

@Reniel-Justin0  Well, there is some value in being able to cross-reference reviews. As a host, I will sometimes check not only how hosts have reviewed a guest who wishes to book with me, but look at how the guest has reviewed their past hosts to make sure they don't have a history of complaints about every place they have stayed.

 

A guest might want to do something similar- check on how a host has reviewed their past guests. Does the host nitpick about everything with guests, are they hypercritical? Does the host come across as some emotional nutcase in their reviews of guests or do they sound professional?

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52 Replies 52
Sarah977
Level 10
Sayulita, Mexico

@Zheng-正-0   What exactly are your concerns? When I look at your profile, all I can see is that you have nice reviews (well, the ones in English, I can't read the others) and the month and year that the review was posted. I don't see any personal information that should be cause for worry. What do you mean "totally out of control"?  And why would anyone contact your previous hosts to try to get your "stay details"? What kind of stay details are you talking about?

Reviews of guests by hosts are used by other hosts to see if you are someone they would feel comfortable hosting. If a host says the guest wasn't clean, didn't communicate well, and broke things, than other hosts don't want to accept that person into their homes. In your case, your reviews are good and hosts will see that and feel comfortable accepting your booking.

My concerns not about the bad reviews, it's about your personal privacy. I think the reply posted by Pual gives many good example.

 

Besides, Airbnb is a tool that can connect people in real world, it could bring real connection within people. It is not a comforable to share too much details with new friends (like your new host). For example, I book the room and stay there one day or two, I do not want the host welcome my by "Hi Man, how's the trip in XXX last Chrismas, I saw the host mentioned you traveled with a beautiful girl, why didn't she come with you this time?".  

 

What I want is not totally block the reviews, the reviews do help travler to avoid some wired guys and bring punishment to the host/traveler who hurt others.

 

But the content should be controled, like

 

1. The time could be "this month", "last month", "this year", "last year" ... , this is good enough to show how the host/traveler behaved measured by time. 

 

2. User should have the ability to hide some reviews which expose too much details he/she don't like. But Airbnb could show a label like "this review is hidden by this user". Even more, let user could explain why he/she hide it. If a host hide 90% of his review, I won't chose that. Same logic for traveler. 

 

3. We already has a rating system for host, if we need, we should build a similar system for traveler. If possible, we could do questionnaire based review, limited contents the host could write down. So the host only could say "Yes/No" to "Did this traveler maintain a clean room?", instead of all details of what you eat, how you eat, how many you eat and how many you left on the floor.

 

QUIT

Paul154
Level 10
Seattle, WA

Welcome to the New World. 

Being from a place known for its computer industry, I am assuming that you are in the industry - or you are familiar with its ways.

There is NO privacy in Airbnb. You have agreed to the review system. As a host, I can leave many details about your stay - who you came with, what you did, how you acted, your nickname...

As a guest, you can leave details about your stay - who I live with, what I did, how I acted, my nickname.

These details become public.

All these details are valuable to Airbnb.

Just like Google, or Facebook, or Yelp or.... 

Take it or leave it. 

As you are concerned with privacy, you still may use Airbnb in "stealth" mode.

You can remove your picture, not submit ID, maybe use an alias (not sure)

However, the many advantages of openess will not be available to you.

Many hosts will not house you if you are so secretive.

Good luck

Hi Paul, thanks for your reply.

 

I do in the industry and worked for a company you mentioned above 🙂

 

I believe there is a middle way between openess and privacy. The coolest technoloy mixed with good humanistic design should able provide a better way, than exposing eveything and handling the control totally to reviewer.  (Google has technoloy based on ML, could identify and hide personal informaiom from chat histroty automatically, used in storing of online chat hisotry with bussiness agent).

 

Also, in my reply to Sarah. I mentioned a case that your host will know too much about you. Sometime, it just bring some uncomforables. Sometime it also could be dangerous, like if the host know you rich, always travle alone, don't contact with family/friend all the day/week, and may know where you would go next. That did increase the vulnerability.

Why would you encourage this?

Hi @Paul154 , I think he has 3 girlfriends, one in the US, one in China and one in Germany, and he doesn't want them to know from each other. In such a case in fact airbnb is a problem. He should use Hilton Hotels, they don't publish his stays.

@Ute42  aaah... boys 😄

Fred13
Level 10
Placencia, Belize

You just notice this after 14 reviews over the last year?  Even the sleaziest of hotels for an overnight stay will also have your ID and your CC information, now that really could make one nervous.

Hotel won't post your stay details and ID information on open internet.

 

I love Airbnb and willing to provide all my informations to Airbnb, but do not happy with all those information being public accessible without control.

   'Hotel Facebook' (aka Airbnb) then may not be for you, since is a very 'social media' oriented company, as exemplify by its public review system, the same with VRBO, Trip Advisory (the absolute worse), etc.

   Personally, I do not like their whole review system, would rather just have a 10-star system and everyone could keep their opinion (and information) to themselves. 

@Zheng-正-0  Your ID information is not visible to anyone except your host after you book. No one else can see your email address (which is coded anyway, even for the host), your phone number, or any other personal information.

Oomesh-Kumarsingh0
Level 10
Pamplemousses, Mauritius

@Zheng-正-0 If you are using Airbnb be ready to be reviewed publicly! If you are not happy with this process you can always find hotels online.Good luck!!!