Kieran L.

WritersCafe.org has major privacy and security flaws, not to mention numerous other broken and outdated elements.

Once I created an account, I received an activation link, which when tapped logged me straight into someone else's account! I was able to see their full name, email address, all their personal details! Maybe this was a mess that could have understandably occurred in 1999, but this is absolutely shameful to see in 2023.

I would not trust my data with this website AT ALL. All I did was make an account like normal to post my poetry, tapped the activation link received via email, and it took me right into the other person's account who doesn't even realize their account was breached and personal data compromised. I logged out of his account, then logged into mine under my email and password and immediately closed it.

I messaged the admin/moderators to advise them of the incredibly easily achieved privacy and security breaches, and offered to provide screenshots and the original activation link to assist with fixing this major flaw, but have received no response. Extremely poor and utterly careless. User data should be an absolute priority.

Additionally, the website itself is a broken mess so I'm not surprised this happened, e.g. showing links for 'Sign Up' literally above 'Logout' when I'm not logged in, which of course makes zero sense as one cannot exist with the other.
The registration page is also badly formatted, meaning on a smartphone screen the text is jumbled together in a vertical string of letters, requiring you to turn your phone landscape to simply make it somewhat readable, and even then some letters are still jumbled vertically. The site is just an archaic mess that doesn't seem to have been updated for a decade or two.

Honestly, avoid this website at all costs and use other more modern and secure poetry websites. Your personal details could be viewed by ANYONE and could lead to your identity being stolen, fraud, spam, etc which can cause a lifetime of life-changing and immensely stressful problems. Not worth it. Just avoid.