Instant Messaging

User Privacy

Instant Messaging and presence information enable a user to check the online status of someone on their contact list, and, if that contact is logged onto the service, instantly send a message to that user's terminal.

Note   Messages sent to contacts within the intranet of a business are more secure for sensitive, business-related communication. Messages sent to contacts outside a firewall must travel over the Internet, and their security can't be assured.

If users don't want their online status known, certain settings can control who has access to their presence information. The Privacy tab (open the Instant Messaging client and, on the Tools menu, click Privacy) allows users to control how their presence is reported and to whom.

My Allow List

On the Privacy tab, in Who can see my online status and send me instant messages, My Allow List displays all of the contacts who can see their online status. The messages above the list state, Can see my online status and Can send me messages. By default, All other users appears in this list.

My Block List

On the Privacy tab, also in Who can see my online status and send me instant messages, My Block List displays all of the contacts a user wants to block. In this case, the messages in the box state, Can't see my online status and Can't send me messages. By default, My Block List is empty.

Making Entries and Changes

The user who wants to exchange instant messages only with a few contacts, first clicks Block to move the All other users entry to My Block List from My Allow List. Then, for those contacts with whom the user wants to exchange messages, the user types the Instant Messaging name and address (for example, someone@im.nwtraders.microsoft.com) in My Allow List.

If there are only a few contacts with whom the user doesn't want to exchange instant messages, the user can type the Instant Messaging addresses for those few contacts directly into My Block List.

Note   Selecting the Notify me when MSN Messenger Service users add me to their contact lists check box on the Privacy tab allows users to be notified when someone adds them.

If users want to know who has added them to their contact list, they can click the View button next to Which MSN Messenger Service users have added me to their contact lists? at the bottom of the Privacy tab.

Related Topics

How Online Status is Tracked