The user or member name is publicly visible on the HotCopper website to other users and appears whenever you post or when someone views your user profile.
Except in special circumstances, the answer will be no, you cannot change the name, as it is disruptive to the community when other participants change their display names, and it can erode trust.
These are the circumstances where we may consider changing your displayed name:
- Privacy concerns arise when your real name or other directly personally identifiable information is used as the display name.
- An account that has never posted on the forums, indicating no participation in the community, and a name change would not confuse other members.
- An account that has not made any posts for at least one year. This includes any post removed for moderation, so the minimum year would start at the date of the last post, whether it was moderated or visible.
Note: while changing the display name can be confusing for the community, it does not hide the user's history; all historical posts will still appear under the new name and remain linked to the same system user ID number as before the change. This means the user's previous posts will be available to view on their profile page under the recent posts tab.
If you believe your situation fits within our restrictions, you can contact support with your request. They will expect you to provide the following:
- Explain the privacy concern around your existing name or how you might otherwise be considered as eligible for a name change.
- Choose a new name:
- Use alphanumeric characters only. Alphanumeric characters include both uppercase and lowercase letters (A-Z and a-z). They also include the digits 0 to 9. No spaces or other special characters.
- Provide a couple of your alternate name choices and be clear about your order of preference.
- Follow the steps shown in the image below to ensure no other member is already using your desired new display name.
- Send the information from steps one and two above to the support team via email using the email account associated with your member account. If you submit the request via the web form, they will require an extra step: replying to the email to confirm that you control the email address.