Is there a way of looking at how long another user has been active?

Yes, a male - probably the same person by the sound of things.

Me too, I had a PM from someone I had never heard of on GN.
He commented on something I had mentioned in a thread.
I have blocked him. (I think it was a male, not sure though)

You used to be able to create a profil for others to look at, but this was scrapped, probably when the new data protection laws came in.

The 'Hi' emails almost always come from male names and are a scam. If you reply you will probably told that he is an American army officer looking for a friend or something - It is a romance scan.

I had this email this morning. Sometimes everyone on GN gets the same email, other times only a few.

If a PM comes from a bone fide GN member it will relate back to something you have written on a thread, and this will be clear. Any thing just saying 'hi' or similar, just ignore. Its the lead in to a scam.

My random message was also from Desmondjesse.

No previous posts appeared from that name in the search box. They are either someone who has been a member for a while but never posted before, or they are someone who has just joined and is contacting people directly instead of posting in the forums - for whatever reason.

If it bothers you, report it to GNHQ at [email protected]

If you put the user name into the search box it should bring up all their previous posts on GN. That is if or when the function works, which it doesn't always!

Got a weird one, just blocked it.

Yes, mine too. Never heard of them.

My random message was from Desmondjesse. Not a name that I recognise.

You can't find out any details or facts about a poster, but the search facility can be used to find previous messages by them. That may give you a clue to whether they are regulars, occasional posters, or have just joined. If they have never posted anything, it is possible they are a new poster, but they could also have been just reading other people's posts for years.

Thanks for the replies. I have been a member for several years but it’s the first time this has happened. I have blocked the user.

I got several from someone I had never heard of so I just blocked them. They may have been genuine but who knows ?

I have also received a random message simply saying 'Hi, how are you' from someone - it was some time ago and I don't recall the GNetters user name. I just deleted it although at the time I did wonder if they had messaged the wrong person.

I have had the PM saying hi from a random person. Delete and block. Don't worry about it as you are not the only recipient of this message.

I received a similar message from someone I didn’t recognise. Just block them.

I received a pm a couple of months ago from a poster I have never noticed on here. I have been on Gransnet 8 years now. It was not friendly and not appreciated at all. I suggest if you do get a pm from someone you don’t recognise don’t open it.

Are you a new member yourself?
Maybe another GN member welcoming you? No you can’t find out anything by another poster, that’s personal stuff.