# Registered user

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> Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/Registered_user.md
> Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Registered_user
> Source revision: 1354447898
> License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)

{{Short description|Signed-in or logged-in user}}
{{About|users registered to any system|information on registering to Wikipedia|:Wikipedia:Tutorial/Registration}}
{{More citations needed|date=March 2017}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2021}}
{{Internet}}

A '''registered user''' is a [user](/source/User_(system)) of a [website](/source/website), [program](/source/Computer_program), or other systems who has previously ''registered''. Registered users normally provide some sort of [credential](/source/credential)s (such as a username or e-mail address, and a password) to the system in order to prove their identity: this is known as [logging in](/source/Login). Systems intended for use by the general public often allow any user to register simply by selecting a ''register'' or ''sign up'' function and providing these credentials for the first time. Registered users may be granted privileges beyond those granted to unregistered users.

==Rationale==
User registration and login enables a system to [personalize](/source/personalization) itself. For example, a website might display a welcome banner with the user's name and change its [appearance](/source/Theme_(computing)) or behavior according to preferences indicated by the user. The system may also allow a logged-in user to send and receive messages, and to view and modify personal files or other information.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Chandra |first1=Shobhana |last2=Verma |first2=Sanjeev |last3=Lim |first3=Weng Marc |last4=Kumar |first4=Satish |last5=Donthu |first5=Naveen |date=August 2022 |title=Personalization in personalized marketing: Trends and ways forward |journal=Psychology & Marketing |language=en |volume=39 |issue=8 |pages=1529–1562 |doi=10.1002/mar.21670 |issn=0742-6046|doi-access=free }}</ref>

==Criticism==
===Privacy concerns===
{{further|information privacy|Internet privacy}}
Registration necessarily provides more personal information to a system than it would otherwise have. Even if the credentials used are otherwise meaningless, the system can distinguish a logged-in user from other users and might use this property to store a history of users' actions or activity, possibly without their knowledge or consent. While many systems have [privacy policies](/source/privacy_policies), depending on the nature of the system, a user might not have any way of knowing for certain exactly what information is stored, how it is used, and with whom, if anyone, it is shared.
A system could even sell information it has gathered on its users to third parties for advertising or other purposes.{{citation needed|date=May 2018}} The subject of systems' transparency in this regard is one of ongoing debate.{{citation needed|date=May 2018}}

===User inconvenience===
Registration may be seen as an annoyance or hindrance,<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.wired.com/2004/07/we-dont-need-no-stinkin-login/|title=We don't need no stinkin' login|magazine=Wired|date=20 July 2004|first=Rachel |last=Metz}}</ref> especially if it is not inherently necessary or important (for example, in the context of a [search engine](/source/search_engine)) or if the system repeatedly prompts users to register. A system's registration process might also be time-consuming or require that the user provide the information they might be reluctant to, such as a home address or [social security number](/source/social_security_number).

==See also==
{{columns-list|
* [Access control](/source/Access_control)
* [Active users](/source/Active_users)
* [Background check](/source/Background_check)s
* [Do Not Track](/source/Do_Not_Track)
* [Electronic identification](/source/Electronic_identification)
* [Solid (web decentralization project)](/source/Solid_(web_decentralization_project))
* [Unique user](/source/Unique_user)
* [Closed platform](/source/Closed_platform)
}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

Category:Computer access control

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Registered user](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Registered_user) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Registered_user?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.