Every visibility setting on your profile is per-field. You can be public about some things and private about others. Open Settings → Privacy to find them all.
Changes take effect immediately and retroactively. Someone who saw a field while it was Public can't see it after you switch to Private. You don't need to save.
The three visibility levels
| Setting | Who sees it | Use when |
|---|---|---|
| Public | Any logged-in PopIn user | Things you want strangers to be able to discover (display name, username, bio for most users) |
| Friends only | Just your mutual friends | Things you only want close connections to see (location, friends list, interests for most users) |
| Only me | Hidden from everyone except you | Things you've decided to keep entirely private (date of birth by default) |
"Public" on PopIn does NOT mean "indexed by Google". Public profile fields are visible to logged-in PopIn users, not the open internet. Profile pages are disallowed in robots.txt.
Per-field controls
| Field | Default | Who you can show |
|---|---|---|
| Display name + @username | Public | Always Public (needed for invites + tagging) |
| Followers list | Public | Public / Friends only / Only me |
| Following list | Public | Public / Friends only / Only me |
| Friends list | Public | Public / Friends only / Only me |
| Location | Public | Public / Friends only / Only me |
| Interest tags | Public | Public / Friends only / Only me |
| Date of birth | Only me | Public / Friends only / Only me |
| Online / Last seen | Public | Public / Friends only / Only me |
Event visibility (separate from profile)
Each event you host has its own visibility setting, independent of your profile settings.
| Public | Friends | Private | Invite-only | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Appears in discovery search | Yes | No | No | No |
| Friends can see it on your profile | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| Anyone with the link can RSVP | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Indexed by Google (if opted in) | Yes | No | No | No |
| Link opens the full event page | Yes | Friends only | No, RSVP page only | Yes |
The share link is a grant in itself: treat it like an invite, and turn it off in your host tools if it ends up somewhere it shouldn't. On a Private event the link only ever opens the RSVP page; the full event stays visible to confirmed members.
Who can message you
DMs are friends-only by default: someone who isn't your friend can't start a chat with you, react to your stories in DMs, or add you to a group. Want an open inbox? Flip on Messages from anyone in Settings → Privacy. Two exceptions either way: a friend can add you to a group chat with people you don't know (that's the point of groups), and event chats include everyone on the guest list.
Hide me from search
There's a Hide me from search toggle in Settings → Privacy that stops other users from finding you via the search bar and people suggestions. Your existing friends still see you in their list; you just don't surface to strangers.
Activity status
The "online now" / "last seen X minutes ago" indicator on your profile has its own row in the same visibility list. Turn it off entirely if you'd rather not signal when you're using PopIn.