Privacy - Alternate Preferred Email for Family Search different from member Church Account email

Brent Meredith

There needs to be an option for a preferred alternate email for FamilySearch that is different from the email used for a member's church account!

I ran into a problem where I changed my email account in FamilySearch to an email address that I use extensively for genealogy connections and research. I did not realize and was not warned that when I changed the FamilySearch email address as a member it also changes my Church account email, The option to add a preferred email account for FamilySearch, even if maintaining and showing a clearly labeled Church email address in church member profiles is truly needed, both for privacy and for convenience of genealogy research. At a minimum, a warning should be in place to inform members that changing their email in FamilySearch changes their church profile email.

Because I did not realize changing my FamilySearch email also changed my church profile email, many of the important notifications from the church local leadership were missed because I do not work on and check my genealogy account everyday . If using my church profile email that I have for church related and other important activities, the genealogy related emails get lost in all my church emails and day to day emails that can sometimes be voluminous. I am not in genealogy mode and thus have to remember to go search for the genealogy emails when I am working on genealogy if using my church profile account is the only option.

Privacy is also a greater concern because I use my name in my church profile email so people I am dealing with on a day to day basis know the email is from me. While this is not necessarily a big concern, if I send an email or message from FamilySearch which helps identify it as a genealogy related email, there is a greater likelihood that someone that is interested in genealogy will respond compared to a name they do not recognize. It is easier to keep genealogy contacts associated with a specific email address I have dedicated instead of them getting buried with all my other contacts in my day to day contacts.

For temple connected work, it may be logical to use the church email address, but for communication with other patrons, there should be an option for an alternate email.

Please consider this as a important needed option. I'm surprised no one else has brought up this issue previously, at least not that I could find.

Dennis J Yancey

I have not tested this out - nor cant confirm what is being stated as to how it works.

but I totally agree - that if this is how it works - FamilySearch should allow for an email specifically for FamilySearch.