New Wordpress Installation Bans All Search Engines By Default

Privacy setting ban all search engines

[phantombookman]

Just a heads up about something I just stumbled across.
Apologies if mentioned before but I've seen to mention of it.
On setting up a new blog today I came across a Privacy section under the options tab

It had a default setting of:

"I would like to block search engines, but allow normal visitors"

This wasn't in the last version I installed so just thought I'd mention it lest anyone else be installing or upgrading
As mentioned this is selected as the default setting and bans technorati etc as well as all search engines.

A strange and worrying default setting which I presume has some legal better-safe-than-sorry reason behind it

[tedster]

Thanks for the warning - seems like a very odd setting for a default.

[phantombookman]

Tedster
that's what I thought.
I certainly never expected it and only came across it by accident.
With wordpress being so easy to install when offered by hosting companies anybody can do it - you don't have to be a webmaster per se.

I wonder how many are sat there wondering why they're not doing very well in search engines!

[Marcia]

Which version is this, WP 2.3 or 2.4?

[engine]

The current version, 2.3.2, does not have that privacy option set.

I cannot speak for beta or other versions.

[phantombookman]

Marcia
the version is 2.3.2
Installed this week. It's under the 'options' tab then 'privacy' tab
Below is the page text next to the 2 check boxes and the default was set to block.

Blog visibility:

I would like my blog to be visible to everyone, including search engines (like Google, Sphere, Technorati) and archivers

I would like to block search engines, but allow normal visitors

[Lord Majestic]

"I would like my blog to be visible to everyone, including search engines (like Google, Sphere, Technorati) and archivers "

In this option do they limit crawling of only top search engines, and disallowing everyone else?

If that's the case then it is a very shortsighted move, especially with default as described above.