Ability to export posts/pages with Export Personal Data tool

(I’m reframing the question I asked here — https://www.ads-software.com/support/topic/privacy-question-personal-data-export-doesnt-include-posts/ — as a feature request.)

WordPress core has for some time now incorporated tools to allow a user to request export or deletion of their personal data. However, it appears — and someone please correct me if I’m mistaken — that the package of data the export tool creates does NOT currently include any indication of posts, pages, or custom post types that user has authored.

If that’s the case, I believe the tool needs to be updated to include at least the option to also include that data.

The export and deletion tools were added to aid WordPress users with their compliance with data protection and privacy laws like the GDPR, which give data subjects the rights to request access to, deletion of, and sometimes portability of their personal data. The tool does this in a reasonably painless manner … except for post and page content.

I’m no lawyer, but it would appear that the posts and pages a user has contributed to a site would be subject to the same access, deletion, and portability rights as comments or Media uploads. I’m aware that there are other ways to export posts and pages (using Tools -> Exports or various third-party plugins), but those tools are separated from the Export Personal Data and Erase Personal Data tools, they aren’t tied to the same user confirmation process, and the data they export isn’t included in the same output package. That’s troublesome, and it’s not very helpful for compliance purposes.

Of course, it not always be appropriate to output the full content of posts and pages (in part because doing so might adversely affect the rights of others, such as if a post incorporates media content owned by third parties that the post author doesn’t otherwise have the right to use). However, I think for compliance purposes, the tool’s output really should include at least an indication of any posts, pages, or custom post types of which the requestor was the author, perhaps presented in the same manner as the Media uploads are presented in the current output. For example, the data export output might include the post ID, title, permalink, creation time, current published status (e.g., published or draft), and last edit time of each post or page of which the user is the listed author.

I believe that the average user would reasonably expect the Export Personal Data tool’s output to include such a summary, and if the user is located in certain regions, they might have an enforceable legal right to demand it.

I know the export and erasure tools have limitations when it comes to plugin data, but posts and pages are a core function, and so I strongly believe the ability to export at least a summary of them should be part of the core export and erasure tools.