Frequently Asked Questions
General questions
Can I use Secret Santa for other occasions?
Not at the moment, sorry. Secret Santa is for life, but it's also just for Christmas.
Is Secret Santa secure? Will it protect my data?
Santa has put a lot of effort into keeping your information safe. Please see the Privacy page.
Does it cost anything?
No! Secret Santa is completely free, and always will be. Santa doesn't charge.
Who created Secret Santa?
Secret Santa was created by Mark Johnson in Leeds, UK between 2024 and 2026.
Other credits go to:
- Many people on StackOverflow, unfortunately I haven't noted down all of their details.
- RedStapler on CodePen for the original snow effect that I adapted
- Icons8 for the Berries icon
- XIconEditor for converting it
- Chilli Con Code on CodePen for the original gold background that I adapted
- NOHAT for the Rudolph background
Huge thanks to my family for being the guinea pigs, especially my wife Monica for all her help and advice.
How To
Get started
If you don't yet have an account, first register so Santa knows who you are.
You don't have to enter an e-mail address, although if you don't, you won't get e-mails! Don't worry about your information being secure, Santa takes a lot of care to protect it, as explained in the Privacy page.
Once registered and logged in, you then need to set some security questions and answers, so you can reset your password if you forget it. You'll go to that page automatically.
Make sure you remember the answers, and the greeting that appears at the top of the main page!
Join a group
If someone you know has already created a group, there are three possible ways to join:
-
if you've set an e-mail address, a group admin can send you an invitation, which automatically links to your account
- if nothing is blocking your e-mail messages, you'll get an e-mail with a link
- otherwise, you'll see a notification when you're logged in, and a link in the 'Groups' menu at the top
- if the group admin knows your e-mail address, they can send an invitation (as above), which links to your account when you add your e-mail address
- alternatively, a group admin can tell you the group name and a 'joiner token', to enter in the 'Apply to Join a Gifting Group' page.
Create a group
To start a new group, go to the 'Create a New Gifting Group' page and follow the instructions there.
One you've saved the group, you can edit it and invite other people to join it, using the methods explained in the 'Join a group' section above.
You'll then need to set up the group for the current year, e.g. to set the spend limit, manage who's included, and (eventually) calculate who is giving to whom. Look out for a 'Set Up Group...' link on the edit page, in the menu or on the homepage.
Leave the system
If you want to completely leave the system and erase all of your personal data, go to 'Close Your Account'.
Why?
Why do I have to set security questions?
These are used to prove who you are if you forget your password, so you can reset it. Santa has made e-mail addresses optional, and some e-mails are blocked by e-mail providers (especially Google) so this is a more reliable and inclusive method.
Why don't I get e-mails?
If you've set your e-mail address but the e-mails aren't coming through (including the confirmation request), unfortunately that's down to your e-mail provider. Please check all spam and junk folders first, in case they're going there.
Some providers allow you to 'white-list' an address so it doesn't get blocked in future. Please search for help on your e-mail provider's site. You need to allow the address noreply@secretsanta.mrmarkajohnson.co.uk. Then try resending the confirmation e-mail, if you get a message saying your e-mail hasn't been confirmed.
For GMail, go to Settings -> See All Settings -> Filters and Blocked Addresses -> Create a new filter. Enter the e-mail address above, click 'Create Filter' and then tick "Never send it to Spam".
The above methods should work even if the e-mail don't actually appear in your spam folder. More details are in this YouTube video.
For Yahoo, add the address above as a contact. If e-mails then go to your spam folder, find one and click 'More' -> 'Not Spam', and future e-mails should go to your inbox.
Why can't I pick a group to join from a list?
This is a security and privacy measure, to protect both existing group members and the person trying to join the group, especially because Santa can't force users to enter or validate their e-mail address.
Many groups may have the same name, so the only way to know would be to check the group membership, but that reveals personal details. The group administrators reviewing a request to join can't necessarily verify that the requester is who they say they are.
Once someone has joined a group, they can message members of the group and could behave maliciously. Alternatively, someone could set up a bogus group and invite people they don't know to join, and can then see their e-mail addresses and contact them.
Using the methods provided means that you must have been invited by a group member, either directly by an administrator in the system, or by someone passing on a joiner token, and the administrators approving the application.