Khanji
28-10-2008, 09:47 PM
The Sumsa Forum Moderation Mission Statement
Yet to come.
Moderation on The Sumsa Forum
The following information covers the following questions and topics:
Why was my post deleted?
How does Moderation work on The Sumsa Forum?
How do moderators know when there is misconduct?
What can I do about it?
What if I don't like the response I receive from the mod?
The Sumsa Forum Infraction System
Contacting a Moderator
Moderator Selection Process
Moderator Types
The Levels of Moderator Response
The Moderation Tracking System
Censorship and Freedom of Speech
Post Deletion Policy
Thread Deletion Policy
Multiple Accounts Policy
Moderation Explanations
How Moderation work on The Sumsa Forum
Do moderators validate posts before they are viewable to the public?
No. All posts are public from the moment they are posted.
Why was my post deleted?
Your post was deleted most likely because it broke The Sumsa Forum Rules.
How do moderators know when there is misconduct?
Either another user had reported your post to a moderator, or a moderator found your post by reading the thread.
What can I do about it?
If you feel your post or thread was deleted without significant reason, please view the Moderation Complaint procedure.
What if I don't like the response I receive from the mod?
If you feel your complaint was not handled correctly, please refer to the Moderation Complaint procedure and/or Private Message an Administrator.
1. What if I keep breaking the rules? (The Sumsa Forum Infraction System)
The Sumsa Forum uses an infraction based system to monitor any inappropriate behavior by members, and allows them a chance to reflect on their actions in order to benefit the forum.
The following infractions issued and their corresponding point value are:
Privacy – 3 points
Harassment – 2 point
Questionable actions and content – 1 point
Posting, Advertising and Spam – 1 point
Offensive Materials – 2 point
User Content – 1 point
Your first infraction is always a warning and accumulates no points
1 point - 1 Day Ban
2 points - 2 Day Ban
3 points - 1 week ban
4 points - 2 week ban
5 points - 1 month ban
All points expire within 1 month and after that time period a user will have 0 active points. If a user persists to break the rules, a permanent ban from The Sumsa Forum would be highly probable.
2. How do I contact a Moderator? (Contacting a Moderator)
If you wish to contact a Moderator, view the forum homepage and scroll down and click on ‘View Forum Leaders (http://www.sumsa.org.au/forum/showgroups.php)’. After which you may click on ‘Send PM’ for the indicated moderator.
If you wish to alert a moderator regarding a post which breaks The Sumsa Forum rules, go to the page containing the post, and look for the Report Button (http://www.sumsa.org.au/forum/images/buttons/report.gif) underneath the user information part of the post.
3. I want to be a Moderator, how do I sign up? (Moderator Selection Process)
To put it quite simply, you don’t. You will however need to be recognized by the Moderating team or Shura Members as a respectable and polite member who offers great discussion and appear online on a generally regular basis and communicate reasonably well in writing.
The Sumsa Forum is growing daily and we are always looking for more help :)]
4. Why are there different types of Moderators? (Moderator Types)
There are 2 types of Moderators on The Sumsa Forum (excluding Administrators):
-Moderators
-Shura Members
Moderators are sectional moderators who deal with content issues such as deleting posts, closing, moving and renaming threads. They also deal with forum questions that any members may have. Moderators cannot deal specifically with any SUMSA related issue.
Shura Members are team leaders and have the more powers than a regular moderator. They need to be an active part of the Sydney University Muslims’ Student Association shura board. They take on the responsibility of running the events the organization offers and have the ability and authority to issue permanent bans and deal with more serious issues regarding user complaints or SUMSA related issues.
5. What powers do moderators have? (The Levels of Moderator Response)
Moderators on The Sumsa Forum have a variety of tools which they may use to respond to breaches of The Sumsa Forum Rules. These tools may include:
- Post Deletion
- Thread Deletion
- Thread Moving, Renaming, Closing
- Issuing Infractions
- Bans
While the following is an example of what Moderators may do in response to a particular rule breach, they also reserve the right to act using their discretion and inflict harsher penalties.
The infraction systems offers a ‘time out’ based punishment system where users are restricted from posting in the forums for a certain amount of time.
Regular Bans are bans issued by Moderators which may accumulate any length of time at the moderator see fit, including permanent exclusion from the forums.
6. Do You Track Moderator Actions? (The Moderation Tracking System)
All moderation actions on The Sumsa Forum are logged and can be audited if deemed necessary. In order to facilitate this, each moderation is tracked and recorded and is reviewed regularly by Administrators.
Moderators actions which are logged include:
- User Account Actions;
- Thread Actions; and
- Post Actions
7. Why am I censored? (Censorship and Freedom of Speech)
Under Australian law, the only protected form of speech is that of a political nature, and even then, it's only protected from governmental interference. Private entities can not, by definition, be guilty of censorship. The Sumsa Forum is a private website - owned and operated by an individual.
In short, there is no "freedom of speech" on The Sumsa Forum.
In the interest of fairness and balance, as well as to help focus and improve quality of discussion, there is a team of moderators who have the ability to remove posts and threads from the public eye. There are many legitimate reasons for a moderator to remove comments, which are outlined elsewhere in the Forum Rules.
8. Post Deletion Policy
Post that breach the forum rules can and will be deleted.
If you wish for your post to be reinstated, please contact a moderator and ask for it to be reinstated with the content that caused the deletion to be removed.
9. Thread Deletion Policy
Threads deleted on The Sumsa Forum fall into these categories:
-Haram – any thread that is haram or promotes haram or has anything to do with haram!
-Pointless – the thread contributes no value to the forum;
-Duplicate – the thread already exists on the same or similar topic
-Flame baiting – the goal of the thread is to start harassment or a fight
-Off topic – the thread does not belong to the forum topic it was posted in
-Spam – the thread was advertising for a business
-For sale – threads posted to ask for offers of buying or selling
-Illegal – threads regarding discussion of warez, downloading or illegal activity
Threads which are also deemed inappropriate by Moderators and do not fall under any of the following categories may also be banned.
10. Multiple Accounts Policy
We strongly discourage members from creating additional accounts for any reasons.
Penalties for creating multiple accounts
If you are a currently active user and found of posting using a multiple account, the second account will be banned permanently, all posts will be removed and the original account will be banned for 1 week.
If you are banned user using a multiple account the account will be permanently banned, all posts will be removed and then your IP address will be banned from the server.
Reporting users to their ISP
If a user chooses to continue to create multiple accounts, and abuse our hospitality, be warned that The Sumsa Forum staff will not hesitate to report your breaches to your ISP’s abuse department. Almost all Australian ISP’s include clauses regarding user behavior on websites, such a report can result in a warning from your ISP and may potentially cause the termination of your ISP account.
11. Why was my post/thread Moderated? (Moderation Explanations)
Please do not start a new thread asking why your thread was deleted. Please refer to The Sumsa Forum Moderation procedure regarding deleted threads. If you wish to know why your thread was deleted, as the moderator and not the public.
Yet to come.
Moderation on The Sumsa Forum
The following information covers the following questions and topics:
Why was my post deleted?
How does Moderation work on The Sumsa Forum?
How do moderators know when there is misconduct?
What can I do about it?
What if I don't like the response I receive from the mod?
The Sumsa Forum Infraction System
Contacting a Moderator
Moderator Selection Process
Moderator Types
The Levels of Moderator Response
The Moderation Tracking System
Censorship and Freedom of Speech
Post Deletion Policy
Thread Deletion Policy
Multiple Accounts Policy
Moderation Explanations
How Moderation work on The Sumsa Forum
Do moderators validate posts before they are viewable to the public?
No. All posts are public from the moment they are posted.
Why was my post deleted?
Your post was deleted most likely because it broke The Sumsa Forum Rules.
How do moderators know when there is misconduct?
Either another user had reported your post to a moderator, or a moderator found your post by reading the thread.
What can I do about it?
If you feel your post or thread was deleted without significant reason, please view the Moderation Complaint procedure.
What if I don't like the response I receive from the mod?
If you feel your complaint was not handled correctly, please refer to the Moderation Complaint procedure and/or Private Message an Administrator.
1. What if I keep breaking the rules? (The Sumsa Forum Infraction System)
The Sumsa Forum uses an infraction based system to monitor any inappropriate behavior by members, and allows them a chance to reflect on their actions in order to benefit the forum.
The following infractions issued and their corresponding point value are:
Privacy – 3 points
Harassment – 2 point
Questionable actions and content – 1 point
Posting, Advertising and Spam – 1 point
Offensive Materials – 2 point
User Content – 1 point
Your first infraction is always a warning and accumulates no points
1 point - 1 Day Ban
2 points - 2 Day Ban
3 points - 1 week ban
4 points - 2 week ban
5 points - 1 month ban
All points expire within 1 month and after that time period a user will have 0 active points. If a user persists to break the rules, a permanent ban from The Sumsa Forum would be highly probable.
2. How do I contact a Moderator? (Contacting a Moderator)
If you wish to contact a Moderator, view the forum homepage and scroll down and click on ‘View Forum Leaders (http://www.sumsa.org.au/forum/showgroups.php)’. After which you may click on ‘Send PM’ for the indicated moderator.
If you wish to alert a moderator regarding a post which breaks The Sumsa Forum rules, go to the page containing the post, and look for the Report Button (http://www.sumsa.org.au/forum/images/buttons/report.gif) underneath the user information part of the post.
3. I want to be a Moderator, how do I sign up? (Moderator Selection Process)
To put it quite simply, you don’t. You will however need to be recognized by the Moderating team or Shura Members as a respectable and polite member who offers great discussion and appear online on a generally regular basis and communicate reasonably well in writing.
The Sumsa Forum is growing daily and we are always looking for more help :)]
4. Why are there different types of Moderators? (Moderator Types)
There are 2 types of Moderators on The Sumsa Forum (excluding Administrators):
-Moderators
-Shura Members
Moderators are sectional moderators who deal with content issues such as deleting posts, closing, moving and renaming threads. They also deal with forum questions that any members may have. Moderators cannot deal specifically with any SUMSA related issue.
Shura Members are team leaders and have the more powers than a regular moderator. They need to be an active part of the Sydney University Muslims’ Student Association shura board. They take on the responsibility of running the events the organization offers and have the ability and authority to issue permanent bans and deal with more serious issues regarding user complaints or SUMSA related issues.
5. What powers do moderators have? (The Levels of Moderator Response)
Moderators on The Sumsa Forum have a variety of tools which they may use to respond to breaches of The Sumsa Forum Rules. These tools may include:
- Post Deletion
- Thread Deletion
- Thread Moving, Renaming, Closing
- Issuing Infractions
- Bans
While the following is an example of what Moderators may do in response to a particular rule breach, they also reserve the right to act using their discretion and inflict harsher penalties.
The infraction systems offers a ‘time out’ based punishment system where users are restricted from posting in the forums for a certain amount of time.
Regular Bans are bans issued by Moderators which may accumulate any length of time at the moderator see fit, including permanent exclusion from the forums.
6. Do You Track Moderator Actions? (The Moderation Tracking System)
All moderation actions on The Sumsa Forum are logged and can be audited if deemed necessary. In order to facilitate this, each moderation is tracked and recorded and is reviewed regularly by Administrators.
Moderators actions which are logged include:
- User Account Actions;
- Thread Actions; and
- Post Actions
7. Why am I censored? (Censorship and Freedom of Speech)
Under Australian law, the only protected form of speech is that of a political nature, and even then, it's only protected from governmental interference. Private entities can not, by definition, be guilty of censorship. The Sumsa Forum is a private website - owned and operated by an individual.
In short, there is no "freedom of speech" on The Sumsa Forum.
In the interest of fairness and balance, as well as to help focus and improve quality of discussion, there is a team of moderators who have the ability to remove posts and threads from the public eye. There are many legitimate reasons for a moderator to remove comments, which are outlined elsewhere in the Forum Rules.
8. Post Deletion Policy
Post that breach the forum rules can and will be deleted.
If you wish for your post to be reinstated, please contact a moderator and ask for it to be reinstated with the content that caused the deletion to be removed.
9. Thread Deletion Policy
Threads deleted on The Sumsa Forum fall into these categories:
-Haram – any thread that is haram or promotes haram or has anything to do with haram!
-Pointless – the thread contributes no value to the forum;
-Duplicate – the thread already exists on the same or similar topic
-Flame baiting – the goal of the thread is to start harassment or a fight
-Off topic – the thread does not belong to the forum topic it was posted in
-Spam – the thread was advertising for a business
-For sale – threads posted to ask for offers of buying or selling
-Illegal – threads regarding discussion of warez, downloading or illegal activity
Threads which are also deemed inappropriate by Moderators and do not fall under any of the following categories may also be banned.
10. Multiple Accounts Policy
We strongly discourage members from creating additional accounts for any reasons.
Penalties for creating multiple accounts
If you are a currently active user and found of posting using a multiple account, the second account will be banned permanently, all posts will be removed and the original account will be banned for 1 week.
If you are banned user using a multiple account the account will be permanently banned, all posts will be removed and then your IP address will be banned from the server.
Reporting users to their ISP
If a user chooses to continue to create multiple accounts, and abuse our hospitality, be warned that The Sumsa Forum staff will not hesitate to report your breaches to your ISP’s abuse department. Almost all Australian ISP’s include clauses regarding user behavior on websites, such a report can result in a warning from your ISP and may potentially cause the termination of your ISP account.
11. Why was my post/thread Moderated? (Moderation Explanations)
Please do not start a new thread asking why your thread was deleted. Please refer to The Sumsa Forum Moderation procedure regarding deleted threads. If you wish to know why your thread was deleted, as the moderator and not the public.