To start off this update I’d like to take a little bit about a few behaviors which I have noticed over the last month.

The first thing I’d like to talk about is a trend I’ve seen among users, namely the habit of actually telling people, “I Have Reported This”, and the tendency of certain people to quote rules at each other and demand that certain submissions be taken down for one reason or another.

Now while attempting to help people learn the rules and policies is quite admirable it has the unfortunate side effect of making you a target of another aggressive user, as does the habit of announcing “I Have Reported This”.

We have provided everyone with an easy to use and completely anonymous reporting system. This system insulates you against any repercussions when the staff acts on your report.
If someone is routinely flooding or spamming or insulting people the system protects your identity so that this person does not begin to assault your gallery or userpage. Likewise if someone’s submission is removed due to some sort of violation they do not know who reported it, possibly sparing you several nasty insults or other problems.

However if you choose to announce to the internet that, “I HAVE REPORTED YOU”, then you have just hung a large target on your account and gallery should the person you report feel the need to seek revenge for some sort of administrative action.

The next related topic is on harassment.

From time to time an aggressive deviant will target another with an overly nasty attitude. Occasionally we also have a random internet troll wander in from the sewers in an attempt to be disruptive.

In any case where someone is obviously attempting to provoke a reaction the best course of action is not to ‘defend’ yourself or have a group of friends spring to verbal combat- in many cases people who are out on insult campaigns or who are busy spamming or page flooding are doing it in the hopes to see some sort of reaction.

The bigger and more dramatic the reactions they receive the more they are amused and the longer they remain in an attempt to increase the drama in the reaction they receive from you.

In these cases you should ignore the culprit and not respond or publicly acknowledge their antics. The Comment Hiding tool and the Block tool are perfect for this so use them promptly and if the situation is severe enough quietly report it to the Helpdesk where a staff member can quickly bring it to a close.

Lastly I’d like to caution people against attempting to rally lynch mobs against each other.

Occasionally angry deviants will use their journals in an attempt to rally their friends and other passers-by to harass and insult someone else. Occasionally journals are also used in an attempt to get a large number of users to flood the Helpdesk, the idea being that if enough people post the copied item the staff will eventually bow to the pressure and do whatever is asked.

Anyone caught attempting to organize a lynch mob or harassment campaign, as well as anyone caught participating in one, are at a high risk of seeing their account suspended or banned- the more widespread or disruptive the situation, the stronger the punishment handed out by staff.
Likewise campaigns to flood the Helpdesk interfere with our ability to help those who are truly in need of assistance and a flood of identical inquires only wastes time and resources. In these cases those found organizing the Helpdesk flood are at risk of having their account suspended as are any who heavily contribute to the flood of tickets.