CHATTERBOX RULES & GUIDELINES
This thread contains all the rules and guidelines of the Chatterbox in one easy place as well as other information you can use to make your Gaian experience more pleasant.
In This Thread:
-PG-13 Violations/Cybering
-Spam Violations
-Scams/Contests
-Flaming/Abusive Behavior
-Dealing with Abuse/Harassment & Thread Rules
-How to use the Report System
-Which Mod to Contact
-When to Contact a Mod Directly
PG-13 VIOLATIONS & CYBERING
Cybering
Cybering is described as 'descriptive sexual roleplay'. Cybering in all forms is not allowed on Gaia. This includes requesting, offering or encouraging cybering in your threads, posts or PMs. Please be careful when posting vague requests for fun or offers of fun. If they could easily be seen as a cyber invitation or request, you risk getting warned for violating the cybering rule. Webcam shows also are not allowed.
Please also be aware that telling people to "take it to PMs" is considered encouragement to violate the Terms of Service. Some examples include making thread rules ("no cybering (take it to PMs if you must)" or "cyber in PMs, not here") or in thread conversation ("if you guys are going to do that, go somewhere private"). Anyone using this phrase will receive a warning for encouraging PG-13 violations.
Image and Content Guidelines
Images and content also must comply with the PG-13 rating of Gaia. Sexually explicit images that are not artistic in nature are not allowed on Gaia. Only limited artistic nudity is acceptable on Gaia. Sexually explicit and pornographic images are strictly forbidden. Posting, requesting, or selling such image or content will result in a warning. It is usually best but not required that you contact a mod before posting images you believe qualify as artistic nudity.
Cleavage shots are not considered to be in violation of the PG-13 rating. However this only applies as long as they do not show any n****e and are not provocative or overly revealing. Images of cleavage/breasts or private areas not covered with any clothing even if blocked by hands, a sign, other objects is considered overly revealing and thus not allowed.
Cleavage Quests
Users may have 'Cleavage Quests' as long as the images they are asking for fit in the Image Guidelines stated above. If a user asks for sexy, nude or provocative cleavage shots, they will be warned.
SPAM VIOLATIONS
Page-Stretching/Disruptive Posting
Stretching the forum pages using excessive amounts of unnecessary text, text that contains no spaces, or large images is disruptive of the flow of the forum/conversation and is thus a violation of the Terms of Service of Gaia. Post length and size does not related in any way to the amount of gold granted by posting. Variations in earned gold are a result of other variables.
Examples of this rule include 14/28 Gold Bumps. There are several versions of this kind of post, all have the same general premise: that by copying and pasting a long message, you will get more gold than normal.
Other examples include, repeating excessively and unnecessarily a word or phrase such as "bump" many times in one post, posting long song lyrics for no particular reason, posting images that are excessively large (either resize the image or use a link to the image), etc.
Chain letters
Normally coming from emails, chain letters often involve some sort of story that requires you to send the letter to a certain number of people. Sometimes doing this will cause something good to happen to the user (or prevents something bad from happening). These letters are untrue and have no real good or bad consequences. Distribution of chain letters is prohibited on the forums, in PMs, and anywhere else on Gaia.
Many chain letters resemble something else such as a petition or warning message and sometimes even say "this is not a chain letter" on them. Other chain letters claim to be from the admins and sometimes make threats about banning people if they don't send it on. The admins can use stickies and the Announcement forum to disperse information and will not use chain letters (something they have prohibited) to do it. Just remember any message that asks or encourages you to repost/resend indiscriminately to other users can be considered a chain letter.
More information on Chain letters can be found here.
Personal Information Questionnaire threads
A questionnaire thread is a thread where a user gives a long list of questions for other users to answer. Often these threads contain questions regarding email addresses or questions similar to Gaia's security questions. By obtaining this information from a user, it gives the original poster the opportunity to hack another's account.
Please report any threads that ask personal questions such as address, phone number, email address, or any questions relation to Gaia's security questions. Do not reply to these threads. However, threads that do not ask such questions and only ask harmless or neutral questions (favorite color, video game, etc) are allowed.
SCAMS/CONTESTS
Remember, anything or anyone who says they need your password to give you something is trying to scam you and gain access to your account.
"Bump X times for Gold/Rare Items"
Creating a thread which makes false claims that users will get gold and/or items for posting a certain number of times is a bannable offense. You do not get more gold than normal for bumping in these threads and trunks and gift boxes are random events that happen...randomly.
Free Gold/Item Granters
Be aware that offers of free gold or items are often scams, especially when they involve a relatively new account which is offering up rare and expensive items. Any user who offers you free items/gold by linking to a site which asks for your password or security questions is SCAMMING. Please user the "Report this Post" or "Report this Thread" buttons to report them right away.
Some other scamming attempts have included users making a FAKE Gaia Login page. It looks exactly like Gaia but please be aware that the address (URL) will not be gaiaonline.com. If you come to a page that does not have gaiaonline.com in the address, do NOT login and report the link to a mod along with any information you have about who and how it is being distributed.
A new feature that could help with scams such as these is the inventory post type which allows users to display their items for others to see. While not entirely foolproof (items are still displayed after being traded), it can help to provide a bit more credibility to a user's claim or offer. However, not using this feature or not wearing the item is itself not sufficient or definitive evidence of a scam, but should make you cautious or suspicious.
Email/IM Scams
The admins and staff of Gaia will never ask for your password. Ever. The only emails you will ever receive from Gaia are those sent for the purpose of registration and banning (and always after the fact). Do not respond to any emails or instant messages via chat programs that ask for your password or answers to your security questions.
Highest Donator Contests
Highest donator contests and variations of it are prohibited. These contests involve the promise of an item to the person giving the highest amount of donations. They are essentially like auctions except bids for the item are not returned. More information can be found here.
Also, giveaway threads that claim that donating more will increase chances to getting the item(s) being given away are considered variants of this type of contest and not allowed as well.
Contest Fees Are Not Donations
Mislabeled contest entry fees cannot be taken as donations and threats to do so are not allowed. It is fine to request that if a trade is sent with gold for entry that it is somehow labeled so that you know what it is for (in case you are running multiple auctions/charities/lotteries). However, refusing the person entry and instead taking the trade as a donation because it is not labeled a particular way is not allowed, as it is exploiting users to gain gold.
If you accidentally mistake an entry fee and discover that it wasn't a donation, you still need enter them into the contest or refund the fee. The essence of the rule is that you cannot enforce trade labelling by mentioning the potential of taking a trade as a donation (accidental or intentional).
It's best not to mention donations at all in relation to trade labeling. That is:
"Please label trade as ____, or I might mistake it as a donation."
should simply be
"Please label trade as ____."
FLAMING/ABUSIVE BEHAVIOR
Abusive Posts, Trolling, and Flaming
Any posts containing racial slurs, verbal abuse directed at a user or comments made with the purpose of provoking flaming (trolling) are against the ToS. If you feel a user has made an abusive post or is trolling, please use the 'Report this Post' button.
Suicide Encouragement
Posting any content (images, links, etc) that encourages other users to harm or kill themselves, even in a joking manner, could be considered abusive. However, in cases where a user has posted about their intent to commit suicide or harm themselves, any encouragement at all will lead to a warning or even a banning.
DEALING WITH ABUSE/HARASSMENT
When another user starts to abuse or harrass you, there is a wonderful feature to help you out before you even have to resort to filling out a form? It's called the Ignore feature and surprisingly, many users are unaware of exactly what it does.
So next time you're having problems with another user, just go to their profile and click Add to Ignored. (This feature can also be reached by clicking the "Ignored" tab on your Friendlist page). Once you have added a user to your ignore list, the following things will happen:
They will not be able to PM you
They will not be able to post in any thread that you created.
Many times, this simple step stops the harrassment right at the beginning and stops it from escalating any further. If the user continues to harrass you after being placed on ignore, then you should report them through the proper channels, as addressed below.
THREAD RULES
Many thread creators have a list of posted rules at the beginning of the thread. Please attempt to respect these rules even if what you are doing is not a violation of Gaia's rules.
If you make your own thread rules that are not reflected in Gaia's rules, then you or your designated agents (commonly called "thread mods") may have to enforce them on your own. For example, if a thread has rules against posting advertisements in the thread, you may have to enforce this on your own.
This can be done in several ways. First, in select forums such as the Chatterbox, thread creators have the ability to delete any post in threads they create (and not just their own posts). Second, as mentioned above, thread creators can use the Ignorelist feature to prevent a user from making further posts in a thread. Third, as designated agents do not have the above two abilities, you can set up a blacklist.
In essence, a blacklist allows designated agents to disallow users from staying in the thread. After being clearly asked to leave a thread by thread creator or designated agents for any reason, a user should stop posting in the thread or face the possibility of violating Gaia's rules regarding harassment. When reporting this kind of harassment (ie. if the user continues to post), it is useful to include a link to where the user was asked to leave the thread.
USING THE REPORT SYSTEM
The Report System makes it easier for users to report inappropriate threads and posts. It also makes it easier for the Mods to handle the reports effectively.
NOTE
When you see something in violation, it is best to simply report the thread/post. Responding generally does not help the situation and can make it worse. For example, responding to a thread that is breaking the rules brings the thread to the top of the forum where it is more visible.
Report this Post
Use this button to report a specific post that is in violation of the ToS. Clicking it will take you to the report form which you then fill out and submit. Since this button is located right next to the QUOTE button, you must be careful not to confuse the two. Abuse of the report button will lead to your account getting a temporary ban. Do not use this button to report misplaced or inappropriate threads (ie. use the Thread Report talked about next).
Report this Thread
Located at the bottom of the page, you can find it right next to the Subscribe button. Please use this button to report threads that are inappropriate. However, please take note that you will likely NEVER use this for reporting a misplaced thread in the Chatterbox. The Chatterbox is a forum that can be home to all types of threads, no matter how well they may fit into another forum. This includes Charity threads, Lottos and Minishop threads. Please do not report these threads. Also, do not use this to report scamming or hacking. You will be redirected to the reports below upon receiving thread reports about scamming or hacking. For faster service please use the right report from the beginning.
Report a Hacking
You can find this link at the bottom of the main forums page. Use this form if you or someone you know has been hacked. Please provide all information you have that will help the investigation along. This includes usernames, emails, links and screencaps. Please be patient when submitting a hacking report. It can take anywhere from a few days to weeks or more for a mod to begin work on your case.
Report a Scam
You can find this link at the bottom of the main forums page. Use this form if a user has scammed you or is attempting to scam others. Please provide all information you have available including usernames, links and screencaps. Please be patient when submitting a scamming report. It can take anywhere from a few days to weeks or more for a mod to begin work on your case.
Report Abuse/Harassment
You can find this link at the bottom of the main forums page. Use this form if a user is abusing or harassing you outside of the forums, such as through PMs. If the abuse is occurring in a thread, please use the "Report this Post" button. Please provide all information you have available including user names, links and screen caps of PMs. Please be patient when submitting a harassment report. It can take anywhere from a few days to weeks or more for a mod to begin work on your case.
Feedback Form
There are some issues that are not suitable for the reporting system. The feedback form is there for you when you need to report something to the admins. Inquiries about donation letters, reporting an inventory glitch, contesting a ban or any other matter that a moderator would be unable to assist in are all valid reasons for filling out the feedback form. Please be patient when using the feedback form. As you can imagine, the admins receive MANY of these a day and as such it can take some time before they get back to you.
If you are uncertain, PM an online Moderator (Dedicated preferably) first and they will be able to help you with where to go.
QUOTING TOS VIOLATIONS
Please be aware! Do NOT quote any posts that contain images, links or any content that violates the TOS. This is because it is often very time consuming and difficult for mods to try to track down and delete every quoted post of a TOS violation. Please think about the poor mods! In addition, quoting can cause your post to contain TOS violating material and may possibly be considered a TOS violation as well.
WHICH MOD TO CONTACT
* List of Chatterbox Moderators
Here is the list of all the different types of people that you can contact if you need help, please make sure you PM the right person.
Admins
The Administrators are the people who created and maintain Gaia. They work on all the coding, creating items and features, and fixing the bugs. As such they are often very busy people.
If you should need to report a moderator for misconduct, you would contact an admin (Dri, Ling, L0cke or Jakobo). Please PM them the reason for the report as well as any evidence you may have.
Omnimoderators
Omnimoderators focus on issues with users' accounts, especially when it comes to Hacking and Scamming reports. They will be the moderators who respond when these forms are filled out. They may also be moderators in some forums around the site.
When to Contact an Omnimod: Talk to these moderators about problems you may have with your account, items, and inventories.
Global GAIA Moderators
Global GAIA Moderators work with Abuse and Harassment cases, as well as being leaders for the Gaia Community and the moderating team. These individuals will continue to moderate the site much like before, but will be able to assist users across a variety of forums.
When to Contact a Global mod: If you need to find out about abuse or harassment, TOS violations that may require immediate attention..
Dedicated GAIA Moderators
Working with the GAIA Helpers around the site, Dedicated GAIA Moderators help to move threads that are in the wrong forum. Additionally, Dedicated GAIA Moderators are able to handle TOS violations in threads and posts. These mods are the ones that generally respond to Thread and Post reports. When a Dedicated GAIA Moderators is free of obligation to their own section of the site, they are capable of moderating around GAIA.
When to Contact a Dedicated mod: When in doubt about who to contact, contact a Dedicated mod first. TOS violations, signature reports, etc. can be PMed to a Dedicated mod.
GAIA Helpers
These are the users who you should contact regarding threads that are in the wrong forum / subforum. These individuals are capable of moving threads from one forum to another, and are often dedicated to the forums they frequent on a regular basis. Every GAIA Helper will have a moderator on the site who is responsible for their actions. Therefore, if you are in disagreement with the actions of a GAIA Helper it is best to contact a member of the administration team. Please of course, be sure to include any relevant PMs, thread links, and information that would assist us in the matter.
When to contact a Helper: If a thread needs to be moved to another forum. Helpers cannot deal with TOS violations.
WHEN TO CONTACT A MOD DIRECTLY
Ideally, users should use the reporting system to report violations. But sometimes there are situations where immediate mod intervention is needed. Such instances usually involve when a user is continuously breaking some kind of rule. In these cases it's perfectly acceptable to PM an online mod to deal with the matter. Examples of these cases are:
People continuously posting offensive images
People continuously posting PG-13 violating images
People continuously spamming off-site advertisement
Serial trolls
Jesus bots
Normal bots
People continuously scam spamming
Anyone continuously violating major rules
