Abuse Policies and Procedures

Summary

Content is present which is intended for adult readers, and should not be accessible to minors.

Action

If the content is graphic and explicit in nature (for example, an image which contains nudity, sexuality, or violence), the content will be flagged as containing explicit adult content.

Journals or communities which consist primarily of such content will have a journal-wide setting placed which affects all entries posted to the journal or community.

If the content is not graphic or explicit in nature, no action will be taken. This includes images which contain non-sexualized nudity, such as images of mothers breastfeeding or an image of the Statue of David.

Note

Summary

Account holder is reported to be under the age of 13.

Action

If there is conclusive proof (such as an admission of age or date of birth) an account holder is under the age of 13, the contact information for the account will be removed from LiveJournal, and no new entries or comments can be made by the account until a parent or legal guardian has authorized use of the account for the child.

No action will be taken if there is no conclusive proof as to a person's age.

Note

Summary

A user has posted content on LiveJournal, or has provided means for others to obtain content, which meets the legal definition of child pornography.

Action

Content that clearly meets the legal definition of child pornography will result in termination of the user's account. Additionally, the content will be reported to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC).

Content which does not clearly meet the definition of child pornography but which is questionable due to uncertainty regarding the age of person(s) portrayed, or which, for any other reason demonstrates characteristics which, in LiveJournal's opinion, is questionable, LiveJournal will disable access to that material pending internal review. If the poster can provide clear evidence that the person was 18 or older at the time the image was created, they may continue use of the material.

Note

Summary

User is engaging in the purchase, sale, or promotion of goods or services.

Action

If a journal or community is being used for the purpose of buying, selling, or trading goods or services on a small scale (such as an individual running a small business), no action will be taken.

If a community or journal is being used primarily for commercial purposes on a large scale (such as corporation creating a journal primarily for advertising) LiveJournal's sales team should be contacted prior to any action being taken. Journals or communities which are in use by a corporation, but provide content valuable to other users of the service (does not contain primarily advertising content) will have no action taken against them.

If a user is attempting to sell their journal, or charging others for access to the journal, the journal will be permanently suspended.

Note

LiveJournal is not a service designed for the purchase or sale of goods or services, and we will be unable to assist in resolving disputes among people who choose to buy or sell things on LiveJournal. Users who engage in commercial activity on LiveJournal do so entirely at their own risk.

Explanation

We don't want outside sources using LiveJournal as a means of free advertisement, but we also don't want to stop users from posting information about commercial ventures they are involved in. We've developed this policy as a compromise that allows media outlets to provide content, and users to further their business ventures, while preventing people from directly profiting off of LiveJournal itself.

See Also

Summary

LiveJournal has received official notification that content posted by a user violates the copyright of another person or business.

Action

Summary

Offender has continued to use LiveJournal after being informed that they are no longer permitted to maintain any accounts on the site (terminated).

Action

If there is proof that a user who was previously terminated is using the service again, all accounts belonging to that person will be permanently suspended.

Note

This policy only applies to users who have previously been terminated. Most users who have had accounts suspended are still permitted to use alternate accounts, and will only have action taken against them if they continue to violate the Terms of Service.

Explanation

This policy allows us to continue enforcing the termination of individuals who have been removed from the service for either grievous violations of U.S. law, or who have proven they are unable to abide by the Terms of Service.

Summary

A person has become the target of hostile behavior on LiveJournal.

Action

If the content merely states negative feelings or opinions of another person, no action will be taken.

If a user makes a statement which encourages or incites others to harass another person in any way, access to that content will be disabled. This can also extend to entries in which harassment has not been explicitly called for, but is implied, at the discretion of the Abuse Prevention Team.

Journals or communities which exist primarily to harass or disrupt use of the service for others will be permanently suspended.

Note

We encourage users who are being harassed in communities to bring the matter to the attention of the community's maintainers, as they may be able to help resolve the situation. However, community maintainers are under no obligation to remove content which is not in violation of the Terms of Service.

Explanation

LiveJournal is a place that many people use to talk about their lives, and that often includes talking about other people. It is important to balance an individual's right to discuss things important to them with another individual's right to privacy and freedom from harassment. We have adopted this policy because we feel it creates a fair balance between these sometimes conflicting ideals.

See Also

Summary

A user has posted content which encourages, incites, or advocates harm or violence against a specific person or group of people.

Action

If the content meets the above criteria, access to that content will be disabled.

If a journal or community consists primarily of hate speech, the account will be permanently suspended.

Note

Hate speech is a crime if the speaker threatens violence against a specific person or group of persons that has, or is perceived to have, a character trait that is protected by law, and if the speaker has the apparent ability to carry out the threat.

This policy does not apply to content which is clearly satirical/hyperbole.

Explanation

While only certain groups are extended this protection under U.S. law, we have decided to not allow content which incites harm against any person or group. We feel it is important that users do not use LiveJournal as a means of encouraging violence against anyone, regardless of the reason.

Summary

User is posting content which is intrinsically illegal, or is soliciting, instructing, or encouraging others to violate the law.

Action

Because U.S. law is clear on this matter, any threat to kill, kidnap, or harm the president of the United States will result in the termination of all accounts belonging to the user making the threat.

In the case of content which is intrinsically illegal, such as attempting to buy or sell things which are illegal to distribute, access to the post will be disabled.

Content which solicits, instructs, or encourages illegal activities will result in access to the post being disabled. If the illegal activity is deemed by the Abuse Prevention Team to be likely to cause permanent or irreparable harm, permanent suspension may be considered.

Note

Summary

Content is present in which an individual is misrepresenting their identity.

Action

If a journal exists primarily to impersonate, the journal will be permanently suspended.

If there is content that misrepresents the poster's identity, but the journal does not exist primarily for this purpose, access to the post will be disabled.

Note

Journals which exist as satire of, or to role-play as a public figure are considered allowable so long as the journal very clearly states that the journal author is not actually the person they are representing. This should be visible both in the journal's profile and in the journal itself (either incorporated into the style or in a future dated entry). One such disclaimer, which users in this situation are welcome to use, is:

"In creating this journal, the author has assumed another person's identity for the sole purpose of entertainment, without intending to obtain a benefit or to injure or defraud either the person whose identity the author has assumed, nor any reader of this content."

Explanation

Identity theft is a serious problem, and to reduce the risk of someone claiming to be someone else and taking actions or saying things that would damage the actual person, we've chosen to forbid impersonation of other individuals on our service. We do, however, recognize that many users wish to create journals of public figures, which we've chosen to permit if it a user makes a clear, visible statement that they are not actually that person.

See Also

Summary

A user has posted content which incites, encourages, or advocates pedophilia, the abuse of children in any way, or the act of rape.

Action

All accounts belonging to the user who posted the material will be terminated.

Explanation

This policy exists due to the extremely harmful nature of the activities in question, and we do not want users who incite, encourage, or advocate any of these activities present on LiveJournal.

Summary

User is posting the full name, email address, telephone number, Social Security / Social Insurance / National Insurance number (or similar) and/or address of another person, or is posting material that is sufficient for an unconnected reader to obtain the same.

Action

If content is present which meets the above description, access to the post with that information will be disabled. We reserve the right to require proof of identity before acting to remove such content at the discretion of the Abuse Prevention Team.

Note

It is not considered Invasion of Privacy to reproduce any information contained in a user's public journal entries or profile.

Explanation

It's our philosophy that all of our users should have complete control over their own information at all times, and choose what information is publicly available. If someone is posting another person's full name or email address, it removes the person's ability to control who has access to that information, so we require its removal. Immediate suspensions are used for address, telephone number, and Social Security number/National Insurance number or similar, because of the serious implications such information can have for the person whose information is posted. Immediate suspension removes the information from public view as quickly as possible to minimize the damages.

Summary

A user which has been banned from a journal or community is using alternate accounts to continue commenting.

Action

User should receive a warning that use of alternate accounts for the purpose of circumventing bans is not permitted.

Note

Repeat offenders will be subject to further action taken against their account(s).

Explanation

Because LiveJournal offers technical solutions to prevent unwanted contact from other people, we feel it is important that people attempt to resolve their disputes through use of these tools prior to intervention from the Abuse Prevention Team. In some cases, however, new accounts are created to continue to contact someone who has banned the user from their journal. This policy is designed to ensure that a user can block unwanted contact even from users who attempt to circumvent the technical measures in place.

See Also

Summary

A person has gained access to another user's account without the authorization of the journal owner.

Action

Summary

An active community is experiencing issues which require the attention of a maintainer to resolve, and no active maintainer is present.

Action

If there are situations present in the community which require a maintainer's intervention, the Abuse Prevention Team will attempt to contact the maintainer(s), inquire if they still wish to maintain their communities, and transfer maintainership to another member of the community as appropriate.

Note

Inactive communities or communities which do not have any situations present which would require the attention of a maintainer will not have maintainership transferred.

Who is chosen as new maintainer will be based on a number of factors, including who appears to be active within the community, who has exhibited ability to resolve conflicts, and who has demonstrated willingness to keep the community within the boundaries of LiveJournal's Terms of Service.

Explanation

Sometimes people stop using LiveJournal, and sometimes that person will be a community maintainer. We feel it is necessary, under certain circumstances, to give maintainer status to other members within the community to deal with problems along the lines of spam, harassing users, and a number of other problems which can arise in active communities.

Summary

Any report regarding material which is not present on LiveJournal, nor is being linked to in any way from LiveJournal.

Action

The reporting user should be informed we have no influence over the content, and should be advised that in order to resolve their issue they will need to contact the appropriate department of the website where the content is located.

Note

This also includes reports of action taken by a user on another service. We do not take action against users on LiveJournal for offenses they may have committed elsewhere.

Explanation

This one speaks for itself; we simply can't act as the Support or Abuse department for another website. It's none of our business what occurs off our servers, unless that offsite content is brought to LiveJournal in some way.

Summary

A userpic contains graphic nudity, sexual, violent, or otherwise objectionable content.

Action

Summary

The parent of a user writes in to request access, suspension, or some form of restriction of their child's account(s).

Action

If the parent writes from any email address that is currently validated on the account, the requested action can be taken.

If the user is over the age of 13, the requested action should not be taken. The parent should be provided information on use of internet blocking software or other filtering devices to prevent their child from accessing LiveJournal.

Note

Summary

Material posted which encourages or instructs others on how to engage in destructive behavior such as self-injury, self-mutilation, anorexia, drug or alcohol overdose, or suicide.

Action

If the material provides instructions on how to commit self-destructive behavior, or encourages others to do same, access to the material will be disabled. If an entire journal or community is dedicated to instructing or encouraging self-destructive behavior, the account will be suspended. Content which only discusses self-destructive behavior, even in positive terms, is not prohibited.

Note

This policy does not apply to content which is clearly satirical/hyperbole.

Explanation

LiveJournal does not condone self-destructive behavior in any capacity, such as communities which promote anorexia as a healthy lifestyle choice, but we also recognize that users should be able to discuss and seek support for dealing with problems related to self-harm. We do not, however, allow content which encourages or instructs others on how to engage in self-destructive behavior.

Summary

A user has shared the URL (with authorization code) for their Abuse report with others, thereby removing the security and confidentiality of the report.

Action

The user should be informed that the report will be closed without further comment, and instructed to open a new request if they wish for their complaint to be considered, and should be advised against sharing the authorization code of the new report.

Explanation

Requests are meant to be private communications between one user and the Abuse Prevention Team; many users are unaware that by sharing the link to their request they give others access to view and comment to that request. We feel it is important to continue communications in a new, secure request.

Summary

Numerous identical or nearly identical unsolicited, unwanted comments or entries have been posted to various journals and/or communities.

Action

If a journal owner or community maintainer believes a comment is spam, he or she should delete the content, and select the "Mark as Spam" option which will appear. This will submit a report to our spam management system, and will be included with any other reports against the same user (or IP address for anonymous comments). These reports are periodically reviewed and acted upon by the Abuse Prevention Team.

If it is determined that a user is spamming, they will receive a warning. Repeat offenses will lead to further action being taken. Accounts which exist primarily for the purpose of spamming will be permanently suspended.

Explanation

People almost unanimously agree that spam is unwanted, whether it be in the form of email, entries on their friends pages, or comments to their journal. Because of this, we believe it is appropriate to prohibit users of the service from posting a large number of unsolicited comments or entries.

Summary

A report has been received indicating that a user is at risk for suicide.

Action

If the user has stated in no uncertain terms that (a) he or she intends to commit suicide, (b) his or her stated plans are currently happening or scheduled for a specific time, and (c) the Abuse Prevention Team is able to determine sufficient information for the police to locate the user (full name and either address or telephone number), the user's local authorities will be contacted, provided with the information available, and the caller will urge the authorities to send an officer to the user's location for a "wellness check". If all three of these conditions are not met, no action can be taken.

Note

The conditions which are outlined above are in place because these are generally required by authorities before they can assist in these matters.

Explanation

Suicide is a very serious matter, and we believe it is our responsibility to notify proper authorities when we are made aware of a LiveJournal user attempting to commit suicide. While we may not be legally required to do so, we feel it is our moral and ethical obligation to take any and all action we can to prevent the potential loss of someone's life.

Summary

A report is submitted by someone other than the person directly affected or targeted by abuse.

Action

No action required. The person submitting the report should be advised that the person directly involved with the situation will need to contact the Abuse Prevention Team.

Note

Requests from third parties may be considered if there is clear evidence that the person directly involved cannot submit a request on their own behalf.

Explanation

The person who is targeted by the post may not have any objections to the material that is posted. Because of this, we feel it important to receive a request from the person actually affected by the offending content, or someone legally authorized to act for them, to ensure they want to have the material removed.

Summary

An entry or comment threatens harm to another person.

Action

In all cases where a user indicates they feel threatened, they should be advised to contact their local authorities. No action should be taken until the person being threatened has confirmed that action by LiveJournal will not destroy evidence for any criminal investigation they may pursue.

If confirmed, access to the entry will be disabled. Repeat offenders may have further action taken against their account.

Note

Threats which are clearly satirical, hyperbolic, or demonstrate by other means that the poster has neither the ability nor intent to carry out the threat will not be acted on.

Explanation

We acknowledge that removing a threatening entry will not remove an individual's intent to act, and in many cases may hinder authorities' ability to investigate a matter. We do, however, feel it appropriate to remove threatening content if the person being threatened acknowledges this, and that users repeatedly threatening others should not be permitted to continue doing so.

Summary

A user has been added to the friends list of another user to whom they do not wish to be connected.

Action

If the journal used does not appear to exist primarily to harass the user(s) they have friended, no action required.

Journals which exist primarily to add many users to their friends list as a means of harassing or spamming others will be permanently suspended.

Note

Often taken into consideration to determine if a journal exists solely to harass or disrupt use of the service for others.

Explanation

The isolated act of adding someone to your friends list only grants a person the ability to read their public entries on your friends page, and we do not generally consider this to be an act of harassment. However, in some cases, users do clearly add people to their friends list as a means to spam, harass, or gain the attention of the intended victim(s), and in these cases we feel it is important to take action.

See Also

Suspension

When an single entry is suspended, it is accessible and viewable only to the poster of the entry and select employees and volunteers. Users are able to edit suspended entries and submit requests for the edited version to be reviewed by the Abuse Prevention Team. Should the edited version comply with LiveJournal's stated policies and Terms of Service, the new entry will again be visible and accessible. Should the edited version not comply with LiveJournal's stated policies and Terms of Service, the entry will remain suspended.

When a user's account is suspended, all entries and comments the user has made through that account anywhere on LiveJournal are hidden, and no new entries or comments can be posted. Unless they have been informed that the suspension is permanent, a user can have their account unsuspended.

Read-Only

A journal which has been placed in read-only mode is unable to have new entries or comments posted to it, and the journal owner cannot post new entries or comments anywhere on the site. This status is used as an alternative to both permanent and temporary suspensions in situations where LiveJournal believes it is reasonable to do so. Journals which have committed serious violations or which are inherently a violation of our Policies (such as an impersonation journal, or those journals which exist solely to harass others) will be subject to suspension rather than read-only.

Termination

A terminated user refers to a person who has had all accounts belonging to them permanently suspended, and has been informed they are not welcome to continue using LiveJournal.

Notice of No Contact

A Notice of No Contact prohibits two users from having any contact with one another in any form on LiveJournal. This is used in very limited cases where extensive harassment between two users has occurred over a long period of time, and cannot be resolved through any other means (such as banning the other user from their journal). This is considered a last resort and a final warning; violation of a Notice of No Contact will generally result in termination.

Disable Access to Material

LiveJournal's available tools for removing access to material are to either suspend a single entry, suspend an entire account, or to delete the content. LiveJournal will opt to suspend single entries before entire accounts where it is possible and reasonable to do so. Deletion of content by LiveJournal staff or volunteers is our least preferred method of disabling access to material, and will generally only be done when a user cannot edit or delete content themselves (such as anonymous comments, content posted by accounts which are in a "purged" status, or content which is present in communities to which the user no longer has access).

Repeat Offenders

Users who have repeatedly violated the same policy will have further action taken against them for each subsequent violation. Emails to users who have violated a policy should explain what specific action will be taken on their next violation. Any violation, if committed enough times, can lead to termination.

Violations which were posted prior to the first warning being sent will generally only result in a new warning being issued. Exceptions to this principle will usually only occur when LiveJournal has a legal obligation to do otherwise, as is the case with Copyright Violations.

The standard process for most cases is to suspend a single entry on first offense. On second offense, the entry is suspended and the journal placed in read-only mode until the journal owner has contacted the Abuse Prevention Team indicating they will not continue to violate the same policy. Subsequent offenses would result in violating entries being suspended and the journal being placed in read-only mode. Finally, should there be repeated and systematic offenses of the same nature, LiveJournal will terminate the account.

• In cases where it is not possible to disable access to material, a user is given 72 hours to comply from the time an email is sent, with the time rounded as necessary to bring the deadline to 12:01 AM, Eastern Standard/Daylight Time (05:01/04:01 GMT). Failure to remove the content by the given deadline will result in the suspension of the account which has posted the material.
• A suspended user should receive an email from the Abuse Prevention Team which contains instructions on how to unsuspend their account, as well as information on what actions they will need to take to prevent being re-suspended.
• Once a user has unsuspended their account, they will have 2 hours to make the necessary corrections. Additional time may be granted at the discretion of the Abuse Prevention Team, if they believe this additional time would be necessary to complete the required changes. If a user fails to make the necessary corrections in this time frame, their account will be suspended permanently.

See Also