FAQ:Deletions and Restores

Foreword

Please refer to Handbook#Deletion of Posts for related information regarding deleting posts.

When should I delete a post?

The Big Picture - A Must Read for All Mod Squad Members, Moderators and Assistants Generally speaking, it's generally a clear-cut case if a post violates the Terms of Use and should be removed. However; we must all make some allowances for the ebb and flow of human interaction. Successfully navigating the "gray" areas which allow friendly dialog to take place while not allowing the noise to drown out the signal is the mark of a good moderator. When there is ambiguity or reasonable basis for doubt as to whether a post should be removed, we favor inclusion over exclusion or, in other words, allowing participants to express their views without interference. At the same time, we expect participants to be civil and comply with our basic rules of conduct.

Are replies to deleted posts supposed to be removed, too?

A good rule of thumb is that if the post can "stand alone" within the TOS, it should remain. Example: a reply to a deleted message that states "I agree" makes no sense on its own, however; one that says "the o/s is 5.5 million and the float is 4.5 million" still makes sense. Delete the former but not the latter.

I get the whole off topic bit, but if someone says "Good morning" am I supposed to delete that, too?

No. Non-inflammatory, friendly posts are fine in moderation and adds congenial dialog to the board. Remember that a defining trait of a good Moderator is their ability to maintain a high signal:noise ratio.

What if someone is bashing the same topic over and over again? I think this is spam and should be deleted!

"Topics" are not considered spam. Lead by example and debate the information contained in the posts. As long as there are no TOS violations, the messages need to stay on the board. If you would like a User’s posts reviewed because they are predominantly simply posting about things other than the company, please send IHub Admin a private message with links asking for an evaluation.

This Poster is always posting in either bold or CAPS and I find it very annoying. He doesn't need to YELL at us. Can't his posts be deleted?

No, neither bold or caps violate the TOS. Keep in mind, many people have vision difficulties and find larger, bolder print easier to read. In any event, everyone has the option to put him on ignore if they don't want to read his messages.

Another Assistant always deletes other Mods’ posts! We are also Mods and know the rules. I don’t think he should do this without at least talking to us first.

It's understood that there is a certain protocol among moderating teams. However; a situation of this nature has a much larger underlying problem of either Mods posting TOS violations or Mods removing posts that don't violate the rules. If the messages violate the TOS, then they should be removed whether it is discussed among the Mods or not. As a Moderator, if you disagree with another Mod's decision when deleting a post, then please hit the Report TOS link at the bottom of the message and state something like "I'm a Mod and don't think this is a TOS violation" and Admin will decide. Moderators should not get into a "war" of deleting/restoring messages. It should be brought to Admin's attention either via the Report TOS link as described above on in a PM to iHAdmin.

This guy has been attacking the company I invest in for 3 years now. I have just taken over the Mod spot and I have a responsibility to defend our investment from people posting this garbage about the company.

Moderators have the same recourse available as any other user when they disagree with the views and comments of other users; respond to the content of the post, or ignore it. In any event, Moderator's should not use their moderator duties and privileges to support any specific position in regard to the company. The guidelines are blind to investment sentiment whether positive, neutral or negative.

I received an email from the IR lady at the company asking me to remove certain posts from the board. I don't think they violate the Moderator Guidelines but she said it was best for the company if this information was not posted on the board. Can I remove them?

The companies discussed on iHub have no standing whatsoever regarding the content on the boards. All opinions are welcome on our boards irrespective of whether they are bullish, bearish, or neutral. The only reason a post should ever be removed by a Moderator is because it violates the TOS.

A Member thinks it is hilarious to post "News" and then go down a couple of spaces and type something like "gotcha". I (and others) find this very annoying. Can I delete these posts?

Yes, they are "off topic", "noise" posts and qualify for removal.

People are coming to our board to attack our company because one of our "longs" says negative things on their board. I think I should delete their posts because they don't care about the company, they are just trying to retaliate against this other User.

Speculation about other’s motives for posting on your board is an exercise in futility as it has no bearing on enforcement of the TOS. There are no requirements in order to post on a stock board other than abiding by the rules of the site. Your conjecture on why the person is posting on your board could be true, but it also may not be. The bottom line is "why" someone posts on the board has no relevance to the exercise of Moderator duties and privileges and should not be part of the dialog or the basis for any Moderator actions. Each user determines for them self the veracity of information they read and the credibility of other Members who post it.

One guy can't post on the board without calling the company a "POS". I think this is vulgar and his posts should be deleted.

The PG13 rule is loosely used as a guideline to what is/isn't acceptable when determining whether a comment is vulgar. The theory is that if society has deemed it appropriate for a 13 year old to hear, it is unlikely that it will be offensive to the majority of Users. This acronym would be considered appropriate in a PG13 movie.

I don't understand why calling the CEO of our company a liar is not considered a personal attack.

The Terms of Use prohibitions of personal attacks covers content about Posters on our site. Members are welcome to post their opinion (positive, negative or neutral) about public figures associated with the company and this is not considered a TOS violation.

The CEO of the company is a Member of iHub. I don't understand why I can't remove posts that discuss her as being "off topic" (discussing other Members) or "personal attack" when others say her business practices are shady.

Discussion of public figures associated with a company is appropriate dialog for our stock boards. If one of the principals of the company chooses to post on our site, they do not have the same level of immunity under the "personal attack" provision in the Terms of Use. The bottom line and rule of thumb when it comes to "personal attacks" is that iHub Users are protected from them but officers of the companies being discussed are not, even if they are Members. However; Posters should still be civil and express their views in a manner that is appropriate for a public forum.

This Poster is making libelous claims against our company and its officers! Why can't I remove these posts?

Moderators and Site Admins do not determine that Member posted content is libelous. Users are often of the opinion that a post is libelous, but no Moderator should act based on that opinion. Libel is decided by a judge in a court of law after conducting proper evidentiary hearings. If such a judgment is issued by a court of competent jurisdiction accompanied by an order that such content is to be taken down, iHub will take the matter under advisement. (Note: Interactive computer services such as iHub are immunized from declaratory relief orders, including injunctions. See: See Medytox Solutions, Inc. v. Investorshub.com, Inc., 152 So. 3d 727 (Fla. 4th DCA 2014, Rev. Denied) Otherwise, it is not a matter that Site Admin or Mods can decide. Our only role here is to ensure adherence to the Terms of Use. Anecdotally, quite often the information that some Members allege to be libelous ends up being accurate, which is why neither Site Admins nor Moderators remove posts on the basis of being allegedly false or libelous.

A User is posting "insider information".

This is a matter for a regulatory agency (i.e. SEC, DOJ) to decide, not Site Admins or Moderators. Our only role here is to ensure adherence to the Terms of Use.

This Poster has received shares from the company to promote their stock. S/he hasn't disclosed this and I think every post should state this.

If the Member has in fact been compensated for promoting the company, you may be correct that s/he is required to make disclosure. However; this is a matter for a regulatory agency (i.e. SEC, DOJ) to decide, not Site Admins or Moderators. Our only role here is to ensure adherence to the Terms of Use.

This guy is just being annoying! What can I do?!

Being "annoying" is not a TOS violation and is very subjective. If his/her posts don't violate the TOS, please don't remove them. If you want a review of a Member's posts, please send links and a short message detailing how you feel the Member continually violates the TOS to IH Admin.

This person lost money here and is very bitter. All he ever posts is negative stuff about the company and the "longs" are sick of it.

Members are allowed to post on the board(s) of their choice as long as they stay within the Terms of Use. Being positive or negative about a company is not a requirement for any Free Zone boards and messages should not be removed on this basis.

This guy is just posting lies; the stuff he says about the company is NOT true. Why can't I delete those posts?

As a Moderator, your role is to enforce the Terms of Use, not make decisions about the veracity of the information posted. "Truth" is a very subjective term and neither Site Admin nor Mods remove posts based on judgments of this type. Each reader has both the right and obligation to decide for themselves if they feel a post is accurate and its author credible. Additionally, it would be an impossible task for any of us to try to verify as "truthful" the 50,000 posts on the site each day. Again, our only focus, as Site Administrators or Moderators, is adherence to the Terms of Use.

As a participant on the board, the Moderators' recourse is the same as any other Member; to debate the information contained in the post without attacking the User, or to ignore it. Debate the message, don't attack the messenger.

Someone posted they have information to share but will only do so by email. Is that allowed?

They can say that have some new information and are welcome to share it on the board. They cannot offer to share it by other means, as that is a solicitation and off-topic. If other readers choose to express an interest, they can elect to send a PM if they are a premium Member or an email if the author has placed their email address in their profile. However; discussion on the board of having information but not sharing it or offering to share it by other means is not allowed. The same applies to posting email addresses to request the information. These are discussion boards, not billboards or classified ads.

How far back to do we have to have "old news" discussed about this company? I'm sick of this woman posting about the reverse split that happened two years ago.

Historical information about a company's business practices is considered relevant, on-topic discussion for the board. Many feel that past actions will be indicative of future decisions and discuss this as part of their due diligence.

This guy is bringing up my older messages to show everyone that I was positive a month ago, but changed my mind, and am now negative. Is that allowed?

Posts with quotes from and/or links to older messages may be removed when the context of the message is ultimately about another user.

For example, there is rarely a legitimate on-topic reason to reply to a post months or years later asking "so what do you think now?"; That makes the post about the other User not about the company.

Occasionally, someone may reply to or cite an older post for reference information about the company. For example, "the PPS was .002 in January 2012."; That may be an acceptable use if the context is being used as a reference to what was occurring with the company/stock during that time rather than what the other user was thinking at the time.

Again, the context of how it is being used presently is what matters.

A threat was made on the board, how should I handle this?

Threats or messages about physical violence are taken very seriously and Site Admins should be notified in the event this occurs. Please immediately remove the message and send a PM to IH Admin or submit a TOS Report.

Can someone post what was said in a private message if they don't actually copy/paste it?

No. Private messages are just that…"private". Public discussion of the content is inappropriate and violates the site's rules.

Help! There are a few people arguing on the board and I can't delete the posts fast enough.

If you've tried sending a private message, if you are a Subscriber, or posting a polite note on the board (i.e. "time to get back to discussing XYZZ"), then sending a PM to IH Admin or posting on the Q&A Board will likely elicit the quickest response.

This guy never backs up anything he says with proof. We continuously ask for links and he never replies.

Members do not have to provide "proof" when offering their opinions. There is no requirement for Users to substantiate their posts. Veracity of posts and credibility of the author is determined by the reader.

This one lady never uses "IMO" (In My Opinion) – she states everything as if it's fact and it's not!

It is understood that all posts on the site are to be considered opinions. They do not need to indicate this in their posts.

Two of these guys always post to each other in another language. Should I remove these?

Any messages not in English should also include a translation. If it does not, the post can be removed as Off Topic. If you cannot send a private message to the User(s) indicating this, please send a message to IH Admin.

This one guy always changes people's aliases usually to something derogatory. The rest of the post is on topic but this just causes problems.

Users should use the correct alias when addressing another User.

Why are posts that contains press releases or links to the IR site being removed?

Chances are that the press release, a link contained in the press release, or a site linked to in the post or press release contain content that violates iHub's Terms of Service (TOS). More often than not the content personally attacks specific iHub users or violates iHub Users privacy. The originators do not trump the iHub rules of conduct, even if it is in a published press release or filing. Quoting or linking to such content as a proxy to to violate iHub's rules could subject the User to administrative sanctions. If issuers (and Members) do not want content removed from iHub the burden is upon them to ensure that it complies with iHub's rules.

One Member posted "fake" news from the company making it look like it was a new PR. None of the wire services, Google nor the company show this news. Can I delete that post?

An intentionally falsified press release with the usual wire service type markings would typically be considered a violation and should be removed. If there is any doubt it can be TOS'd or reported to IH Admin via PM.

One User posted a PR but changed the wording in the news to make it say something completely different. Can I delete that post?

Yes, wire service press releases that have been intentionally altered may be removed. However; posting excerpts or partial press releases do not count as being altered and should not be removed unless the post contains other content that violates the site's rules.

Deletions by Others

I sometimes see deletions by Admin or Mod Squad on the board I moderate but I don’t understand why they were removed. Or why other posts weren’t also?

Site Admins are made aware of posts that violate the TOS through various ways. If you see a random deletion on your board, it most likely came up on the TOS Report. When a Poster uses the "Report TOS Violation" link at the bottom of each post it goes to a report that is reviewed regularly throughout the day. If it isn’t obvious (from this post) that there is a larger issue, the post on the report is evaluated without further review of the board.

Another common cause of post removal is violation of spam rules (posting the same or similar message on more than two boards). Site Admins have many tools to detect this in addition to the TOS Report. It is also often reported on the Question and Answer board and a member of the Mod Squad many times will remove these posts from all boards. Don’t make the assumption that if there is a deletion by an Admin or Mod Squad on your board, that all the surrounding posts were also checked and deemed "ok". Seeing a deletion by Admin or MS is in no way a reflection of other posts. If there are others that violate the TOS, please remove them. Also, please feel free to ask the person who deleted the post the reason. If it was Mod Squad, please send a PM to IHubAdmin.

Additionally, all Users should understand that not all posts are removed by board Moderators or the Mod Squad. Site Admins do (very frequently) remove posts for numerous reasons, many of which are unrelated to the content of the posts (multiple alias, etc.).

It is inappropriate (and considered off-topic) to engage in a public debate on the board regarding the appropriateness of a deleted posts. Take it up with an Admin.

When I’m viewing deletions, what does it mean if it doesn’t show who removed the message?

This was an account that was terminated (most likely as a multiple alias) and all posts were automatically removed.

Another Assistant on the board keeps undermining the rest of us by telling the Posters he didn't delete the message...

... and saying who did delete it. I don't have any problem talking about my deletions or explaining why other Mods deleted something. But, this just seems like he's trying to "point fingers" at the rest of us.

It's likely this is a new or inexperienced Mod who hasn't been exposed to the dynamics of the moderating team previously. If you find this occurring, please let Admin know. We will advise the Mod that any questions he/she is uncomfortable answering regarding deletions should be directed to a Site Admin. It is important that Moderators extend the courtesy of professionalism and exhibit camaraderie when performing their moderator role, including when their individual investment sentiments run contrary to one another.

Another Assistant and I disagree about whether a post should be deleted? He's deleted it and I've restored it 7 times now. What should I do?

In the event that there is a disagreement, please don’t tussle over the post. Please send a PM to Admin or post a note on the Q&A board and either an Admin or Mod Squad will make the decision.

I disagree with some of the deletions the Moderator (or one of the other Assistants) makes. I usually restore them but should I do anything else?

Yes, if you feel you are continually reversing decisions by a specific Mod, please send IHubAdmin a private message with links to some of the posts.

I'm confused, sometimes Admin deletes messages asking another User how many shares they have and sometimes the same kind of message isn't removed?

With 50k+ messages on the site each day, Admin reviews the messages brought to our attention via the Report TOS Violation link at the bottom of each message. Please don't make the assumption that if a post is not removed, it has been reviewed by Admin and deemed "appropriate".

Posts of this nature are a bit of a judgment call. If the message is presented in a friendly, conversational manner, then we favor leaving the message. However, if it's phrased in a disparaging or demeaning way, it should be removed. No matter how the message is presented, if it's received unfavorably (i.e. "none of your business") then both should be deleted. We understand this is a bit ambiguous, so please feel free to hit the Report TOS button or send us a pm if you're unsure.

Related Pages

Investors Hub Moderator & User Handbook