Misuse of the Reporting Feature

Overview

The reporting feature exists to help keep Buy Nothing communities safe and aligned with the Community Commitment and Terms of Service. Reports are intended for genuine concerns and policy violations.

Appropriate Use of the Reports Feature

Reports should be submitted only for issues such as:

• Scams or fraud
• Harassment or threats
• Illegal or prohibited items
• Serious violations of community standards

The Buy Nothing Project relies on reports to identify and address these issues efficiently.

Repeated or Incorrect Reporting

Submitting repeated reports about posts that are compliant and legitimate may be considered misuse of the reporting feature. When reporting activity places an undue burden on the volunteer review team, corrective action may be taken.

This can include:

• Warnings about report misuse
• Temporary restrictions
• Account removal in cases of persistent misuse

About Global Posts

Global posts are permitted within the Buy Nothing app.

If global posts are not desired in the feed, they can be filtered out by selecting Local Only at the top of the feed. Filtering is the appropriate tool for managing visibility preferences, rather than reporting compliant content.

Community Responsibility

The reporting system works best when used thoughtfully and responsibly. Accurate reporting helps ensure timely responses to real safety concerns and protects the overall health of the community.

Summary

The reports feature is reserved for genuine violations of community standards. Repeatedly reporting compliant posts may result in corrective action. Feed preferences—such as filtering out global posts—should be managed using in-app controls rather than reporting tools.