0. The first line of moderation should not be the instance admin. Each user account should be able to moderate mentions of their ID, or replies to their comments.

1. The top poster of a comment thread should be able to moderate all reply comments under that thread.

2. Instance admins should only delete posts that are clearly designed to offend, hurt, or viciously attack, bully, harass, gaslight, annoy etc. but should never delete a post simply on ideological grounds or heated but honest disagreement or debate. Telling the difference is very simple in almost all cases: tone and mindless repetition being the biggest giveaways of the respondent's intent. If it becomes an unwanted or unproductive argument the top poster should be able to quash replies.

3. Users should be able to click a button to block and entire thread regardless of who posts to it.

These things are not a major problem for me since I'm on a simple instance and I can add users to my personal blacklist via CLI. It would be nice to see this kind of stuff as standard, basic button functions in activitypub and fediverse since not everyone wants to run an instance and use CLI scripts to moderate.

#mastodon #fediverse #moderation #postDeletion #activitypub #social

Actually, here’s what I really think is lacking: a hide post moderation option in Mastodon.

Instead of deleting posts, moderators should be able to hide posts.

Posts that are hidden by moderators should keep their place in the timeline but state publicly that they were hidden by moderators.

(Servers other than the originating server must treat hidden posts as otherwise deleted and remove their local cache of the content. This is no different to the existing social contact for federated deletes.)

The server should also clearly communicate to the person in question (this can be automated) that their post has been hidden and that they can challenge the decision via regular channels by filing an appeal. (And, if they don’t like the moderation, they can move to a different server, etc., as per usual.)

That would feel much better to me than deleting a post outright and it can be combined with a moderation policy that promises not to delete or edit other people’s posts.

It would also allow for an appeal process and the possible reinstatement of a post should it be found that a moderation error has occurred.

CC @staff @haubles

#mastodon #moderation #fediverse #postDeletion #postHiding #authorship #censorship #ownership

Right, fediverse, let me know what you think. Long-form comments also welcome.

Mastodon instance moderators should…

#mastodon #fediverse #moderation #postDeletion

RE: https://veganism.social/@Geri/116537676967800066

Folks, just a quick warning: If you’re against Israel’s genocide in Gaza, avoid mastodon.online.

They deleted two of Geri’s posts.

Geri is a wonderful activist and an inspiration from the UK who has braved arrest to shine a light on Israel’s ongoing genocide of the Palestinian people.

Do give her a follow on her new account as she lost quite a few followers during the migration.

Also, to our friends in Gaza, please don’t create accounts on this server.

#mastodon #fediverse #moderation #censorship #mastodonOnline #israel #genocide #ethnicCleansing #apartheid #settlerColonialism #Gaza #GazaVerified #StopIsrael #FreePalestine

Totts (new instance) » 🌐 2026-05-08 / 2026-05-08
@Geri@veganism.social

@aral @david_chisnall mastodon.online - they were criticisms of the the media not mentioning the Muslim being stabbed at that event and thereby framing it exclusively as antisemitism. But hey ho.

I emphasised the abhorrent nature of AS in my post but concluded how further posts may be viewed

Yesterday, we attended the Barclays Annual General Meeting and made a nuisance of ourselves

https://www.instagram.com/stories/palestinesolidarityuk/3891812423648727454?utm_source=ig_story_item_share&igsh=MXgxNGtteTg1bWEzNQ==

is there any "code of conduct / use Protocol" out there ? (that serialise rules a bit like CC does with picto > articles with modularity) ... could it be used to help on federation mod ? (and also to ease users choose a server more easily than reading a long list of text on each) #moderation #mastodon #activitypub

' #Greece to ban #anonymity on #socialMedia

"The major problem behind anonymity is toxicity," argues digital governance minister'

They are correct: anonymity is a vector for #trolls, #harassment, #bigotry, and other antisocial behavior

So the solution is #moderation

The solution is not driving vulnerable people off social media

Greek government: you ignoramuses

Also I wonder how the fuck they will implement this

https://www.euractiv.com/news/greece-to-ban-anonymity-on-social-media/

#Ελλάδα #Hellas #Europe

Alt...

Greece to ban anonymity on social media "The major problem behind anonymity is toxicity," argues digital governance minister Politics Sarantis Michalopoulos Euractiv [Photo by Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images]

@AngelaScholder So, Karen, just so you understand the consequences of your actions:

Because you reported this post (https://mastodon.energy/@AngelaScholder/116397038832441549) by @joynewacc for an erroneously autocompleted hashtag (#doctor -> #doctorWho), a mastodon.social moderator *deleted her post*.

Yes, read that again: the post of a Palestinian, suffering through genocide in Gaza and trying to share her experience – someone who is, moreover, a founding team member of Gaza Verified (https://gaza-verified.org/team/) – was *deleted* for a stupid hashtag that some white Karen in the West got distressed about.

This is so fucking wrong in so many ways that I don’t know where to begin.

I want to know:

1. Is it mastodon.social policy to just go ahead and delete the posts of its members or was this a moderator acting out of spite against a Palestinian? (Or is everyone on mastodon.social at risk of having their posts deleted if moderators don’t agree with the hashtags they use?)

2. If this is not mastodon.social policy, I’d like to know what action will be taken regarding this moderation action and the moderator responsible and what will change internally to ensure that something like this doesn’t happen again.

Israel is already doing their best to erase Palestinians. The least we can do is to not help them by literally deleting the posts of Palestinians on the fediverse. Thank goodness hashtags weren’t a thing in the days of Anne Frank because clearly some of you would have burned her diary had she used the wrong one by mistake.

3. Can we all, please, have some fucking basic decency and maintain perspective when dealing with people suffering through genocide, ethnic cleansing, and apartheid? It’s a pretty low bar for humanity.

And, whatever you do, do not be this Karen.

Check your bloody privilege.

And fuck your hashtag.

We’re talking about human lives here.

CC @staff

#Gaza #Palestine #mastodon #fediverse #moderation #mastodonSocial #genocide #ethnicCleansing #apartheid #settlerColonialism

Alt...

Screenshot of email Joy received from mastodon.social alerting her that her post has been deleted by a mastodon.social moderator for using a “wrong hashtag”.

Meta will remove end-to-end encryption from Instagram DMs on May 8, restoring its ability to scan message content for moderation and legal compliance 🔍.

Privacy advocates warn the shift marks a retreat from private messaging, while Meta cites user safety and fraud prevention as justification 🔒.

🔗 https://fortune.com/2026/03/17/tiktok-meta-no-privacy-controls-why-explainer/

#TechNews #Meta #Instagram #Privacy #Encryption #Security #Data #Safety #AI #Moderation #Compliance #SocialMedia #UserRights #Transparency #DigitalPolicy

RE: https://mastodon.iftas.org/@iftas/115935141876594875

Which servers need moderators? #askfedi #moderation #fedimods #mastomods I want to know where people can volunteer their time to help reduce the burden.

IFTAS boosted

IFTAS » 🤖 🌐 2026-01-21 / 2026-01-21
@iftas@mastodon.iftas.org

Who moderates the social web?

In the second post of our 2025 report series, we look at the people behind the work, their roles, experience, and how many are burning out.

Now with three years of data, we’re also looking at trends.

https://about.iftas.org/2026/01/21/behind-the-numbers-who-moderates-the-social-web/

#TrustAndSafety #Moderation #FediMods #MastoMods

Who moderates the social web?

In the second post of our 2025 report series, we look at the people behind the work, their roles, experience, and how many are burning out.

Now with three years of data, we’re also looking at trends.

https://about.iftas.org/2026/01/21/behind-the-numbers-who-moderates-the-social-web/

#TrustAndSafety #Moderation #FediMods #MastoMods

The 2025 Social Web Trust & Safety Needs Assessment Report is now available.

Volunteer moderators are burning out. Spam is rising. Legal threats are growing.

The 2025 Report reveals where things stand, and what must change.

Read it now: https://about.iftas.org/2026/01/08/the-2025-social-web-trust-safety-report-is-here/

#TrustAndSafety #Moderation #FediAdmin #MastoAdmin #Moderators #FediMods #MastoMods

Over on #Bluesky there was a bit of a controversy over the suspension of Sarah Kendzior. I thought it was an interestingly nontrivial moderation problem, so I wrote up a little case study on how this would have been handled on Mastodon: https://www.tbray.org/ongoing/When/202x/2025/11/13/Kendzior-Case-Study

#moderation

@CStamp @Pineywoozle

"Have a minimal number of rules to keep things easy, but be firm about enforcing them"

corporate centralized #socialMedia:

"but doesn't #moderation cost money? also, outrage means more eyeballs which means more engagement which means more ad revenue. so we're keeping the #bigotry"

Moderation. It’s a roller coaster.

Today, a (literal) nazi opened an account and began harassing people. We received ~80 reports within minutes. That may be a record.

We suspended the account, of course. But not before a lot of people yelled at us. For the record, this is not preventable when registration is open. We can only react. So be nice.

My gratitude and love for the person behind this report. It made me chuckle. 🫶🏻

🧵 1/4

#Moderation #Mastodon #MasTo #BeKind #PunchANazi #FediAdmin

Alt...

Screenshot of a report from vermont dot masto dot host that reads “here’s your chance to punch a nazi today.”

“We also do our best to keep track of various campaigns and differentiate ‘real or scam’, to the degree that we are able. For campaigns that are identified as scams, we do our best to research and prevent that traffic from coming to Hachyderm …

We also recognize that there are legitimate campaigns. One relatively new effort is the Gaza Verified project. I (Quintessence) spoke to Aral to ask questions and generally understand the process, and am comfortable confirming that 1 ) Aral is a real person who is doing the work he states and 2 ) that the people that are being listed on Gaza Verified are confirmed with in-person verification with the network that he and Joy are building. To be overclear: the work is being done, and being done the way it is being communicated.

In-person verification is slow work, as it requires each new contact to be verified by an existing contact. They also take the time to attempt to onboard people who mostly are unfamiliar with the technology we take for granted, and therefore both do not have prior exposure to cultural norms and also due to suffering, do not have a lot of mental bandwidth to ‘just learn it’.”

https://community.hachyderm.io/blog/2025/10/27/a-minute-from-the-moderators/

A big thank-you to @quintessence not only for this lovely article (that goes into mental health tools to protect yourself online and which you should read in its entirety if you can) but for standing by our friends families in Gaza and for making Hachyderm.io a safe server on the fediverse (https://gaza-verified.org/guide/#servers) for people being forced to endure genocide and famine in Gaza.

💕

#Hachyderm #Gaza #Palestine #GazaVerified #allies #Mastodon #fediverse #moderation #mentalHealth

@anthropy @BlurTheFur interestingly I've seen a lot of aggressive #SingleUserInstances using @yunohost to circumvent or avoid #moderation.

Y’all. This is a known spammer who is picking up momentum. We’re seeing LOTS of accounts using the same name and avatar. But the bio varies from instance to instance. And a minority of them don’t have an avatar, but still use the name.

If you see these accounts, please report them. We’re trying to wipe them out, but we can’t until we know about them.

Thanks for the teamwork! 🤝

#Spam #JimmyTruth #Teamwork #Moderation

Alt...

Screenshot of a Mastodon avatar, name, and handle. The name is Jimmy Truth. The avatar is a young white male, with a long buzz cut, wearing a white tank top.

Anyone out there who would want to chat about moderation and moderation tools? I am especially interested in how larger instances currently handle reports. Are there external tools used? How is the work organized? What safeguards are in place for the folks doing the work? I know that I don't know every dogwhistle out there, how do folks handle reports where they don't quite understand?

Very happy to read any materials sent over.

#moderation #moderationtooling #fediadmins #trustandsafety