Moderation

1. HOW ENFORCEMENT WORKS

Socipic violations are divided into two general categories:

Community Violations

Community Violations involve conduct toward other users or the Socipic community as a whole.

These violations may result in restrictions or bans from the entire Socipic Service, including games, profiles, blogs, comments, messaging, shops, community areas, and other features.

Game-Related Violations

Game-Related Violations concern competitive integrity or participation in Socipic games.

These violations may result in:

• warnings;
• removal from a game;
• temporary restrictions from joining games;
• ranked or competitive-game restrictions;
• forfeiture of prizes or rewards;
• removal of wins, placements, statistics, or achievements;
• temporary site bans in serious cases; or
• permanent bans in cases involving severe or repeated cheating.

A Game-Related Violation does not automatically mean a player will lose access to the entire Socipic community.

2. GENERAL ENFORCEMENT PRINCIPLES

The penalty tables below are guidelines rather than guarantees.

Moderators may increase, reduce, combine, or otherwise adjust penalties based on factors including:

• severity;
• intent;
• repetition;
• harm caused;
• previous violations;
• attempts to conceal misconduct;
• cooperation with moderation;
• whether multiple rules were violated;
• whether vulnerable users were targeted;
• whether misconduct affected a game outcome; and
• whether the conduct presents a safety or legal concern.

Extremely serious conduct may result in an immediate permanent ban regardless of previous history.

Multiple violations arising from the same incident may be enforced separately where appropriate.

3. VIOLATION RECORDS

Unless otherwise stated, a violation remains active on a user's moderation record for three months from the date the violation was issued.

Once that period has passed without another violation of the same type, a later violation may ordinarily be treated as a first offense again.

Severe violations, permanent bans, cheating history, safety incidents, ban evasion, and other serious moderation records may be retained for longer periods where necessary for site safety and enforcement.

Expiration of an active violation does not require Socipic to erase the underlying moderation record.

COMMUNITY VIOLATIONS

4. PERSONAL ATTACKS & HARASSMENT

Harassment means deliberately and repeatedly targeting, antagonizing, intimidating, humiliating, or abusing another user beyond ordinary gameplay.

Examples include:

• repeatedly following a user into public spaces for the purpose of attacking them;
• sustained personal insults unrelated to gameplay;
• repeatedly contacting someone who is attempting to disengage;
• encouraging other users to collectively harass someone;
• deliberately targeting a user across multiple games for personal reasons rather than legitimate strategy;
• using profiles, blogs, messages, shops, or game spaces to sustain a harassment campaign;
• threatening or attempting to socially isolate someone from the wider community;
• repeatedly provoking a specific user solely to obtain an emotional reaction.

A user does not necessarily need to say “stop” before behavior may qualify as harassment.

What is not automatically harassment

The following are generally allowed when done as part of legitimate gameplay:

• nominating someone;
• repeatedly voting against someone;
• targeting a strong competitor;
• betraying an alliance;
• lying about another player's game actions;
• campaigning for someone's elimination;
• forming a group against another player;
• refusing to work with someone;
• targeting someone across games because of their reputation as a strong player.

Strategic conduct becomes a moderation issue when it crosses into sustained personal abuse or harassment outside legitimate gameplay.

5. INTOLERANCE & HATEFUL CONDUCT

Discrimination, degrading conduct, or hateful expression based on protected or personal characteristics is prohibited.

This includes, but is not limited to:

• racism;
• antisemitism;
• homophobia;
• transphobia;
• misogyny;
• religious discrimination;
• xenophobia;
• ableism;
• discrimination based on nationality or ethnicity;
• hateful attacks based on gender identity or sexual orientation; and
• other comparable forms of bigotry.

Prohibited behavior may include:

• slurs;
• bypassing slur filters;
• hateful stereotypes;
• degrading statements about protected groups;
• encouraging discrimination;
• glorification of violence against protected groups;
• denial or celebration of genocide or comparable mass atrocities; and
• using coded or altered language to evade moderation.

Claiming that a slur is a joke, quoting someone else, attempting to “reclaim” a term, or belonging to the affected group does not automatically exempt its use from moderation.

Context and severity will be considered.

Severe hateful conduct may result in an immediate permanent ban.

6. SEXUAL & ADULT CONTENT

Because Socipic permits users who are under 18, sexually explicit or otherwise adult-only material is prohibited.

Users may not post, upload, link to, distribute, or deliberately direct other users toward:

• pornography;
• graphic sexual images or videos;
• explicit descriptions of sexual activity;
• sexually explicit roleplay;
• sexual solicitation;
• fetish content intended primarily for sexual gratification;
• graphic nudity;
• shock pornography;
• gore or graphic real-world violence;
• websites primarily hosting prohibited adult material.

Sexual content involving or directed toward minors is strictly prohibited and may result in immediate permanent removal and reports to appropriate authorities.

Mild sexual humor or mature discussion may be moderated based on context, frequency, audience, and severity.

Severe content may result in an immediate permanent ban.

7. INSTIGATION & DISRUPTIVE CONDUCT

Users may not deliberately manufacture, escalate, or prolong community conflict primarily for disruption or entertainment at the expense of others.

Examples may include:

• repeatedly baiting users into arguments;
• concern trolling;
• deliberately spreading inflammatory claims to provoke conflict;
• organizing harassment or dogpiling;
• repeatedly creating drama threads about the same interpersonal conflict;
• spam intended to disrupt discussion;
• encouraging users to continue an escalating personal dispute;
• deliberately misrepresenting moderation decisions to provoke hostility.

Political disagreement, game arguments, trash talk, rivalry, campaigning, and ordinary interpersonal conflict are not automatically violations.

Moderation will consider whether the primary purpose of the conduct appears to be disruption rather than participation.

8. HAZING & NEW-USER TARGETING

Users may not mistreat another person solely because they are new to Socipic.

Examples include:

• deliberately providing false rules to new users in order to get them punished;
• repeatedly accusing new users of being alternate accounts without reasonable basis;
• organizing harassment against new users;
• intentionally misleading new players about how the site works for the purpose of humiliating them;
• encouraging users to exclude someone solely because their account is new.

This rule does not prohibit strategic suspicion of a new account, including reasonable concern that an account may belong to an experienced player, banned player, or alternate account.

Voting against or eliminating a new player is not itself hazing.

9. OUTING PERSONAL INFORMATION / DOXXING

Users may not reveal, threaten to reveal, solicit, or distribute another person's private or identifying information without permission.

This may include:

• legal names not publicly disclosed by the user;
• home addresses;
• school or workplace information;
• private phone numbers;
• private email addresses;
• precise locations;
• identifying family information;
• private photographs;
• financial information;
• passwords or account credentials;
• information intended to identify an otherwise pseudonymous user.

Information voluntarily and clearly made public by the individual may be treated differently depending on context.

Using personal information to threaten, intimidate, stalk, or endanger someone will be treated especially seriously.

10. COERCION, BLACKMAIL & OFF-SITE THREATS

You may not threaten, pressure, blackmail, or extort another user in order to influence their actions on Socipic.

This includes threatening:

• to release personal information;
• to contact someone's family, school, employer, or friends;
• to damage someone's real-world reputation;
• to expose private messages or photographs;
• real-world retaliation;
• unlawful conduct.

Strategic pressure is allowed

Normal game-related pressure is not coercion.

For example, players may say:

• “Vote with me or I will nominate you next round.”
• “If you betray me, I will vote you out.”
• “Give me safety and I'll protect you.”
• “If you eliminate my ally, I'm coming after you.”
• “Vote for me in the final or I won't work with you next game.”

Threats involving legitimate in-game actions are normal strategy.

The rule applies when leverage extends into inappropriate real-world or off-site consequences.

Serious blackmail or threats may result in an immediate permanent ban.

11. IMPERSONATION

Users may not maliciously impersonate another person, user, moderator, administrator, business, or organization.

Examples include:

• creating an account designed to convincingly pose as another user;
• falsely claiming to be Socipic staff;
• fabricating messages and presenting them as authentic;
• using impersonation to frame another user for misconduct;
• pretending to speak officially on behalf of Socipic.

Parody that is clearly identifiable as parody may be permitted.

12. ILLEGAL OR DANGEROUS ACTIVITY

Socipic prohibits content or conduct involving serious unlawful activity or credible threats to the safety of others.

This includes, without limitation:

• child sexual abuse material;
• sexual exploitation of minors;
• grooming or unlawful sexual interactions involving minors;
• credible threats of real-world violence;
• terrorism or violent extremist activity;
• trafficking;
• extortion;
• serious fraud;
• distribution of unlawfully obtained intimate imagery;
• attempts to facilitate serious criminal conduct.

Socipic may preserve and report information to law enforcement or other appropriate authorities where required or reasonably appropriate.

GAME-RELATED VIOLATIONS

Game violations primarily affect participation in Socipic's official, ranked, or competitive games.

Unless otherwise stated, players may receive a warning before receiving a game restriction for lower-level violations.

13. CHEATING & UNFAIR COORDINATION

Players may not obtain an unfair advantage by circumventing intended game mechanics or secretly coordinating in prohibited ways.

Cheating includes:

• entering the same game with multiple accounts;
• using an alternate account to benefit your primary account;
• having another person operate your account during a game;
• accessing another user's account;
• coordinating through unauthorized means where a game specifically requires communication to remain within designated channels;
• using administrator, developer, or hidden technical information to gain an advantage;
• manipulating votes, polls, challenges, or game results through automation;
• falsifying technical evidence;
• bribing users with real-world money or prohibited compensation;
• arranging game outcomes through prohibited pre-game coordination;
• exploiting information you could not reasonably possess through normal gameplay.

Charity Games, Milestone Games & Predetermined Wins

Organizing, arranging, or participating in a game with the intention of giving a specific player a predetermined win is prohibited.

This includes so-called "charity games," "milestone games," or similar arrangements where players join with the understanding that a particular user is supposed to win, place highly, or receive Fame, Fortune, statistics, achievements, or other competitive benefits.

Such arrangements are considered an abuse of Socipic's intended game mechanics because official games are intended to be genuinely contested rather than used to manufacture predetermined results.

Prohibited conduct includes:

• arranging in advance for a specific player to win;
• joining a game primarily to help deliver a predetermined victory;
• intentionally sacrificing your placement because another player has been designated as the intended winner;
• coordinating nominations, votes, challenge results, or eliminations to guarantee a predetermined outcome;
• filling game slots with players whose purpose is to support a designated winner; or
• using an official game to manufacture wins, placements, Fame, Fortune, achievements, statistics, or other rewards.

Players may make strategic decisions during a game that benefit another player, including protecting allies or intentionally losing a challenge for strategic reasons. However, those decisions must arise as part of genuine gameplay and may not be used to carry out a prearranged plan to award someone the game.

Official Socipic games must remain genuine competitions. A win may not be organized, gifted, or predetermined.

Pre-existing relationships

Knowing another player, being friends with them, disliking them, having played with them before, or entering a game with an existing reputation or relationship is not automatically cheating.

Socipic games are social games. Existing relationships may naturally influence strategy.

The violation occurs when players engage in prohibited coordination or manipulate a game's outcome outside the intended rules of that game.

Premade Groups & Recurring Alliances

Players may have friends, allies, rivals, and pre-existing relationships on Socipic. However, a recurring group of friends or allies may not enter the same game in numbers large enough to effectively control the cast from the outset.

A recurring group may consist of no more than one fewer than half of the total cast size.

For purposes of this rule, the maximum permitted group size is calculated as:

[half of the cast size, rounded down] minus one player.

Examples:

• 12-player cast -> maximum recurring group of 5
• 16-player cast -> maximum recurring group of 7
• 20-player cast -> maximum recurring group of 9

A group does not need to publicly identify itself as an alliance for this rule to apply. Moderation may consider the overall circumstances, including:

• a consistent history of joining games together;
• recurring alliances or coordinated voting patterns;
• repeated mutual protection across games;
• pre-game planning;
• outside communication or coordination;
• intentionally filling a significant portion of a cast together; and
• other evidence suggesting that a group entered as an established unit.

The purpose of this rule is to prevent large premade groups from entering a game with an immediate numerical advantage that substantially undermines the ability of the remaining cast to compete on reasonably equal footing.

Having friends in the same game is not itself prohibited. The concern is the size, recurrence, and level of coordination of the group.

Determining whether players constitute a recurring or premade group is ultimately subject to Socipic Moderation's reasonable discretion based on the available evidence and surrounding circumstances.

Moderation is not required to establish that every member of a suspected group had a formal agreement or explicitly called themselves an alliance before applying this rule.

Severe organized cheating may result in immediate loss of privileges or a permanent ban.

14. MULTI-ACCOUNTING

Unless Socipic expressly permits otherwise, each person may operate only one account.

Using another account to:

• join the same game;
• vote;
• compete in challenges;
• influence nominations;
• affect public opinion;
• send items or currency;
• increase statistics;
• circumvent game restrictions;
• benefit another controlled account; or
• influence any competition

is prohibited.

Accounts reasonably believed to be unauthorized alternate accounts may be suspended while investigated.

Ban evasion may result in an immediate permanent ban.

15. OUTSIDE-GAME INFORMATION & PROHIBITED EVIDENCE

Social strategy naturally involves information.

Players may discuss:

• previous games;
• reputations;
• alliances;
• public profiles;
• public statistics;
• things another player has publicly said;
• information legitimately obtained during gameplay.

However, players may not use prohibited external methods to prove hidden game information where doing so circumvents the intended game.

Examples may include:

• demanding screenshots as proof of a private role or game state;
• using source code, developer tools, network requests, or technical metadata to determine hidden information;
• obtaining confidential moderator or production information;
• using another person's account to view private game information;
• exploiting private system information unavailable through normal gameplay.

Whether outside communication is allowed between contestants depends on the rules of the particular Socipic game.

16. CHALLENGE INTEGRITY

Players are expected not to interfere improperly with challenges, competitions, or other game mechanics.

Prohibited conduct includes:

• using bots or automation;
• exploiting technical bugs;
• altering game requests or client behavior;
• receiving challenge answers through prohibited external tools or sources where the challenge requires independent completion;
• having another person complete a challenge for you;
• deliberately sabotaging the site's challenge infrastructure;
• interfering with another player's ability to access or complete a challenge through technical means.

Intentionally losing a challenge is allowed

Throwing, losing, or underperforming in a challenge for strategic purposes is permitted unless the rules of that particular challenge expressly state otherwise.

Examples of legitimate strategic challenge throwing include:

• losing to avoid appearing threatening;
• helping an ally win immunity or power;
• attempting to influence team composition;
• avoiding responsibility for a decision;
• manipulating who becomes eligible for elimination;
• pursuing a longer-term strategic advantage.

Socipic does not require players to make the individually optimal move in every challenge.

Strategic decisions that may appear irrational to other players are not by themselves violations.

17. EXPLOIT ABUSE

Users must not knowingly abuse bugs, glitches, unintended mechanics, or vulnerabilities to gain an unfair advantage.

Examples include:

• duplicating items or currency;
• submitting multiple challenge attempts when only one is intended;
• bypassing timers;
• bypassing game eligibility restrictions;
• manipulating voting systems;
• accessing hidden information;
• forcing unintended game states;
• deliberately reproducing a known exploit for competitive benefit.

Players who discover a serious exploit should report it rather than distribute instructions for abusing it.

Accidentally encountering a bug is not a violation.

Continuing to exploit it after becoming aware of the issue may be.

Severe exploitation may result in immediate removal of rewards, statistics, currency, items, or competitive privileges.

18. GAME ABANDONMENT & INACTIVITY

Joining a competitive game carries an expectation that you intend to participate.

Occasional inactivity, emergencies, real-life obligations, or missed rounds are not automatically violations.

However, repeatedly joining games and intentionally abandoning them in a manner that substantially disrupts gameplay may result in restrictions.

Examples include:

• repeatedly joining and immediately going inactive;
• deliberately abandoning a team-based game to sabotage teammates;
• repeatedly entering games with no intention of participating;
• intentionally refusing required actions for the purpose of breaking or stalling a game.

Strategic inactivity is permitted

Players may choose not to:

• campaign;
• compete intensely;
• communicate with particular players;
• use a power;
• cast an optional vote;
• participate aggressively in strategy;

when permitted by the game's mechanics.

Moderation should distinguish strategic inactivity from deliberate disruption.

19. DELIBERATE GAME DISRUPTION

Players may not intentionally interfere with a game for the primary purpose of preventing other users from being able to play it normally.

Examples include:

• repeatedly stalling mandatory actions solely to prevent progress;
• joining games specifically to cause technical or procedural disruption;
• flooding game communication channels to make them unusable;
• abusing mechanics solely to prevent a game from functioning;
• intentionally causing repeated cancellations or invalid game states;
• coordinating mass disruption unrelated to legitimate strategy.

This rule should not be used merely because a player made an unpopular move.

The following are legitimate gameplay and are not automatically disruption:

• blindsides;
• surprise nominations;
• changing alliances;
• lying;
• making fake deals;
• voting against the majority;
• forcing ties;
• intentionally creating strategic deadlocks where allowed;
• targeting popular players;
• refusing to follow an alliance plan;
• eliminating friends;
• betraying teammates where the game permits individual strategy;
• intentionally losing a challenge for strategic benefit.

20. PRE-GAME AGREEMENTS & COLLUSION

ORG-style games naturally involve alliances, friendships, rivalries, and relationships formed across multiple games.

Socipic does not prohibit players from entering games with people they already know.

However, players may not enter games under arrangements designed to predetermine the outcome rather than actually play the game.

Prohibited examples include:

• agreeing before a game that one specific person will win regardless of what happens;
• organizing groups of controlled or coordinated accounts to fill a game;
• exchanging real-world money or compensation for votes or placements;
• agreeing to divide prohibited rewards outside Socipic in exchange for an outcome;
• systematically fixing games for statistics, rankings, currency, or other benefits.

Ordinary statements such as:

• “Let's work together if we end up in the same game.”
• “I always protect my friends.”
• “We should target that player next time.”
• “If we make finals together, I'll vote for you.”

do not alone establish prohibited collusion.

Moderation should require reasonable evidence of improper coordination rather than punishing players merely because they have close relationships.

21. JURY & FINAL VOTING

Unless a particular game's rules provide otherwise, jurors and eliminated players may vote according to whatever criteria they personally choose.

A jury vote may be based on:

• strategy;
• social relationships;
• challenge performance;
• loyalty;
• bitterness;
• friendship;
• rivalry;
• promises;
• personal preference;
• respect;
• revenge within the game;
• or any combination of factors.

Socipic does not moderate whether a jury vote was “fair,” “bitter,” “strategic,” or “deserved.”

However, jury votes may not be obtained through:

• real-world threats;
• prohibited bribery;
• blackmail;
• multi-accounting;
• technical manipulation;
• account sharing;
• prohibited coercion; or
• other violations of these Rules.

22. STRATEGY IS NOT A RULE VIOLATION

Socipic games are built around social competition.

The following conduct is generally legitimate gameplay:

• lying;
• bluffing;
• fake alliances;
• breaking promises;
• blindsiding;
• betraying allies;
• targeting friends;
• voting emotionally;
• voting strategically;
• changing targets;
• creating secret alliances;
• making final deals;
• exposing another player's game;
• campaigning;
• throwing challenges strategically;
• deliberately appearing weaker than you are;
• working with someone you previously targeted;
• refusing to save an ally;
• forcing ties where permitted;
• voting for someone because of a previous game;
• taking revenge through legitimate game actions;
• manipulating other players through in-game promises or deception.

Moderators will not punish players simply for being deceptive, ruthless, unpopular, emotional, disloyal, or strategically aggressive.

The distinction is simple:

You may manipulate the game. You may not cheat the system, abuse the community, or threaten the person behind the player.

23. MODERATOR DISCRETION

No rules document can anticipate every situation.

Socipic moderators may take action against conduct that clearly undermines community safety, site security, or competitive integrity even where the exact conduct is not specifically listed above.

Moderators should apply these Rules reasonably and consistently while considering:

• context;
• intent;
• evidence;
• severity;
• gameplay norms;
• legitimate strategic purpose; and
• the difference between player-versus-player competition and person-versus-person abuse.

Moderation decisions are not precedent requiring identical outcomes in every future situation.

24. BAN EVASION

You may not circumvent:

• temporary bans;
• permanent bans;
• game restrictions;
• chat restrictions;
• account restrictions;
• competitive suspensions;
• or other moderation actions

by creating or using another account or by using another person's account.

Knowingly allowing a banned user to use your account may also result in enforcement against your account.

Ban evasion may reset or increase an existing suspension.

Repeated or deliberate ban evasion may result in a permanent ban.

25. APPEALS

Users may appeal moderation actions through [APPEAL METHOD/LINK].

An appeal should explain why the user believes:

• the rule was incorrectly applied;
• relevant evidence was misunderstood;
• the account was incorrectly identified;
• the penalty was disproportionate; or
• important context was not considered.

An appeal is not an opportunity to harass moderators, repeatedly resubmit the same rejected argument, or organize other users to pressure staff.

Submitting an appeal does not automatically pause a ban.

Socipic may deny further appeals where a matter has received a final review.

26. STAFF & MODERATION ABUSE

Moderators and administrators are expected to enforce these Rules fairly and may not use moderation powers to gain an advantage in games or settle personal disputes.

Where reasonably possible, a staff member who is directly involved in a dispute should not make the final moderation decision concerning that dispute.

Reports concerning moderator conduct may be submitted through [STAFF COMPLAINT METHOD].

27. FINAL AUTHORITY

Socipic reserves the right to:

• remove Content;
• issue warnings;
• restrict features;
• remove users from games;
• reverse rewards obtained through rule violations;
• correct statistics affected by cheating;
• suspend accounts;
• permanently terminate accounts;
• prevent users from participating in competitive games;
• investigate suspicious activity; and
• take other reasonable actions necessary to protect the Service and community.

These Rules supplement the Socipic Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.

By accessing or using Socipic, you agree to follow these Rules.