user221 Posted June 25, 2009 Share Posted June 25, 2009 I'm only asking because I sense a lack of enforcing COPPA laws. I do take this seriously due to a slight issue I've seen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kan-tree-nah Posted June 25, 2009 Share Posted June 25, 2009 I don't come from the U.S and I don't use forums very often.....so I was just wondering what COPPA laws are? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
user221 Posted June 25, 2009 Author Share Posted June 25, 2009 I don't come from the U.S and I don't use forums very often.....so I was just wondering what COPPA laws are? It's the Children Online Privacy Protection Act. To put it simply any user under 13 years of age are not allowed to use electronic mail, forums, Neopet boards, and of the like without faxed* permission from a parent. *Some email providers have a parent account and children account features if memory serves, so the fax is not necessary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m00fin_hearts_chocolate Posted June 25, 2009 Share Posted June 25, 2009 yup,I dont know what COPPA laws are.and I dont come from the U.S. either.so what ARE those laws?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
user221 Posted June 25, 2009 Author Share Posted June 25, 2009 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/COPPA If I'm allowed to link to Wikipedia...I rather give credit where it's due instead of copy and pasting the entire article. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m00fin_hearts_chocolate Posted June 25, 2009 Share Posted June 25, 2009 okay then....that's a long article.most sites do have that law,but im not so sure here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
user221 Posted June 25, 2009 Author Share Posted June 25, 2009 It would have to according on Wikipedia due to the following two conditions. 1. It is an American operated server residing in the United States. 2. It is catering or targeted towards American children. Remember Neopets is hosted in Glendale, California hence enacting COPPA when it came out in 2000 or so. I know that many people here do not live in the US (or Canada) but I'm sure it would still apply to them regardless. Personally I'm bothered because there are a few contradictions on this site which make no sense to me at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xepha Posted June 25, 2009 Share Posted June 25, 2009 This is just a notice to tell you this thread had been brought to Ian's attention and will be answered tomorrow most likely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
m00fin_hearts_chocolate Posted June 25, 2009 Share Posted June 25, 2009 It would have to according on Wikipedia due to the following two conditions. 1. It is an American operated server residing in the United States. 2. It is catering or targeted towards American children. Remember Neopets is hosted in Glendale, California hence enacting COPPA when it came out in 2000 or so. I know that many people here do not live in the US (or Canada) but I'm sure it would still apply to them regardless. Personally I'm bothered because there are a few contradictions on this site which make no sense to me at all. yeah,there are some members that dont live in america(or canada).Like me .XD This is just a notice to tell you this thread had been brought to Ian's attention and will be answered tomorrow most likely. oh okay.will be answered tomorrow most likely?I'll keep my eyes peeled and wait for the news.^_^ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
user221 Posted June 25, 2009 Author Share Posted June 25, 2009 This is just a notice to tell you this thread had been brought to Ian's attention and will be answered tomorrow most likely. Alright. I'm just surprised about the whole thing. When I thought about it this site never asked for my birthday upon registering. Every other forum (whether it be Neopets or not) including the World of Warcraft guild I am in has asked this question accordingly. The reason why I am concerned, is because...At least according to theneopetsteam and myself SPAM stands for "Stupid Pointless Annoying Messages." Short isn't in that, and the fact of the matter is I hate reminding a member to lengthen their post despite their five (5) words conveying their issue perfectly. It is..."unintelligent" to give someone a Kau [sic] branding iron running around pressing it into various members on a "Zero Tolerance" level. Not to mention the warning in itself is spam, and seeing it two and three posts in a row for the exact same reason just leaves a horrible first impression to me. yeah,there are some members that dont live in america(or canada).Like me .XD xD...Well if you dock your spaceship in any of the shipyards my Neopets operate, you still have to follow all rules and regulations imposed regardless of place of origin. Although nowadays with the complete robotification of all systems the only difference between visitors and staff is just restricted zones. http://www.neopets.com/ntimes/index.phtml?...al&week=306 <--- Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Antjie Posted June 25, 2009 Share Posted June 25, 2009 i dont know anything about the COPPA laws, but do you know how many people lie about their age? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Strategos Posted June 25, 2009 Share Posted June 25, 2009 The reason why I am concerned, is because...At least according to theneopetsteam and myself SPAM stands for "Stupid Pointless Annoying Messages." Short isn't in that, and the fact of the matter is I hate reminding a member to lengthen their post despite their five (5) words conveying their issue perfectly. It is..."unintelligent" to give someone a Kau [sic] branding iron running around pressing it into various members on a "Zero Tolerance" level. Not to mention the warning in itself is spam, and seeing it two and three posts in a row for the exact same reason just leaves a horrible first impression to me. I'm sorry, but I don't understand what this has to do with COPPA. Could you please expand? As for compliance with COPPA, I seem to remember TDNF having it some time ago. Perhaps it was accidentally removed? In any case, yes, TDN and the forums are located in the US (since I didn't see anyone come out and say it). You'll have to wait for staff to get a more detailed answer, however. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
user221 Posted June 25, 2009 Author Share Posted June 25, 2009 I'm sorry, but I don't understand what this has to do with COPPA. Could you please expand? As for compliance with COPPA, I seem to remember TDNF having it some time ago. Perhaps it was accidentally removed? In any case, yes, TDN and the forums are located in the US (since I didn't see anyone come out and say it). You'll have to wait for staff to get a more detailed answer, however. With COPPA enforced, you presumably had (not currently) an illegal moderator for two months. Granted from my terminal I can say they could be allowed by parents, but seeing that person not living in the United States deters that assumption. I'm sure they're doing a good job and all, it just annoys me because I busted a previous forum that had COPPA in which they unknowingly put a 12 year as a forum moderator. Deja vu in a sense. "Oh look 6 words, warn!" is probably my reaction if I were around that age. The only reason why I mention that, is because that's what triggered me in finding out about the violation. If the warning system wasn't so crazy I would of totally overlooked it and never said anything. It spams more than it helps, I assure you. i dont know anything about the COPPA laws, but do you know how many people lie about their age? I'm well aware a few people on Neopets lie about their age. But look at it this way, if they violate the law and something happens I would logically guess the blame would be on their end for circumventing the law to begin with. However if TDN let it be done unchecked it would fall on TDN's shoulders. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Batman Posted June 25, 2009 Share Posted June 25, 2009 With COPPA enforced, you presumably had (not currently) an illegal moderator for two months. Granted from my terminal I can say they could be allowed by parents, but seeing that person not living in the United States deters that assumption. I'm sure they're doing a good job and all, it just annoys me because I busted a previous forum that had COPPA in which they unknowingly put a 12 year as a forum moderator. Deja vu in a sense. "Oh look 6 words, warn!" is probably my reaction if I were around that age. That is to keep the forums running smoothly. I really don't understand why you are taking this so personally. You wouldn't get in trouble if someone was to try and see if these laws are enforced. I mean there are many laws out there being broken all the time why are you so adamant about his one? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Strategos Posted June 25, 2009 Share Posted June 25, 2009 If the warning system wasn't so crazy I would of totally overlooked it and never said anything. It spams more than it helps, I assure you. Actually, the only two rules here that are enforced without question are the 7 words and double post rules (and obvious spam). Everything else is usually to the discretion of the moderator. Nonetheless, I will grant you that the rules here are more strict than many other forums, but it does help keep a nicer community. By the way, I have a question, and it's because I don't believe there's ever been a question about COPPA before. Are you law enforcement? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Batman Posted June 25, 2009 Share Posted June 25, 2009 It spams more than it helps, I assure you. I don't really understand what you mean by this at all. They don't post another message saying you did something wrong they just edit the post and fix it so you know what is expected. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
user221 Posted June 25, 2009 Author Share Posted June 25, 2009 I don't really understand what you mean by this at all. They don't post another message saying you did something wrong they just edit the post and fix it so you know what is expected. I've scrolled down the Altador Cup IV boards and I've seen two consecutive posts with the following: "This post has been edited by a member of staff (***) because of a violation of the forum rules. Please keep your posts above 6 words. Quotes do not count. Please check your user inbox to see if you have been contacted regarding this incident, then review our rules." It is "posting another message" in a sense, just not in a new thread/post. It is essentially wasting data space doing that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Strategos Posted June 25, 2009 Share Posted June 25, 2009 I'll presume that the warnings are correct. It's not really spam, since users agree to follow the rules when they sign up, and if they don't follow them, they're being warned for it. They also receive a PM to the effect, to ensure that they learn that these are the rules here. As for wasting data space, it's TDN's data space, after all. They're free to use it however they want. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Batman Posted June 25, 2009 Share Posted June 25, 2009 I still don't understand why this is your battle to fight. It isn't your data space, you aren't paying for the server or the service. What do you care if you get a PM from them saying to read the rules? You can delete it just like every other user. Plus they don't email you every time you break a rule they do it when it is becoming a problem. It is like going to someone else's house. They have rules you need to follow and things they do differently then anywhere else. If you don't like the rules or the way things are done there you don't need to go back. I just don't understand why you are making a huge deal out of this. I am guessing, since you have a low post count, you got warned and are annoyed by this? Correct me if i am wrong but thats the only thing i could come up with. o_O Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hrtbrk Posted June 26, 2009 Share Posted June 26, 2009 Seems like this user came here for one reason and one reason only: to wind everyone up... and it's working. I'd just ignore it so it stops and goes away. If they were SO concerned, they would have contacted Ian directly instead of attempting to scare younger users and make a scene. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Strategos Posted June 26, 2009 Share Posted June 26, 2009 If they were SO concerned, they would have contacted Ian directly instead of attempting to scare younger users and make a scene. Well, not everyone knows who to contact, and this is put in the right section. I think this user is entitled to ask this question. I still don't understand why this is your battle to fight. It isn't your data space, you aren't paying for the server or the service. Actually, this is my mistake. I was the one whom asked what COPPA had to do with moderation, and we stopped paying attention to the original matter, since we are waiting for Ian to reply on that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Anime Posted June 26, 2009 Share Posted June 26, 2009 *sigh* This has gone on long enough. It has gone from the orgional topic about COPPA to a debate about how we mod the forums. User221, if you still have comments, be they about the rules or COPPA, take them directly to Ian. Topic closed. This topic has been edited by a member of staff (Anime) because of a violation of the forum rules. The original topic has been answered; this is not a topic that we feel should be dicussed among members. Please speak to Ian directly. Please check your user inbox to see if you have been contacted regarding this incident, then review our rules. Per the reason above, this topic has been LOCKED. Please contact Anime if you have any questions regarding this action. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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