Schneier on Security - His New Blog Moderation Policy

Note: Comments are enabled for everyone including Anonymous Cowards and should be on-topic. However, if you abuse this privilege do not be surprised or complain if your comments are deleted.

This came to my attention on IRC; it was published yesterday. It should not surprise anyone, nor is it a unique occurrence. Most sites on the internet nowadays are suffering from the same problem. But I find it hard to understand how anyone can benefit from personal attacks, or by forcing sites to make unwanted decisions about how they operate.

https://www.schneier.com/blog/archives/2024/06/new-blog-moderation-policy.html

Schneier writes:

New Blog Moderation Policy

There has been a lot of toxicity in the comments section of this blog. Recently, we're having to delete more and more comments. Not just spam and off-topic comments, but also sniping and personal attacks. It's gotten so bad that I need to do something.

My options are limited because I'm just one person, and this website is free, ad-free, and anonymous. I pay for a part-time moderator out of pocket; he isn't able to constantly monitor comments. And I'm unwilling to require verified accounts.

So starting now, we will be pre-screening comments and letting through only those that 1) are on topic, 2) contribute to the discussion, and 3) don't attack or insult anyone. The standard is not going to be "well, I guess this doesn't technically quite break a rule," but "is this actually contributing."

Obviously, this is a subjective standard; sometimes good comments will accidentally get thrown out. And the delayed nature of the screening will result in less conversation and more disjointed comments. Those are costs, and they're significant ones. But something has to be done, and I would like to try this before turning off all comments.

In our own case it is rarely someone posting under his/her username that does similar things or at least not anyone who is logged in and posting anonymously. There are a few who push the boundaries from time to time but they usually do it without resorting to anonymity. It is almost without exception those who wish to remain Anonymous Cowards. Surely they realise that the eventual outcome will be to force sites to ban AC posting. How does that benefit any site or those ACs in particular? The end result will be that there will be fewer places where they are allowed to express themselves.

janrinok

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