This article is about the Scratch website blocking policies. For blocks on the Scratch Wiki, see Scratch Wiki:Blocking.

A ban, also known as a block, is when the Scratch Team decides to disallow a user or IP address/range from accessing the Scratch Website. Bans are issued when users behave inappropriately, perform disrespectful actions towards others, flame, troll, bully, post links to commercial websites, or do anything generally considered as being against the Community Guidelines for a continuous amount of time.

Bans on Scratch 2.0

On Scratch 2.0, when a user is banned, that ban applies to the entire site. This means that the banned user is forbidden from accessing any part of the site when logged in. In some cases (such as users creating multiple accounts to get around bans), the Scratch Team may decide to ban them based on their IP address instead. This means that an entire network is forbidden from accessing the website. Bans on the Scratch Website do not apply to the Scratch Wiki. Users normally receive alerts before getting banned. They may not receive alerts if their IP address has been used for sockpuppetry.

Account creation blocks

Sometimes an IP address may be blocked from creating new accounts. In this instance, they will see a message when they click the Join Scratch button on the navigation bar. The message says:

It looks like one or more accounts on your network have been used to create disrespectful or inappropriate stuff that breaks the Scratch Community Guidelines. Please let the person in charge of the computers know about this. Meanwhile, we cannot accept new account registrations from your network.

Bans on the Scratch Wiki

Main page: Scratch Wiki:Blocking

Although the Scratch Wiki is an official Scratch project, bans on the Scratch Website do not apply on the Wiki. However, if a user is banned on the Scratch Website and continues their behavior on the Wiki, then they will be banned until unbanned from the main site.

Because all users on the Wiki must request accounts and there are fairly high standards to receive one,[1] rude behavior and vandalism are relatively rare; this means that bans are also relatively rare. However, some bans have occurred because of vandalism, spam, or breaking rules. Any user in the bureaucrat group can ban users on the Wiki, but Administrators and Experienced Wikians can request someone to be banned. In addition, bans have occurred for other reasons that have nothing to do with bad behavior, including switching accounts, among other reasons. The Wiki software that is being used does not have the ability to delete users, so they are banned instead. The software refers to it as a "block". This only blocks the user from editing or performing any wiki option like moving pages, as if they were not logged in, versus bans on the main site prevent the user from viewing pages.

Bans on Scratch 1.4

Archive.png This article or section documents a feature not included in the current version of Scratch (2.0). It is only useful from a historical perspective.

Before Scratch 2.0, bans on the main Scratch website and the Scratch Forums were handled separately, so users were often only banned from the part of the website that they had broken the rules on.

Scratch Website

Bans on the Scratch Website usually occur when one shares inappropriate projects, harasses others, cheats to get onto the Front Page, or is predominantly disrespectful. A ban is far more likely in the case of repeat offenses. Bans could only be made on the main website by the Scratch Team. User bans on the main website also applied on the forums. However, IP bans did not always apply on the forums.

Scratch Forums

Most bans here occurred when a user either often sparked flame wars or posted links to commercial websites. Bans here were rarer than on the Scratch website, as far fewer users used the forums than the main website, but could be equally bad. Both the Scratch Team and Community Moderators could ban users on the forums.

Becoming unbanned

When a user is banned, that user has to contact the appropriate administration (the Scratch Team on the main website and a Bureaucrat on the Wiki) in order to become unbanned, unlike most sites which set the expiration time when the user is banned.

Scratch Website

On the Scratch Website, when a user is banned, they must contact the Scratch Team to explain what they did and promise that they will behave properly in the future. Upon receiving the message, the Scratch Team may decide either to set the ban to expire or take no action. If the ban is set to expire, it is usually set to 3.5 days the first time the user is banned, and double that time for each subsequent ban. If the Scratch Team decides to take no action, then they will respond with a message saying why the user will not be unbanned.[2]

In some cases, usually in a ban after another ban, the Scratch Team may suggest the user to take a break from Scratch and respond later. If the user is a minor and has been banned multiple times in the past, the Scratch Team will request the user's parent, guardian, or teacher to submit an appeal instead.[3] In very mild cases, there will not be a requirement to appeal and the account is set to be unbanned automatically.[4]

Scratch Wiki

Main page: Scratch_Wiki:Blocking#How_users_can_become_unblocked

On the Scratch Wiki, because bans are so rare, there is not a standard procedure. In the cases of non-vandalism bans, there is usually no reason to unban the user. However, in the cases of vandalism or otherwise violating Wiki Guidelines, then the banned user must contact the Bureaucrat that banned them and ask to be unbanned.

Range

Bans are either user-restricted or IP ranged: usually only a user is banned, but if they create more accounts and remain in trouble they can be IP banned.

Account Bans

Account bans are simply bans that prevent a certain account from access. Account bans are more common than IP bans, and are generally used if there is nothing to suggest the user will create other accounts to continue causing trouble.

IP Bans

IP bans are normally used when a user creates alternate accounts in order to get around an account ban, sometimes known as sockpuppetry. The IP ban prevents access on the network that has the banned IP, preventing the Scratcher from using a different account to continue their trouble. However, this does not stop the user since this can be evaded by using proxies or changing the IP address. Bugs have been reported that the IP ban can make users that are innocent to become unexpectedly banned.[5][6]

Sharing bans

In addition to banning an IP access from accessing the website at all, the Scratch Team can prevent users on that network from sharing content, while still allowing them to log in.

Controversy

Some users complain about the Scratch Team unfairly banning people.[7][8] Although there are occasionally misunderstandings, as this website is very strict[clarify], and mistakes can be made by the Scratch Team, this is usually not the case. Sometimes, if a popular Scratcher is banned, Scratchers may create studios and projects asking for the Scratch Team to unblock them; these are usually deleted by the Scratch Team because this can be considered gossiping, since the Scratchers do not know the full story.[9]

Other times, the Scratcher themselves may use another account to get around their block. This usually results in an IP ban. This is also called "sockpuppeting" [10]

Reasons for being banned

  • Not following guidelines
  • Received multiple alerts for the same thing
  • Resharing projects unshared by the Scratch Team without removing inappropriate content
  • Making one very inappropriate project, known as a "shock project" (usually warrants a temporary ban)

Additionally, an account can be permanently deleted if it breaks the Community Guidelines repeatedly and deliberately, or if its offense was particularly severe.

Possible reasons for mistaken bans

A user might be mistakenly banned if...

  • They have a username that resembles a previously banned scratcher.
  • The Scratch Team makes misinterpretations of comments, studios or forum posts.
  • They disagree with the Scratch Team's received reports.
  • They make projects featuring hangman-esque structures, as such projects may unintentionally feature inappropriate language.
  • They make projects that frighten certain users.
  • Another account starts behaving strangely, and its activities seem related to the user in question.

Muting

Muting is an ability of the Scratch Team in which the affected user cannot post comments or forum posts. It normally occurs when the user repeatedly posts comments which the Scratch Team deem inappropriate for Scratch. It also occurs randomly with New Scratchers.[citation needed] If a user is muted repeatedly, the Scratch Team are likely to issue a ban.[citation needed]

Images

See Also

External Links

References

  1. Scratch Wiki:Become a contributor
  2. http://scratch.mit.edu/discuss/topic/7517/
  3. http://i.cubeupload.com/w6DNRK.png
  4. http://i.cubeupload.com/ZckEny.png
  5. https://scratch.mit.edu/discuss/topic/145924/
  6. https://scratch.mit.edu/discuss/topic/155818/
  7. http://scratch.mit.edu/discuss/topic/45007/
  8. https://scratch.mit.edu/discuss/topic/217783/
  9. https://scratch.mit.edu/discuss/topic/170191/?page=1#post-1631442
  10. https://scratch.mit.edu/discuss/topic/90782/?page=1#post-783998
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