Hello all!

We're experimenting with the Automod, which was not set up prior to the newer moderators being added. We know some similar subs like to automate much of their moderating, but our goal is to avoid aggressive moderation while still automating the "well, duh" removals on this sub.

We are learning as we go but we think this change is an easy win. As we refine our moderation rules and policies you will see fewer of these kinds of announcements, we just wanted to keep you all informed as we've gotten a few questions on why a post/comment was removed.

Therefore, this is an announcement to let you know that if you post links in any way, they may be subject to the automod and automated removal. Linking reddit content is fine, but we're building a list of domains that are subject to instant removal, including those rather annoying posts that edit in some shitty AI image site or a scam link once they get traction on a post. It takes time and money to set those sites up, it takes 10 seconds for us to add them to the list. And since we started trying it out a few days ago, the list to auto filter has already grown. While we are not publishing that list, just assume as a rule of thumb if the link could be used for self-promotion, referral links, dodgy links, or any kind of self-enrichment, it's going on the list.

This includes link shorteners and amazon referral links. We ran a trial in the last few days and found a few false-positives (sorry, we un-removed those and adjusted the filter) so we are actively monitoring the effects of this automation but still believe it to be a win overall. We know this seems like an obvious decision but we're learning as we go and we appreciate how enthusiastic the community has been in identifying these scammers in the past.

To be clear, we are not banning you from saying something such as "If you search on amazon for '55 gallons of water-based lubricant' you'll find my personal go-to brand". Unless you are the one peddling the lube, you cannot monetize such a recommendation. The goal is to remove malicious links, not prohibit personal (and often manual) recommendations, though this policy is subject to change if necessary.

Please continue to be stellar reporters and use the custom response to let us know when OP has added a scam link domain we haven't filtered and we'll get on it quickly.

We are still discussing internally other ways to simplify moderation and reduce the amount of fake/spam content this sub experiences. If you think you can help out, please feel free to reach out in the mod mail and we will assess your request . We're doing this because we love this community and if you do too, maybe you're willing to put in a little work as well to improve it.

Cheers