Platform Safety Features

Raftr includes several platform safety tools to manage unwanted content and bad actors within our communities. These are a combination of content moderation, authentication, and user management features and processes that give community members at every level (but especially Community Space Admins) the agency to keep their community welcoming and secure. 

Member Authentication

Platform safety on Raftr begins with account creation. Depending on how your community is set up, members are required to create an account using a specific email domain or authentication code, or to have their accounts created for them by Community Space Admins. We also support single sign-on (SSO) authentication as a premium add-on. 

Blocking and Reporting Members

Each individual person who uses Raftr can block or report another member. Blocking someone makes it so that person's Posts no longer appear in the blocker's feeds. Reporting someone allows you to alert Team Raftr to someone whose behavior on the platform is offensive, inappropriate, threatening, spam, abuse, or otherwise unacceptable. We will investigate and alert Community Space Admins of the report. Users who violate Raftr's Terms of Use may be subject to removal from the platform. 

Flagging Content

Community members can flag any Post, Event, message, or other type of content. When something is flagged, the Raft/Channel Leader and Co-leader(s) can go to their admin settings (gear icon on the top of the Raft or Channel page) to see a list of flagged content. From there they can choose to remove the content or unflag it. (NOTE: Flagged content is visible to all members until it has been flagged at least three times or until a Raft or Channel admin has removed it.) 

Additionally, Team Raftr is alerted to all flagged content. If the content violates our Terms of Use, Raftr may take action, including but not limited to: removing the content; restricting access to the content or putting up a warning; terminating or limiting a user’s access to our products.

Additionally, we may conduct an inquiry for other reasons not listed here, especially if there is a potential threat to the safety of anyone on the platform.  If we feel that there is an emergency situation developing, we may also share user information with the university and/or emergency personnel at our discretion.  Examples include discussing self harm, plans to harm others, or documenting unsafe conditions.

Freezing Raft and Channels

Raft Admins can freeze a Raft or Channel, which keeps anyone from viewing or creating content in that group. To freeze a Raft or Channel, toggle on the Freeze option from your Raft or Channel admin settings (accessed from the gear icon). 

Restrict, Remove, or Ban Members

Raft and Channel Leaders and Co-leaders can also Restrict, Remove, or Ban members from their Raft or Channel. They can do this from the Member Management section (accessed from the admin settings gear icon) and selecting the "…" icon next to someone's name.

• Restricting someone means that they can view content but cannot create or interact with content on that Raft. This ensures that they will not miss any important information distributed in the Raft, but are muted.
• Removing someone unjoins them from the Raft. 
• Banning someone removes them from the Raft and does not allow them to rejoin. 

Raft Admins can manage the list of their restricted and banned members from their Raft admin settings. 

Platform Safety on the Admin Portal 

While these safety permissions are available to all Raft and Channel Leaders for their specific group, the Admin Portal also lets Community Space Admins take some platform safety actions directly for any Raft, Channel, or member in their community.

Community Space Admins can use the Raft Management tool in the Content Management dashboard to ban members, restrict members, or freeze a Raft or Channel directly on the Portal. To do so, you need to choose the "more” menu (...) icon in the Members column of the Raft Manager. Then, select whether you want to ban or restrict people on that Raft or Channel, or whether you want to freeze the entire Raft or Channel. There is also a Freeze toggle column for all Rafts and Channels in the community. (NOTE: Community Space Admins do not need to be a Raft Admin for the groups on which they are enacting these platform safety precautions.) 

To learn more about Raftr’s policies and guidelines, read our Terms of Use.