There is multiple individuals in almost every chat room that post disgusting pictures of child porn and post links to it and try to sell it when there is no moderators or admin in the chat rooms, this is a problem that needs to be solved, there should be some sort of restrictions in place for this, fix this chat master, I am tired of seeing it and if it is not fixed soon I will be taking more serious action on these problems since nobody is doing anything about it and I’ve seen it for years now, absolutely disgusting
Harm to children
- Thread starter Trashboat
- Start date
babydolla
Gold Member
Hello, you may not have seen it but the site recently implimented CSAM Detection and Reporting software in the chat rooms to address the exact problem you’re describing. The system automatically detects attempted uploads of CSAM. If such content is found, the responsible user’s account will be immediately terminated, and their information will be forwarded to law enforcement authorities. This has definitely improved things. So between that and the hard work the room staff put in combating that type of content, the battle continues.
Mr.W
Active Member
Too bad that CSAM doesnt stop the myfreecams advertisement in all the rooms that Chatmaster owns on here, said rooms that any child can access at the click of a button.
Kudos to Chatmaster and the awesome team for implementing a tic on a dogs ass. and major kudos to Chatmaster and Admin on their non existant vetting process for admins and mods.
It won't solve the problem but increase it by allowing it to first be detected, it's not a definitive step forward, it's a band aid.
The only way as stated elsewhere is for the main chat file sharing of photos or images be disabled, if not for all, then for guests and non VIP users throughout all chat rooms since VIP carries with it a requirement for someone to use their real information to purchase it in most cases, and well, there's always a trail with anything you purchase and it lasts forever.
Reporting illegal patterns to law enforcement has its limitations and there still can be the legal argument of "negligence" and other stuff if tested in a court of law. If you do not give a person the opportunity to first spread images of child porn, they won't have a way of how to do it if all they can do is type in a chat room since wording can be censored to a large degree.
The other options is to have all images shared in main chat blurred out, so that users have to click the image to view it first.
So Yep, if the main chat file sharing of images are disabled, it'll ruin it for everyone else but it's certainly a more definitive way of stamping out clear-cut images not befitting a site that does not accept or promote illegal material and it reaffirms the sites seriousness surrounding these types of behaviour furthermore then CSAMs, a weak safeguard, no matter its effectiveness.
There are no shortcuts to this situation.
I never said it was a solution to the problem. I was simply pointing out that there’s been some improvements that have been made. Identifying and eliminating that type of content is not increasing it. It’s actually reducing it. Don’t start using trumpian logic here 😂
Nuh notta halpful - I disagree with what's been implemented by those above you.
They're doing the wrong thing because it's clear the situation is worsening (they have the statistics) it's clear those in minority are continuing to do whatever illegal thing they're doing and it's clear law enforcement cannot and WILL not arrest 100 people a year for file sharing today or tomorrow when those people doing it may not be present in USA or a Western country.
So yeah limiting/disabling chat functions is best, at the very least until all this fiasco becomes a once in a while situation. Don't you worry, this site wasn't made yesterday, those who run it can go ask themselves the prevalence of illegal patterns from 1999 till now.
You can never completely remove illegal patterns from happening but when it's so "in your face" and escalating, that is never good.
PS - @TheDifference lol not mad at you or THEM, I just would like them to wake up to themselves and fast.
D
Deleted member 313351
Guest
Of course , CSAM detection software that works by comparing the hashes of images against a database of known hashes of CSAM material on a database is a great tool in fighting CSAM material. And frankly, it's unacceptable that it took Chat Avenue so long to implement these tools where are freely available to any website interested in incorporating them.
However, the bulk of CSAM trading within Chat Avenue is not users directly uploading CSAM material to the website. Rather, it's them trading/ selling CSAM material on the chat room through a third party service. Which, obviously a CSAM detection tool that checks for hashes of known CSAM material is useless at preventing. That is not to say the tool is not important.
Having pornographic advertisements in rooms with minors is immoral, and shows that the site is prioritizing profit over ensuring minors are not willfully exposed to harmful content. Not to mention, in some jurisdictions it's illegal to have pornographic advertisements in the vicinity of minors.
Then there is elephant in the room where VIP users in some rooms are handled differently than users, and banning these VIP users go through ChatMaster. Of course, this prevents admins from effectively managing their room, as they're unable to take appropriate action against VIP users. This leads to situations where some VIP users that all fairness should be banned for their heinous actions get away with a slap on the wrist.
Not to mention, Chat Avenue does not incorporate best practices of child safety online. For instance, there is no age-gating, preventing minors from accessing a room with pornographic content. Of course, Chat Avenue does not have the resources to securely verify the age of its users. That is to say, if a minor wants to look at pornography and their country requires an ID to prove they're over 18 to look at porn, then they could easily just lie about their age on Chat Avenue.
With everything said, the problem faced across Chat Avenue is the inability for admins to consistently have round the clock moderators, and the impacts of this are felt immensely in the larger chat rooms. Unfortunately, three reports is not nearly enough when there are no active moderators online. Honestly, you have to ask the question, who would subject themselves to looking at traumatizing material of children for two hours a day? Mind you, moderating for Meta, for instance has led to the development of PTSD in some people. Is moderating adult chat that dissimilar? That is to say, it's mentally taxing to look at child pornography for hours a day. There is no surprise that the turnout of moderators on a room such as adult chat is so low.
However, the bulk of CSAM trading within Chat Avenue is not users directly uploading CSAM material to the website. Rather, it's them trading/ selling CSAM material on the chat room through a third party service. Which, obviously a CSAM detection tool that checks for hashes of known CSAM material is useless at preventing. That is not to say the tool is not important.
Having pornographic advertisements in rooms with minors is immoral, and shows that the site is prioritizing profit over ensuring minors are not willfully exposed to harmful content. Not to mention, in some jurisdictions it's illegal to have pornographic advertisements in the vicinity of minors.
Then there is elephant in the room where VIP users in some rooms are handled differently than users, and banning these VIP users go through ChatMaster. Of course, this prevents admins from effectively managing their room, as they're unable to take appropriate action against VIP users. This leads to situations where some VIP users that all fairness should be banned for their heinous actions get away with a slap on the wrist.
Not to mention, Chat Avenue does not incorporate best practices of child safety online. For instance, there is no age-gating, preventing minors from accessing a room with pornographic content. Of course, Chat Avenue does not have the resources to securely verify the age of its users. That is to say, if a minor wants to look at pornography and their country requires an ID to prove they're over 18 to look at porn, then they could easily just lie about their age on Chat Avenue.
With everything said, the problem faced across Chat Avenue is the inability for admins to consistently have round the clock moderators, and the impacts of this are felt immensely in the larger chat rooms. Unfortunately, three reports is not nearly enough when there are no active moderators online. Honestly, you have to ask the question, who would subject themselves to looking at traumatizing material of children for two hours a day? Mind you, moderating for Meta, for instance has led to the development of PTSD in some people. Is moderating adult chat that dissimilar? That is to say, it's mentally taxing to look at child pornography for hours a day. There is no surprise that the turnout of moderators on a room such as adult chat is so low.
Hello “new” forum user. Since you mentioned adult chat I’ll respond to those comments.
Our mods show up every day and night, work hard to remove the violators, and communicate well together as a team behind the scenes. Yes it’s a tough role. Yes it can be stressful. But they are mature, mentally tough individuals who can handle it. And I’m very proud of all of them for volunteering so much of their valuable time to keep our rooms safe and fun. 👏🏻 👏🏻
Adult Chat Desktop, up until a few weeks ago, did have 24/7 coverage and I am close to achieving 24/7 coverage in the Mobile room as well. The moderators work very hard in both rooms and there is no “immense impact” felt by the current gaps.
I’ll speak for myself but I know most of the AC moderators feel the same way. I started doing this firstly to help people. Secondly, to help keep the site safer and the chat user experience better by removing those people violating the rules, those who shouldn’t be here, and those posting the horrible content mentioned in this thread. Also, that specific content is not shown constantly. The violators occasionally pop up, are quickly removed, and chat goes on.
As I said above, it’s not constant cp all the time. But to your point, when it does pop up it’s very unpleasant. Having been a moderator for many years, I’m well aware of the stress. When I became an admin one of the priorities I set was to make sure that I routinely check in on the room moderators to see how they are feeling and to also make sure they know I’m always there to support them. Their mental health is very important to me.
I’d be interested to see if you have actual statistics on this or if it’s just an unsubstantiated statement. Because actually, AC has many moderators who have been doing this consistently, day after day, for years and one over 20 years (thank you Vonnie 😇).
Our mods show up every day and night, work hard to remove the violators, and communicate well together as a team behind the scenes. Yes it’s a tough role. Yes it can be stressful. But they are mature, mentally tough individuals who can handle it. And I’m very proud of all of them for volunteering so much of their valuable time to keep our rooms safe and fun. 👏🏻 👏🏻
D
Deleted member 313351
Guest
Why not actually approve my reply before posting your reply @TheDifference? It's not fair to comment on a reply that others cannot currently see. Right now, they're only getting ¼ of the information I posted.
Respectfully, as an admin you are not equipped to support moderators with the distress that arises from exposure to CSAM. I'm glad that you care about your moderators as an admin. However, I feel like you are downplaying the seriousness of being exposed to such material regularly.
Instead of downplaying the concerns I and others have, why not simply listen? Frankly, it's frustrating to hear an admin say that there is not "immense impact" from the gaps in moderation, when it's clear that there are many users who are trading CSAM on this platform.
Regardless if some moderators have been around for 20 years, this does not mean that Chat Avenue does not struggle at times to have round the clock moderators. Of course, I don't have statistics on this; there's no record publically available for the available length of time a moderator lasts! However, burnout is extremely common for moderators, as this is emotionally taxing. It's not healthy to be exposed to degenerate content repeatedly. Even professionals suffer from mental health consequences from this material.
I used adult chat as an example,as obviously larger rooms suffer more extreme consequences from not having 24/7 moderators.
Respectfully, as an admin you are not equipped to support moderators with the distress that arises from exposure to CSAM. I'm glad that you care about your moderators as an admin. However, I feel like you are downplaying the seriousness of being exposed to such material regularly.
Instead of downplaying the concerns I and others have, why not simply listen? Frankly, it's frustrating to hear an admin say that there is not "immense impact" from the gaps in moderation, when it's clear that there are many users who are trading CSAM on this platform.
Regardless if some moderators have been around for 20 years, this does not mean that Chat Avenue does not struggle at times to have round the clock moderators. Of course, I don't have statistics on this; there's no record publically available for the available length of time a moderator lasts! However, burnout is extremely common for moderators, as this is emotionally taxing. It's not healthy to be exposed to degenerate content repeatedly. Even professionals suffer from mental health consequences from this material.
I used adult chat as an example,as obviously larger rooms suffer more extreme consequences from not having 24/7 moderators.
Sorry about that. I didn’t notice it wasn’t approved and have approved it.
I’m not saying I provide professional mental health treatment. And if people try being a moderator and feel it’s too stressful or they are suffering mentally from it they quit. And I support that decision in those cases.
I’m not downplaying. I carefully read (listened) to your concerns. And I was responding to them.
I agree. It’s a constant struggle. I live it daily.
Moderator burnout is definitely a reality. That’s why I monitor their well being daily. And why I’m very clear with every candidate who wants to try doing it exactly what the role entails. Again, if people try it and it’s not for them then they quit.
To many words...bottom line its very hard to stop these people they roll ips constantly. Even some of the big social media companies stuggle with this issure and they have way more resources than this site can possibly have.
I get the angst but I can tell you that mods and admins feel the same about this material.
I am uncertain the site can do much better than we currently are.
I get the angst but I can tell you that mods and admins feel the same about this material.
I am uncertain the site can do much better than we currently are.
Absolutely 1,000,000% correct.
- Status