Terms and Rules
Introduction
The providers ("we", "us", "our") of the service provided by this web site ("Service") are not responsible for any user-generated content and accounts. Content submitted express the views of their author only.
We do not pre-screen, monitor, or endorse user content and are not responsible for any content posted by users. We disclaim all liability for any content submitted by users and make no warranties or representations regarding the accuracy, legality, or reliability of such content. You acknowledge that by using this site, you may be exposed to content that you find offensive or objectionable. You agree that we shall not be liable for any damages arising from user-generated content or your reliance on it.
Rule violations are subject to bans or notices against the member. In the case of notices, members who receive notices after specific thresholds may automatically see their account access limited.
All content you submit, upload, or otherwise make available to the Service ("Content") may be reviewed by staff members. All Content you submit or upload may be sent to third-party verification services (including, but not limited to, spam prevention services). Do not submit any Content that you consider to be private or confidential.
You agree to not use the Service to submit or link to any Content which is defamatory, abusive, hateful, threatening, spam or spam-like, likely to offend, contains adult or objectionable content, contains personal information of others, risks copyright infringement, encourages unlawful activity, or otherwise violates any laws. You are entirely responsible for the content of, and any harm resulting from, that Content or your conduct.
We may remove or modify any Content submitted at any time, with or without cause, with or without notice. Requests for Content to be removed or modified will be undertaken only at our discretion. We may terminate your access to all or any part of the Service at any time, with or without cause, with or without notice.
You are granting us with a non-exclusive, permanent, irrevocable, unlimited license to use, publish, or re-publish your Content in connection with the Service. You retain copyright over the Content.
These terms may be changed at any time without notice.
1. Forum Conduct
Forum conduct rules go over how we expect members to conduct themselves in our community.
1.1 Age Restriction
Explanation: Members must be 18 years of age or older to have an account on Office Outlaw. By registering, you confirm you meet this requirement.Moderation Action: Members who are younger than 18 years of age will be automatically prohibited from joining Office Outlaw. Should it be discovered by our staff that a member younger than this threshold entered a false age, the member may be removed by our staff from the platform.
1.2 Member Abuse
Explanation: Members may not engage in abusive behavior toward any member of the forum. This includes, but is not limited to: excessive trolling, impersonation (e.g., registering with known usernames or close variations), libelous accusations, harassment, threats of harm, stalking, or doxxing (posting real-world identity information).Moderation Action: Members who engage in member abuse will receive a notice.
1.3 Language Requirements
Explanation: Public forum content must be written in English. Other languages are allowed in private messages, restricted-access areas such as the Sapphire Section or in brief, commonly-known phrases or greetings.Moderation Action: Non-English public messages will be translated by staff members so long as they do not violate any rules. In the event of a rule violation or repeat non-English content being posted publicly, the content will be removed and a notice may be issued.
1.4 Rules Against Spam
Explanation: Posting nonsensical or spammy messages (e.g., repeated gibberish) or copy/pasting AI-generated answers in an egregious way is not allowed. Using AI for research, grammar cleanup, or writing support is permitted when used responsibly. Bumping older threads (around 2 months old) for the sake of increasing message count or to gain trophies/stars is also prohibited.Moderation Action: Members who post spam anywhere on our platform will receive a notice and may be removed from the platform, depending on the severity of the spam. Accounts which appear to be operated by bots will be immediately banned from our platform.
1.5 Account Rules
Explanation: Multiple accounts are allowed on our platform, but using them to violate rules is prohibited.Moderation Action: If one account is banned, any linked accounts will also be banned. Accounts that collectively accrue more than 12 notice points will be banned from the platform.
1.6 Leaking
Explanation: Leaking content from restricted sections or reselling products or services offered on Office Outlaw is strictly prohibited.Moderation Action: Members that violate this rule will have their membership status revoked and may be banned from the platform.
1.7 Avatar Policy
Explanation: Avatars must comply with all other forum rules. Business logos are permitted but must not be more than the business name or logo, and must not contain promotional calls to action (e.g., “buy now”).Moderation Action: Avatars that violate this rule will be removed. If they violate any other specific rules in this TOS, the appropriate notice will be issued by our staff.
1.8 Begging Prohibited
Explanation: Users can not make posts for the purpose of asking for money, karma, or similar forms of charity anywhere on the forum.Moderation Action: Begging content will be removed by our staff.
1.9 Personally Identifiable Information (PII)
Explanation: Members may not request or solicit personally identifiable information, including but not limited to names, birthdates, addresses, or questions commonly used for account security (e.g., mother’s maiden name).Moderation Action: PID content will be removed by our staff.
2. Content & Posting Rules
2.1 Hacking Discussions or Solicitations
Explanation: Posts that promote, discuss, or request hacking activity are prohibited. This includes but is not limited to: botnets, RATs, zero-day exploits, account cracking, DDoS attacks, phishing, and malware. Defensive cybersecurity discussions are allowed.Moderation Action: This type of content will be removed by our staff and the poster may be issued a notice.
2.2 Scamming
Explanation: Refusal to fulfill your end of a transaction is prohibited on our platform.Moderation Action: Scamming in any form will result in immediate removal from the platform.
2.3 Adult or NSFW Content
Explanation: All content, including avatars, must remain safe for work. This includes the prohibition of nudity, sexually suggestive imagery, or any content deemed explicit or inappropriate for a general audience.Moderation Action: Adult content will be removed from our platform. Illegal NSFW content will result in an immediate removal from our platform and a response sent to the authorities.
2.4 Illegal Content or Activities
Explanation:The following content and activities are strictly prohibited:
- Illegal Activities: Engaging in or promoting hacking, identity theft, carding, pharmaceutical scams, cookie stuffing involving fraud, currency exchanges, and similar activities.
- Fraudulent Schemes: Participation in Ponzi schemes, cash gifting, spamming techniques, CPA fraud schemes, and related activities.
- Malicious Software: Distribution or discussion of malicious software and hacking tools, such as viruses, bots, and worms.
- Illegal Goods or Services: Promotion or sale of illegal goods or services.
- Threats of harm against a person or place are prohibited on this platform.
2.5 Negative SEO, ORM, or Reputation Attacks
Explanation: Discussions or services intended to damage competitors’ reputations, search visibility, or online presence are not allowed.Moderation Action: This content will be removed from our platform
2.6 Discriminatory Commentary
Explanation: This is a multicultural forum. Comments that are discriminatory on the basis of someone's race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, social class or nationality will not be tolerated.Moderation Action: Our staff will issue a notice for violations of this rule. In egregious cases, our staff may force a 2-way block.
2.7 Malware Distribution
Explanation: The intentional distribution of malware is prohibited.Moderation Action: Members who violate this rule will be immediately banned from our platform.
2.8 Posting in the Correct Section
Explanation: Users are expected to make a reasonable effort to post threads in the appropriate forum section. Threads submitted to incorrect sections may be moved at the discretion of the moderation team.Moderation Action: Misplaced threads will simply be moved by our staff to the correct section.
2.9 Thread Derailing
Explanation: Users must try their best to remain on-topic when participating in discussions.Moderation Action: Repeated off-topic responses, jokes, or disruptions in a thread may result in the issuance of a notice if deemed excessive. The same applies to attempts to derail multiple threads with single off-topic remarks. In some cases, the moderation team may intervene to refocus the thread or issue content-related warnings when necessary.
2.10 Political Discussions
Explanation: Political persuasion, coercion, hate speech, and defamation are prohibited across the forum. Political remarks, discourse, and topics (e.g., news articles and discussions) that are political in nature are allowed in any of The Saloons.Moderation Action: These topics may be closed if they violate any of our other rules (e.g., member abuse).
2.11 Religious Discussions
Explanation: Proselytizing, religious coercion, hate speech, and defamation are prohibited across the forum. Religious remarks, discourse, and topics (e.g., news articles and discussions) that are religious in nature are allowed in any of The Saloons. Only mentions of globally recognized holidays (e.g., Christmas, Eid, Diwali, Chinese New Year) are permitted within the Saloons.Moderation Action: Content that violates this rule will simply be removed from the platform.
2.12 Mentoring
Explanation: Situations where a member wants to spend time teaching another member a skill or method are only permitted so long as it is not transactional. Paid mentoring services are not permitted on Office Outlaw.Moderation Action: Content that violates this rule will be removed from our platform.
2.13 Discussion of Other Communities
Explanation: Members are allowed to discuss or criticise other communities here on Office Outlaw. However, repetitive complaint content, personal vendettas, personal attacks against staff of other communities, and drama-posting are not allowed. When appropriate, members should use existing mega threads to discuss specific communities.Moderation Action: Discussions and criticisms of other communities and their members will simply be moved to a designated megathread or the appropriate section if misplaced. Content that violates this rule may be removed by our staff.
3. Sales & Promotion
3.1 Selling and Promoting Outside of the Trading Post
Explanation:Selling or promoting products, services, or platforms is only permitted within the Trading Post section of the forum, unless:
- You mention your approved listing on your profile.
- You advertise in your signature as a Sapphire, Platinum, or Founding member.
For the purposes of these terms, “selling” refers to offering, soliciting, or attempting to offer products or services for monetary compensation, barter, or other value, either directly or indirectly. “Promoting” refers to the act of advertising, endorsing, or drawing attention to a product, service, brand, business, or external platform in a manner that implies or encourages commercial interest.
Examples of selling or promoting include (but are not limited to):
- Posting threads or comments offering services, products, or tools for sale, rent, or exchange.
- Publicly requesting users to DM, message, or contact you to learn more about a product or service.
- Embedding sales copy, marketing language, or call-to-action phrases in discussion threads (e.g., "DM me for a great deal", "I can help you with that - contact me for more information").
- Promoting affiliate links, referral programs, or monetized URLs outside of approved signature spaces, threads, or profile fields.
- Linking to websites, channels, or landing pages whose primary purpose is to generate sales, leads, or traffic to a commercial service, even if no direct sale occurs on the forum itself.
- Using discussion threads, entertainment content, free resources, personal projects, or similar content as a vehicle to funnel users toward monetised pages, sales processes, advertisements, affiliate offers, or lead generation systems.
- Repeatedly linking to personal projects, websites, games, tools, channels, or services where the promotional or commercial intent outweighs the discussion value provided to the community.
- Creating misleading, low-value, or insincere discussion topics primarily intended to generate attention or traffic for an external platform.
Discussions or casual mentions of tools, services, or platforms are permitted when clearly non-commercial in nature (e.g., personal experiences, non-affiliate recommendations, or contextually relevant mentions), provided they do not violate any other forum rules.
Members unsure whether a post may constitute selling or promoting should contact the moderation team before posting. Violations may result in notice points, thread removal, or account restrictions.
Moderation Action: Members who violate this rule may see their content removed and may be issued a notice. Attempts to circumvent these rules through indirect, disguised, or misleading promotional behaviour may still be treated as promotion at staff discretion.Moderation decisions will take into account overall context, posting patterns, intent, and community value. Legitimate discussion, project journals, feedback requests, case studies, and non-commercial sharing are generally permitted where the primary purpose of the post is discussion rather than promotion.
3.2 Signature Rules
Explanation:Signature privileges are determined by user group and enforced automatically by the forum system. The following rules apply:
- Text Size: The maximum allowed text size is 15. Any text exceeding this limit will be automatically resized upon saving.
- Registered Members: May use a text-only signature with a maximum of 3 lines and no links.
- Sapphire, Platinum, and Founding Members:
- May include a banner image in place of text. The maximum size is 728×90px (standard leaderboard ad size). Oversized images will be automatically resized.
- May include up to 3 links. The system will automatically prevent saving if the link limit is exceeded.
- Donation Links: Donation links, such as Ko-fi links, are permitted in signatures for all members who have signature access. However, users may not post content that explicitly draws attention to their donation link for the purpose of encouraging donations.
All signature content is subject to forum-wide rules, including restrictions on inappropriate or promotional content.
Moderation Action: In the event of a violation, a staff member will simply correct the content in the signature to abide by the rules.3.3 Contests
Explanation: Contests or sweepstakes must receive prior approval from an administrator due to potential legal considerations.Moderation Action: Unauthorised contests will be removed from our platform.
3.4 Sales Listings
Explanation: Sales listings are subject to the rules of the Trading Post.Moderation Action: Please be aware that sales listings may be closed by staff if they are deemed problematic to our Trading Post. This includes, but is not limited to: dropped quality, inaccurate information in sales listings, misleading sales practices, TOS violations, and legal reasons.
4. Moderation Rules
4.1 Your Content Can Be Moderated
Moderators and administrators may review, edit, or remove any content to ensure compliance with community guidelines.
4.2 Content Agreement
By posting on Office Outlaw, you grant us permission to use, display, or republish your content. This includes, but is not limited to, promotion in newsletters or social media.
4.3 Rule Updates
Rules may be changed at any time without prior notice. We aim to communicate major updates, but users are responsible for staying informed.
4.4 Manual Account Approvals
Accounts requiring manual approval may be rejected at the discretion of the moderation team if we detect potential abuse or malicious intent. This includes, but is not limited to, users previously banned from other platforms for fraud or scamming.
4.5 Thread Placement
Threads may be moved by moderators if they are posted in the wrong section. If a discussion becomes controversial, it may be moved to the Sapphire Section for private continuation. All threads must still comply with the forum rules regardless of location.
4.6 Bans and Enforcement
Temporary bans are automatically issued when a user accrues more than 9 active notice points. Permanent bans may be issued upon reaching 12 notice points or for violating any instant-ban rules. Members may request to have their account banned voluntarily; however, depending on prior conduct, voluntary bans may not be reversed if later requested by the user.
4.7 Megathread Creation
Staff may create megathreads by merging existing content into one thread if multiple threads on the same topic are created. This is typically done for specific topics (i.e., a specific major update on a social media site, a specific event, a specific update on a search engine), but not for broad topics (i.e., Everything About Social Media); however, exceptions may occur for broad topics that becoming dominating on the platform. The thread starter of the megathread will be the member who first started the thread so long as that member isn't banned. Megathreads can also be started by pre-emptively members and staff will move posts into the megathread so long as the topic is not deemed too broad.
5. User Level Terms
5.1 Sapphire Status
By purchasing Sapphire Status, users agree not to leak content shared in the Sapphire section. Members who leak content, become permanently banned, charge-back on paid memberships, or request a refund will be demoted.
5.2 Platinum Status
Platinum Status in not a paid user level and must be earned through participation on the platform. Members who leak content, become permanently banned, charge-back on paid memberships, receive 6 active notice points, become inactive for 9 months (i.e., 0 posts or not logging in), or request a refund will be demoted.
5.3 Founding Members
Founding Membership is a locked usergroup granted to members who helped build the forum in its early days. Members who leak content, become permanently banned, charge-back on paid memberships, receive 6 active notice points, or request a refund will be demoted.
6. Legal & Forum-Specific
6.1 Refunds
You may request a refund for any version of Sapphire Status purchased on Office Outlaw up to 6 months after the payment has been made. However, be aware that requesting refunds will temporarily bar you for a minimum of 6 months from purchasing Sapphire membership or sales listings on Office Outlaw. Refunds cost us monetarily in transaction fees and hurt the standing of our merchant accounts. Donations via the Donate page and via Patron are non-refundable. Sales listings are non-refundable except in cases where our staff have to remove the listing through no fault of the seller (e.g., unexpected legal reasons). Know that you can still make karma-only purchases for cosmetic badges.
6.2 Chargebacks
Chargebacks made on any transactions to Office Outlaw will result in the loss of your account's membership levels, including any special user groups (e.g. Platinum or Founding) you have been upgraded to. You will also be permanently barred from any future purchases from the forum. This limitation applies to all accounts linked to you.
6.3 Governing Law & Jurisdiction
These Terms of Service shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of California, United States, without regard to its conflict of law provisions. By accessing or using this site, you agree that any legal action or proceeding arising out of or related to your use of the site shall be brought exclusively in the courts located in the State of California. You hereby consent to the jurisdiction and venue of such courts and waive any objection as to inconvenient forum.
6.4 DMCA Policy
We respect the intellectual property rights of others and comply with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). If you believe that any content on this site infringes your copyright, you may submit a DMCA takedown request by contacting us at [email protected].
To be effective, your notification must include the following:
- A physical or electronic signature of the copyright owner or a person authorized to act on their behalf;
- Identification of the copyrighted work claimed to have been infringed;
- Identification of the infringing material and information reasonably sufficient to permit us to locate the material;
- Your contact information, including name, address, telephone number, and email address;
- A statement that you have a good faith belief that use of the material is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law;
- A statement, under penalty of perjury, that the information in the notification is accurate and you are authorized to act on behalf of the copyright owner.
We may remove or disable access to content alleged to be infringing and may, in appropriate circumstances, terminate repeat infringers. Counter-notices under the DMCA must also comply with 17 U.S.C. § 512(g)(3) and may be submitted to the same address.
These terms and rules are designed to maintain the integrity and safety of the Office Outlaw community. Members are encouraged to familiarize themselves with these guidelines and adhere to them to ensure a positive experience for all.