I wasn’t here when it all went down, but is it not true that QSC was banned 3x yet was allowed to remain here? Why would they be given this preferential treatment? I heard they doxed someone and threatened to dox others. Why were they allowed to remain here after that?
As far as the hard rule that 3 temporary bans automatically result in a permanent ban is concerned, the so-called "3 strikes and you're out" rule was used as a guide for an extended period.
MESO departed from this guidance starting maybe 5+ years ago for various reasons but in no small part due to the tendency of many members to seek getting sources banned rather than holding them accountable.
In addition, the addition of numerous restrictions upon sources in recent years -- no active hyperlinks, posting outside Underground/Analytics subforum, no promotional/marketing banners/graphics, no pricelists -- resulted in a lot of bans for administrative reasons and not necessarily product/service accountability.
QSC was not the first and not the only one to have 3 or more bans. There was no preferential treatment. Why would there be?
As far as doxxing is concerned, this is a serious issue.
I consider any posting of unredacted tracking information as unacceptable due to the location information contained within. This isn't always obvious to many members or sources.
They don't consider to disclosure of things like the country they live or state/province/region, or even the city as worrisome. It may not be close to the seriousness of publicly posting name and address details. It still should not be done.
The posting of tracking information happens far too often. Maybe there is no intention to doxx but the end result is the same - private information about a member has been disclosed.
Even customers regularly do this - probably at least 25-50 in the last year alone. The reveal location data about source operations. And more concerning, they voluntarily disclose personal info about themselves.
I think most sources probably share tracking information as a means of providing customer service. Yet it doesn't really matter as it still shows utter disregard for consumer privacy. And several have been banned for this.
Sometimes sources make their intentions known with explicit threats of doxxing with tracking information.
Actual disclosure of personal information, whether doxxing or not, may be worse than a mere threat. However, an unrealized threat can cause harm too.
The purpose of the threat is often to suppress and discourage members from speaking out and criticizing a source. It is one of many ways sources seek to suppress public criticism.
In general, sources are are only temporarily banned for posting tracking information. The permanent bans are reserved from those who show a pattern of repeatedly breaking the rules especially after being warned or those who fully doxx members with name/address details.