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Eugen Rochko

@ionizedgirl Harassment is a complex multi-faceted issue that we're addressing on multiple ends, but filtering notifications from specific sources is something that's been live for a couple months on mastodon.social and in the nightlies.

25 comments
ionizedGirl

@Gargron it seems like harassment from accounts and servers that are previously unknown to the reciepient or the recipient's moderators is driving people away

Jerry Bell :verified_paw: :donor: :verified_dragon: :rebelverified:​

@ionizedgirl @Gargron recent changes to mastodon allows us to filter out notifications from new accounts (and by proxy, new instances). I find that it works really well.

Chiclet

@ionizedgirl

Hi again
Looks like toot.cat is on version 4.3.0-beta.1...

Can you please log in through a web browser and look for the setting to filter out notification from users younger than 30 days. Try it out please.

@Gargron

ionizedGirl

@chiclet @Gargron "filtering notifications" is useless for replies because the replies are still there. The server needs to not acknowledge their existence. This is exactly what just caused a huge number of black and otherwise marginalized people, technology connections and @vkc to leave fedi.

ionizedGirl

@chiclet @Gargron "filter notifications" also does not reduce moderator workload.

Chiclet

@ionizedgirl

I don't understand. You can still see replies from new accounts?

"notification" should also include what you see when you view the thread. I might try to test.

@Gargron @vkc

featuretest324

@chiclet @ionizedgirl

This is test1 from an account just created today.

Chiclet

@ionizedgirl

Ok. Sadly this feature isn't what is needed. I'm gonna see if some devs can get it closer to the issue described, and actually get an automatic mute and/or block.

Chiclet

@ionizedgirl @Gargron @vkc

Okay, I tested.

I am sorry. You are correct. This feature is only for your "notification", so it is incomplete and won't actually be effective in helping with the harrassment problems.

I'll see if @renchap can take another look at the open issue on GitHub.
Notification isn't the problem. The option should be to Mute and/or Block.

It might be that mute and block lists are actual lists, rather than what notifications are, which is more like a stream. So maybe there will need to be some automation running server side to do it. There will need to be some safeguards to keep the lists from growing too big too fast.

github.com/mastodon/mastodon/i

@ionizedgirl @Gargron @vkc

Okay, I tested.

I am sorry. You are correct. This feature is only for your "notification", so it is incomplete and won't actually be effective in helping with the harrassment problems.

I'll see if @renchap can take another look at the open issue on GitHub.
Notification isn't the problem. The option should be to Mute and/or Block.

R. L. Dane :debian: :openbsd:

@Gargron

I don't have any complaints (I love it here), but I beg you to check out some recent posts by @vkc, as they highlight patterns of abuse that most people aren't aware of -- and because she has done everything reasonable and possible to block the abusers, but still gets targeted.

@ionizedgirl

Synapsid

@RL_Dane @Gargron

Takes a bit of scrolling down but she clearly talks about the harassement she's getting. Utterly shameful on Mastodon's part, I had no idea harassment here could get so bad.

Edit: and thank you for bringing attention to this

Jerry Bell :verified_paw: :donor: :verified_dragon: :rebelverified:​

@Synapsidont @RL_Dane @Gargron can you help me understand the “utterly shameful on mastodon’s part”? What would you like to see changed?

R. L. Dane :debian: :openbsd:

@jerry @Synapsidont @Gargron

To summarize the conversation, moderation tools / filters / and blocks are insufficient to curb targeted abuse attacks from people who constantly hop instances to target individuals.

It seems there are some new features in development to optionally block new accounts that should help.

R. L. Dane :debian: :openbsd:

@jerry @Synapsidont @Gargron

1/3

No, I definitely don't want that, and to be clear, these aren't my ideas or complaints, for that matter. I have have the privilege of not being targeted for harassment (and I do understand it as such).

...

R. L. Dane :debian: :openbsd:

@jerry @Synapsidont @Gargron

2/3

...

The idea that made the most sense to me (and which I believe is already being developed) is to give each user the option to automatically ignore comments coming from new accounts (and/or instances?) to curb the tide of people instance-hopping to continue abusive behaviors once blocked.

I'm not pushing for centralization or more algorithmic meddling. I treasure the #fediverse for its lack of those elements.

...

R. L. Dane :debian: :openbsd:

@jerry @Synapsidont @Gargron

3/3

...

Except (*cough*), the 500-char limit still feels bloody silly to me. 144 chars is a creative constraint. 500 is just silly. Sorry, </soapbox> ;)

SuperMoosie replied to R. L. Dane :debian: :openbsd:

@RL_Dane
Got a 2000 character limit here.
Talk to your instance admin.

R. L. Dane :debian: :openbsd: replied to SuperMoosie

@SuperMoosie

I have. They believe in the 500. 😓

I love everything else about the instance, so I'm not looking very hard at moving, even though I've halfway moved to alpha.polymaths.social already (Still waiting for #GotoSocial to get edits XD )

JimmyChezPants

@jerry @RL_Dane @Synapsidont @Gargron

Be careful that you don't turn a discussion about what sort of rules and systems work for the greatest number of people into a witchhunt for "centralized" stuff.

The fact they're "centralized" is not what makes the silos bad. It's that they are controlled by people with shareholders who have to make money, and that bad people have all the money to pay them.

Anarchy will not save us. Solidarity will. The Fedi has a future - Mastodon might not.

R. L. Dane :debian: :openbsd:

@jpaskaruk @jerry @Synapsidont @Gargron

I'm not sure that centralization *isn't* an inherent evil.
The beauty of fedi is that it isn't centralized, but that's not the core of it.
It's cooperation, it's values, it's openness, it's lack of algorithmic meddling, it's... a lot of things.

JimmyChezPants

@RL_Dane @jerry @Synapsidont @Gargron

The fedi is not that beautiful in execution, IMO. It is for us techy white people, especially if we gloss over/ignore what marginalized people are telling us.

Bit like how the police have been brutalizing black people in America for literally their entire existence as The Police, but it took until 1992 for white people to *start* believing them, because they couldn't see it happening.

Actually it's *exactly* like that.

KellyAnn Romanych (she/her)

@Gargron safety is a top priority to make good on your nonprofit mission. @ionizedgirl

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