Site rules

Rules for the use of ProZ.com

The following rules have been created to extend and protect the pleasant, results-oriented atmosphere of the ProZ.com translation workplace. By using the site, you indicate your acceptance of, and agreement to abide by, these rules.

Site Rule

1	ProZ.com is a language workplace. The site is provided as a professional resource for those who work with language or who require language services. In principle, postings which are not related to translation, interpreting or other language issues, or the business thereof, are not allowed. [ For details and possible exceptions, see the site's Definition of Scope ]
2	Mutual respect, professionalism and fair play are expected. Site users are expected to treat each other with courtesy, whether posting publicly or making direct contact, and are advised to act under the assumption of good faith. Harassment of, or attacks or ad hominem statements on, individuals or groups, of any form, as well as discouragement of another's use of the site, will not be tolerated. No action aimed at gaining unfair advantage in KudoZ, the directory or elsewhere, whether taken alone or as a group, will be tolerated.
3	Advertisements are prohibited. Paid advertising is available from ProZ.com in designated areas of the site. Unauthorized solicitation, sent via the forums, profile messages or elsewhere, is not allowed. Discussion of sites offering competing services is also prohibited, due to past abuse.
4	Offensive language is not permitted.
5	Uppercase should not be overused. Use lowercase letters unless uppercase is required. Posting in all capital letters is analogous to shouting.
6	Misrepresentation and fraud are forbidden. It is possible to use ProZ.com without disclosing your name. However, impersonating others, using assumed identities, or otherwise attempting to deceive others to any degree will not be tolerated.
7	One profile is allowed per person. Creating a new profile to bypass restrictions or gain advantages is prohibited. (However, it is acceptable to have one profile for yourself as a freelancer and another profile affiliated to your registered business page if you desperately need to separate freelancer and employer's activity.)
8	Discussion of administrative actions taken by moderators or site staff should be carried out solely via the site's online support system. Administrative actions include rules enforcement actions in the forums and KudoZ, warnings or restrictions on posting or other rights, editorial adjustments to topic subject lines, the locking of certain forum threads, selection of topics to be featured on the home page, etc. For further clarification, see this FAQ.

Adherence to the above rules is a condition for continued right to access and use the site.

Enforcement

Staff members and moderators may take any of the following actions to enforce the above rules:
* contacting site users to call attention to specific rules
* refraining from approving (or removing/hiding) postings that violate a rule
* causing a message related to the rules to appear to certain users when they undertake certain actions
* suspending, temporarily or permanently, access to site features that have been used in violation of the rules.
* termination of profile or membership (staff only)

Moderators and staff members must act in accordance with, and are protected by, site rules in exactly the same way as other members.

Termination

In rare cases of severe infraction, ProZ.com staff members may terminate a profile (and membership) with immediate effect. In most cases, however, ProZ.com uses a "yellow card/red card" policy, akin to yellow-card/red-card practice in the sport of football/soccer, for terminations.

Yellow and red cards are issued only by staff members. Rules are cited by number, and the date of the card is logged. The terms "yellow card" or "red card" are used explicitly; if an email is sent, the terms appear in the subject line.

A site user who has been issued a yellow card may continue to use the site (sometimes with certain restrictions), but is otherwise under notice that further infractions will lead to termination. A person whose profile has been terminated will not be readmitted to ProZ.com.

Outsourcers are subject to the site's Termination policy.

Clarification

For clarification regarding any of the above rules or rules enforcement, please submit a support request.