If a person uploads content that is removed or ‘hidden’ on one occasion, that person may be blocked or banned from a social media platform that is owned or operated by Council.
If a person’s content has been moderated on two occasions within 12 months, the person may be blocked for a period determined as per the below. Anonymous or pseudonymous accounts that post content of a kind that breaches our policy, may be blocked immediately with approval from the General Manager.
Please note: Councillor social media platforms are not owned or operated by the Council. Councillors reserve the right to hide, block or ban a person, or anonymous or pseudonymous accounts, pages or groups.
Prior to blocking or banning a person from a social media platform, the person(s) may where practicable, be advised of the intention to block or ban them from the platform and be given a chance to respond. Any submission made by the person may be considered prior to a determination being made to block or ban them.
The duration of the block or ban is to be determined by General Manager or in the case of a Councillor’s social media platform, the Councillor.
Where a determination is made to block or ban a person from a social media platform/all social media platforms, the person may, where practicable, be notified in writing of the decision and the reasons for it. The written notice may also advise the person which social media platforms they are blocked or banned from and the duration of the block or ban and inform them of their rights of review.
Despite the above where a person uploads content of a kind that breaches our policy, and the moderator is reasonably satisfied that the person’s further engagement on the social media platform poses a risk to health and safety or another substantive risk (such as the uploading of defamatory content), an interim block or ban from the platform/all platforms may be imposed on the person immediately for a period no longer than one year.
A person who is blocked or banned from the platform/all platforms may, where practicable, be given a chance to respond to the interim block or ban being imposed. Any submission made by the person may be considered when determining whether the interim block or ban is to be removed or retained by the formal review process mentioned above.
A person may request a review of a decision to block or ban them from a social media platform. The request must be made in writing to the General Manager and state the grounds on which the request is being made.
Where a review request is made, the review is to be undertaken by the General Manager or a member of staff nominated by the General Manager who is suitably qualified and who was not involved in the decision to block or ban the person.
Where the decision to block or ban the person was made by the General Manager, the review must be undertaken by another senior and suitably qualified member of staff who was not involved in the decision.
Where a person that is the subject of a block or ban continues to engage on a social media platform(s) using an alternative social media account, profile, avatar, etc., a moderator may block or ban the person from the platform(s) immediately. In these circumstances, the above banning procedure does not apply.