Our Social Media & Moderation Policy📲
As you may have noticed, Livewire runs a bit differently to most other websites and social media. We have a few more rules and limitations in place than Snapchat, Facey or Insta. When you first join Livewire, it can take a little bit of getting used to, and that’s okay. But all the guidelines we have in place are really for good reason. Livewire is the safest, nicest place on the internet, and we want to keep it that way.
When you talk to people on Livewire, you can always be 100% certain that they are who they say they are. That’s because we validate every member’s identity when they join. You can also be 100% certain that you won’t be cyberbullied on Livewire, ever. That’s because we have chat hosts here who moderate the site and make sure that everyone is safe and comfortable.
What We Moderate
When we say we moderate everything that happens on Livewire, we mean it! As you might have noticed in our Terms and Conditions when you first made your account, the chat hosts moderate all interactions on Livewire, including site Messages and PM’s in the chat room.
It’s not that we are nosey or that we want to know your private business. We are only looking for things like- people swapping social media details or phone numbers without their parents’ permission (more on that below!), people sharing private details about themselves that might reveal their location (like the name of their school or the small town they live in), or people not behaving respectfully to each other, or otherwise breaching our Community Guidelines.
So while we do read all interactions that happen on Livewire, it’s not cause we want to be all up in your business- it’s just to keep everyone safe and make sure Livewire remains the awesome, respectful place that it is.
Anything we happen to read in PM’s is kept totally confidential- we won’t ever reveal your personal stuff to other members without your permission. If we find something we have to moderate, we will let the other chat hosts and the Livewire manager know, but they will keep it confidential as well.
Livewire has a duty of care to keep our members safe. We’re not here to dob on you, and we’ll always try to talk with you first but if we have concerns about your safety including your mental or physical health, we may need to notify your parent or guardian.
We also ask that you check with a chat host before you share links to other websites, in public chat, private messages, or on the Newsfeed. We need to make sure that the link is appropriate for all our members (remembering that membership on Livewire starts from 12!), and that the link doesn’t reveal any of your personal information (especially for links to things like Spotify or Google Drive).
Remember, if anything on Livewire is bothering you or you have any questions, you can always talk to a chat host- nothing is too big or too small! You can also email livewire@starlight.org.au with any questions or concerns you might have.
Our Gaming and Social Media Policy
If you would like to share your contact or social media details with another Livewire member, please follow the guidelines below.
If you are over 18, sharing your details with other members over 18 is your choice. Please let a chat host know before you share your details so we can double check it and approve it. If you’d like to share your details with a member who is under 18, you need to let the chat host know beforehand because we need to get parent/guardian consent first.
If you are under 18, we need to get your parent or guardian’s permission before you can share any contact details with any other member. If you would like to share social media details with another member, please let us know and we will get in touch with your parent or guardian by phone or email to get their permission. When we have that permission, you are free to share your contact and social media details. However, if you are sharing with another person who is also under 18, we need to wait until their parent/guardian give consent as well.
We know that sometimes you might stumble across people you know from Livewire on other social media, without meaning to- maybe you have mutual friends, or follow the same pages or people. If you or the person you want to add on social media are under 18, please talk to a Facilitator so we can get permission from your parent or guardian before you add anyone from Livewire you have just stumbled across. If you are over 18, and the person you want to add on social media is also over 18, you only need your own permission; but we would appreciate it if you follow the Livewire social media guidelines so we can facilitate consent seeking from both individuals.
If you are under 18 and have other Livewire members on social media and you haven’t cleared it with a Facilitator first, and we happen to find out, we may contact your parents or guardians as a courtesy, to let them know that you are in contact with people from Livewire on other social media.
It’s important to remember that interacting with people on Livewire doesn’t mean you have to interact with them on other social media too. You can make the choice to keep your Livewire friendships just on Livewire. Don’t feel like you have to accept someone’s friend request on other social media just because you talk to them here. If someone connects with you on social media outside of Livewire, and you would rather not connect with them that way, it’s okay to ignore their request. Always let a Facilitator know if anything is happening with another Livewire member that is making you uncomfortable.
We know that our moderation and social media policies can seem like a big deal, especially if you are more used to other social media, or are new to Livewire. But those policies, and our Community Guidelines are part of what makes Livewire the supportive, positive, safe place that it is. Our members- that’s you- are the most important factor when we make any decisions on Livewire, and keeping you safe is our highest priority.
Remember to talk to a facilitator or email livewire@starlight.org.au if you have any questions or concerns, or just want some more information. You can also check out our Stuff to Know section for Livewire policies and other helpful info.
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