---
title: What To Do When You Spot It
order: 6
summary: A practical response playbook for handling spam, scams, and hate speech in your community.
lastUpdated: "2026-03-27"
---
## Overview

Knowing how to recognize harmful content is only half the job. This chapter gives you a clear, step-by-step playbook for responding to each type of threat — from routine spam to serious hate speech.

## The 4-Step Response Framework

For any harmful content you encounter, follow this framework:

### 1. Assess

**Ask yourself:**
- What type of content is this? (scam, sexual spam, hate speech, evasion)
- How severe is it? (routine spam vs. active harm)
- Is the account a first-time offender or a repeat pattern?
- Could this be a false positive? (genuine user, innocent use of a number, etc.)

### 2. Act

**Immediate actions based on severity:**

| Severity | Content Type | Action |
|----------|-------------|--------|
| Critical | Hate speech, violent threats, CSAM | Remove immediately. Ban account. Report to platform. |
| High | Crypto scams, phishing links, impersonation | Remove immediately. Ban account. Warn community if needed. |
| Medium | Sexual spam, fake giveaways, follower scams | Remove content. Warn or ban based on history. |
| Low | Borderline spam, link shorteners, engagement bait | Monitor. Remove if pattern continues. |

### 3. Document

**What to record:**
- Screenshot of the content (before deletion)
- The account username and any profile details
- The type of spam/scam identified
- The action you took
- Date and time

**Why document:** Patterns emerge over time. Documentation helps you identify coordinated campaigns, demonstrate the need for better tools, and train new team members.

### 4. Escalate (When Needed)

**Escalate to the platform when you see:**
- Coordinated spam attacks (many similar accounts posting at once)
- Impersonation of your brand or public figures
- Content that may be illegal (CSAM, threats of violence, doxxing)
- Accounts that recreate after being banned

**Escalate to law enforcement when you see:**
- Credible threats of violence
- Child exploitation content
- Doxxing with clear intent to harm
- Fraud that has caused real financial harm to your community members

## Category-Specific Playbooks

### Scam Comments

**Routine scam (crypto, Telegram, fake giveaway):**
1. Delete the comment
2. Ban the account (scam accounts rarely reform)
3. If the scam targets a specific post, consider pinning a warning comment
4. No need to respond to the scammer

**Sophisticated scam (impersonation, fake support):**
1. Delete the comment immediately
2. Ban the account
3. Post a warning to your community: "We will never ask you to contact us via Telegram/WhatsApp"
4. Report the account to the platform for impersonation
5. If the scammer impersonated a real person, notify that person

### Sexual Spam

**Explicit content promotion:**
1. Delete the comment
2. Ban the account
3. No further action typically needed

**Voyeur solicitation (requests for images of others):**
1. Delete immediately
2. Ban the account permanently
3. Report to the platform as sexual exploitation
4. Document for potential law enforcement referral

### Hate Speech

**Coded hate speech (numeric codes, emoji combinations):**
1. Delete the comment
2. Check the account's history for additional signals
3. Ban if there is a pattern (or if the signal is unambiguous, like 1488)
4. Report to the platform as hate speech
5. Do not engage with the poster or explain what you detected — this educates them on evasion

**Overt hate speech:**
1. Delete immediately
2. Ban permanently
3. Report to the platform
4. Document for potential law enforcement referral if threats are involved

### Filter Evasion

**When you find spam that evaded automated filters:**
1. Remove the content
2. Note the evasion technique used (character substitution, invisible characters, etc.)
3. Report the technique to your tool provider so they can improve detection
4. Check for similar comments from the same account or similar accounts

## Building a Healthier Community

Beyond reactive moderation, you can take proactive steps:

**Set expectations early:**
- Pin community guidelines prominently
- State clearly what is and isn't allowed
- Explain consequences (warning, mute, ban)

**Use automated tools effectively:**
- Automated moderation catches the bulk of spam so you can focus on edge cases
- Review flagged content regularly — false positives teach you about your community's normal patterns
- Report missed spam to your tool provider to improve detection

**Educate your audience:**
- Warn your community about active scam campaigns
- Tell users to never click suspicious links or move to external messengers
- Encourage reporting — your community members are your first line of defense

**Take care of yourself:**
- Moderation work can be emotionally draining, especially when dealing with hate speech or exploitation content
- Take breaks between moderation sessions
- Share the workload with your team when possible
- Organizations like the Content Moderator Wellness Program offer resources

### Quick-Reference Checklist

- [ ] Follow the 4-step framework: Assess, Act, Document, Escalate
- [ ] Always screenshot before deleting (for documentation)
- [ ] Scam accounts should almost always be banned, not just warned
- [ ] Never engage with hate speech posters — just remove, ban, report
- [ ] Voyeur solicitation and threats require platform reporting and possible law enforcement escalation
- [ ] Report evasion techniques to your tool provider
- [ ] Pin community guidelines and warn about active scam campaigns
- [ ] Take care of your own wellbeing — moderation is taxing work