Flagged comments still readable in user's profile

[ClarkB]

When a user’s comment is flagged it is removed from view, but if you click on the user’s profile and go to recent replies you can still read the comments that have been flagged. This is a large issue as the flagging is supposed to make discourse safer from rude, and obscene comments but they are still visible.

[maiki]

Hi @ClarkB.

Is that the case as a staff user, as well as a regular user? I think it may show for staff members (admin and moderator accounts).

[Lhc_fl (Linca)]

I reproduced this bug on meta.

[sam (Sam Saffron)]

말씀은 이해하지만, 이건 애초에 Contribute > Feature 영역에 해당한다고 볼 수 있어요. 결국 나쁜 콘텐츠를 보러 돌아다녔잖아요.

[Canapin (Coin-coin le Canapin)]

@sam

You did go cruising to see the terrible content after all.

I may disagree on this.

There are many reasons to have a look at a user’s profile, even not knowing one or several of their posts have been flagged and thus accidentally come across potentially offensive content.

That said, it’s the first time this issue has been reported so far (as know, at least).

[ClarkB]

I am a regular user on the discussion I was on.

[ClarkB]

I went to their profile to flag their other messages as their account was made with the sole reason of being mean.

[Canapin (Coin-coin le Canapin)]

When you come across such an issue, unless the other messages are really problematic, a single report flagged as “other reason” should be sufficient, as you can explain why you reported and tell that the user is a troll and their other messages are offensive as well. Then the moderators should act accordingly.

Of course, it’s in theory, and it always depends on the context and community (since you came across this issue on another forum) and flagging multiple messages may be necessary.

[olivia]

Priority/Severity: Medium - While this bug doesn’t break functionality, it contradicts the purpose of flagging, potentially allowing inappropriate content to remain accessible.

Platform: Tested on a desktop, OS: Windows 10, Browser: Google Chrome.

Description: In Discourse, when a user’s comment is flagged, it gets removed from the regular topic view, indicating that the flagging function is working as expected. However, by navigating to the offending user’s profile and checking their ‘Recent Replies’, the flagged comment remains visible despite the flag. This behavior contradicts the intended purpose of flagging, as it should make a discourse safer from rude and obscene comments.

Expected Result: Flagged comments should be hidden from all user views, including the ‘Recent Replies’ section in the user profile, except for admin or moderator views.

Actual Result: Flagged comments are hidden from the regular topic view, but still visible under ‘Recent Replies’ on the user’s profile page.

Reproducible Steps:

1. Login as Test User 1 and create a post or comment.
2. Logout from Test User 1 and login as Test User 2.
3. Navigate to the post created by Test User 1 and flag it.
4. Confirm that the post is no longer visible in the topic view (you can check this by logging in as a third Test User 3).
5. Still logged in as Test User 3, navigate to Test User 1’s profile.
6. Click on ‘Activity’, then on ‘Replies’ from the dropdown.
7. Check for the flagged post in this section.

[sam (Sam Saffron)]

기능 영역에서 이 문제를 거론하는 이유는, 이에 대해 충분히 고민해야 하기 때문입니다.

• 관리자/모더레이터의 경우… 해당 콘텐츠를 보게 되어야 할까요?
• 보지 않는다면, 이를 플래그와 연결해야 합니다. 보는 경우에도 아마 플래그와 연결하는 것이 좋을 것 같습니다.

단순히 콘텐츠를 숨기면, 모더레이터들이 불필요한 이유로 불이익을 받게 됩니다. 사용자를 검토할 때 전체적인 맥락이 필요하며, 모더레이터에게 정보를 숨기면 오히려 무의미한 업무가 더 늘어납니다.

일반 사용자 입장에서는… 콘텐츠를 숨기는 것에 동의합니다. 하지만 그렇다면 Contribute > Feature 질문은 "얼마나 숨길 것인가"가 됩니다. 목록에서 제거하는 것이 가장 단순한 방법이라고 생각합니다.

[sciencewhiz]

The content also shows up in the og and twitter description meta tags in the link to the post. This means anyone linking to the post on an external website can still see the content.

[Brandon_Martus]

We’ve noticed this as well, mentioned in this topic with a similar issue:

Hidden posts show up in search results

We’ve noticed this on our forums as well. A post is hidden due to being flagged, but people can embed the post elsewhere and read the flagged/hidden content. Shouldn’t the content be unavailable while it’s being reviewed?

[Heliosurge (Dan DeMontmorency)]

@Canapin

I may disagree on this.

There are many reasons to have a look at a user’s profile, even not knowing one or several of their posts have been flagged and thus accidentally come across potentially offensive content.

That said, it’s the first time this issue has been reported so far (as know, at least

Definitely a bug and not a feature. Lol

@sam

As end user… I am OK with suppressing. But then the #feature::category question is “how much do we suppress”? Just remove it from the list seems simplest to me

Simple imho. Do it by position. Mod/admins can already see things like hidden posts etc.. So only needs to be fixed for non admin/mod users to achieve parity.

@sciencewhiz

The content also shows up in the og and twitter description meta tags in the link to the post. This means anyone linking to the post on an external website can still see the content.

Can’t do much about cached content on other platforms or even a Google search.

[sciencewhiz]

@Heliosurge

Can’t do much about cached content on other platforms or even a Google search.

It’s actively generated by discourse after the post is hidden.