Community Guidelines

1. Our Community & Platform Role

BookAuth hosts community features including reviews, ratings, book clubs, comments, profiles, and author-reader interactions. These Community Guidelines apply alongside our Acceptable Use Policy and Terms of Service.

BookAuth is a provider of an interactive computer service. User-generated content is provided by users, not BookAuth. To the extent permitted by applicable law (including 47 U.S.C. § 230), BookAuth is not the publisher or speaker of user-generated content, and is not liable for it. BookAuth may, in its discretion, moderate content, but is not obligated to do so, and makes no guarantee that any particular content will be removed.

2. Standards for Reviews

• Reviews must reflect your genuine, honest experience with the book.
• Do not post fake, paid, incentivized-for-positive, or retaliatory reviews. ARC reviews must be honest and unbiased, and must disclose where required that you received a free copy.
• Do not coordinate "review bombing" or organized negative-campaign activity.
• Keep reviews respectful and focused on the work, not personal attacks on the author or other readers.
• Do not post content that is defamatory, harassing, hateful, or that reveals non-public personal information.
• Reviews are your original work; do not copy others' reviews.

3. Book Clubs & Groups

• Club hosts may set their own rules, which must be consistent with these Guidelines.
• Do not use clubs to harass members, proselytize hate, distribute pirated books, or conduct commercial activity outside permitted channels.
• Respect copyright: do not share full texts of books or other copyrighted material in clubs without rights.
• Club organizers are responsible for moderating their clubs; BookAuth may also moderate or remove clubs or content that violate these Guidelines.

4. Behavior & Safety

• Treat others with respect. No harassment, bullying, threats, hate, doxxing, or sexual misconduct.
• Do not impersonate others or misrepresent your identity or credentials.
• Do not solicit or share private information, or attempt to move minors into private channels.
• Comply with all applicable laws.

5. Reporting & Moderation

You can report content that violates these Guidelines using the report tools in the Service or by contacting [email protected]. We review reports and may remove content, hide reviews from public aggregation, restrict features, suspend, or terminate accounts for violations or repeat violations. We aim to be fair but reserve the right to act in our discretion to protect the community. Because BookAuth is not the publisher of user content, our moderation is discretionary and may not catch every violation.

6. Reputation & Integrity

Reader reputation, ratings, and ARC eligibility are intended to reflect genuine engagement and quality. Attempting to manipulate reputation, ratings, or eligibility (e.g., through fake accounts, coordinated activity, or cheating) violates these Guidelines and may result in reset scores and account action.