Since the update to the new software it's become fairly frequent for members to report PMs & posts due to the "i" (reporting) icon being slap bang next to the quote icon.
Even Quiffy has accidentally reported a post in the recent past, so that shows just how easy it is to do
For PMs, please be aware that when one is reported, an alert is instantly sent to the HL staff and an active report is opened in our moderation logs.
But, & this is can be awkward depending on the content of the PM being reported, please be aware that a copy of the reported PM is included in that logged report.
If the report is genuine (newbie spamming someone or harassment etc) rest assured we'll deal with the offender pretty swiftly.
If the PM is a genuinely mistakenly reported message, we will see the content as the system can't distinguish between a genuine & a mistaken report. But, as it is absolutely none of our funning business, that content will remain private &, in all honesty, we'll more than likely forget what it was in a few days.
Just to be clear, PMs are PRIVATE and this instance I just described is the ONLY way the staff can see someone else's PM.
It gets slightly more complicated when a post is reported as the report is sent directly to Stop Forum Spam and the IP addy from the reported post will immediately be flagged as banned on HL which can take a fair bit of undoing.
We don't really want to remove the reporting function as it basically offers all of you another level of protection against ne'er-do-wells, but, until we've figured a way to make it sausage finger proof, please be careful when quoting a post or a PM.
If you think you've reported something in error, don't panic. We see them & deal with them pretty much right away.