Implemented [Suggestion] Renewable Terms and Conditions (i.e. rules)

Stuart Wright

Well-known member
If you change your terms and conditions (rules) of your site, then really you ought to ensure that people actively agree to them like they did when they registered.
Maybe when they next visit the site, maybe when they next do something only members can do.
So I think it's important to have an option in the admincp to trigger a new 'I agree' type notice and confirmation like we so often see with Apple, eBay and other similar organisations.
Anyone else think this should be standard functionality?
 
Upvote 25
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That would be handy. Possibly a popup like the member card?

I would not need this immediately, but eventually it would be nice. Yes/no box in a dismissible notice type thing.
 
If it required then place a simple Announcement.
It is everyone's reason to read or ignore it.

Therefore no for this suggestion.
 
If it required then place a simple Announcement.
It is everyone's reason to read or ignore it.
The point of this feature is to force them to agree to the new terms before they can continue using the forum. An announcement won't do that. :)
 
I think in a announcement you can say: "Hallo Eriksrocks, we have chance our terms. Please read it."
It doesn't force them to read or agree to the new terms though. The point of this request was to force the users to check a box that says "I agree to the new Terms of Service" before they can continue using your forum. Services like iTunes, eBay, etc. do this all the time. :)
 
I think in a announcement you can say: "Hallo Eriksrocks, we have chance our terms. Please read it."
Before you can join the forum (when you register), you must agree to the terms to continue and get your account created. It makes sense that if those terms change you should be made to review the updated terms and decide whether or not to continue using that site.
 
If you want to run your forum properly then legally if you change your terms and conditions / rules, then you invalidate the agreement people made when they ticked the box at registration.
This is why large organisations, when they change their rules, require you to agree to them again. Otherwise they are unenforceable.
Personally I have seen it with iTunes, iPhone applications (requiring me to be over 17), eBay and Google adwords. Probably others too, but I can't remember them now.
 
Why not tie it into the self-delete ? Click 'Yes' continue as a member, click 'No' a confirmation pops up and the account deletes itself or inactivates..
 
Good idea for the addon, I think. Most of the time walls of rules text just irritate users. It's up to them to sign contract with devil by pressing Accept without actual reading ;)
 
What might be nice is an admin-accessible profile field of 'has agreed to T&C's" Then if the T&C's change, we set that to 'no' globally and everyone has to read and re-agree. But also if one member is doing something in breach of the T&C's we can force a re-agreement as part of the warning / ban process.
 
I think simple works here.
I think in a announcement you can say: "Hallo Eriksrocks, we have chance our terms. Please read it."
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It doesn't force them to read or agree to the new terms though. The point of this request was to force the users to check a box that says "I agree to the new Terms of Service" before they can continue using your forum. Services like iTunes, eBay, etc. do this all the time. :)
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An announcement that has a link in it pops up as an overlay stating
Please click here to read our new ToS , posting permissions have been removed until confirmation of the new policies has been made. Sorry for any inconvenience.
-staff​
 
What might be nice is an admin-accessible profile field of 'has agreed to T&C's" Then if the T&C's change, we set that to 'no' globally and everyone has to read and re-agree. But also if one member is doing something in breach of the T&C's we can force a re-agreement as part of the warning / ban process.
Cybernetec's modification had an option to force re-agreement of the rules when you received an infraction. I used it quite a bit :)
 
I think simple works here.

+

=
An announcement that has a link in it pops up as an overlay stating
Or it just pops up (via dialog box) the next time the user logs in, skipping the admin's need to create a separate announcement and waiting for the user to click a link.
 
Or it just pops up (via dialog box) the next time the user logs in, skipping the admin's need to create a separate announcement and waiting for the user to click a link.
An announcement that has a link in it pops up as an overlay stating

Please click here to read our new ToS , posting permissions have been removed until confirmation of the new policies has been made. Sorry for any inconvenience.

-staff


My message was general, It only would have to made once and can be a default such as a when your forum is off it has that general annoncement page telling you we will be back soon. You update the ToS and check a box that says force re-confirm and the overlay happens for everyone on their next page refresh. Simple.
 
An announcement that has a link in it pops up as an overlay stating




My message was general, It only would have to made once and can be a default such as a when your forum is off it has that general annoncement page telling you we will be back soon. You update the ToS and check a box that says force re-confirm and the overlay happens for everyone on their next page refresh. Simple.
Are you saying that they would be redirected to a page with the updated terms are agree to them there? I may have misunderstood you, as I thought you had meant that you would create a thread as an announcement and then place a special link there.
 
Are you saying that they would be redirected to a page with the updated terms are agree to them there? I may have misunderstood you, as I thought you had meant that you would create a thread as an announcement and then place a special link there.

Yeah I'll make a bulleted list of order of operations.

  • Admin makes change to ToS
  • ToS Updated
  • Auto notice generated in an overlay with default ToS update message displayed to logged in members
  • Deletes any previous acknowledgements to the ToS users have made.
  • Board permissions that don't allow registered members to post until they agree to ToS
  • All users now are forced to update acknowledgement of new ToS
Of course you cannot take out changes in rules justifiably against someone who did the act when there was no policy it conflicted with in the first place. I mean you can but it's dishonorable unless circumstances require it. see ex post facto for reference. This is a whole other issue though and completely off-topic and I only bring it up as you would have to keep records of changes made to ToS so someone who has been warned and facilitated the need for a change in ToS shouldn't get banned later by referencing an old post that went un-deleted but was recognized after the fact that the terms had changed and whatever mod didn't take the time to familiarize themselves with all the said changes resulting of a ban of member who may never come back even though he hasn't violated a rule since being warned. This would only be an issue on larger boards though I would guess as smaller communities tend to know almost all of one another.
 
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