Review Moderation
The review moderation section gives admins visibility and control over user reviews that have been flagged for policy violations — enabling removal of spam, abusive content, and off-topic reviews while maintaining review integrity.
Review Moderation Queue
The moderation queue shows all reviews that have been flagged by users. Reviews appear in the queue immediately when flagged — admins do not need to monitor individual package pages. The queue is sorted by flag count (most-flagged first) then by flag date.
| Queue Column | Description |
|---|---|
| Package | Package name and publisher — links to the package detail page |
| Reviewer | Username of the reviewer who left the review |
| Rating | Star rating given in the review |
| Review text preview | First 150 chars of the review text |
| Flag count | Number of users who have flagged this review |
| Flag reason | Most common flag reason: Spam / Abusive / Irrelevant / Fake |
| Date submitted | When the review was originally posted |
Admin Actions on Flagged Reviews
| Action | Description | Publisher Notified? |
|---|---|---|
| Dismiss Flag | Review is legitimate — clear the flag and keep the review visible | No |
| Remove Review | Review violates policy — remove it entirely from the package page | Yes — reviewer notified of removal |
| Warn Reviewer | Review is borderline — warn the user without removing the review | Yes — reviewer receives warning |
| Add Moderator Note | Internal note on the review — visible to admins only, not to public | No |
Removal Reasons
When removing a review, admins must select a documented reason. The removal reason is shown to the reviewer in their notification.
- Spam — Review is promotional content, repeated text, or clearly auto-generated
- Abusive Language — Review contains language that violates community standards
- Not About the Package — Review discusses unrelated topics (e.g., complaining about customer service unrelated to the package)
- Fake Review — Evidence the review is not from a genuine user experience (coordinated review bombing)
- Personal Information — Review contains others' personal information in violation of privacy policy
Every review removal action is recorded in the audit log with the admin's username, the review content (before removal), the reason selected, and a timestamp. Review removals can be appealed by the reviewer through the support process.