=======  Sockpuppeting  =======  
For the purposes of OzBargain, it's posting a deal or commenting on a deal without declaring affiliation with the company. Otherwise, it's voting on a deal for a company you are affiliated with.

Some examples:

   *A person posts a deal or competition pretending to be a customer when they are actually associated with the company.

   *A friend, family member, or employee comments on a deal or competition, or posts a deal or competition without declaring affiliation.

   *A friend, family member, or employee votes on a deal or competition.

   *The OP creates ghost accounts((A ghost account is a duplicate account. Multiple accounts held by the same individual or entity are not permitted without proper authorisation.)) to vote and/or comment on their deal or competition.

Doing any of the following not only is against our site rules but may violate [[https://www.accc.gov.au/business/advertising-promoting-your-business/managing-online-reviews|The Competition and Consumer Act 2010]].

======  What you can do  ======    

Reporting your suspicions is a good idea but as moderators have a multitude of sockpuppeting detection tools, it's best to leave the investigation to them rather than making public accusations. Please submit issues by either reporting the suspicious post/comment((You can find a 'Report' link on the bottom of each post and comment.)) or by starting a topic in the [[https://www.ozbargain.com.au/forum/10041|Talk With A Moderator (TWAM) forum]].

======  For those who get caught for sockpuppeting  ====== 

If you are caught sockpuppeting, then you will be banned. The length of your ban (e.g. permanently or 1 month) depends on:
   *the severity of the incident
   *initiating a dialogue with us through the [[https://www.ozbargain.com.au/forum/10041|TWAM forum]]
   *a truthful explanation of the sockpuppeting
   *what policies you set to prevent this in the future
   *whether the sockpuppeting was intentional

Whilst many users & stores have been permanently banned for sockpuppeting, some have come back. These companies have imposed a strict social media policy and have become valuable members of OzBargain.

=====Are you guilty of sockpuppeting? (Posts/Comments)=====

Are you....
   *working for the company? (all tiers - including management!)
   *on the companies payroll?
   *designing the companies website?
   *working as a marketer for the company?
   *designing/making/producing the product being sold?
   *related to someone mentioned above?
   *a contractor for the company?

have you....
   *been asked by someone to post on this site?
   *been offered money/prizes/incentives to post this deal?

If yes, its okay! All you need to do is declare your affiliation when posting a deal or making a comment.

Simply tick the 'I am associated with the store' check box when posting a deal or 'I am associated with //Store Name// check box when commenting on a deal for your store that you didn't post. You can also mention your affiliation at the bottom of the deal post; Example: "Disclosure: I worked here over the holidays" or "I am a employee at one of the stores".

=====Are you guilty of sockpuppeting? (Voting)=====

have you....
   *been asked by someone to vote on their deal(s)?
   *been offered incentives to vote on a deal(s)?
   *decided to vote on someone's deal(s) who you know or a company you are associated with?

If so, do not vote. Not only will your voting result in a ban on your account, it will also result in a ban for that store from posting on OzBargain in the future.

You will see a warning box upon your first deal vote. **Example Vote Warning:**

{{https://files.delvu.com/images/ozbargain/votewarning.png|}}

======  Accidentally not checking the rep box  ====== 

Whilst we punish users for sockpuppeting, we understand that some reps may forget to check the rep box when posting. This may be due to a language barrier or simply forgetting to check the box. In cases where it's obvious that it is a rep posting, the moderators will check the rep box.

======  References  ======  
[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Sockpuppet|Wikipedia:Sockpuppeting]]

[[https://www.ozbargain.com.au/node/8912|OzBargain: Sockpuppeting]]