Forum rules

Core rules

1. Be respectful

   Treat everyone with courtesy. No personal attacks, insults, harassment, trolling or hate speech. Criticize ideas, not people.

2. No spam or self-promotion

   Do not advertise products, services, websites or your own projects in posts, signatures, profiles or private conversations. If you work for or represent a security vendor, say so when you discuss its products.

3. No piracy or illegal content

   Do not request, share or link to cracks, keygens, serials, warez, pirated software or any other illegal content.

4. No harmful content

   Do not post or link to live malware, exploits, hacking tools or code that could put others at risk, except in the Malware Hub sections and only under their specific rules. When you mention a malicious website, disable the link, for example hxxp://example[.]com.

5. Protect privacy

   Never post another person's personal information. Before sharing logs or screenshots, remove your own personal data, email addresses, license keys and passwords.

6. Be accurate and fair about products and companies

   Reviews and claims must be based on facts or your own experience. Do not make unsupported accusations that a company, product or person is malicious or fraudulent. Label opinions as opinions.

7. Disclose AI-generated content

   You are responsible for everything you post. Do not present AI-generated text as your own work. If you use an AI tool, say so and check the facts first.

8. Respect copyright

   Quote short excerpts and link to the source instead of copying full articles, images or videos you do not own.

9. One account per person

   Do not create multiple accounts, share an account, or use another account to get around a suspension or ban. Registering with a disposable email address or through a VPN or proxy may be treated as an attempt to evade a ban.

10. Follow staff instructions

    Moderators keep the forums running smoothly. If a staff member asks you to stop or change something, please do so. If you see a rule being broken, use the Report button instead of replying.

What is not allowed

The table below shows the usual action for each type of violation. We review every case individually, so the action may be lighter or stricter depending on severity, intent and your history. Warning points are explained in the warning system.

Post quality

Minor issues usually get a friendly reminder first. Repeated problems may lead to a 10-point warning.

• Write in English, with reasonable spelling and punctuation.
• Keep replies relevant to the thread. Search before you post, and do not open duplicate threads about the same issue.
• Add something useful. One-word replies, "+1", "me too" or posts made only to increase your post count may be removed. Use reactions instead.
• Use formatting such as bold, capitals or large fonts only to highlight short passages.
• No toilet humor and no drama. Posts like "I'm leaving because..." or "Should I leave?" are not allowed.

Moderation and appeals

• When you receive a warning, you get a private message that explains why. Details are in the warning system guide.
• If you think a decision was wrong, contact us privately through the contact form or a private conversation with a staff member. Please stay calm and include a link to the content in question.
• Do not discuss moderation decisions in public threads.
• These rules apply in every language, and to masked or abbreviated language.

Your content and legal

• You are responsible for your posts. Only post content that you have the right to share and that does not break any law.
• License to display. You keep ownership of your content. By posting it, you give MalwareTips a non-exclusive, royalty-free, worldwide license to host, display, reproduce and distribute it as part of the site, including after your account is closed.
• Posts stay public. Discussions stay online so that others can benefit from them. We do not delete posts on request unless they break the rules or contain personal data. To have personal data removed or anonymized, contact us as described in our Privacy policy.
• Copyright complaints. If you believe content on MalwareTips infringes your rights, use the contact form and include the exact URL, a description of the work and your contact details. We review every notice and remove infringing content.
• No guarantees. Advice on MalwareTips is given by volunteers and AI tools in good faith, "as is" and without warranties. Follow it at your own risk and back up your data first. Members' opinions are their own and do not represent MalwareTips.
• Changes. We may update these rules. The date at the top shows the latest version. By continuing to use the site, you accept the updated rules.