READ ME Getting "unconfirmed reports" off your profile

What to do if you are reported with fake evidence, and how to handle it:

1. Reply to the report with evidence proving your innocence. If you have screenshots, now is the time to provide them. Your reply needs to be in the open. If you don't reply publicly before reporting, your post report will be ignored.
2. Upload all evidence as attachments in your reply for step 1. Do not post links to screenshots on a 3rd party website like imgur or gyazo; upload them as attachments. 3rd party links are prone to disappearing later on, and we require evidence to be retained even after a report has been decided, so 3rd party links may not be acknowledged.
3. Report the thread using the in-post report system with a CLEAR and DETAILED explanation of what is happening. It's very important your post report explains there is fake evidence, and you explain what is fake about it in your reply from step 1, or it will be rejected. How to report a post?
4. Be advised: Requesting a scam report against you be taken down when it's actually real, because you want it removed; or providing fake evidence in your defense, is a great way to jump to the front of the line and get yourself a BANNED BY SR tag. By reporting the thread, you acknowledge you may not like the admin's outcome if you're guilty. See also: I've been reported on SteamRep, but I do not have a "BANNED BY SR" yet, what should I do?
5. For those who are unaware, submitting a fake report with doctored evidence will earn a BANNED BY SR tag, and additionally all of your accounts will be permanently blocked from submitting any additional scam reports. The same goes for submitting fake evidence in response to a report against you; one doctored screenshot in a report is enough.
6. Don't submit an appeal requesting your unconfirmed reports be removed. Appeals are only applicable once a tag has been issued, in the event an admin made a mistake.

Requesting your own report be rushed, handled immediately, or asking a timeframe for when it will be handled:

1. Don't do it. The above process for expediting reports only applies to reports made against you. This procedure is meant as an outlet for clearing your name from scammers abusing the "unconfirmed reports" warning on SteamRep profiles. It's not meant for your "swift justice".
2. When you submit a report, you acknowledge and agree to 3 things:
   Most importantly, #3. As much as it saddens us, we cannot get to everything. If we rushed your report against a 3-month old throwaway account you should never have trusted, then in the interest of fairness we'd have to do the same for everyone else. We simply don't have the manpower for that, so we prioritize reports based on severity and danger to the community.
3. If you request admin attention on a specific scam report or appeal, which you yourself (or your friend/alt) submitted, from in the General Discussion board, your report will automatically be ignored for 1 week! That means even if an admin was already looking at your case, they will drop it and return no sooner than 1 week later. If we rushed your report because you linked it from the general discussion board, then in the interest of fairness we'd set a precedent and have to do the same for everyone else's. The General Discussion would get overwhelmed with "review my report now pls" threads and drown out legitimate questions and discussion.
4. If, for whatever reason, you do have something urgent that requires attention of admins, you can contact an admin from a partner or friend community (listed on the front page of steamrep.com). We have open channels for community admins to report serious cases for exactly this reason, including high profile reputable traders going rogue; and such cases are handled quickly when brought to our attention. Any community admin with a green ADMIN tag from any community can request a report or appeal be expedited or audited.
5. If you were wrongly reported, follow the above procedure for reporting the post. The same 1 week cooldown will apply to reports on your profile if you make a thread in the General Discussion board about it. An exception to this cooldown may be made if the report against you still hasn't been acknowledged for at least 1 week after following the above procedure and reporting the post and it's clear nobody has looked at your case yet.

I've been reported on SteamRep. There isn't any fake evidence, but I don't have a "BANNED BY SR" tag yet, what should I do?
Most of the same instructions for dealing with fake evidence apply to this scenario as well.

1. Reply to the open/pending report(s). You cannot make an appeal yet, for you do not have a tag, but you're much better off explaining yourself in the report than in an appeal.
   
2. If the report was an honest misunderstanding, or you repaid, then explain it. Provide all relevant and applicable screenshots, including trade history, in your report.
3. If possible, have the accuser reply to confirm this. Note, it is not possible to delete or retract reports once submitted. Do not try to pressure your reporter into doing that. Additionally, do not pressure the victim into lying about what happened to close the report; it's usually obvious when that happens, and it won't end well for you.
4. Once you have completed all of the above steps, you may report the thread. If report isn't fake, and isn't a clear misunderstanding, we make no guarantee on expediency or timeframe, but if these steps were followed reporting the thread may hasten it. Your post report will be discarded if these steps weren't followed.
5. Don't request your report be expedited from the General Discussion forum. Similarly to other scenarios above, your report will automatically be ignored for 1 week if you do.

Please refrain from making the report a drama thread, that will end badly for you. A report admin will only reduce the severity of your tag or close the report if:

• You're HONEST.
• You repay to the victim (if applicable), as soon as possible, without any conditions or excuses.
  • Paying back the victim is NOT a guaranteed relief of the report or coming tag, but it IS a firm requirement.
  • The reporter CANNOT revoke their report, even if they want to. Don't try to manipulate them.
    
  • Asking either the victim or the admin/moderator to guarantee that your report will be closed/deleted before repaying, or using their items as leverage, will be seen as a "conditional" repayment. Admins don't look favorably upon that; you already owe the victim, don't make it worse.
• When deciding how to handle your report, the admin will weigh the following factors:
  • Your behavior during the report and while interacting with the victim.
  • Victim's wishes, and whether they were adequately repaid.
  • Severity and nature of the offense(s).
  • Number of times this happened.

See also: Appeal Tips #9 - Pay back the victim. Repayment policy and factors are mostly the same, even though this isn't an appeal.

(Borrowed and adapted from I've been reported on SteamRep, but I do not have a "BANNED BY SR" yet, what should I do?)

Requesting your own report be closed, deleted, retracted, or cancelled:

• We do not delete reports. If your report is resolved, the prefix will be changed to "Archived" and removed from the accused's profile, but remain visible to anyone searching the forums indefinitely.
  • An exception to this rule is made only for spam reports (e.g. malware/phishing links) where the sole purpose of the report is commercial advertising, account hijacking, or spread of malware.
  • In the event of impersonation, the report can be modified to target the imposter's profile instead of a victim's, if the impersonation can be identified and proven. This will be clearly indicated after the fact, so the impersonation victim's reputation is unaffected, but the report will not be deleted. If the victim abandons a report where impersonation is proven but imposter never found, the report will be archived as is.
• We do not close reports in reciprocity for returning stolen items or money. If a scammer is pressuring you to close a report, promising to return your items only after their profile no longer says "unconfirmed reports", reply with screenshots of that conversation. You may also report the post in this situation. Repayment is not a guarantee the report will be closed or that an appeal will be granted. See also: Appeal Tips #9: Pay back the victim.
  • Note that scammers promising the return of stolen items in return for closing the report will very rarely live up to their promises. Remember what happened the last time you trusted a scammer?
• If you resolved the issue with your accused scammer, you must reply with evidence. The admin or moderator may require screenshots of chat, as well as trade history. Especially if the mod/admin suspects repayment is contingent on closing the report.

Scam victims cannot close or delete reports they have submitted. This is for several reasons:

• Reports are meant as a warning to the community that someone has scammed, not for leveraging the return of stolen items. Scammers often try to coerce victims into closing reports so they can continue scamming anyone else who doesn't report them, so for protection reporters are prevented from taking down their report once submitted. At the end of the day, we can't recover your items, and the purpose of your report is to warn any other would-be victims that this person should not be trusted. The scammer probably wouldn't return your items after the report is closed anyway, so don't buy into that.
• When you submit a report, you are putting your own reputation on the line, asserting everything in your report is true. You are responsible for any evidence you submit, and fake evidence will result in a BANNED BY SR tag. As such, your report will remain for accountability purposes. If you are suspected of tampering with evidence at a later date, your archived report(s) may be reinvestigated.

Requesting expedition of a report created before 01/01/2017:
Please see this thread for information on how to request expedition of a report created before 01/01/2017, if you are the accused or victim in the report.