1. There is no such thing as a "pending" ban or Steam admin. Anyone threatening your account is a scammer trying to scare you. Read more.

Archived Appeal Review for 76561198045650867 (Renegade)

Discussion in 'Archived Appeals' started by the Renegade, Jul 6, 2019.

  1. the Renegade

    the Renegade Banned on SteamRep

    Messages:
    48
    Steam:
    STEAM_0:1:42692569
    Appeal Review Request
    Reminder: Appeal reviews are not appeals!

    Reason for Appeal Review: SteamRep's policies have retroactively changed, and my offense is no longer taggable
    Past Appeal: https://forums.steamrep.com/threads...867-renegade-banned-by-sr.188723/#post-505093

    Steam profile: 76561198045650867 (Renegade)

    Make your case:
    The policy for the report I was tagged for has changed. And, I was unable to respond to a previous report since I was in the process of PCSing from one country back to the US. And I recently spent a month in another country while another report was being reviewed. So I haven't had much chance to take care of business here. If any other information is needed, I can provide it but I think this is it for now.​

    Attached Files:

  2. Lava

    Lava Public Relations SteamRep Admin

    Messages:
    5,858
    SteamRep Admin:
    STEAM_0:1:46187366
    Which policy? It says you were tagged for impersonation. We retroactively changed the policy for trading with scammers, but I'm not aware of any retroactive changes to how impersonation scams are handled. Furthermore, you did reply in the report we accepted, before you got marked.
  3. the Renegade

    the Renegade Banned on SteamRep

    Messages:
    48
    Steam:
    STEAM_0:1:42692569
    I attached a screenshot of the post that explains the policy change. Here is a link as well: https://www.skial.com/threads/spycrab-gambling-reports-are-no-longer-being-accepted.83888/

    I responded that I would be in another country BEFORE I left. I was unable to respond or add any additional information before it was locked. This is also explained in that appeal: https://forums.steamrep.com/threads...867-renegade-banned-by-sr.188723/#post-505093
  4. Lava

    Lava Public Relations SteamRep Admin

    Messages:
    5,858
    SteamRep Admin:
    STEAM_0:1:46187366
    1. We do not accept new reports for spycrab scams reported directly to us, but the change wasn't retroactive and we still consider it scamming.
      • This is because we don't have the resources to properly investigate them as they come in, so we leave it up to affiliated communities who host and monitor their own servers to do the investigation.
      • Any already accepted reports are considered to have met the investigative policy, until and unless the accused successfully appeals.
    2. You were tagged specifically for impersonation with intent to scam. That a spycrab was involved does not excuse you from impersonation.
      • Even if we retroactively exonerated spycrab scammers, which we never did, the addition of a spycrab scam while impersonating would still not excuse you from impersonating in the first place.
    3. Your tag was issued by SteamRep, not Skial, so a change in what reports Skial does or doesn't accept is irrelevant to your case.
    4. Your appeal was denied not only due to the seriousness of an impersonation scam, but also because your responses in the report against you demonstrated a clear lack of remorse. Instead of accepting responsibility for what you did (at least in the report), you doubled down and defended your actions as acceptable. Even now, you're trying to get off on a technicality. The admin was absolutely in his right to deny your change of heart appeal for that.
    Anything else I missed before I wrap up your appeal review?
  5. the Renegade

    the Renegade Banned on SteamRep

    Messages:
    48
    Steam:
    STEAM_0:1:42692569
    For one thing, I was unable to respond to that report and talk to the admin who dealt with it because I was in the process of moving from Kuwait back to the US at the time. The report itself was from more than 5 years ago but the staff member who responded to it took place last year. As for a "lack of remorse", I completely disagree. As I've already said, it was wrong to impersonate a Steam employee. I don't deny that. So I don't understand where this "lack of remorse" comes from.
  6. the Renegade

    the Renegade Banned on SteamRep

    Messages:
    48
    Steam:
    STEAM_0:1:42692569
    I haven't been able to post much because of the fact that I've been moving in and outside the US constantly for the past 6 months. And since my phone is from the US, I don't have access to a good enough connection out where I was at to be able to respond or talk to anyone through my phone. No, I had no Wifi because I was out in the field.
  7. Lava

    Lava Public Relations SteamRep Admin

    Messages:
    5,858
    SteamRep Admin:
    STEAM_0:1:46187366
    The admin felt you had no remorse for what you did, so he denied your appeal. That's his call to make, and it's not my place to question whether he made the right call from an appeal review. My only job here is to decide if your claim has merit:
    Appeal reviews are meant as a final oversight in the event of mishandling, to decide whether your rejected appeal shall be nullified, and permission to submit a new appeal granted. They are not intended as a place to argue your case itself, hence "appeal reviews are not appeals". If you can prove this claim, the admin's decision to deny your appeal will be invalidated, and you will be allowed to submit another.

    You argued that our (SteamRep's) policies retroactively changed, entitling you to a new appeal. Please provide documentation to support your claim. If your next reply attempts to convince me the "admin was wrong", claims you "had a change of heart after all", or gives excuses for your behavior, then this appeal review will be closed and you will not be allowed to submit a new one.
  8. the Renegade

    the Renegade Banned on SteamRep

    Messages:
    48
    Steam:
    STEAM_0:1:42692569
    Alright well, since the tag was for the report I was unable to respond to for reasons stated above, I would like to change the reason for the appeal review. The admin who responded on there reviewed the report as is and locked it when I didn't respond. Is there any way I could change the reason? I was under the impression that the tag was for something else and that's why I started this appeal review for the policy change.
  9. the Renegade

    the Renegade Banned on SteamRep

    Messages:
    48
    Steam:
    STEAM_0:1:42692569
    This is a screenshot where the admin responded to the report.

    Attached Files:

  10. the Renegade

    the Renegade Banned on SteamRep

    Messages:
    48
    Steam:
    STEAM_0:1:42692569
    I also have a conversation between me and a different SteamRep admin about the issue. I can post it here if necessary.
  11. Lava

    Lava Public Relations SteamRep Admin

    Messages:
    5,858
    SteamRep Admin:
    STEAM_0:1:46187366
    You pick just one reason, and stick with it. Otherwise, we'd have people selecting all and hoping something sticks, or just cycling through unsubstantiated options whenever their first pick didn't get the answer they were looking for. Appeal reviews are designed to be a quick sanity check, in case an appeals admin is not following rules or rare extenuating circumstances apply.

    But what reason would you have selected, and why did you pick the wrong one?
    Hidden Content:
    **Hidden Content: Content of this hidden block can only be seen by members of (usergroups: Administrative).**
  12. the Renegade

    the Renegade Banned on SteamRep

    Messages:
    48
    Steam:
    STEAM_0:1:42692569
    I was under the impression that the tag was for another reason. So someone sent me that thread on Skial and told me that the policy changed. I asked an admin on here about it and they told me to make an appeal review if I felt that there should be another shot. But now that I'm being told the tag was for a completely different reason. The reason I would have picked would be "Example of other extenuating circumstances". I wasn't able to respond since I was moving back from Kuwait and didn't have access to a lot of things.
  13. Lava

    Lava Public Relations SteamRep Admin

    Messages:
    5,858
    SteamRep Admin:
    STEAM_0:1:46187366
    The reason for your tag was clearly written on your SteamRep profile, how did you miss it?
    Screenshot from 2019-07-07 23-00-29.png

    How did your travel from Kuwait prevent you from properly appealing?
  14. the Renegade

    the Renegade Banned on SteamRep

    Messages:
    48
    Steam:
    STEAM_0:1:42692569
    I didn't know where to check, I guess. Well, I was moving from my duty station there to the one here in the US. Since my phone is from the US, I had to get a SIM card from Kuwait so I could get a connection. During the time I moved, I had sold the SIM card to someone else and had no connection at all to the internet. In addition to that, I was told that my laptop and many other electronics had to get put into household goods. They wouldn't let me take it with me on the plane. The only thing I was allowed to have was my smart watch, phone, and Switch. And when I got back to the US, it took weeks to get my phone service back up and running and my laptop with the rest of my household goods didn't get to me until the beginning of January. It also took me a while to fly back since I was on a military flight and they stop at almost every destination on the way back.
  15. Lava

    Lava Public Relations SteamRep Admin

    Messages:
    5,858
    SteamRep Admin:
    STEAM_0:1:46187366
    You didn't answer my question:
    This is an appeal review. As such, we are discussing your appeal. If you're hypothetically pleading extenuating circumstances, which prevented you from properly appealing, then you need to explain how this military travel prevented you from addressing your own appeal.
  16. the Renegade

    the Renegade Banned on SteamRep

    Messages:
    48
    Steam:
    STEAM_0:1:42692569
    I just told you. I didn't have access to any internet on the way back since my phone doesn't work overseas without a SIM card(which I sold) and my laptop was with my household goods that didn't leave with me. It left earlier than I did so it wouldn't take 3 months to get to me in the US. I had to send a lot of things back and get ready to leave weeks before I actually left because of the extra steps I had to take over there. It's significantly easier to leave a duty station in the US to another duty station in the US versus leaving from Kuwait back to the US. It takes a whole lot longer.
  17. Lava

    Lava Public Relations SteamRep Admin

    Messages:
    5,858
    SteamRep Admin:
    STEAM_0:1:46187366
    Reviewing the admin's notes on your case, he took everything you said, both on our site and Skial's, into account in verbose detail, and felt he could handle your case without any further questions. Whether you were around to answer the appeal after late May or not, the outcome would've been the same. Claims to absence for 3 months following January are irrelevant because your appeal was made in April, more than 3 months after January, and if that were somehow important you should've brought it up in your appeal.

    Your appeal was denied because the admin felt you did not exhibit any genuine remorse, and impersonation is considered a serious, premeditated offense, which we rarely grant change of heart appeals for to begin with. The admin felt, between the time passed since your offense (no remorse until after you got marked), your attitude towards the reporter, and your attitude leading up to the appeal, you were not genuine. Even now, you're trying to get off on a technicality (spycrabbing), which didn't even apply, and failed to acknowledge the seriousness of why you were marked in the first place.

    Failing to make any grounds on the technicality, you then requested to amend your grounds for appeal review to another option, in hopes of trying again with better success. Once again, you failed to properly demonstrate extenuating circumstances that prevented you from getting a fair appeal. By this point, if I went any further, I'd be full-on reviewing your entire case. Appeal reviews are a preliminary step to decide if we should even go that far, due to individual circumstances with how your appeal was originally handled, and by design, rarely granted. It's also not my place to overrule the appeals admin's decision, unless I can prove that your case was grossly mishandled and you never had a proper appeal to begin with, nor is it my place to decide whether the admin made the right call from this context. Appeal reviews are not a place for you to "keep trying" if you don't like the outcome, and I've already given you more attention than we'd normally allot.

    As such, I am concluding this appeal review. I found only 1 issue with your appeal, and that is the wrong appeal link on your SteamRep profile. I have updated your public notes with a link to the SteamRep appeal instead of Skial's. No further appeals or appeal reviews from you will be allowed.