Does Second Life's abuse report system need a serious overhaul?

For those of you that don't know, Second Life has an abuse reporting system. Sometimes it works moderately efficiently – if, for example, there is evidence that a user is underage an AR (abuse report) can work within minutes. I know, I have seen it work that well with my own eyes. Those of you who have followed reports across from Second Life Insider may remember that I have been ARed, and I had one prim returned. Oh well.

The range of abuses reported in Second Life range from the extreme (being underage, paedophile porn) to the trivial (your tree is over the border of my land). Admittedly the latter should be cleared up by discussion with your neighbours, but it doesn't always happen that way – your neighbour may be an idiot, because you never would be, would you? This, undoubtedly, justifies a strong human element.

However, this tale of woe blogged by Barney Boomslang (who makes the mac versions of the Nicholaz patches for SL) makes you wonder whether the system is finally moribund. As he comments, at each stage the system failed, to clear up the original problem, to help the reporter, to realise that, whilst the person had managed to spread a replicating prim around they had reported it up front and perhaps banning them for a day wasn't an appropriate response.

There are other problems with the AR system: the process is not so much lacking transparency as a complete black box, and this has been the cause for vocal criticism for most of the last four years at least. I don't know if this will prove the nail in the coffin for the current system but it just might. Whether or not it does, let us at least hope that the Lindens in charge of this particular black box look at what went on and think about how to stop it happening again.