What can be said about unsanctioned groups and programs on Answers?

Answer 1

An unsanctioned group, program, or club is one which is not ran nor sanctioned by Answers. The majority of these are healthy and good-natured. Some of these underground groups, programs, and clubs compete among themselves and promote friendliness and good will on the site. These groups sometimes hold contests, create internal informal "badges" to add to profiles to denote rank within these groups, or pledge to take certain positive actions.

The other year, there was a study done on Answers that was not sanctioned by Answers, and it was done by a university student. The subjects had to agree to a waiver before participating, and they were required as a part of the study to install a browser plug-in so their question-asking motives could be examined. They were offered a $50 gift card for being subjects, and the most helpful participant would be awarded an additional $50 gift card. It was a legitimate study, the software was free of malware, and all promises were kept.

Do keep in mind that even if you are in an unsanctioned program, club, study or group, you must still follow all the rules, policies and procedures of Answers. Personal disputes arising from such an underground or secret organization that create infractions on the site can lead to blocked accounts. Internal issues should be taken to the coordinators of whatever informal or private group and dealt with in a manner that does not detract from Answers in any way. If you don't receive any promised items from an informal group, please remember that neither the site, Community Assistants nor Supervisors have anything to do with it.

Also, do keep in mind that unsanctioned groups, by their very nature, are not monitored nor vetted for safety. If someone promises you things that don't sound true or asks you to install suspicious software to become a member of some group, don't do it. Instead, report it to a Community Assistant, since that is a serious breach of user conduct.