Reporting and blocking
What the App Store requires
Apple's guideline 1.2 says apps with user-generated content "must include":
- A filter"A method for filtering objectionable material from being posted".
- Reports"A mechanism to report offensive content and timely responses to concerns".
- Blocking"The ability to block abusive users from the service".
- Contact"Published contact information so users can easily reach you".
Google Play says the same
Google Play's policy requires "an in-app system for reporting and blocking objectionable UGC and users". Players must accept the app's terms before they create or upload anything, and those terms define what is not allowed.
Quick check
Kai checks both stores' rules. Which of these do both require of Shard Garden?
- A way to report content and to block users
- Chat in every game
- Moderators in every country
Show the answer
A way to report content and to block users
Apple and Google both require reporting and blocking for apps where players share content.
Two taps, then gone
Shard Garden's report starts from the message itself: press it, pick a reason, done. Blocking hides that player from the reporter at once, before any moderator has looked.
Order matters
A player reports someone for bullying. What should happen first?
- The bully is blocked for the reporter at once, then a moderator reviews it
- Nothing until a moderator has reviewed it
- The reporter is asked to write a long explanation
Show the answer
The bully is blocked for the reporter at once, then a moderator reviews it
Blocking protects the player straight away. The review decides what happens to the bully.
Closing the loop
Apple asks for "timely responses to concerns". Priya's team tells the reporter when action was taken, without private details, and tracks the time from report to action.
The report carries the evidence
Each report includes the message and the messages around it, so the moderator sees what happened. The reported player is never told who reported them.
Quick check
A reported player should be told who reported them.
- True
- False
Show the answer
False
Naming the reporter invites revenge. Players report more when they know it stays private.
Not just chat
Players share levels too, and a level can carry harm that chat filters never see.
Bolt says: Next: safety review for player-made levels.
Fact-checked 12 October 2026
- Apple: App Review Guidelines, 1.2 User-Generated Content developer.apple.com
- Google Play: User-generated content policy support.google.com