That’d really be the icing on the cake if Niantic accuses this person of abuse when there is another player causing deliberate damage
Surely this thread is suggesting the opposite
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Wouldn’t even know how to do that, as I get zero notification of a portal being removed so I have no details on the reasoning nor of it actually happening. When I look at my contributions on my wayfarer page they are still showing as accepted I have to go to the intel map to clarify my understanding that it’s been removed from the game
Like anything we have 1 side of the story, and im not picking a side. But if theres constant removals, better be safe than sorry when submitting things Niantic has removed in the past.
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This forum has a section for appeals.
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So just accept the harassment and damage from another player in case we might get a ban for trying to fix some of the harm? Great advice.
just roll over and take it guys, dont wanna risk our accounts
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No, I suggested appealing to reinstate. Not staying put and doing nothing.
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Ok thanks will do this going forward. Thanks for the words of caution. Just to clarify we are only talking a couple of submissions per portal, nothing exclusive. Fortunately I thought I would seek some advice before I get it to silly, however seems the individual has taken matters into their own hands
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The bottom of the “Reporting Abuse” form says
Wayfinders who submit inappropriate abuse reports may also receive a warning or punishment for repeat offenses.
That is a great reason to appeal for reinstatement over just submitting again.
I think suggesting appealing is right advice. It gets Niantic’s attention sooner than later, creates a “trail” of records, and can get more constructive help.
It would be simply terrible if the OP receives a warning or ban associated with this. That’s why our goal is to further empower anyone seeing this to make the best choices possible with how to navigate a flawed system.
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So I’ve had some I can only say rather disappointing reply from my abuse report, I hope they review my feedback and respond accordingly. As I think they have mist understood my reasoning for raising the report.
As per your recommendation, I will raise a new post on the appeals forum to seek some feedback (none of which has been sent to me) on why they have been removed. Thanks for the advice on where to direct this part to
Hey,
I can confirm that the reports we received had images showing that the trail markers no longer existed.
While Niantic does encourage all players to abide by local laws, as stated in the game’s Terms of Service and as reiterated through in-game warnings and notifications, we ultimately cannot control or be responsible for how individual users elect to act or behave on their own volition. If players engage in unlawful behavior while playing our games, we encourage you to work with local law enforcement to address the issue, as you would with other individuals in your community.
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Well, yeah. If this player goes around vandalizing and destroying trail markers and then sends you a picture of it, of course that’s what you’re going to think.
What are you getting at? Aaron explained to the OP exactly what evidence had been presented to Niantic that the trail marker, the poi for the wayspot, had been removed. He did not need to give out any information, yet he did. And he can’t restore the wayspot for the missing marker simply because the removal was vandalism if it is not there.
The fact that Niantic has photos showing that the marker does not exist makes it even more important for @richiebeckett85 to appeal the removals with photographic evidence that they do exist. What a situation!
richiebeckett85, I’m curious to see what those trail markers look like now.
Out of the examples you posted, I’d say the first, third and fourth are excellent and the second I have some reservations about, but I’ve seen worse. I don’t understand why any Ingress player would want them removed, if they’re not prepared to put on some walking shoes then they’re playing the wrong game.
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@26thDoctor Please ensure that your comments remain respectful and constructive. Personal attacks, inflammatory language, and off-topic remarks violate our community guidelines and do not contribute to meaningful discussions.
I encourage you to review the FAQ to understand how to engage appropriately within this space.
Thank you.
It’s not a personal attack.
It’s laughing at the hypocrisy and bizarre way the company you work for is run.
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Hi Aaron
Firstly many thanks for your time for both reviewing the abuse report and your time on posting openly here too.
Please be assured that I’m trying to keep my response to this as moderated and as respectful as possible, however I have to say it’s difficult.
I fully appreciate that the Wayfarer team can only judge removals on the information received and I’ve got little expectation of any reverting action being possible as the physical way points no longer exist, however for me the most pressing matter is the circumstances in which these no longer exists in which can only be seen as vandalism and a criminal act.
Though I do agree, that Niantic have no responsibility of their player base actions, however I would strongly argue that by supplying this platform and service which operates within local communities they do have accountability of their player base actions and as such should offer a duty of care to those local communities and that of their own community in which if it didn’t exist Niantic would not be as successful as they are, as they are dependent on their communities to map out these points of interest, and ultimately making the in game in experience as enjoyable for everyone.
From my point of view, the individual who gone to this extreme, has outrightly broken the terms and conditions of service laid out by Niantic as they have ultimately falsified wayspot removals and have caused criminal damage in doing so. I hope that you can agree by the supporting evidence I have supplied your team that all these trail markers (when present) are valid, maintained and promoted by the local authority as safe and approved walking trails within the local community.
As I’ve discussed with some of your ambassadors I feel I have acted with some dignity and maturity on this issue asking whomever is responsible for this to get in touch with myself so we could have a discussion over a coffee on our opposing opinions on this topic. I’ve also reached out to the local charity whom maintain these routes offering my services in a volunteering role by assisting not only the repair of these trail markers but also the potential funding of getting them replaced all at the same time not bringing the integrity of Niantic’s platforms nor of it’s player base within this discussion. However a lot of this good nature and community wellbeing cannot be said of the individual in question.
Your point that I should raise this to the local law authorities, to me seems a scripted response as the only people who know who have done this is the individual and that of the wayfarer team, I have no information. All I can do is personally fund the repairs for this charity, however I have to question should I do this if Niantic will then continue to allow this individual to then do the same thing, as it’s very clear that you will take zero accountability for a member of your community, who i hope most would agree that in my opinion is not welcome.
I just hope that you can understand my greater concerns here, and consider taking strong action against the individual, as I personally will not go and damage the integrity of a game I have a passion playing and which has bought me so many fond memories and lifetime friendships 
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Yeah can do, however please give me some time, as they are spread out and we have typical English weather at the moment and these are all located where I work, so not the best conditions to go exploring during a lunch break 
Let me point out some things.
- You seem certain that an Ingress player intentionally and unlawfully removed these trail markers.
- You seem certain that the same person reported them as gone to have them removed from Wayfarer.
From a legal standpoint, those are called circumstantial evidence. Neither you nor the Wayfarer team have any proof that the person who reported the missing POI is the same person who removed the markers. But going even further, there’s no proof that the markers were intentionally removed (at least that i have seen presented).
The only facts we have are that these used to exist and now no longer do.
I think your hunches about this situation are probably correct.
But the Wayfarer team can’t take action against someone’s account based on a hunch. That’s as much a protection for you and me as it is for the possoble abuser in this scenario.
I fully understand that this is a frustrating situation. But without some kind of legal proof of who the culprit is and being able to tie that person to the account doing the removal requests, the Wayfarer team simply can’t resolve this. (Keep in mind that it can be very difficult to tie a real person to an account.)
Unfortunately, if the local authorities aren’t willing to take steps to figure out who is doing this vandalism (and i doubt they will devote resources to something this small), this is probably going to keep happening.
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This is most certainly not a hunch, this is a history of targeted removals of portals, leading to the individual taking matters into their own hands literally. When it is purley only the trail markers being I am submitting being damaged where other trail markers are still existing as they share cells or are in close proximity so can’t make it to any of Niantics game. I mean, come on this is very clearly obvious and I’ve seen people within the pokemon go community been punished for very minor offences in comparison
The only entity who have data available to prove who this person is Niantic