Account & Service Control · Restriction or exception
Violations can cost you Services access or content, but MyFitnessPal says it need not act
If you violate these Community Guidelines, MyFitnessPal says it may take actions to address the issue, including but not limited to terminating your right to use the Services or removing your User-Generated Content. The wording is permissive ("may"), and the list of actions is not exhaustive. Later in the document MyFitnessPal adds that it reserves the right to enforce, or not enforce, these Community Guidelines in its sole discretion, and that they do not create a duty or contractual obligation for it to act in any particular manner. So the guidelines describe what members must do, but they do not promise members that MyFitnessPal will respond to a violation in any set way.
Supporting quotations
If you violate these Community Guidelines, we may take actions to address the issue, including, but not limited to, terminating your right to use the Services, or removing your User-Generated Content.
We reserve the right to enforce, or not enforce, these Community Guidelines in our sole discretion, and they don’t create a duty or contractual obligation for us to act in any particular manner.
Qualifications & exceptions
"May" and "including, but not limited to": the listed actions are examples, not a complete or mandatory set.
The qualification that the guidelines create no duty or contractual obligation for MyFitnessPal comes from a later paragraph and applies to this enforcement language.
Not stated here
The specific warning, suspension and ban steps are in the Warnings and Point System section, which is explained in a later packet; this document does not say which action applies to a particular violation.
Account & Service Control · Restriction or exception
Be yourself: do not impersonate others or misrepresent your identity or affiliation
Under Be Your Authentic Self, MyFitnessPal asks members to be only themselves and says that members who want to change their username again should contact staff for assistance. Members must not impersonate or mimic other members, or post any content likely to deceive any person or to misrepresent their identity or affiliation with any person. The deception clause is not limited to other members.
Supporting quotations
Be Your Authentic Self
Please be you and only you.
again, please contact our staff for assistance.
Do Not:
Impersonate or mimic other members or post any content likely to deceive any person or to misrepresent your identity or affiliation with any person.
Qualifications & exceptions
The deception and misrepresentation clause applies to "any person", not only other members.
Not stated here
The linked help article on changing usernames is not supplied; the text does not say how often a username can be changed or on what terms staff will help.
Account & Service Control · Restriction or exception
Do not catfish with a fake account or create multiple accounts to deceive others or get around a forum ban
Members must not catfish or mislead another member with a fake account. They must not create multiple accounts to deceive other members, moderators and admins, or to get around a forum ban. These items continue the Be Your Authentic Self list that begins with the ban on impersonation.
Supporting quotations
Catfish or mislead another member with a fake account.
Create multiple accounts to deceive other members, moderators, and admins or to get around a forum ban.
Qualifications & exceptions
The multiple-accounts ban is tied to deception or evading a forum ban; the text does not say multiple accounts are banned for every purpose.
Account & Service Control · Permission or license
MyFitnessPal may change the guidelines and delete, lock or restrict at any time, for any reason, without warning
MyFitnessPal reserves the right to update the Community Guidelines and to delete or lock posts and discussions, to disable the posting privileges of any member, or to limit or deny the use of the Services at any time, for any reason, at its discretion, without warning or notice. It also reserves the right to dismiss a reported post if it finds the post does not violate a guideline. These rights are not conditioned on a violation or on the warning steps described in the Warnings and Point System section.
Supporting quotations
We reserve the right to update these Community Guidelines and to delete or lock posts and discussions, to disable the posting privileges of any member, or to limit or deny the use of Services at any time, for any reason, at our discretion, without warning or notice.
Additionally, we reserve the right to dismiss a reported post if we find it does not violate a guideline.
Qualifications & exceptions
The right is stated as applying "for any reason" and "without warning or notice".
Not stated here
The text does not say how members would be told of updated Community Guidelines.
Account & Service Control · Restriction or exception
Complying with the guidelines is required, and members may be removed because the community is not a good fit
MyFitnessPal says it is vital and required that everyone in the community complies with these Community Guidelines. It says members cannot say whatever they want even when someone is wrong, and must consider their impact on other people and the community when they post. It adds that the community will not be the right fit for everyone and that it will occasionally remove members from the community because it is not a good fit. This removal ground is stated separately from the warning and point system, which the paragraph directs members to review below.
Supporting quotations
It is vital and required that everyone in the community complies with these Community Guidelines in order for us to foster a friendly and supportive community.
You can’t say whatever you want here, even when someone is wrong.
Occasionally we will remove members from the community because it isn’t a good fit.
Please review the section below for details on how our warning and point systems work.
Qualifications & exceptions
"Not a good fit" is stated as a ground for removal without reference to a guideline violation or a warning.
Not stated here
The text does not say who decides whether a member is a good fit or what notice, if any, a removed member receives.
Account & Service Control · Company practice
A reported post or action that violates the guidelines makes you subject to a warning on a points scale
Under Warnings and Point System, MyFitnessPal says that if your reported post or action, such as abusing flags or reactions, violates the community guidelines, you are subject to a warning. It says it uses three levels of warning points based on the severity of the violation and the member's history of warnings. Members who flag content that does not meet the flag criteria are also said to be subject to warnings. "Subject to" means a warning may be issued; the document does not say that every violation produces one.
Supporting quotations
Warnings and Point System:
If your reported post or action (abusing flags, reactions, etc.) violates our community guidelines, you are subject to a warning. We utilize three levels of warning points based on the severity of the violation and your history of warnings.
Members who flag content that does not meet the criteria for a flag are in violation of our guidelines and will be subject to warnings.
Qualifications & exceptions
The trigger is a reported post or action; the text also reserves action on unreported posts elsewhere.
Not stated here
The text does not say whether every violation results in a warning, or how severity and history are weighed.
Account & Service Control · Company practice
Warning levels: Notice (0 points), Minor (2 points, 1 week) and Major (3 points, 2 weeks)
A Notice carries 0 warning points. It tells a member they violated a guideline and asks them to review the guidelines, and it is used for new members and for notifying members of posts removed that do not warrant disciplinary action. A Minor Warning carries 2 points and lasts 1 week, and is described as appropriate for members who have received previous notifications to review the guidelines. A Major Warning carries 3 points and lasts 2 weeks and is for significantly violating a guideline; examples given are hate speech, blatant personal attacks, or posting images containing nudity, and repeated violations. On this scale hate speech is given as an example of a 3-point Major Warning rather than of the 5-point ban level, although the document separately reserves discretion to act without warning.
Supporting quotations
Notice = 0 Warning Points: This type of warning is used to let a member know they have violated a guideline and request they review our guidelines to avoid future warnings. This type of warning is appropriate for new members and for notifying members of posts removed that don’t warrant disciplinary action.
Minor Warning = 2 Warning Points, Lasts 1 Week: This type of warning lets a member know they have violated a guideline and received 2 points. This type of warning is appropriate for members who have received previous notifications to review our guidelines.
Major Warning = 3 Warning Points, Lasts 2 Weeks: This type of warning lets a member know they have significantly violated a guideline and received 3 points. Examples include hate speech, blatant personal attacks, or posting images containing nudity, as well as repeated violations of our guidelines.
Qualifications & exceptions
"Appropriate for" describes when each level fits; it is not stated as a binding rule for moderators.
The Notice carries 0 points and no stated duration.
Not stated here
The text does not say how long a Notice lasts, or whether a Notice counts toward the 10-warnings-per-year limit.
Five active warning points means a permanent ban, and ten warnings in a calendar year also means a permanent ban
A member who accumulates a total of 5 active warning points will be banned and lose posting privileges, and the ban lasts forever. Because a Minor Warning is 2 points for 1 week and a Major Warning is 3 points for 2 weeks, 5 active points can be reached when a Minor and a Major are active at the same time. Separately, any member who accumulates 10 warnings in a calendar year, counted from the first day of January, will also be banned permanently. The 5-point ban depends on points being active at the same time, while the 10-warning rule counts warnings across the calendar year.
Supporting quotations
Banned = 5 Active Warning Points, Lasts Forever: A member who accumulates a total of 5 active points will be banned and lose posting privileges.
10 warnings in a calendar year = Permanent Ban: Any member who accumulates 10 warnings in a calendar year (from the first day of January) will also be banned permanently.
Qualifications & exceptions
The 5-point ban counts only active points; points from expired warnings are not counted.
The ban says the member will "lose posting privileges"; the text does not say what happens to access to the rest of the Services.
Not stated here
The text does not say whether Notices count toward the 10 warnings, or whether the permanent ban removes access to the Services beyond posting.
Account & Service Control · Company practice
Warning points are cumulative; a warning's expiry resets the level to zero; certain levels bring forum restrictions
Warning points are cumulative. The text says that when a member's warning expires, their warning level will be reset to zero and they will have no active warning points. When a member reaches certain warning levels, forum restrictions will be placed on their account. The reset sentence refers to "a member's warning" expiring, and the text does not say how it works when a member holds more than one warning with different expiry dates.
Supporting quotations
Warning Points are cumulative.
When a member’s warning expires, their warning level will be reset to zero, and the member will no longer have any active warning points.
When a member reaches certain warning levels, they will have forum restrictions placed on their account.
Qualifications & exceptions
Cumulative points and the reset on expiry pull in different directions when a member holds several warnings with different expiry dates; the text does not resolve this.
Not stated here
The text does not say which warning levels bring forum restrictions or what those restrictions are.
Account & Service Control · Company practice
Violations can lead to warning, suspension or removal, and MyFitnessPal may also act without warning
MyFitnessPal says it feels strongly that posts or actions disregarding the guidelines jeopardize the supportive atmosphere of MyFitnessPal. Such posts may lead to consequences including warning, suspension of posting privileges, or, in some cases, removal of a member from the Services. This graduated list sits beside separate statements that MyFitnessPal may limit or deny use of the Services at any time, for any reason, at its discretion, without warning or notice, and may remove members because the community is not a good fit. So the points system describes one route to consequences, but it does not limit MyFitnessPal to following that route.
Supporting quotations
Such posts may lead to consequences including warning, suspension of posting privileges, or, in some cases, removal of a member from the Services.
to disable the posting privileges of any member, or to limit or deny the use of Services at any time, for any reason, at our discretion, without warning or notice.
Occasionally we will remove members from the community because it isn’t a good fit.
Qualifications & exceptions
"May lead to" and "in some cases" make the listed consequences possible, not automatic.
The discretion to act without warning or notice and the not-a-good-fit removal are separate statements that apply alongside the warning scale.