43 replies to this topic

[Tecmaster]

As part of our recent forum upgrade, we have added a filter that only allows the posting of images from specific image hosts. The reason we made this change was not to inconvience you, but for your protection. Without the filter in place it was possible to host an image on a private website and harvest the IP addresses of everyone who loaded the page with that image on it. Because of this we decided that the extra security of whitelisting image hosts was necessary when we gained the capability to do so with the recent forum upgrade.

We have already added most of the major image hosts to our whitelist and are constantly watching for more safe hosts that people regularly use to add to the list. That being said, we don't think of everything and there might be an image host that you want to use that we just don't know about. If you have an image host that you would like us to look into, please post it on this thread and we'll take a look. However, we will NOT be allowing personal websites for the reasons listed above.

Current Approved Hosts

Quote

http://tip.it/
http://photobucket.com/
http://imgur.com/
http://imageshack.us/
http://pending.me.uk/
http://tinypic.com/
http://draynor.net/
http://leetsigs.com/
http://runetrack.com/
http://rsbandb.com/
http://gyazo.com/
http://shrani.si/
http://runescape.com/
http://fbcdn.net/
http://akamaihd.net/
http://steamcard.com/
http://forum-signatures.com/
http://rsig.eu/
http://tumblr.com/
http://leetscape.com/
http://enjin.com/
http://wikia.com/
http://bbcimg.co.uk/
http://signavatar.com/
http://deviantart.com/
http://deviantart.net/
http://upload.wikimedia.org/
http://puu.sh/
http://speedtest.net/
http://screensnapr.com/
http://imm.io/
http://uzzisoft.com/
http://whatpulse.org/
http://goodreads.com/
http://jagex.com/
http://anime-planet.com/
http://tldr.me
http://imgdumper.nl/
http://minus.com

[Gandorf61]

http://speedtest.net/

Speedtest would be useful, especially since this thread doesn't work at all now.

[Lord Paul]

Screensnapr s'il vous plait.

[Mercifull]

Is there going to be a sticky posted with the list of approved hosts?

also please add Imm.io (http://i.imm.io/vSl7.gif)

[GrandZephyr]

Dynamic stats images for http://whatpulse.org/

[Medaragon]

http://tfssig.g00glen00b.be/
Stat sig based on google docs (for F2ps in my clan : TFS)

Ex: http://tfssig.g00gle...0/Medaragon.png

-Med-

http://tfssig.g00gle...0/Medaragon.png [Image display blocked; image is linked instead.]

[Junglebiscui]

My clan use images and sigs uploaded to the following place, including the ones on our tip.it recruitment thread here since 2008!:  http://britishelites.com/
Stat sigs we use regularly from:  http://junglebiscuit.com/

[Unknown_Warrior]

http://randomsig.caiyern.net

[tripsis]

Gandorf61, on 10 July 2012 - 02:17 AM, said:

http://speedtest.net/

Speedtest would be useful, especially since this thread doesn't work at all now.

FYI I added this one earlier I can't do the others right now since I'm on a phone. Another admin may have already looked at them though.

[tripsis]

Lord Paul, on 10 July 2012 - 03:50 AM, said:

Screensnapr s'il vous plait.

Mercifull, on 10 July 2012 - 07:50 AM, said:

Is there going to be a sticky posted with the list of approved hosts?

also please add Imm.io (http://i.imm.io/vSl7.gif)

GrandZephyr, on 10 July 2012 - 10:19 AM, said:

Dynamic stats images for http://whatpulse.org/

These have been added so far.

[tripsis]

Just so you guys know - we'll work on processing some of the other requests soon.   We need to more concretely establish our criteria.

But just a heads up, we probably will have to decline some of them.  Adding too many unknown/personal/small sites to the whitelist kind of defeats the purpose of having it in the first place.  In order to maximize everyone's security, we need to keep the list limited to bigger and more established sites that we know for certain are trustworthy.

[Unknown_Warrior]

Since my host will be ignored, can anyone recommend an image host that allows for dynamic images (ie: cycle through different images upon refresh)?

[tripsis]

Unknown_Warrior, on 14 July 2012 - 04:41 PM, said:

Since my host will be ignored, can anyone recommend an image host that allows for dynamic images (ie: cycle through different images upon refresh)?

Uzzisoft - it's on the list and I used to use it. Works great.

[GrandZephyr]

How about adding tip.it.stealingyouripswhenyoucometomywebsite.com/trustme/it/is/safe/virus.exe?

As for solid criteria for what you think is acceptable, how about reading the ToS and Privacy Policies of each place you want to allow?

If anything in there says "we want to steal your audience's IP so we can steal their RS accounts", you won't want to allow those ones.

Alternatively, if you guys are going to be so paranoid as to whitelist where you can link images from, how about providing a service that allows people to upload them here? Oh, wait, you do. It's the Gallery.

Leaves those of us who want dynamic sigs in the dark tho. Maybe an Image proxy? Community Protection vs. Server Load?

I joke; I joke; I kid; I kid;

Thanks for adding whatpulse!!

[tripsis]

Medaragon, on 10 July 2012 - 05:59 PM, said:

http://tfssig.g00glen00b.be/
Stat sig based on google docs (for F2ps in my clan : TFS)

Ex: http://tfssig.g00gle...0/Medaragon.png

-Med-

http://tfssig.g00gle...0/Medaragon.png [Image display blocked; image is linked instead.]

Unfortunately we can't add this right now because it is a personal site and isn't a 'reputable' or 'trusted' image host.   I'm sure you're not out there grabbing IPs, but we do have to draw the line somewhere and we chose to draw it at personal sites.  If you were to expand this and develop it into a more well known and trusted signature hosting site, we might be able to consider it.  But right now it's very much a personal site used by a close group of friends so it doesn't meet our criteria.  Sorry.

Junglebiscui, on 10 July 2012 - 06:43 PM, said:

My clan use images and sigs uploaded to the following place, including the ones on our tip.it recruitment thread here since 2008!:  http://britishelites.com/
Stat sigs we use regularly from:  http://junglebiscuit.com/

Added junglebiscuit, but unfortunately we can't add clan sites, for a reason similar to what I told Medaragon.  British Elites might be fine, but clan sites are a big part of the IP grabbing problem so we have to put a blanket ban on them.  But it shouldn't be too difficult to reupload your recruitment images to one of our allowed hosts.  We apologize for the inconvenience, but we really have to do everything we can to protect our users (including you).

[Mercifull]

Has the unlock for long standing/trusted members been canned or is that still a possibility?

[GrandZephyr]

Mercifull, on 15 July 2012 - 11:09 AM, said:

Has the unlock for long standing/trusted members been canned or is that still a possibility?

Based on what tripsis has said previously, I'd bet they are still hashing out the guidelines for what they want to allow.

tripsis, on 14 July 2012 - 03:07 AM, said:

Just so you guys know - we'll work on processing some of the other requests soon.   We need to more concretely establish our criteria....

Since some of those sites would be considered personal sites but they have outlawed personal sites, I am sure they don't want to just start accepting some without a baseline of why they allow one but not another.

tripsis, on 14 July 2012 - 03:07 AM, said:

But just a heads up, we probably will have to decline some of them.  Adding too many unknown/personal/small sites to the whitelist kind of defeats the purpose of having it in the first place.  In order to maximize everyone's security, we need to keep the list limited to bigger and more established sites that we know for certain are trustworthy.

Give it time, I know they can take awhile but they will get to it eventually.

Thanks for your patients.

[tripsis]

Mercifull, on 15 July 2012 - 11:09 AM, said:

Has the unlock for long standing/trusted members been canned or is that still a possibility?

It's all kind of done on a case-by-case basis at this point.  But generally:

• Websites strictly for personal use will not be allowed.  This might include personal blogs, personal portfolios, or just using your own hosting for images.
  
• If you create a small RuneScape-related site, it won't be allowed at first.  Examples of what I mean are your own fan site, your own dynamic signature site, or any other kind of RuneScape "service" site.  Along the line, if/when it becomes well known, established, and 'trustworthy,' we will consider allowing it.
  
• Clan sites will not be allowed.

[Medaragon]

tripsis, on 15 July 2012 - 12:42 AM, said:

Medaragon, on 10 July 2012 - 05:59 PM, said:

http://tfssig.g00glen00b.be/
Stat sig based on google docs (for F2ps in my clan : TFS)

Ex: http://tfssig.g00gle...0/Medaragon.png

-Med-

http://tfssig.g00gle...0/Medaragon.png [Image display blocked; image is linked instead.]

Unfortunately we can't add this right now because it is a personal site and isn't a 'reputable' or 'trusted' image host.   I'm sure you're not out there grabbing IPs, but we do have to draw the line somewhere and we chose to draw it at personal sites.  If you were to expand this and develop it into a more well known and trusted signature hosting site, we might be able to consider it.  But right now it's very much a personal site used by a close group of friends so it doesn't meet our criteria.  Sorry.

What is well known for you? Because TFS, as the largest F2p clan in runescape, includes over 150 people in our spreadsheet, that's a bit more than "a close group of friends" We just had to find a way to keep our hiscores even if Jagex doesn't allow us.

-Med-

[tripsis]

Medaragon, on 16 July 2012 - 12:07 PM, said:

tripsis, on 15 July 2012 - 12:42 AM, said:

Medaragon, on 10 July 2012 - 05:59 PM, said:

http://tfssig.g00glen00b.be/
Stat sig based on google docs (for F2ps in my clan : TFS)

Ex: http://tfssig.g00gle...0/Medaragon.png

-Med-

http://tfssig.g00gle...0/Medaragon.png [Image display blocked; image is linked instead.]

Unfortunately we can't add this right now because it is a personal site and isn't a 'reputable' or 'trusted' image host.   I'm sure you're not out there grabbing IPs, but we do have to draw the line somewhere and we chose to draw it at personal sites.  If you were to expand this and develop it into a more well known and trusted signature hosting site, we might be able to consider it.  But right now it's very much a personal site used by a close group of friends so it doesn't meet our criteria.  Sorry.

What is well known for you? Because TFS, as the largest F2p clan in runescape, includes over 150 people in our spreadsheet, that's a bit more than "a close group of friends" We just had to find a way to keep our hiscores even if Jagex doesn't allow us.

-Med-

Well known for us would be something that is commonly known throughout the entire RuneScape community.  Like take RSBandB -- they have a really well set up, very well known, and very popular site.  They probably have thousands of people using their signatures and they are a Jagex recognized site.  While that's not required, it does help "establish" a website.

Another thing we consider is how fleshed out a website is.  Like if you compare yours to RSBandB, yours has no design and isn't that fleshed out.  In terms of functionality it's fine, but try to look at it from the standpoint of an outsider.  If someone looks at a website with no design, and then compares it to one that does have a design and a very fleshed out website, they'll probably "trust" the latter one much more.

I'm sorry to put you on the spot like this, but I'm just trying to help you understand where we're coming from.  Until you made this request, no one on the admin team had heard of your site.  We're much more inclined to accept websites that are very well known around the entire RuneScape community, are recognized by Jagex, have thousands of visitors, and/or have a well established community.  The whole point of this feature is to disallow any personal sites or "not very well known" sites because we have to protect our users from people who are farming IPs.  That usually comes from "not very well known" sites and clan sites, so that's where we're drawing the line.

I'm sorry it came down to this, but I hope you can see it from our point of view.  We're just trying to be as fair as possible and it's not fair if we allow in some personal/smaller/less known sites, but not others.

Feel free to send me a PM If you have any further questions.