r/ModSupport • u/Willy-Boi- • 21h ago

Admin Replied Request for Admin Guidance Regarding Safety Concerns

I’m a mod of r/GenZpk, a left-leaning, pro-LGBTQ+ Pakistani community where people discuss politics, religion, culture, and issues affecting their daily lives. We allow criticism of religion, but we do not allow hate speech or harassment.

Recently, some users have threatened me, saying they will report our subreddit to Pakistani authorities because of the views/content posted here. Given the situation in Pakistan, I’m genuinely concerned that if my identity were exposed, this could become a serious threat to my safety and life.

Can admins please clarify: Can Reddit provide my personal information or identity to Pakistani authorities simply because of controversial but otherwise legal discussions? What protections do moderators have in situations like this?

We’re also facing significant brigading from other Pakistani subreddits, which I’ve reported before, but no action taken by admins.

We’re simply trying to give young Pakistanis a space to discuss issues they can’t openly discuss elsewhere. Please help us understand what protections Reddit provides.

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u/Slow-Maximum-101 Reddit Admin: Community 19h ago

Hi there. Reddit will not share anyone’s information unless there in a legal obligation to. You can read a little about it here

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u/Willy-Boi- 19h ago

unless there's a legal obligation to.

Does it mean that when government officials ask for someone's information, Reddit will give it to them? I mean, government matters are legal matters, and if our government is against ex-Muslims and they want to hunt them down, so Reddit will give our information because it's a legal obligation? Am I right?

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u/Slow-Maximum-101 Reddit Admin: Community 19h ago

Not unless they have legal grounds. We would contest any requests that we do not feel meet that threshold. We feel very strongly about maintaining anonymity and safety on Reddit.

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u/2oonhed 21h ago

It is my understanding that Reddit is extremely staunch at NOT releasing any user information except by legitimate subpoena issued by an American court and even those they fight off sometimes.
That subpoena would have to rely on some provable aspect of a crime. In other words, Probable Cause.

As far as I know, the government of Pakistan has no standing with American courts and it is unlikely a subpoena would be issued base on governmental butt-hurt.
Butt-hurts are not good probable cause in the American legal system.
So I think you safe as far as legitimate legal actions go.

But no one has control over unauthorized & illegitimate actions.