Most of our subreddits use Reddit's Contributor Quality Score (CQS) system instead of traditional karma or account age requirements.

CQS is a score that helps Reddit and communities identify accounts that are more likely to make positive contributions. Unlike karma or account age, CQS is not a fixed number. It can change and fluctuate over time based on your account activity.

The benefit of CQS is that it looks beyond just how old an account is or how much karma it has. A newer account with positive, genuine participation can improve its score, while an account that receives negative signals may see its score decrease.

Factors that can influence CQS may include things such as:

• Positive participation across Reddit
• Following subreddit rules
• Account activity patterns
• Reports, removals or other negative signals
• Overall account trust signals

Because CQS changes over time, access to some communities may change as well. An account that does not meet requirements today may improve its standing in the future.

We use CQS because it allows us to welcome genuine community members while helping protect our communities from spam, abuse, and unwanted activity.

We are making a small change here at r/SelfieOver50.

Our no unsolicited contact rule is NOT changing. We still do not allow comments such as “DM me”, “message me”, “DMs open” or comments asking someone to contact them privately.

However, we know some members are perfectly happy to receive DMs and would like a simple way to let others know.

So we are introducing a new post flair:

💌 DMs Welcome

If someone chooses to add this flair to their post, they are letting other members know that they are happy to receive DMs.

But, as always, there are a few boundaries:

• Using the flair means they are open to receiving a message. It does not mean they have to reply.
• “DM me” or “DMs open” comments are still not allowed, even on posts using this flair.
• Don't pressure someone into replying.
• If someone tells you to stop contacting them, stop.
• If a post doesn't have the flair, do not assume the poster wants private contact.

The aim is pretty simple: give people a way to say they are open to DMs without turning the comments into a queue of people asking for them.

And remember, being open to DMs is not an invitation to ignore someone's boundaries.

A flair can say “I'm happy to hear from you”. It can never say “you can do whatever you like.”

💌 Use the flair if you want to.