Acceptable Use Policy

Purpose

The CIP Sentinel community forum is a professional discussion space for NERC CIP, OT/ICS cybersecurity, and critical infrastructure protection topics. This Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) establishes the standards of conduct for all forum participants to keep discussions productive, respectful, and legally sound.

Violations may result in content removal, account suspension, or permanent ban — at our sole discretion, with or without notice.

Prohibited Content

You may not post, upload, share, or link to content that:

• Contains malware, working exploit code, or operational attack tools. Discussion of vulnerabilities for defensive purposes is encouraged; weaponized proofs of concept are not permitted.
• Contains personal information of others without their explicit consent (no doxxing — no full names, addresses, phone numbers, employer details, or identifying information of non-public individuals).
• Contains classified, CUI, or export-controlled information. Do not post content subject to security classification, Controlled Unclassified Information designations, or U.S. export controls (EAR, ITAR).
• Contains confidential utility information that could aid an attacker, including specific asset locations, vulnerability details of unpatched systems at identifiable organizations, or non-public incident details.
• Violates any applicable law or regulation.
• Infringes any copyright, trademark, trade secret, or other intellectual property right.
• Is defamatory, libelous, obscene, pornographic, hateful, or discriminatory.
• Harasses, bullies, threatens, or intimidates any person.
• Impersonates any person, organization, or official entity.
• Contains spam, unsolicited advertising, referral links, or blatant self-promotion.

Prohibited Conduct

• Creating multiple accounts to evade bans or manipulate discussions
• Attempting to access other users' accounts or the Site's infrastructure
• Scraping, crawling, or automated harvesting of forum content
• Interfering with the Site's operation or security
• Using the forum to recruit for illegal activities or organize attacks

Community Expectations

• Be respectful. Disagreement is welcome; personal attacks are not.
• Stay on topic. Discussions should relate to NERC CIP, OT/ICS security, critical infrastructure protection, or adjacent professional topics.
• Cite sources. Back up claims with links to public sources when discussing regulations, vulnerabilities, or incidents.
• Protect sensitive information. If in doubt about whether something should be public, don't post it.
• Use clear titles. Descriptive thread titles help others find relevant discussions.

No Professional Advice

Forum discussions are not legal, compliance, security, or engineering advice. Information shared by community members represents individual opinions and experiences. Always verify compliance decisions with qualified professionals, your regional entity, or primary NERC/FERC/CISA sources before acting on forum discussions.

Reporting Violations

To report AUP violations, contact contact@cipsentinel.com with a link to the content and a brief description of the violation.

Enforcement

We may take any of the following actions at our sole discretion:

• Remove or edit content without notice
• Issue a warning
• Temporarily suspend the user's account
• Permanently terminate the user's account
• Report illegal activity to law enforcement

Our moderation decisions are final. We are not obligated to pre-screen content, but we reserve the right to review any content at any time.

Changes to This Policy

We may update this AUP from time to time. Material changes will be announced in the forum or via email. Continued use of the forum after the effective date constitutes acceptance.