In May 2024, we launched IFTAS Connect as a community platform to support volunteer moderators, administrators, and safety advocates across the decentralised web. Our vision was to provide a central space for collaboration, resource sharing, and mutual support, especially for those working in independent and often under-resourced environments.
Despite several hundred moderators signing up and expressing early interest, sustained engagement across the Connect portal and its associated Matrix Space (a collection of chat rooms) has remained limited. As we evaluate our role in this evolving ecosystem, we believe it is time to step back from hosting a dedicated community platform and refocus our resources where they are most impactful.
As a non-profit organisation, IFTAS relies on community support to operate. Our financial and staffing capacity is not unlimited, and hosting platforms such as Connect comes with direct costs, both technical and human. In the current environment, where funding has diminished, we must prioritise sustainability and impact.
After 18 months of operating Connect, it is clear that this particular space has not provided the kind of active collaboration we had hoped for. We believe that this may be a reflection of the need for smaller, more targeted, and organically driven networks of support. This is not a failure of the community, but rather an opportunity to rethink how collaboration can best be facilitated across diverse, decentralised projects.
We remain deeply grateful to those who participated, contributed resources, and helped build a shared understanding of moderation and safety in federated systems. The need for community remains, even if the model needs to evolve.
We extend our sincere thanks to everyone who joined IFTAS Connect, contributed their time, knowledge, and questions, shared resources, supported others, or otherwise helped build the space. Your efforts helped shape the Community Library and informed our broader work in ways that continue to matter. We are especially thankful to the moderators and safety contributors who helped keep the space respectful, accessible, and safe throughout its operation.
What’s Next
IFTAS Connect and the Matrix Space will remain available for existing accounts until 30 October 2025. After that date, both will be permanently shut down. New accounts can no longer be created.
1. Preserving the Community Library
The Connect Community Library will be preserved in static form on the IFTAS web site. Unless otherwise marked, all content is published under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 licence, feel free to preserve copies of anything you deem valuable. The full archive will also be made available to any project, server, or individual who wishes to mirror or reuse the material.
2. Ongoing News and Updates
The aggregated news feed from Connect will transition to a Channel.org feed. This will offer continued updates on trust and safety, regulation, and federated technology developments in a lower-overhead format. When this is ready, we’ll announce it on @iftas@mastodon.iftas.org.
3. Stay Connected
IFTAS will not be hosting a new community forum ourselves. However, we will point to third-party community spaces that align with our values. In particular, we encourage moderators to review the discussion forum hosted at @moderation@activitypub.space. This community is available to any moderator on the Fediverse, and participation does not require a separate account. Simply mention @moderation@activitypub.space from your existing account to post or engage in the conversation.
4. Private Signal Groups
For those seeking a more private communication channel, we will be operating a Signal group chat for verified community moderators. Participation will be by @iftas@mastodon.iftas.org, and membership will require demonstrated moderator responsibilities on a Fediverse server that hosts community accounts. This space will serve as a light-touch backchannel for peer support, coordination, and urgent queries. We will also offer a Signal group for the SW-ISAC, geared toward both admins and moderators to share information about network abuse, spam, illegal content and other threats. Send a direct mention to @iftas@mastodon.iftas.org for access to these groups.
5. Data Privacy and Account Deletion
No member data or content from IFTAS Connect or the Matrix Space will be shared, transferred, or retained after closure. All account information and related backups will be permanently destroyed following the shutdown.
Our Continued Commitment
IFTAS was created to support decentralised online communities in building safer, fairer, and more resilient digital spaces. That mission remains unchanged.
- We will continue advocating for shared resources, moderation tooling, and transparent practices. Our annual survey and other activities will continue.
- We will maintain our role in threat intelligence sharing, with a focus on coordinated abuse, network harms, and platform-level safety.
- We will continue working in support of marginalised communities, prioritising human rights, privacy, and safety online and offline.
- Jaz will continue to attend relevant conferences, maintaining relationships with internet safety regulators and ensuring the perspectives of decentralised communities are represented in wider policy and safety conversations.
Looking Ahead
The closure of IFTAS Connect is not the end of community collaboration. It is a recalibration. We remain committed to supporting moderators and trust and safety teams with open resources, shared intelligence, and public-interest advocacy. We invite those who share these values to stay connected through our web site, our Mastodon account, the news channel, and future initiatives that reflect the needs of decentralised communities.
