Today we're introducing a change to the credibility score levels—one that addresses a growing challenge as Ethos scales: spam prevention.

What's Changing

We're adding a new credibility level called "Known" (1400-1600) and separating Reputable, Exemplary, and Revered I/II into distinct levels with their own colors.

Here's the full breakdown:

LevelScore RangeNeutral1200-1399Known1400-1599Established1600-1799Reputable1800-1999Exemplary2000-2199Distinguished2200-2399Revered2400-2599Renowned2600-2800

Why We're Doing This

Over 75% of Ethos users currently sit in the 1200-1400 range. That's a lot of accounts, and right now, that range represents a spam liability for the network.

These users are often new and early to Ethos. They tend to lack simple social proof that they are humans that other humans trust. That's not their fault—they just haven't had the opportunity to build reputation yet.

But it creates a problem: without differentiation, it's hard to tell genuine newcomers from spam accounts trying to game the system.

Impact on Platform Features

This change includes a tweak to how slash and listing voting weights work. Neutral users will now have 0 impact on voting.

The intent is to align social proof with platform impact. If you want your voice to matter in governance decisions, you need some evidence that you're a real person whom other real people trust.

We'll soon apply these weightings to upvoting and downvoting as well.

The Bigger Picture

As we continue to open the platform up to new users, we need confidence that we have solid spam prevention in place.

These new scores and weightings give us exactly that confidence. They're what allow us to send out more invites and grow the network without compromising on quality.

The goal has always been the same: build a reputation system that rewards genuine participation and makes it expensive to be a bad actor. This update is another step in that direction.

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