We’re excited to introduce the flagged messages functionality in CometChat’s Moderation Service API. This feature gives you full control over reviewing messages flagged for potentially violating your platform’s moderation rules, whether flagged automatically by your rule engine or manually by end users.
You can now easily approve or block flagged content and keep your community safe, all from the CometChat Dashboard or programmatically through the API. Additionally, a moderator and administrator can manage these functions, thanks to the availability of role-based access on the CometChat dashboard.
Why does this matter to me, as a developer?
Managing user-generated content at scale can be tricky. You need to make sure inappropriate content does not slip through while keeping the moderation process efficient and transparent.
With the Flagged Messages feature, you can:
Streamline the moderation workflow by automatically identifying and queuing messages for review.
Give your users a way to report content they find concerning.
Integrate moderation decisions directly into your apps or admin tools via API.
This reduces the overhead of monitoring messages manually while giving you flexibility to enforce your community guidelines.
Key features and capabilities
Manual flagging by end users
Users can report inappropriate messages using a predefined list of reasons.
Flag reasons are configurable in the CometChat Dashboard or via API so you can tailor them to your platform’s needs.
Automatic flagging by rule engine
Define moderation rules that automatically flag messages containing profane words, sensitive content, or other criteria you specify.
Automatically queues flagged messages for review, reducing manual effort.
Moderator actions
Approve: Mark flagged messages as acceptable.
Block: Mark messages as violating policies.
After action is taken, messages move to the Reviewed list for record keeping.
Full API support
List flagged messages using List Flagged Messages REST API.
Approve messages via Approve Flagged Message REST API.
Block messages using Block Flagged Message REST API.
Interesting tech details
The Flagged Messages endpoint integrates tightly with CometChat’s moderation framework.
Rule engine integration automatically flags messages based on your defined rules without user intervention.
Flexible flag reason system allows default or custom flagging reasons to be synced to your UI or managed programmatically.
State management moves messages seamlessly between flagged and reviewed states, keeping your moderation dashboard organized.
This approach provides a consistent, scalable moderation pipeline that works for both small communities and high-volume chat applications.
Reference links
Nivedita Bharathy
Product Marketing Specialist , CometChat