Avatar Moderation

Complete guide for moderating member profile avatars and group photos in BuddyPress Moderation Pro.

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Overview

Avatar Moderation allows site administrators to review and approve profile pictures and group photos before they become visible. This prevents inappropriate images from appearing on your community.

The plugin supports moderation for:

• Member Profile Avatars - User profile pictures
• Group Avatars - Group profile photos

Avatar Moderation Settings Avatar moderation settings in the admin panel

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Enabling Avatar Moderation

1. Navigate to WB Plugins > Moderation Pro in your WordPress admin
2. Click on the Avatar Moderation tab
3. Enable the moderation options you need:
   • Enable Avatar Moderation for Profile Photos - Member profile pictures
   • Enable Avatar Moderation for Group Photos - Group avatars
4. Configure your preferred settings:
   • Auto-approve for trusted roles - Skip moderation for administrators/moderators
   • Notification settings - Email admins when new avatars are submitted

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How It Works

Member Avatar Flow

1. User uploads a new profile picture
2. Avatar is marked as “pending” and not visible to other members
3. User sees their own avatar but others see a placeholder
4. Admin reviews and approves/rejects the avatar
5. If approved, avatar becomes visible to all members
6. If rejected, user is notified and can upload a new image

Group Avatar Flow

1. Group creator or admin uploads a new group avatar
2. Avatar is marked as “pending” and not visible to members
3. Group admins see the pending avatar, others see placeholder
4. Site admin reviews and approves/rejects the avatar
5. If approved, group avatar becomes visible to all
6. If rejected, group admin is notified and can upload a new image

Admin Flow

1. New avatar submissions appear in Avatar Mods menu
2. The Type column shows “Profile” or “Group” to identify the source
3. Click on a submission to review
4. Preview the avatar image
5. Choose to Approve or Reject
6. Optionally add a rejection reason (sent to user/group admin)

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Admin Interface

Avatar Mods List

Access via Avatar Mods in the WordPress admin sidebar.

Avatar Moderation Queue Avatar moderation queue showing pending submissions

Column	Description
Type	Profile or Group - identifies avatar source
User/Group	Member who uploaded or group name
Avatar Preview	Thumbnail of the submitted image
Status	Pending, Approved, or Rejected
Date	When the avatar was uploaded

Filtering Avatars

Use the filter dropdown above the list to show:

• All - Both profile and group avatars
• Profile Avatars - Only user profile pictures
• Group Avatars - Only group photos

Single Avatar Review

Click on any submission to see:

• Full-size avatar preview
• User/Group information - Profile/group link, relevant details
• Upload history - Previous avatar submissions
• Action buttons - Approve / Reject

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Member vs Group Avatar Comparison

Feature	Member Avatar	Group Avatar
Uploaded by	Individual members	Group creators/admins
Notification sent to	User who uploaded	Group administrators
Visible on	Member profiles, activity	Group pages, group activity
Pending placeholder	Default user avatar	Default group avatar
Approval affects	Single user	Entire group

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Bulk Actions

From the Avatar Mods list, you can:

1. Select multiple submissions using checkboxes
2. Choose action from dropdown:
   • Approve - Make avatars visible
   • Reject - Remove avatars
   • Delete - Permanently remove records
3. Click “Apply”

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Notifications

Admin Notifications

Admins can receive notifications when:

• New avatar is submitted for review (profile or group)
• Avatar queue reaches a threshold

Configure in Moderation Pro > Avatar Moderation > Notifications.

User/Group Admin Notifications

Members and group admins automatically receive:

• Confirmation when avatar is approved
• Notification with reason when avatar is rejected

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Settings Reference

Setting	Description	Default
Enable Profile Photo Moderation	Moderate member avatars	Off
Enable Group Photo Moderation	Moderate group avatars	Off
Auto-approve Roles	Roles that bypass moderation	Administrator
Show Pending to User	Let users see their pending avatar	Yes
Rejection Message	Default message for rejections	(customizable)
Admin Email	Send email on new submissions	Yes

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Hooks for Developers

// Before avatar is submitted for moderation
do_action( 'bmpro_before_avatar_moderation', $user_id, $avatar_data );

// After avatar is approved
do_action( 'bmpro_avatar_approved', $user_id, $moderation_id );

// After avatar is rejected
do_action( 'bmpro_avatar_rejected', $user_id, $moderation_id, $reason );

// Filter auto-approve check
$auto_approve = apply_filters( 'bmpro_avatar_auto_approve', false, $user_id );

// Group avatar specific hooks
do_action( 'bmpro_before_group_avatar_moderation', $group_id, $avatar_data );
do_action( 'bmpro_group_avatar_approved', $group_id, $moderation_id );
do_action( 'bmpro_group_avatar_rejected', $group_id, $moderation_id, $reason );
$auto_approve = apply_filters( 'bmpro_group_avatar_auto_approve', false, $group_id );

See Hooks & Filters for complete hook reference.

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Troubleshooting

Avatar not showing after approval

1. Clear any caching plugins
2. Check BuddyPress avatar settings
3. Verify file permissions on uploads directory

Users/Groups can’t upload avatars

1. Ensure BuddyPress avatar uploads are enabled
2. Check PHP upload limits (upload_max_filesize, post_max_size)
3. Verify user has permission to change avatar
4. For groups, verify user has group admin permissions

Moderation not triggering

1. Confirm Avatar Moderation is enabled in settings
2. Check if user’s role is in auto-approve list
3. Review any custom filters that might bypass moderation
4. For groups, check if group-specific auto-approve is enabled

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Related Documentation

• Member Moderation - Complete member management guide
• Group Moderation - Reporting inappropriate groups

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Last Updated: 2026-01-28