The rules behind every claim on the index.
This page covers how a source gets accepted, how evidence expires, what forces a review, how we handle a genuine dispute, and how we fix a mistake once it is found.
Sourcing
A claim only enters the index if it traces to acceptable evidence: primary documentation, direct confirmation from the employer, credible named-source reporting, or (for the Accepts Bitcoin signal only) a spot-checked public dataset. The full ranked list and what disqualifies a source live on the methodology page; we do not repeat it here so there is exactly one place it can drift out of date.
Every accepted source is recorded with its link, the date we observed it, and a confidence note. A claim with no traceable source does not get published, no matter how plausible it sounds.
Staleness
Evidence has a shelf life. Any signal whose newest supporting evidence passes eighteen months old is marked stale automatically, on a rolling basis, no exceptions for employers we like or employers who pay us. A stale signal stays visible on the record; it is labeled, not hidden, because a stale claim is still information, just information that needs rechecking.
What triggers a review
Four things move a record back under review:
- A correction submitted through the corrections process, from anyone: employer, employee, or candidate.
- A material change we notice independently, such as a public layoff announcement or a payroll policy reversal.
- Evidence crossing the eighteen-month staleness line.
- The annual review cycle every Verified record goes through regardless of any other trigger.
Disputes
When a claim is genuinely contested, whether by the employer or by someone with contrary evidence, the record moves to Disputed. Both sides are documented: the original claim, the evidence supporting it, the challenge, and the evidence behind the challenge. A Disputed record says so on its face while the review is underway; we do not quietly resolve disputes off the record.
Disputed is not a punishment and Researched is not an accusation. Both states mean exactly what they say: this needs more evidence before it can be Verified.
Corrections
When we get something wrong, the fix is dated and the correction is visible, not buried. Where it matters to the reader (a reversed finding, not a typo), the original wording is preserved alongside the correction so the record shows what changed and when. There is no quiet editing of past findings.
What we never publish
Two categories are out of scope regardless of source quality: personal contact information for individual employees (names, addresses, personal emails or numbers), and anonymous accusations with no traceable evidence behind them. An anonymous tip can open an investigation; it cannot itself become a published claim.