Corrections policy

Fixed in place, never silently

An error is corrected in place on the page where it appeared, with a short dated note saying what changed. We do not delete a page or quietly swap a figure and hope nobody noticed, because a silent edit leaves the reader unable to tell what was wrong.

The dated note stays visible so that anyone who read the earlier version can see what moved. If a correction changes the sense of a ranking or a warning, the note says so plainly rather than burying it.

What Qualifies as a Loggable Error on This Site

A loggable error is any statement that misleads a reader about a checkable fact, not a matter of taste or emphasis. If a page says a 0.10-lot gold position needs about $85.50 margin at 1:200 leverage and the worked figure is wrong for that ratio, that is an error. If it names a funding method that is not local cards, bank transfers in ZAR, or e-wallets, that is an error. If it states a spread, commission, swap or minimum deposit as a number when no such number was supplied, that is an error. Tone, opinion and risk framing are not errors.

A loggable error also includes an omitted condition that changes the meaning of a correct number. Stating that maximum leverage is 1:200 without saying it is a cap, not a setting to aim at, misleads even though the figure is right. Naming FxPro without the entity caveat is the same kind of fault: the reader cannot tell which legal entity holds their account. We log these because the fix is a condition, not a digit. The test is simple: would a careful South African reader make a different decision after reading the corrected version? If yes, it belongs in the log.

A loggable error must be specific enough to point at a sentence or a figure, not a whole page. We do not log broad discomfort such as the page feeling too promotional or the example being unrealistic in general. We log the exact line, the exact figure and the exact source that contradicts it. Where the only problem is that a source has gone quiet, that is not yet an error; it becomes one when we repeat a stale figure as current. The log entry names the sentence, the wrong value, the right value and the basis for the change.

How a Correction Is Recorded and Dated on This Site

A correction is recorded as a dated entry in a public log attached to the page it changes, and the date is the date the incorrect statement was first published, not the date we noticed it. Each entry names the page, identifies the sentence or figure that was wrong, states what it said, states what it now says, and gives the reason. The entry is written before the page text is edited, so the record cannot be shaped afterwards to look tidier than the mistake was.

The date of the fix is recorded separately from the date of the error. A page corrected on a later day shows both, which tells a reader how long an incorrect statement stood. This matters on a page that quotes a reference price near 4275.0 or a margin figure such as the roughly $85.50 needed for a 0.10-lot gold position at 1:200 retail leverage, because a reader who acted on the old number deserves to see the gap between publication and repair.

Each entry is written in plain text with the instrument code, numbers and currency codes left exactly as published, so a corrected figure can be compared against the original without translation drift. Entries are never rewritten to remove the original wording; a later correction to a correction becomes its own entry underneath. Rand amounts, dollar amounts and lot sizes stay in the form they were published, and the log keeps the order in which entries were made rather than grouping them by topic.

Who Decides on a Correction and Within What Time

A named editor decides, and the decision is made within two working days of a report being logged. The editor is the person whose initials appear on the entry, and that person is accountable for the call between error, update and clarification. Reports that arrive through the site's contact route are logged the same day they are read, and the clock starts then. If the report is unclear, the editor may ask one clarifying question, but the question does not reset the two-day clock. The aim is a decision, not a perfect first answer.

The editor decides on evidence, not on seniority or on who reported it. If a reader points to a sentence and a source that contradicts it, the editor checks the source and rules. If the source is one we already use, the ruling is usually quick. If the source is new to us, the editor checks whether it is authoritative enough to change the page. A reader's report is never accepted just because it is forceful, and never rejected just because it comes from outside the site. The entry records the basis so the ruling can be reviewed later.

The two-day window is for the decision, not always for the published fix. A simple wording correction can publish the same day the decision is made. A change that touches a worked example, such as the $85.50 margin figure at 1:200, may take longer to check against the rest of the page. When that happens, the log shows the decision date and the publication date separately, so a reader can see the gap. The editor who decided is the editor who signs the entry, and no correction publishes without that signature.

How to report an error

Send the page address, the sentence you believe is wrong, and if you have it, the broker document that shows the correct position to editor@sowetofollowza.com. A link or a screenshot of the relevant clause is more useful than a general complaint.

We check the claim against the source before changing anything. If you are right, the page is fixed and dated. If the source does not support the change, we will tell you what we found rather than edit on request.

What Counts as an Error Worth Logging on a Trading Page

An error worth logging is a statement on the page that was factually wrong when written or has since become wrong, and that could change what a reader does with real money. On a gold (XAU/USD) page, that includes a wrong lot size, a wrong pip value, a wrong formula, a reference price quoted as current when it is stale, or a leverage figure that does not match the cap stated by the broker. A typo that leaves the meaning intact is not logged as an error.

An error is also worth logging when the page attributes something to the wrong party. If a passage says a South African account is opened with one FxPro entity when the entity serving the reader is FxPro Markets Direct Costa Rica Latam SRL, that is a loggable error, not a wording preference. The same applies to regulator statements: the caveat that FxPro is licensed by the FCA (UK) and CySEC, and that an FxPro entity holds an FSCA licence in South Africa, must stay attached to the entity you check for your own account.

An error is not worth logging when it is a matter of style, a synonym choice, or a sentence that could be shorter. We also do not log an error when the underlying fact changed after publication and the page was correct at the time, because that is an update. The test we apply is simple: could a reader following this sentence have made a different decision about margin, position size, or which entity holds their account? If yes, it is an error and it gets a dated entry.

The Difference Between a Correction and an Update on a Trading Page

A correction fixes something that was wrong; an update changes something that became different. If the page said a 0.10-lot gold position needs about $85.50 margin at 1:200 and that figure was right when written, a later change to the leverage cap produces an update, not a correction. If the page had printed a different margin figure for the same 1:200 cap, that would have been a correction, because the arithmetic did not hold at the time of publication.

The distinction decides how the change is marked. Corrections carry a dated log entry that quotes the old text. Updates carry a dated note saying what changed in the world and what the page now reflects, without implying the earlier version was careless. A reader scanning the log can therefore tell whether the site made a mistake or whether the market, the regulator, or the broker's terms moved underneath a statement that was accurate when it was written.

Neither label is used to soften a mistake. If a page described the leverage cap as a setting to aim at rather than a maximum, that framing error is a correction even though no number was wrong, because it could lead a reader to over-size a position. Conversely, a new funding detail, such as a payment route becoming available or unavailable, is an update. The label follows the cause of the change, not the size of the edit.

Why the Correction Log Stays Public

The log stays public because a reader cannot judge a page they cannot audit. Trading content is high-risk, and a South African reader deciding on leverage or funding needs to see whether a figure has been stable or has moved. A private log would let us fix quietly and look cleaner than we are. A public log makes the site's reliability checkable rather than asserted. It also keeps us honest: knowing that a change will be visible discourages the lazy edit that avoids the work of naming what was wrong.

A public log also protects readers who acted on an older version. If someone read the page when it said a 0.10-lot gold position needs about $85.50 margin at 1:200, and the page later changes, that reader can find the old wording and its date instead of wondering whether they misread. The same applies to the regulator caveat: a reader who relied on a page that named an entity without the caveat can see when the caveat was added and why. The log is the reader's side of the record, not our marketing.

Keeping the log public costs us something, and that is the point. Every correction is a visible admission, and every update is a visible date. We accept that because the alternative is a site that looks flawless and cannot be checked. The log does not include private reader reports or personal details; it records the change, the date and the reason. The rule is simple: if a change affects what a reader could rely on, the record of that change is public, and it stays public for as long as the page exists.

How Each Correction Is Recorded and Dated

Every correction is recorded as a dated entry that names the page, the sentence changed, the old wording and the new wording, and the reason. The date is the date the corrected page goes live, not the date someone first noticed. If a reader reports the fault on a Monday and the fix publishes on a Thursday, the entry carries Thursday. The entry also carries the initials of the person who approved it, so a reader can see that a named human signed off rather than a script. Nothing is backdated and nothing is dated to the day of the original publication.

The record sits on the page itself and in a separate log, and the two must agree. The on-page note is short: what changed and when. The log entry is longer and includes the source that settled the question. If the correction touches a figure such as the $85.50 margin example at 1:200, the entry repeats the old and new figure so the change can be checked without opening an archive. Rand amounts, where used, are shown with the currency code and the date of any conversion, because a rand figure without its date is not checkable later.

A correction is dated even when the change is small, because the date is what makes the history usable. A reader who quoted the page last month needs to know whether the sentence they quoted has moved. We do not batch small fixes into an undated tidy-up, and we do not mark a correction as a minor edit to avoid the log. The only edits that go unlogged are spelling and formatting that leave meaning untouched. If a reader could have relied on the old wording, the change gets a date and an entry.

Correction Versus Update: Where the Line Is Drawn

A correction fixes something that was wrong when it was published; an update changes something that was right then and is different now. If we wrote that leverage was capped at 1:200 and that was accurate for the entity serving South Africa at the time, a later change to the cap is an update, not a correction. If we wrote 1:200 when the cap was already something else, that is a correction. The distinction matters because a correction admits a fault, while an update records a change in the world. Readers deserve to know which one they are looking at.

The test is what was true on the publication date, not what is true today. A page that said the reference price was about 4275.0 was not wrong on the day it said so; when the reference price moves, the page is updated. A page that said a pip on XAU/USD is 0.01 when it is 0.01 was never wrong, so a rewording is a clarification. A page that said one standard lot is 10 oz instead of 100 oz was wrong, and that is a correction. We apply the test sentence by sentence, because one page can need all three treatments at once.

Updates are dated too, but they are not framed as faults. A reader checking history should be able to see a run of updates without thinking the site was careless. We keep the two labels separate in the log so the record is honest in both directions: we do not dress a fault as an update, and we do not dress a market change as a correction. Where an update changes a worked example, the old example stays visible in the log with its date, so a reader who relied on it can see exactly what moved and when.

A changed condition is a re-check

If a broker has changed a term since we read its documents, that is not an error on our part, it is a re-check. The page was accurate on the date it was read, and the honest response is to read the documents again and update the date.

We mark pages with the date the figures were taken, so you can judge how fresh they are. Where a number matters to a decision, confirm it with the broker yourself before acting on it.

The Three Kinds of Change and How Each Is Marked

Every change is marked as exactly one of three kinds: error, update or clarification. An error mark means the old text was wrong when published and is replaced. An update mark means the old text was right then and the world moved, so the figure or condition is refreshed. A clarification mark means the old text was not wrong but could be misread, and the new wording removes the ambiguity. The mark sits at the top of the page and in the log, so a reader sees the kind before reading the change. No change carries two marks.

The marks are applied to the sentence, not to the page as a whole. A single page can carry an error on one line, an update on another and a clarification on a third, and the reader should be able to tell them apart. An error mark names the wrong value and the right value. An update mark names the old condition and the new condition with both dates. A clarification mark names the ambiguous phrasing and the clearer phrasing. The mark is never left blank and never replaced by a vague note such as 'edited for accuracy'.

The marking rule exists so that a reader does not have to guess our intent. If we called every change a clarification, the log would be useless and the site would look evasive. If we called every change an error, we would overstate our faults and confuse market movement with carelessness. The three marks keep the record precise. A reader checking the history of a page can filter by mark: errors show where we were wrong, updates show where the world moved, clarifications show where we tightened wording without changing the fact.