Corrections and how we handle them

Fixed in place, with a dated note

An error is corrected in place and marked with a dated note that says what was changed and when, so a reader who saw the earlier version can see the difference. We do not silently overwrite a figure or delete a sentence and pretend it was never there. The correction sits on the page it belongs to, not in a separate notice that readers have to go looking for.

This matters most with numbers. A margin figure, a leverage cap or a funding detail can be wrong in a way that misleads someone before they fund an account, and a quiet edit would hide that from the person who acted on it. The dated note is the whole point of the policy, and we apply it to small fixes as well as large ones.

Correction Versus Update: Two Different Acts on the Same Page

A correction fixes something that was wrong when written; an update changes something that was right when written and has since become out of date. The distinction matters because the two make different claims about the page's reliability. A correction admits the page misinformed a reader on its stated date. An update admits only that time passed, which is normal for anything touching gold, leverage caps or a regulator's position. Mixing them lets a genuine mistake hide inside routine maintenance, so they are labelled separately and never merged into one changelog line.

In practice, a change to the regulator caveat about FxPro UK Limited is an update if the licensing position genuinely changed after publication and a correction if the caveat was misstated from the start. A change to the 1:200 leverage cap is handled the same way. A change to the statement that 1 lot equals 100 oz of gold would be a correction, because that convention did not quietly become different. Readers can use the label to judge whether the page was careless or simply older.

Updates still carry dates and still stay visible, so the page does not present a revised stance as though it were the original. An update does not overwrite the earlier text; the earlier text is retained with the date it applied. Where an update makes a previously published worked margin figure obsolete, that figure is marked as applying to the older conditions rather than deleted. The label is decided at the point of editing, by the person making the change, and is not reassigned later to tidy the record.

What Counts as an Error Worth Logging on a Gold Price Page

An error worth logging is a statement on the page that is wrong against the source we relied on at the time of writing, not a figure that has simply moved since. A gold price of 4275.0 quoted as a current reference is not an error when spot later trades elsewhere; it is an error if the page called that number current on a date when it was not. The test is whether a reader following the page on its stated date would have been misled about the instrument, the lot size, the pip value or the regulator.

Error logging covers factual claims about XAU/USD mechanics, the 100 oz contract size, the 0.01 pip convention, the entity serving Australian residents, and the regulator caveat about FxPro UK Limited and the FCA and CySEC. It also covers arithmetic, so a margin figure that does not follow from the stated leverage is loggable. It does not cover market outcomes, a trader's own results, or a view a reader disagrees with. Opinion and prediction are outside the log; only checkable statements enter it.

A near miss counts when it could mislead, so a formula that produces the right answer for a 0.10-lot gold position but the wrong one at another size is an error even if the worked example reads correctly. Typos that leave meaning intact are not logged. Broken links, stale platform names and mislabelled currency codes such as writing USD where A$ was meant are logged, because each changes what a reader does next with their money. Severity is judged by consequence, not by how small the edit looks.

A changed condition is a re-check, not an error

A condition that has merely changed since we checked it is a re-check, not an error, and we label it that way. If a broker alters its terms, its entity arrangements or its funding options after our dated check, the page was accurate when written and needs updating rather than correcting. Mixing the two would misrepresent both our accuracy and the broker's conduct.

The distinction is practical: an error means we misread the source, and a re-check means the source moved. We date the re-check so readers can see how fresh the page is, and we keep the original wording visible where it helps. On a topic like gold trading, where terms and costs shift, re-checks are a normal part of keeping the pages useful.

How to report an error

Report an error by writing to editor@darlingmirrorau.com with the page address, the sentence or figure you believe is wrong, and what you think the correct position is. If you can, include the broker document you checked and the date you read it, because that lets us compare like with like. Screenshots are welcome but not required.

We look at every report against the source we used. If the report is right, the page is corrected and dated. If the source has changed since we read it, we treat it as a re-check rather than an error, which is covered below. Either way, the outcome is recorded rather than left hanging.

Error, Update and Clarification: Three Labels and How Each Is Marked

Three labels are used and each is marked differently so a reader can tell them apart at a glance without reading the whole entry. An error is marked as a correction, states the wrong value and the right value, and names the source that settled it. An update is marked with the date the underlying condition changed and the date the page caught up. A clarification is marked as a clarification and changes no figure: it rewrites wording that was accurate but could reasonably be read two ways, such as whether a margin figure applies per lot or per position.

The marking is visible in the body text as well as in the log, so a reader arriving mid-page sees it without scrolling. Markers are plain text, not colour alone, because colour is lost in print, in dark mode and for readers with low vision. Each marker carries the date inline. A clarification never silently replaces a figure, and an error marker is never downgraded to a clarification later, even if on review the original was arguably defensible; the stricter label stands.

Choosing the label is the part that gets argued over, so the rule is set in advance: if a reader acting on the old text would have done something different from what the new text implies, it is an error, not a clarification. That test covers the leverage cap, the 100 oz lot size and the entity serving Australia. Anything that changes no reader action but only removes ambiguity is a clarification. Anything driven purely by the passage of time, with the old text correct when published, is an update.

Why the Correction Log Stays Public on a Trading Site

The log stays public because a reader deciding whether to fund an account through PayID or bank transfer is relying on the page being accurate about leverage, contract size and who regulates the entity, and a private log gives them no way to test that. Trading is high-risk and the decisions are financial, so the record of what the page got wrong belongs where the page is read, not in an internal file. A public log also disciplines the writing: claims that will be dated and displayed if wrong get checked harder before publication.

Publicness is not a marketing gesture, and it cuts against the page's interest, which is the point. It shows a reader how often gold mechanics, margin arithmetic or regulator wording have needed fixing, and whether fixes came fast or slow. For Australian readers dealing with an offshore entity that does not hold an ASIC licence, that track record is part of judging whether the page is worth reading at all. A site that never logs anything is not error-free; it is unaudited, and readers cannot tell the difference from the outside.

The log is kept at page level rather than buried in a site-wide notice, because a correction about the pip convention for XAU/USD is only useful next to the text that uses it. Entries are written in plain English with the numbers shown, so a reader without a background in derivatives can follow what changed. Nothing in the log is gated, requires an account, or is removed once it stops being flattering. The same standard applies to corrections that make the page look careful and to ones that make it look careless.

Who Decides a Correction Is Needed, and Within What Time

The person who maintains the page decides, and the working target is to settle any reported error before the next publication cycle rather than leaving it open indefinitely. Reports from readers are treated as leads, not verdicts: the claim is checked against the source before anything is changed or logged. If the source cannot be reached, the entry says so and stays open rather than being quietly closed. The decision to correct is never taken by whoever is fastest to reply, and a disputed claim is held until the source is checked.

Time to fix depends on the claim, not on a single deadline applied to everything. A wrong regulator statement about FxPro UK Limited or a wrong leverage cap is treated as urgent because a reader could fund an account on it. A wrong pip convention for XAU/USD is likewise urgent, since it feeds every calculation on the page. A clumsy sentence with no effect on any figure can wait for the next scheduled review. The category sets the order of work, and the log shows the dates so a reader can judge whether the order was honoured.

Deciding is separate from writing, so the check is done by someone other than the person who wrote the original sentence where that is possible. Where it is not possible, the entry records that the check was single-reviewer, which is honest rather than flattering. A correction is published even when the underlying cause is embarrassing, such as a margin figure that was copied from another instrument. The decision is recorded with its reason, so a later reader can see why a claim was judged wrong rather than being asked to take it on trust.

How a Correction Is Recorded and Dated on This Page

A correction is recorded as a dated line stating what the page said, what it now says, and which source settled it, kept in place rather than swapped in silently. The date attached is the date the correction was published, not the date the underlying figure was first published and not the date a reader noticed. Where the original statement carried a date, both dates appear, so a reader can see how long the wrong version stood. The corrected sentence carries a visible marker linking it to that line.

Dating follows a single convention across the page: calendar date, no relative wording such as recently or last week, because relative wording rots. For gold material, the date is anchored to the reference price of 4275.0 where that price is part of the statement being corrected, so the corrected text and the price it was checked against sit together. The log entry does not restate the whole section; it names the specific claim, which keeps the record short enough to actually be read and audited.

The record is written at the moment of the fix, not batched at month end, because a correction published late is a second error. If the fix touches a worked figure, the arithmetic is re-shown in the entry so a reader can verify it without opening the original version. Nothing in the entry is softened with hedging language; it states the old value, the new value and the reason. Entries are never reworded afterwards to look better, only appended to if a later check changes the picture again.