What is the primary technical difference between a 'shadowban' and a standard ban on Reddit, and how does it impact the user's activity?

The primary technical difference lies in the visibility of the ban to the affected user. A standard ban explicitly notifies the user that they are banned from a particular subreddit, preventing them from posting or commenting and typically displaying a message informing them of the ban and its duration. In contrast, a shadowban does not notify the user. Instead, the user can continue to post and comment as usual, but their contributions are automatically hidden from other users, making them effectively invisible to the community. This means the shadowbanned user is unaware that their actions are being suppressed, and their posts and comments will not appear in subreddit feeds or when other users browse their profile. The impact on the user's activity is significant. With a standard ban, the user is immediately aware that they have been banned and can potentially appeal the decision. With a shadowban, the user continues to invest time and effort into the community, unknowingly contributing to a void. This makes shadowbanning useful for dealing with spammers and bots, as it prevents them from realizing their accounts have been compromised and discourages them from creating new accounts to circumvent the ban. The shadowban ensures they do not realize that they have been caught.