From vbulletin's website:
The User Infraction system is designed to automate the management of misbehaving users.
Infractions carry a point total that is awarded to users. When a user reaches pre-determined point levels, the user is given infraction groups. Infraction groups are set up to restrict the permissions of users.
The system can also be configured to institute automatic bans based on points or number of infractions received.
We do not discuss infractions, disciplinary actions or bans with other users.
I will say that ECCIE does have an infraction/point system in place as described in the quote above. When a user reaches a predetermined (by the owners) # of points the software issues a ban.
Contrary to what some surprisingly think we do not ban users on a whim. Careful consideration is given and opinions are seeked out before disciplinary actions are taken, especially before a ban is issued.
There is a lot more to the story here than a thread hijack as some have suggested.