These standards apply to the Nicechat mobile app, listed as “Nicechat Mesh” on the App Store and Google Play, and are maintained by the Nicechat team. They explain how we prevent and respond to child sexual abuse and exploitation (CSAE), including child sexual abuse material (CSAM).
Nicechat has zero tolerance for child sexual abuse and exploitation.
1. What is prohibited
Using Nicechat for any of the following is strictly prohibited:
- creating, sharing, requesting or storing child sexual abuse material (CSAM), including drawn, edited or AI-generated material;
- grooming, or contacting a minor for sexual purposes;
- sexualising minors in messages, photos, voice messages, names or profiles;
- sextortion, or threatening to share intimate images of a minor;
- trafficking or any other sexual exploitation of children;
- any other content or behaviour that sexually exploits or endangers children.
These rules are part of our Terms of Use. Breaking them means you must stop using Nicechat, and we report it to the authorities as described below.
2. Nicechat is for adults
You must be at least 17 years old to use Nicechat, and we list the app for adults only on the App Store and Google Play. It is not designed for or marketed to children.
3. How Nicechat works, and what that means for safety
Nicechat has no accounts and no central servers. Messages travel directly between phones over Bluetooth and, when people are online, through public relays run by third parties.
- Private chats and groups are end-to-end encrypted. Only the people in the conversation can read them; we can’t.
- Nearby chat, channels without a password and place chats are public. Anyone in range or in that place can read them.
Because we don’t host content, we can’t remove it from other people’s phones. We rely on the safety tools below and on reports from users, and we act on every report we receive.
4. Safety tools in the app
- Report: long-press any message and choose Report, or open a person’s details and choose Report. You can also use Me → Report a problem. The report, with the recent messages you choose to include, goes to our team by email without needing an account.
- Block: long-press any message or open a person’s details and choose Block. Blocked people can’t message you and are hidden from Nearby.
- Blurred photos: photos from people who aren’t your friends stay blurred until you tap them.
- Public reports in place chats: a report made in a place chat is also published to the relays, so other users and relay operators can see it and act on it.
5. How we handle reports and CSAM
When we receive a child safety report, we treat it as our highest priority:
- We review the report and any material provided with it as quickly as possible.
- When we have actual knowledge of CSAM, we report it to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) through its CyberTipline and to other law enforcement or hotlines as required by the law that applies.
- For content in place chats or other public spaces, we publish a report on the relays and ask the relay operators to remove the content.
- We keep the information we have about the report for as long as the law requires and cooperate with valid requests from law enforcement.
We never ask anyone to send us CSAM. If you report it, describe what you saw and where; don’t forward or save the material yourself.
6. Compliance with child safety laws
We comply with the child safety laws that apply to us, including obligations to report CSAM to the authorities, and we update these standards when the law or our app changes.
7. Contact
- Report a child safety concern or reach our child safety contact: email [email protected] with “Child safety” in the subject line. These emails are handled first.
- If a child is in immediate danger, contact your local police or emergency number now.
- You can also report CSAM directly to NCMEC at report.cybertip.org or to a hotline in your country through INHOPE.