What may not be posted
The rules are in our acceptable use policy: every item of rule 3(1)(b) of the IT Rules, in plain words. They are part of our terms and apply to everything in our apps — messages, posts, comments, photos and files. Content that harms a child is covered in full by our child safety standards.
This page is about what happens after something is reported.
How to report
- In the app: use Report on the message or post. In development
- To our grievance officer: see how to complain. You do not need an account to complain.
- Urgent — intimate images or impersonation: if content shows someone’s private area, nudity or a sexual act, or impersonates them — including altered or AI-made images — use the urgent route. The person shown, or anyone acting for them, may use it (rule 3(2)(b)).
Send a link to the content, or say where it appears. Do not send us a copy of an intimate image, or of anything involving a child.
What happens to a report, and how fast
A person reviews every report against our rules and the law. In development The limits we follow are those of the IT Rules:
| What | Our limit |
|---|---|
| Intimate images, nudity, sexual content or impersonation | removed within 2 hours of the complaint |
| A request to remove content that breaks our rules | resolved within 36 hours |
| Any other complaint to the grievance officer | acknowledged within 24 hours, resolved within 7 days |
The full table, and the rules each limit comes from, are on our grievance page.
What we may do
Depending on how serious the breach is, we may:
- remove the content, or disable access to it;
- suspend the account, so it cannot be used for a time;
- close the account.
We may do this straight away when the rules are broken (rule 3(1)(c)(i)). Breaking the rules can also carry a penalty under the law — see our terms.
Being told, and appealing
If we remove something of yours, we tell you why — which rule it broke. We never tell you who reported it. In development
You can appeal once, and a different moderator decides. If the appeal succeeds, what was removed is put back. In development
If you are still not satisfied, or we have not resolved your complaint in time, write to our grievance officer, and then you may appeal to the Grievance Appellate Committee within 30 days (rule 3A).
Repeated or serious breaches
Someone who keeps breaking the rules, or breaks them in a very serious way once, may have the account closed rather than only the content removed. Content that sexualises or endangers a child always leads to the account being closed: see child safety.
What we keep after a removal
When we remove content, we keep it and the records about it, unchanged, for 180 days for investigation — or longer if a court or a lawfully authorised government agency requires it (rule 3(1)(g)). It is sealed: nobody using our apps can see it. See how long we keep data.
Courts, government and the police
- Orders to remove content. Content covered by an order of a court, or by a reasoned written intimation from an authorised officer of the government, is removed within 3 hours (rule 3(1)(d)). Our grievance officer receives these orders: see orders from government and courts.
- Requests for information. We give information or assistance to a lawfully authorised government agency only on a written order that states its purpose, and within 72 hours of receiving it (rule 3(1)(j)).
- Offences we must report. Where the law requires an offence to be reported — for example under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 — we report it to the appropriate authority (rule 3(1)(c)(iii)).
Changes to this policy
When this policy changes, its version and dates change at the top of this page, and we tell the people who use our apps in the app. We remind users of our rules every three months, as the IT Rules require — see changes and notices.
Content policy · Version 1.0 · effective · last reviewed · not yet reviewed by counsel. Questions: contact us. Back to the Trust centre.