Child safety standards

What is prohibited

Message in a Bottle prohibits all content and conduct that amounts to child sexual abuse and exploitation. This includes, but is not limited to, the following.

• Any content that sexualises a child or depicts a child in a sexual manner — photographs, drawings, text and links alike.
• Approaching a child for sexual purposes — grooming, enticement, sexual conversation and requests to meet.
• Producing, holding, sharing or trading child sexual abuse material, and seeking or brokering it.
• Sexualising a minor in any expression, and sharing a child’s photographs or personal information for that purpose.

An account is permanently suspended without warning once such conduct is confirmed.

Age requirement

Anyone under 14 cannot sign up for Message in a Bottle. The date of birth is checked at sign-up, and registration is refused when the person is under 14.

If an account holder is later confirmed to be under 14, the account is suspended and its data deleted.

How to report

You can report the following inside the app. The report button on each screen opens a list of reasons, and that list includes ‘Child sexual abuse or exploitation’.

• Letters and replies
• Signposts, signpost posts and comments
• Member profiles and profile photos

You do not need the app to report. Write to the contact below and it is handled through the same process.

What happens after a report

1. Every report we receive is examined by a reviewer.
2. Child safety reports are handled ahead of other reports.
3. When a violation is confirmed, the content is blocked and removed and the account is penalised.
4. The outcome is not communicated to the reporter individually.

Reporting to the authorities

When child sexual abuse or exploitation is confirmed, it is reported to the authorities of the relevant region or country as required by law. The necessary records are retained and provided within the scope the law sets.

• Republic of Korea — Korea Communications Standards Commission, and the National Police Agency cybercrime report service
• The United States and other regions — NCMEC (National Center for Missing & Exploited Children)

Child safety contact

Send questions and reports about child safety to beetrace082@gmail.com. This address is the channel for child safety matters.