PawHelp Community Guidelines

PawHelp exists to help homeless animals. These guidelines form part of the Terms of Use and apply to reports, photos, messages and complaints.

1. Prohibited

• Animal cruelty, showing it, approving of it or calling for it.
• Selling animals, looking for animals to breed or sell, raising money in the name of help without actually helping.
• Unlawful content: incitement to violence, extremism, discrimination, sexual material, and any content involving minors that exploits or endangers them.
• Impersonating another person, organisation, vet or service.
• Evading an account restriction by creating new accounts or handing over an account.
• Interfering with the service: evading limits, automated requests, collecting other users' data.

2. False reports and abuse

• Create a report only if you have seen an animal that needs help.
• Do not post invented reports, "test" reports, jokes, duplicates of the same situation or reports for advertising.
• Keep the status up to date: if the animal has been helped or is no longer there, mark it.
• Do not mass-report legitimate content or use complaints to pressure other users.

3. Insults, threats, harassment

Insults, threats, intimidation, bullying, following a user across reports and sexual harassment are prohibited. Do not insist on meeting in person or moving to other messengers if the other person declines.

4. Spam and fraud

The following are prohibited:

• advertising, links to other services and fundraising not related to a specific report;
• repetitive messages;
• requests to send money "for help", or advance payment for fostering or treatment without verifiable details;
• phishing links and requests for codes, passwords or card details.

5. Other people's personal data

Do not post in reports, photos or messages:

• people's faces, names, phone numbers, addresses or document numbers;
• car or flat numbers;
• any details that identify a person without their consent.

Remember that the report point is visible to all users. Do not mark private houses or flats unless it is needed for the animal. Do not pass on details you learned in a chat to others without the other person's consent.

6. Unacceptable photos and messages

A photo must show the animal or a place that matters for helping it. The following are unacceptable:

• shock images of cruelty;
• images of people without their consent;
• screenshots of other people's conversations;
• documents;
• obscene or irrelevant images.

Messages must not contain anything prohibited by sections 1–5.

7. How to report

1. Open the report and choose "Report inappropriate content", or choose "Report this message" on a chat message.
2. Choose a reason: "Spam or fake report", "Offensive or abusive content", "Shares personal information", "Animal cruelty or illegal activity" or "Other". Optionally add a comment of up to 500 characters. Do not include unnecessary personal data in the comment.
3. Only moderators see the complaint. The content author will not learn who reported it.

If you do not have a PawHelp account, or your data was published in a report, write to support@pawhelp.app or privacy@pawhelp.app.

You can report only content of your own region. Report violations in the other region by email.

8. Moderation measures

Moderators review complaints manually within 20 calendar days starting from the day after the complaint is received and send the user who filed it a reasoned response. Depending on the violation they can:

• leave the content unchanged and close the complaint;
• hide a report together with its chat and photos;
• delete a single message;
• issue a warning;
• restrict an account temporarily, until a set date or until review or the violation is remedied;
• restrict an account permanently — for serious or repeated violations;
• pass information to the competent authorities — where the law requires.

A restricted account cannot publish reports, photos, messages or complaints, but can read its chats and delete the account. You can appeal a decision at support@pawhelp.app. We send a reasoned reply to an appeal within 20 calendar days starting from the day after it is received.

9. Communicating safely

• Communicate in the report chat. Do not share your address or phone number without need.
• Meet in busy places and in daylight. Tell someone you know about the meeting.
• Do not send money to strangers. Check details of clinics and shelters.
• Be careful with unfamiliar and sick animals; use protection.
• If life is in danger, contact the emergency services.

If a user bothers you, block them: long-press their chat message and choose "Block user", or choose "Block author" in their report's menu. You will then not see each other's messages or be notified of each other's actions; other chat participants talk as before, and reports stay on the map. You can unblock in your profile under "Blocked users". A block does not replace a complaint: to report a rule violation, report the message or report, or write to support@pawhelp.app.

References

• Google Play — User Generated Content: https://support.google.com/googleplay/android-developer/answer/9876937
• Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan No. 94-V "On Personal Data and Their Protection": https://adilet.zan.kz/rus/docs/Z1300000094