Our Commitment
FOMO has zero tolerance for child sexual abuse and exploitation.
We do not allow content, communication, or conduct that sexualizes, exploits, or endangers minors. We act quickly when we receive a report, we cooperate with authorities, and we file reports with the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) when required by U.S. law.
This page sets out the standards FOMO maintains to prevent and respond to child sexual abuse and exploitation (CSAE) on our platform. It is published in compliance with Google Play's Child Safety Standards Policy, Apple App Store guidelines, and applicable U.S. and international law.
Age Policy
FOMO requires all users to be at least 18 years of age. When you sign up, you enter your date of birth and confirm that you are 18 or older, and the app does not let anyone younger create an account. If we learn or have reason to believe that an account belongs to a user under 18, we terminate the account and delete the associated personal information.
Our complete age policy is set out in our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.
Prohibited Conduct
The following are strictly prohibited on FOMO and will result in immediate, permanent account termination, content removal, and reporting to authorities where required by law:
- Child sexual abuse material (CSAM) of any form, including images, videos, drawings, computer-generated content, and text
- Sexualization of minors, including suggestive content, sexualized roleplay, or sexual commentary involving minors
- Grooming, solicitation, or any attempt to build a relationship with a minor for the purpose of exploitation
- Sextortion, including threats to share intimate content of any user
- Trafficking, smuggling, or commercial sexual exploitation of minors
- Sharing of personal information about a minor that could be used to identify, locate, or contact them
- Promoting, normalizing, or facilitating any of the above
Detection & Removal
FOMO uses a combination of automated sensitive-content checks, our own review, and user reports to identify violating content and conduct:
- User reports. Every photo, video, Flik, Thought, comment, message, and user profile in the app can be reported by users. Reports are queued for review and acted on promptly, and reports marked Child safety are reviewed first.
- Encrypted content. Direct messages, group chats, private-circle chats, and the posts, Fliks, Thoughts and comments shared to private circles can be end-to-end encrypted (the app shows when they are). Encrypted content can’t be scanned by fomo or our providers. Before an encrypted photo or video is posted, the poster’s phone checks it for sensitive content (Apple’s or fomo’s on-device model), and sensitive posts are blurred for viewers. Reports from people who can see the content are how we find abuse: reporting a message shares it, and up to five messages before it, including photos and voice memos, with our safety team, and reporting an encrypted post, Flik, comment or Thought shares what the reporter opened. We act on those reports and report to NCMEC as described below.
- Account-level enforcement. Accounts found in violation are immediately terminated.
- Content removal. Violating content is removed from active servers and deleted from backups in accordance with our retention obligations and any applicable preservation requests.
- Automated checks. Photos and videos in posts that aren’t end-to-end encrypted are checked on our servers by Google Cloud Vision SafeSearch (photos, and sampled frames of videos). Likely nudity is blurred for viewers and flagged for our team to review.
In-App Reporting
FOMO provides clear, accessible reporting tools throughout the app. Any user can report content or behavior they believe violates our policies, including child safety concerns, directly from within the app:
- Report a post, photo, video, Flik, Thought, comment, or message using the report option available on each piece of content (for a message: press and hold it, then tap Report). Message reports, and account reports on iPhone, have a Child safety reason, which is reviewed first. Every report sends our safety team a copy of what was reported
- Report a user account from that user's profile
- Block a user at any time to limit further interaction. In circles and group chats you both belong to, you may still see each other’s content, so you can also leave those circles or chats or report the user
Users may also email safety@fomocircles.com to report child safety concerns directly to our team. Reports may be submitted anonymously.
Reporting to NCMEC and Authorities
In compliance with U.S. federal law (18 U.S.C. § 2258A), when we learn of apparent child sexual abuse material, our team removes it, and FOMO reports apparent child sexual abuse material (CSAM) and related conduct to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) CyberTipline. Where the conduct or users are located outside the United States, we report to the relevant national hotline or authority where appropriate.
Anyone, including users, parents, guardians, or third parties, may also report directly to NCMEC at any time:
We preserve content, account data, and metadata related to reported incidents in accordance with NCMEC guidelines and applicable preservation requests.
Cooperation with Law Enforcement
FOMO cooperates with valid legal process from law enforcement investigating child safety crimes, including subpoenas, court orders, search warrants, and emergency disclosure requests. Law enforcement agencies may direct lawful requests to legal@fomocircles.com.
In emergencies involving a credible threat of imminent harm to a child, we may voluntarily disclose information to law enforcement to the extent permitted by 18 U.S.C. § 2702(b)(8) and equivalent laws in other jurisdictions.
Training & Review
The personnel responsible for reviewing reports and handling child safety incidents at FOMO are trained on:
- Identifying CSAM and CSAE indicators
- Preserving evidence in accordance with NCMEC guidelines
- Avoiding the creation, transmission, or duplication of CSAM during review
- Submitting reports to NCMEC and applicable authorities
- Cooperating with law enforcement and responding to legal process
These standards are reviewed at least annually and updated as our platform, applicable law, or industry best practice evolves.