Child Safety Standards

1. Our Commitment

VotesZ B.V. has a zero-tolerance policy for child sexual abuse and exploitation ("CSAE"), including child sexual abuse material ("CSAM"). We prohibit any content, conduct, or use of our Service that endangers minors. This policy applies globally, across every country where VotesZ is available, and covers all user-generated content, direct messages, and brand posts. We comply with applicable child protection laws including the EU Digital Services Act (DSA), the U.S. PROTECT Act, and local regulations in every market we serve.

2. Age Requirements

VotesZ is intended for users aged 13 and older. By creating an account, users affirm they meet this minimum age. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. In jurisdictions where the minimum age for consenting to data processing is higher (for example 16 in some EU member states under GDPR), users must meet that local threshold.

If we become aware that a user is under the required minimum age, we will suspend and terminate the account and delete the associated personal data within 30 days, subject to legal retention obligations.

Parents or guardians who believe their child has created an account against these terms can contact us at [email protected] for immediate removal.

3. Prohibited Content and Conduct

The following are strictly prohibited on VotesZ and will result in immediate removal, account termination, and reporting to law enforcement where required:

• Child sexual abuse material (CSAM) in any form — images, videos, illustrations, or AI-generated content depicting minors in sexual contexts.
• Grooming behavior, including any attempt by an adult to solicit sexual contact, sexually explicit content, or meetings with a minor.
• Sexualization of minors, including suggestive commentary, poses, or framing of content involving people under 18.
• Sextortion or the coercion of minors into producing or sharing intimate content.
• Sharing personal information about minors (name, school, location, contact details) with the intent to harm or exploit them.
• Promoting, glorifying, or linking to external sites hosting CSAM.
• Using VotesZ features (direct messages, posts, comments, profile bios) to initiate inappropriate contact with minors.

These rules apply equally to AI-generated content. Any attempt to generate, share, or request AI content depicting minors sexually is strictly prohibited and will be treated identically to real CSAM.

4. Prevention Measures

We take proactive steps to prevent CSAE from appearing or spreading on VotesZ:

• Age-gated account creation with minimum age enforcement at signup.
• Content moderation combining automated detection systems and human review.
• AI prompt filtering that blocks generation of content depicting minors in sexual or suggestive contexts.
• Restrictions on direct messages: we monitor DM patterns for grooming indicators and apply rate limits on messages between users.
• Community Guidelines enforcement: all users agree to our guidelines at signup, and violations result in account action.
• Education: our Community Guidelines and onboarding flow make clear what is prohibited and how to report concerns.
• Brand partnership review: business accounts undergo onboarding checks before they can post and receive shop money transactions.

5. Detection and Reporting

VotesZ detects CSAE through multiple channels:

User Reports: every post, comment, user profile, and direct message can be reported through the in-app long-press menu. Reports are triaged within 24 hours and prioritized for child safety concerns.

Automated Detection: we use hash-matching and perceptual hashing techniques against known CSAM databases where available, and AI-based classifiers to flag suspected content for human review.

Proactive Moderation: our moderation team periodically reviews flagged behavior patterns, high-risk accounts, and trending content for compliance.

Third-Party Intelligence: we cooperate with industry initiatives including the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF), INHOPE, and the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) where applicable.

Anyone can also report concerns directly by emailing [email protected]. We aim to acknowledge reports within 24 hours.

6. Response and Enforcement

When we identify CSAE or suspected CSAE on VotesZ, we take immediate action:

• Immediate removal of the content from all public and private surfaces of the Service.
• Termination of the account or accounts responsible, including device-level bans to prevent re-registration.
• Preservation of evidence including content, metadata, IP addresses, and account history in accordance with legal requirements.
• Reporting to the U.S. National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) CyberTipline for any content depicting or exploiting children, as required under U.S. law.
• Cooperation with law enforcement in the relevant jurisdiction, including the Dutch police and Europol for EU cases, and responding to legitimate legal process.
• Notification to third-party hosting providers (for example, our storage provider Cloudflare R2) when we identify and remove CSAM, so they can take additional action.

We log every CSAE-related enforcement action in an internal audit trail maintained for at least 7 years.

7. How Users Can Report CSAE

If you see content or behavior on VotesZ that you believe involves child sexual abuse or exploitation:

In the App:

• Long-press on any post, comment, photo, video, or user profile, then tap Report.
• Select "Sexual exploitation of minors" or "Endangering a minor" as the reason.
• Reports are delivered directly to our child safety review team and triaged within 24 hours.

By Email:

• Send details to [email protected]. Include links or screenshots where possible, but never forward the harmful content itself; a URL or timestamp is enough for us to locate it.

Anonymous Reporting:

• You can report anonymously through the in-app flow without revealing your identity to the reported account.

Emergency Situations:

• If a child is in immediate danger, contact local emergency services first, then notify us so we can preserve evidence and cooperate with authorities.

Reports from external hotlines (NCMEC, IWF, INHOPE) are treated with the same priority as in-app reports.

8. Transparency

We publish aggregated, anonymized data about our child safety enforcement in our annual Transparency Report, including the number of CSAE reports received, the number of accounts actioned, and the number of reports forwarded to NCMEC or other authorities. This report is published on votesz.com and is available on request by writing to [email protected].

We do not share identifying information about users, reporters, or victims in our public reports.

9. Designated Contact for Law Enforcement and Safety Authorities

Law enforcement, child safety authorities, and regulators can reach VotesZ's designated child safety contact at [email protected].

This contact is monitored daily and responds to legitimate safety inquiries within 72 hours. For formal legal process, please also follow our law enforcement guidelines available by request.

For general reports from the public, the same address accepts reports globally; the message will be routed to the appropriate internal team.

10. External Resources

If you need immediate help or want to report to an external authority:

• National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (U.S.): report.cybertip.org or 1-800-843-5678
• Internet Watch Foundation (U.K.): iwf.org.uk
• INHOPE (International Hotline Network): inhope.org/EN/articles/country-hotlines
• Dutch Offlimits (formerly Meldpunt Kinderporno): offlimits.nl or 088-5544400
• European Commission Child Safety Resources: digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu

If you or someone you know is in immediate danger, always contact local emergency services first.

11. Updates to This Policy

We review this Child Safety Policy at least annually and update it when our practices, applicable laws, or industry standards change. When we make material changes, we will update the "Last updated" date at the top of this page and, where appropriate, notify users through the app or by email.

This page is the authoritative, non-editable statement of VotesZ's child safety standards. A printable version is available on request.

12. Contact

For questions, concerns, or reports related to child safety:

VotesZ B.V. — Child Safety Team

[email protected]

For general legal inquiries: [email protected]

Registered office: Amsterdam, the Netherlands

KvK: 71374086

BTW: NL858690949B01