Terms & Conditions

1. Agreement to Terms

By accessing or using the Besties app ("Service"), you agree to be bound by these Terms and Conditions ("Terms"). If you disagree with any part of these terms, you may not access the Service.

2. About Besties

Besties is a social networking platform designed exclusively for college communities. The Service helps you connect with fellow students through:

• Discovery — browsing student profiles and sending friend requests
• Direct messaging with students you have connected with
• Coffee Chats — an opt-in weekly board for meeting other students over coffee
• Missed Connections — posts about someone you crossed paths with on campus, shown without your name

Features may be added, changed, or removed over time. Some features described here may not be available to every user or at every time.

3. Eligibility

You must be at least 18 years old and a current student at a supported university to use this Service. You must have a valid school email address (.edu) to create an account. By creating an account, you represent and warrant that you meet these requirements and that all information you provide is accurate and truthful.

Strict 18+ Requirement:

This Service is for adults only. Besties is not directed to children, is not intended for anyone under 18, and no part of the Service may be used by a minor. Holding a school email address does not by itself make you eligible — you must also be 18 or older.

If we learn that an account belongs to someone under 18, we will terminate that account and delete its associated data. We will do this immediately and without prior notice, whether we discover it ourselves, learn it from a report, or are told by any other source. Creating an account, or attempting to create one, while under 18 is a violation of these Terms.

Misrepresenting your age to obtain access is a material breach of these Terms and grounds for immediate and permanent termination. If you are under 18, do not create an account and do not use this Service.

If you believe a person under 18 is using the Service or has provided us with personal information, contact us right away at support@allmybesties.com and we will act promptly to remove the account and its data. Reports concerning a suspected minor are treated as our highest priority.

4. Account Security

You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your account credentials and for all activities that occur under your account. You agree to immediately notify us of any unauthorized use. We are not liable for any loss arising from your failure to protect your account information.

You may only create one account. Creating multiple accounts or fake accounts is prohibited and may result in termination.

5. User Conduct

You agree to use the Service in a respectful and lawful manner. The following behaviors are strictly prohibited:

• Harassment, bullying, or threatening other users
• Hate speech, discrimination, or offensive content
• Sharing explicit, sexual, or inappropriate content
• Impersonating others or providing false information
• Soliciting money or unauthorized commercial activities
• Sharing personal information of others without consent
• Spamming or disrupting the Service
• Using the Service for any illegal purpose
• Creating multiple or fake accounts
• Stalking or harassing others through any feature
• Posting false or misleading information

6. Content

You retain ownership of content you post ("User Content"), including photos, posts, comments, and messages. By posting content, you grant Besties, Inc. a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free license to use, reproduce, modify, and display your User Content solely for operating and improving the Service.

We reserve the right to remove any User Content that violates these Terms, is reported by other users, or that we find objectionable.

7. Privacy Controls

We provide privacy controls to help you manage your visibility on the Service:

Private Mode:

You can enable Private Mode in Settings to hide your profile from the Discovery feed. When enabled, you will also be unable to browse the Discovery feed yourself.

Private Mode limits passive browsing only. It does not hide you from students you have already connected with, from your existing chats, or from the Coffee Chats board if you choose to join it — joining that board is a separate, explicit opt-in that makes your card visible to other students for that week.

Blocking:

You can block other users to prevent them from seeing your profile, sending you messages, or interacting with you on the Service.

8. Coffee Chats

Coffee Chats is an opt-in feature for meeting other students over coffee. When you join, a card showing your name, photo, and the topics you selected is placed on a board that other verified students can browse for that week. Joining is always your choice, and your card expires automatically.

When using Coffee Chats:

• Respect other students' privacy, time, and boundaries
• Coffee invitations are capped daily; do not attempt to circumvent these limits
• Do not use the board for solicitation, promotion, or commercial purposes
• Meeting anyone in person is voluntary and at your own risk — see the safety section below

We do not arrange, supervise, attend, or take responsibility for any meeting between users. Any meeting you arrange is solely between you and the other person.

9. Missed Connections

Missed Connections lets you post about someone you crossed paths with on campus but didn't get to talk to. Posts are shown without your name attached. Because these posts are about real people, we hold this feature to strict standards. By posting, you agree to the following rules.

When posting, you must not:

• Include real names, social media handles, phone numbers, addresses, or any contact information — yours or anyone else's
• Post content that insults, demeans, body-shames, or is otherwise unkind about a person
• Reduce a person to their race, ethnicity, body, or appearance, or post content that objectifies, rates, or ranks people (for example, "hot-or-not"-style posts)
• Post sexually explicit content, or sexual content about an identifiable person
• Harass, threaten, target, embarrass, or intimidate anyone, or post about someone in a way intended to identify them against their wishes
• Use the feature to stalk, pressure, or repeatedly pursue someone who has not responded

Describe the moment — where you were, what someone was doing or wearing — not their identity. Keep posts kind and respectful.

How responses work:

Anyone responding to your post does so anonymously. You decide who you allow to chat with you. Your identity is never automatically revealed to another user, and no one can see who you are simply because you posted or responded.

Enforcement:

We moderate Missed Connections posts and comments proactively, not just after the fact. As you write, our app warns you about content that appears to break these rules before you submit it, and content containing prohibited language is blocked from being submitted at all. Posts and comments are additionally screened by an automated content-moderation system after they are submitted, and content that violates these rules is removed.

Posts and comments that break these rules will be removed, and users who repeatedly or seriously violate them will be banned. You can report or block from any post at any time. We review reports and take action within 24 hours.

10. Content Moderation

To maintain a safe community, we moderate content proactively. We combine real-time, preventative warnings shown before content is submitted, automated content filtering, and human review to detect and remove objectionable content.

Automated Filtering:

We use a layered, preventative approach on Missed Connections posts and comments. As you compose one, our app checks your content on your device and blocks prohibited language from being submitted at all, and separately warns you before you submit anything that appears to break our guidelines, giving you a chance to revise it. After submission, posts and comments are screened by an automated content-moderation system, and content that violates our guidelines is removed. This automated screening is combined with human review of reported content.

Scope and Limits of Automated Screening:

It is important that you understand what this screening does and does not cover. Automated screening applies to Missed Connections posts and comments. Private communications — including direct messages, Coffee Chat conversations, group chats, and messages within Missed Connections conversations — are not proactively monitored or screened. Images and photographs are not screened by our automated systems.

No automated system is perfect. Our filters may miss content that violates these Terms, and may occasionally flag content that does not. Automated screening is not a substitute for reporting: reporting and blocking are the primary way objectionable content and behavior reach us, and we rely on you to use them. We do not pre-screen or guarantee review of all content, and we do not undertake any obligation to monitor the Service.

Zero Tolerance Policy:

We have zero tolerance for the following content, which will result in immediate removal and may lead to account suspension or termination:

• Racial slurs and hate speech
• Content sexualizing minors (CSAM)
• Credible threats of violence
• Self-harm instructions
• Severe harassment or targeted abuse
• Explicit sexual content
• Objectifying, rating, or ranking real people, or sexual content about an identifiable person
• Sharing another person's private or identifying information without consent

Response Time:

We review all user reports within 24 hours and take appropriate action, including content removal and account suspension where warranted.

11. Our Rights and Discretion

Content and Accounts:

We may remove, hide, or restrict any content, and may suspend, restrict, or terminate any account, at our sole discretion, with or without notice, and with or without reason. We are not required to explain a removal or termination decision, and enforcement of these Terms in one instance does not obligate us to enforce them in another.

No Obligation to Monitor:

We have no obligation to monitor the Service, user content, or communications between users. We may do so at our discretion, and the fact that we screen some content does not create any duty to screen all content or any guarantee that we will detect a given violation.

Responsibility for Content:

Content on the Service is created by its users. You are solely responsible for the content you post, send, and share, and for your interactions with other users. We do not endorse and are not responsible for user content or user conduct, whether on the Service or offline.

Changes to the Service:

We may add, change, limit, suspend, or discontinue any part of the Service — including any feature described in these Terms — at any time, for any reason, with or without notice. Features may be made available to some users and not others, or turned off entirely. We are not liable to you for any modification, suspension, or discontinuation of the Service or any feature.

12. Safety and In-Person Meetings

If you choose to meet other users in person, we strongly recommend:

• Meet in public places, especially for first meetings
• Tell a friend where you're going and who you're meeting
• Never share financial information or passwords
• Trust your instincts and leave if uncomfortable
• Report suspicious behavior to us and campus security

You acknowledge that meeting people carries inherent risks, and you assume all responsibility for your interactions both online and offline.

13. Push Notifications

If you enable push notifications, you may receive alerts about messages, friend requests, and app activity. You can control notification preferences in the app settings.

14. Disclaimer of Warranties

THE SERVICE IS PROVIDED "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND. WE DO NOT GUARANTEE THAT THE SERVICE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, SECURE, OR ERROR-FREE.

WE ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE CONDUCT OF OTHER USERS, THE ACCURACY OF PROFILE INFORMATION, OR ANY RESULTS FROM USING THE SERVICE.

15. Limitation of Liability

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, BESTIES, INC. SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES ARISING FROM YOUR USE OF THE SERVICE.

16. Reporting and Blocking

If you encounter inappropriate behavior or content, you can:

• Block users to prevent them from contacting you
• Report users or content that violates these Terms
• Contact support for serious concerns

Besties has zero tolerance for objectionable content or abusive users. We review all reports and take action within 24 hours, including removing offending content and suspending or permanently banning users who violate these Terms.

17. Account Termination

We may terminate or suspend your account immediately if you violate these Terms. You may also delete your account at any time through Settings → Delete Account.

When your account is terminated or deleted:

• Your profile is immediately hidden from all users
• Your name is changed to "Deleted User"
• Your photos are removed from view
• You are signed out and cannot log back in
• This action is permanent and cannot be undone

Missed Connections posts and comments are an exception. Because they were never shown with your name attached, they may remain visible on the Service after your account is deleted. They are not linked to your name or profile for other users. If you want a Missed Connections post removed before deleting your account, delete the post first, or contact us at support@allmybesties.com.

18. Intellectual Property

The Service and its original content, features, and functionality are owned by Besties, Inc. and are protected by copyright, trademark, and other intellectual property laws.

19. Changes to Terms

We reserve the right to modify these Terms at any time. We will notify users of material changes by one or more of the following:

• Updating the "Last Updated" date above
• Posting a notice within the app
• Emailing users (for material changes)

We encourage you to review these Terms periodically. Your continued use of the Service after changes constitutes acceptance of the new Terms.

20. Dispute Resolution

Any disputes arising from these Terms or the Service shall be resolved through binding arbitration in Los Angeles County, California. You waive your right to a jury trial and the right to participate in class actions.

21. Governing Law

These Terms shall be governed by the laws of the State of California. Any legal action must be brought in the courts located in Los Angeles County, California.

22. University Affiliation

Besties is an independent service by Besties, Inc. and is not officially affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by any university. University trademarks are the property of their respective institutions.

23. Severability

If any provision of these Terms is found to be unenforceable, that provision will be limited or eliminated to the minimum extent necessary, and the remaining provisions will remain in full force.

24. Contact Information

If you have questions about these Terms or need to report a violation, please contact us: