OnRoute has zero tolerance for child sexual abuse and exploitation (CSAE) of any kind. This page describes the standards and practices we follow to prevent, detect, and respond to any such content or activity on our platform.
Age requirement
- OnRoute is strictly limited to users aged 18 and older. Age is collected and enforced at account creation, and accounts found to misrepresent age are removed.
Prevention
- Creating a full OnRoute account requires entering a date of birth, and the app blocks account creation for anyone under 18.
- Real names and phone numbers are never shown to other users, reducing opportunities for direct off-platform contact before a mutual match is established.
- OffRoute (location-based matching) never reveals a user's exact location, distance, or coordinates to other users, and applies the same 18+ age gate and anonymity protections as the rest of the app.
Instant mode
- Instant is a limited, time-boxed feature that allows chat between nearby commuters without creating an account, reachable from the app's pre-login screen and our website. A session lasts 40 minutes, can be ended earlier by the user at any time, and can be restarted immediately and as often as they like. A user who has not turned Instant on cannot be seen by anyone else on Instant.
- Guests confirm their date of birth before turning Instant on, and are blocked from using Instant if it indicates they are under 18; logged-in users rely on the date of birth already checked when their account was created. Date of birth is never shown to anyone, including other Instant users.
- By default, every Instant user appears only as a nickname and a preset avatar — never a real name or photo. A signed-in user may choose to reveal their real name and photo for one session only, and this always resets to off the next time they turn Instant on. Guests never have a real name or photo in the system to reveal.
- Instant chat allows real text messages from the start. Anyone who has not verified a phone number — including every guest — is limited to 80 characters and 20 messages per chat, and cannot send digits, links, email addresses, or @handles, specifically to reduce the risk of a stranger moving the conversation off-platform before either side knows who they're talking to.
- Every message is automatically checked before delivery for sexual content, grooming behaviour, age-probing, attempts to move the conversation off-platform, and attempts to arrange to meet in person, using both an automated check and a third-party moderation service (OpenAI's moderation API). Messages that fail this check are never delivered.
- Users can block or report another user from inside any Instant chat. A block or report is tied to that person's account and device, never to the nickname they're using, so changing their nickname afterward cannot make them visible again to someone who has blocked them, and does not affect an open report against them. A user cannot change their nickname while in an active Instant chat.
- A user who receives reports from 3 different people, or who has 3 of their own messages blocked by the automated safety check, is automatically and permanently blocked from using Instant again.
- Reporting a user as appearing to be under 18, or for sexual content involving a minor, is handled differently from every other report reason: a single report is enough. We suspend the reported person from Instant immediately, end their current session and any chats they're in right away, and a member of our team reviews the case. If confirmed, we permanently delete their OnRoute account and its data (if they had one), keep them permanently blocked from Instant, and report the case to the appropriate authorities, preserving the evidence. If the review finds the report unfounded, we lift the suspension (unless another such report against the same person is still pending). We preserve that chat's messages separately as part of this review in every case, regardless of outcome, kept indefinitely and exempt from the 12-month limit that otherwise applies to report records.
- Instant conversations are temporary: a chat is deleted the moment either participant's session ends — whether by timing out after 40 minutes or by that person turning Instant off early — there is no multi-hour retention window, except as described above for a chat under review for a child-safety report. Records of reports and automated safety-check blocks that aren't part of such a review are kept separately, for up to 12 months, for moderation purposes.
Detection and reporting
- Users can block or report any other user or piece of user-generated content directly within the app, at any time.
- Reports are reviewed by our team, and accounts found to violate these standards are permanently removed.
- We cooperate fully with law enforcement and relevant national/regional authorities on any reports of CSAE or CSAM, including reporting to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) or equivalent authorities as required by applicable law.
Zero tolerance
Any account found to be involved in child sexual abuse material (CSAM) or child sexual abuse and exploitation (CSAE) will be immediately and permanently banned, and reported to the appropriate authorities.
Contact
To report a concern, or to reach our designated point of contact for child safety compliance, email us at onroute.support@gmail.com. We take all reports seriously and respond promptly.