bGuru

bGuru Community Guidelines

Version 0.1.1-draftdraft

⚠️ DRAFT — not legally reviewed. Pending attorney sign-off per docs/legal/_research/decisions-log.md "Attorney review — deferred MVP+30d" (target 2026-07-01).

§0 Plain-language summary

bGuru is a community for sports prediction tipsters. To keep it useful and welcoming:

Be honest — submit picks you actually believe, not random clicks to inflate your leaderboard standing. Be respectful — no harassment, no doxxing, no hate speech, no threats. Be one person — one account, one identity. Multi-accounting loses your account permanently. Don't break the law — no illegal content (CSAM, terrorism, fraud), no impersonation, no scraping, no automation.

Report violations via long-press → Report on the offending content, or email legal@bguru.app.

When we act on a violation, we go through: warning → mute → suspension → permanent ban. CSAM and other priority illegal content skip the ladder and go straight to permanent ban + law-enforcement referral with no warning. You can appeal any other moderation decision via the in-app appeal flow (EU users have additional rights under the Digital Services Act).

§1 How to use this document

These Community Guidelines work alongside the Terms of Service (especially §6 Acceptable use) and the Privacy Policy.

ToS §6 incorporates these Guidelines by reference: a violation of these Guidelines is a breach of the ToS. We can update these Guidelines independently of the ToS (per §10 below); ToS material changes follow the ToS §15 process separately.

§2 What's not allowed

§2.1 Universal prohibitions (all jurisdictions)

The following are prohibited regardless of where you live:

  • Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) — zero tolerance. Immediate permanent ban + report to NCMEC CyberTipline + INHOPE national hotline + national CSAM authority (CEOP in UK, Lahav 433 in Israel, BKA in Germany, etc.). No appeal.
  • Terrorism content — content constituting or facilitating terrorist offences (incitement, glorification, recruitment, training, financing); support for designated terrorist organisations; symbols of proscribed terrorist groups.
  • Harassment + threats — targeted, repeated, hostile communications directed at a user or group; credible threats of violence.
  • Doxxing — sharing personal information about a user (real name, address, workplace, phone, identifying photos) without their consent, especially where the intent is to facilitate harm.
  • Hate speech — content inciting hatred, hostility, or violence against any person or group based on race, ethnicity, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, or other protected characteristic.
  • Sexual content — bGuru is not a venue for sexual content. No nudity, no sexually explicit material, no content sexualising any person under 18.
  • Non-consensual intimate imagery — sharing or threatening to share intimate images without the consent of the depicted person.
  • Violence + threats of violence — content glorifying real-world violence, mass-casualty events, or specific threats against identifiable persons.
  • Self-harm + suicide promotion — content encouraging, glorifying, or providing detailed instruction for self-harm or suicide (we moderate against Samaritans Media Guidelines; resources at §9).
  • Illegal goods + services — sale, advertisement, or facilitation of illegal drugs, weapons, stolen goods, or other illegal commerce.
  • Fraud + scams — phishing links, impersonation for financial gain, fake giveaways, Ponzi schemes, fake-bookmaker scams.
  • Impersonation — impersonating bGuru staff, another user, a public figure, or any third party with intent to mislead.
  • CSAM-adjacent solicitation + grooming — any conduct that a reasonable person would recognise as an adult attempting to gain the trust of a minor for harmful purposes triggers immediate ban + law-enforcement referral.
  • Spam — repetitive content, link farms, automated posting designed to inflate metrics or promote off-platform services.
  • Copyright + trademark infringement — see §4.5 below for the DMCA §512 process (US) and equivalent national mechanisms.

§2.2 Jurisdiction-specific overlays

United Kingdom (Online Safety Act 2023 + UK criminal law). bGuru is a user-to-user service under OSA 2023 s. 3(2) (below the Category 2B threshold of 7M UK MAU at MVP). OSA s. 10(8) "priority illegal content" includes content constituting Schedule 7 offences: terrorism (Terrorism Act 2000 ss. 11–13, 15–19, 56–58; Terrorism Act 2006 ss. 1–2); CSAM (Protection of Children Act 1978 ss. 1–2; Sexual Offences Act 2003 ss. 9–15; OSA 2023 ss. 188–192 intimate-image abuse); hate crime (Public Order Act 1986 Pt III and IIIA); drug supply (Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 ss. 4–5); fraud (Fraud Act 2006 ss. 1–4); harassment (Protection from Harassment Act 1997 ss. 1–4; Malicious Communications Act 1988 s. 1; Communications Act 2003 s. 127). For Schedule 7 priority offences, the enforcement ladder begins at permanent ban with parallel law-enforcement referral — no warning step.

European Union / EEA (DSA Art. 14 + 16 + Directive 2017/541 + Directive 2011/93 + Framework Decision 2008/913). Illegal content under DSA Art. 3(h) is content not in compliance with EU law or any member-state law. EU-baseline prohibited categories include: terrorism (Directive 2017/541 Arts. 2–14, including Art. 5 public provocation); CSAM (Directive 2011/93); incitement to violence/hatred (Framework Decision 2008/913); non-consensual intimate imagery; fraud and counterfeiting (Directive 2019/713). Germany-specific: Strafgesetzbuch §86a (use of symbols of unconstitutional organisations including swastika, SS emblems, NSDAP iconography — criminal offence up to 3 years' imprisonment; immediate removal without warning); §130 Volksverhetzung (incitement to hatred). Italy-specific (Garante posture): moderator data-access limited to the minimum required; non-consensual intimate imagery reportable to Polizia Postale e delle Comunicazioni.

United States (47 U.S.C. § 230 + 18 U.S.C. § 2258A + state defamation). Under Section 230(c)(1) of the Communications Decency Act, bGuru is not treated as the publisher of user content and is not civilly liable for what users post (subject to the FOSTA-SESTA sex-trafficking carve-out at 47 U.S.C. § 230(e)(5)). Section 230 does NOT immunise bGuru from federal criminal liability or IP claims. FOSTA-SESTA: no content soliciting, facilitating, or promoting sex trafficking under 18 U.S.C. § 1591 is permitted. CSAM: mandatory reporting to NCMEC CyberTipline under 18 U.S.C. § 2258A on actual knowledge; immunity for good-faith reporting under § 2258B(a); 90-day preservation per § 2258A(h). State defamation varies by state (NYT v. Sullivan 376 U.S. 254 actual-malice standard for public figures; anti-SLAPP statutes in CA / NY / TX shield protected speech; FL HB 991 narrowed actual-malice for anonymous speech, subject to ongoing First Amendment challenges per NetChoice v. Florida 34 F.4th 1196 and Moody v. NetChoice 603 U.S. 707).

Israel (Penal Law 5737-1977 + Defamation Law 5725-1965 + CA 1239/19 platform-liability framework). Penal Law §§144A–144D prohibit incitement to terrorism, racism, and hate-based violence. §173 prohibits grossly offensive content. §214/§214B prohibits obscene material including CSAM. The Denial of Holocaust (Prohibition) Law 5746-1986 prohibits Holocaust denial in a manner that glorifies or defends the perpetrators. Defamation Law 5725-1965 §§1–6 defines defamation; primary defences are truth (§14), honest opinion (§15), fair reporting (§§15–16). Platform-liability per CA 1239/19 Shaul v. Nidailat Y.Y. Ltd.: bGuru is not a primary publisher of user content, but may become a "secondary publisher" if it fails to act on specific credible notice within a reasonable time — bGuru's enforcement ladder is designed to satisfy this good-faith moderation standard.

Rest of world (AU / JP / KR / SG / NZ / ZA / UAE / MEA / MX / LATAM).

  • Australia — OSA 2021 + Basic Online Safety Expectations 2022. Class 1 material (CSAM, terrorism, mass-casualty instructions, non-consensual sexual activity per OSA 2021 s. 106) → 24-hour removal + eSafety Commissioner referral. Class 2 material → comply with formal removal notices under s. 111. Cyber-abuse and image-based abuse covered under OSA Pt 4.
  • Japan — Penal Code Art. 175 (obscene material) + Cyber Defamation + Transparency Act 2021. Art. 175 prohibits distribution of obscene objects (extended to digital transmission via 2011 amendment).
  • South Korea — Information and Communications Network Act Art. 44-7. Non-discretionary removal obligation for criminal/obscene/defamatory/violence-inciting/public-order-endangering content; cyber defamation criminal under Art. 70.
  • Singapore — POHA + Broadcasting Act + IMDA. Harassment under POHA Cap. 256A; Broadcasting Act + Internet Content Guidelines on public order, racial/religious harmony, criminal facilitation.
  • New Zealand — FVPCA 1993 (as amended 2022). Objectionable publications (CSAM, sexual violence, extreme violence) — making available is a criminal offence; OFLC is the relevant authority.
  • South Africa — Cybercrimes Act 2020 + FPB. s. 16 offences for harmful/menacing/objectionable data messages.
  • UAE + MENA cluster (SA / EG / MA / QA / KW). Content violating public morals/order under UAE Cybercrime Law 34/2021, Saudi Anti-Cybercrime Law of 2007, Egypt Cybercrime Law 175/2018 — content disparaging recognised religions or facilitating sexual exploitation prohibited.
  • Mexico + LATAM cluster (AR / CL / PE / CO). National criminal codes prohibit CSAM, terrorism, incitement, defamation; bGuru's baseline covers.

§3 bGuru-specific prohibitions

In addition to the §2 universal and jurisdiction-specific prohibitions, the following are prohibited on bGuru:

  • Multi-accounting — creating more than one Account for any reason. The only exception is when an account has been mistakenly created and bGuru has confirmed merger/deletion. Multi-accounting to evade enforcement results in immediate permanent ban of all accounts plus device flagging.
  • Leaderboard manipulation — coordinated picks, bot-driven picks, collusion within or across groups intended to inflate scores. Examples: voting rings where members agree to submit identical picks; sock-puppet accounts feeding picks to a primary account; off-platform coordination to game group scoring.
  • Scraping or mirroring bGuru data — bGuru's prediction data and leaderboard structure are bGuru's product. Automated extraction (including via headless browsers, scrapers, or unofficial API clients) is prohibited.
  • Automated submission of Picks — bots, scripts, headless apps. All Picks must be submitted via the official bGuru app interface by a human user.
  • Reverse-engineering the prediction engine — except where this is permitted by mandatory local law (e.g., interoperability under EU Software Directive 2009/24 Art. 6).
  • Sharing or selling Account access — your Account is for you, not for resale.
  • Impersonating bGuru moderation staff — the founder is the sole moderator at MVP. Anyone claiming to act on bGuru's behalf without being the founder is impersonating.
  • Falsifying group purpose to circumvent rate limits — creating groups with fake names/descriptions to evade group-creation rate limits.
  • Solicitation to off-platform betting / gambling / sportsbook services — zero tolerance. Posting links to or actively soliciting users to off-platform betting, gambling, sportsbook, or fantasy-sports services (in Pick comments, group descriptions, profile bio, comments) is a fast track to permanent ban. This protects bGuru's non-gambling classification (per CLAUDE.md vocabulary discipline + ToS §4.2 jurisdiction defeats) and is foundational to the Service's legal posture.
  • Posting affiliate links to bookmakers, sportsbooks, or fantasy operators — same zero-tolerance treatment.

§4 How to report a violation

§4.1 In-app reporting flow (primary channel)

Long-press on a user / Pick / comment / group → Report → choose a category → optional context (max 500 chars) → submit. You'll get an acknowledgement that the report has been received and an indication of the review timeline.

Categories include: harassment, hate speech, threats, spam, impersonation, CSAM / child safety, illegal content, multi-accounting, leaderboard manipulation, off-platform-gambling solicitation, copyright (DMCA), other. Use CSAM / child safety for any concern about a user under 18.

§4.2 European Union / EEA — DSA Art. 16 notice-and-action

EU/EEA users (and any third party including non-users) may submit a DSA Art. 16 notice for illegal content via:

  • In-app: same as §4.1, selecting "Illegal content (EU/EEA)"
  • Email: legal@bguru.app, subject "DSA Art. 16 — illegal content notice"

A valid notice (Art. 16(2)) includes: (1) substantiated explanation of why the content is illegal, citing EU or member-state law where possible; (2) precise URL of the content; (3) reporter name + email (anonymous accepted for CSAM-related notices or where reporter has personal-risk grounds); (4) good-faith belief statement.

bGuru's process:

  • Acknowledge receipt promptly (within 48 hours) per Art. 16(5).
  • Process diligently and non-discriminatorily.
  • Reasoned decision communicated to reporter within 14 days per Art. 16(3) (or longer if exceptional volume).
  • Affected user notified per Art. 16(4) with right to appeal per §7.1.
  • Trusted-flagger priority per Art. 16(6) (no trusted flaggers designated yet at MVP scale, but INHOPE/Europol/IWF/national hotline notices receive elevated internal priority).

§4.3 United Kingdom — Online Safety Act 2023 reporting

OSA s. 18 (illegal-content reporting) + s. 23 (child-safety reporting) require accessible reporting mechanisms — bGuru's in-app flow + legal@bguru.app channel satisfy both.

OSA s. 18(3) outcome notification: bGuru notifies the reporting user via in-app notification when the report is resolved, stating action taken (or no action) with plain-language reasoning.

CSAM escalation pathway: immediate content removal + permanent ban (no human viewing beyond the minimum required for the referral) → mandatory referral to CEOP (Child Exploitation and Online Protection) at ceop.police.uk/ceop-reporting → parallel NCMEC CyberTipline at cybertipline.org (international routing) → Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) at iwf.org.uk/report (hash-matching + URL-level action).

Under-18 users have access to the same in-app flow + can contact CEOP directly via ceop.police.uk/ceop-reporting per OSA s. 23 "accessible to under-18s" requirement.

§4.4 Israel — reporting + escalation

Standard channel: in-app flow + legal@bguru.app.

CSAM: escalated immediately to Israel Police Cybercrime Unit (Lahav 433 / לה"ב 433) + INHOPE network (Israel member: Israel Internet Association / ISOC-IL / איגוד האינטרנט הישראלי) + NCMEC CyberTipline in parallel. Permanent ban, no appeal.

Defamation: civil matter under Defamation Law 5725-1965. bGuru does not make unilateral defamation determinations. For contested cases, takedown requires a Tel Aviv District Court (or other competent Israeli court) order — bGuru complies within 24 hours of authenticated notice.

Terrorism / hate / racism: parallel reports to Israel Police + State Attorney's Office encouraged. bGuru cooperates with investigations by Israeli law enforcement.

Privacy violations under PPL Amendment 13: bGuru at legal@bguru.app first; escalation to the Privacy Protection Authority (PPA / רשות להגנת הפרטיות) at gov.il/en/departments/the_privacy_protection_authority.

§4.5 United States — DMCA §512 copyright + NCMEC CSAM

DMCA §512 designated agent: legal@bguru.app, subject "DMCA Notice". Notice must satisfy 17 U.S.C. § 512(c)(3): identify the copyrighted work, URL of allegedly infringing content, reporter contact info, good-faith belief statement, accuracy statement under penalty of perjury, signature. Counter-notification: legal@bguru.app, subject "DMCA Counter-Notice" per 17 U.S.C. § 512(g)(3). Content restored 10–14 business days after counter-notice unless notifying party files court action. Repeat-infringer policy maintained per § 512(i)(1)(A).

Note: USCO designated-agent registration (copyright.gov/dmca-directory, $6 one-time) deferred to MVP+1; until registered, the §512 safe harbour is technically unestablished. This is a known gap that the MVP+30d attorney engagement will address.

Misuse of DMCA: knowingly false notices expose the filer to damages + costs + attorneys' fees under § 512(f).

CSAM under 18 U.S.C. § 2258A: mandatory NCMEC CyberTipline report on actual knowledge. bGuru does not notify the reported user. 90-day preservation per § 2258A(h); good-faith immunity per § 2258B(a). No human viewing of suspected CSAM beyond the minimum required for the referral; content quarantined to a restricted-access store.

§4.6 Rest of world — escalation channels

Jurisdiction Primary external channel
Australia eSafety Commissioner: esafety.gov.au/complaints (post-bGuru-resolution attempt)
Japan Personal Information Protection Commission (PPC): ppc.go.jp/en; court-ordered sender disclosure under Transparency Act 2021
South Korea KISA: kisa.or.kr; KCSC: kocsc.or.kr
Singapore Singapore Police Force (police.gov.sg) + IMDA (imda.gov.sg); Protection from Harassment Court via State Courts
New Zealand OPC (privacy.org.nz) — raise with bGuru first per Privacy Act 2020 s. 75(2); OFLC (classificationoffice.govt.nz) for objectionable content
South Africa SAPS Cyber Crime Unit (saps.gov.za); Information Regulator (inforegulator.org.za)
UAE UAE Data Office / DIFC Commissioner / ADGM Registration Authority (jurisdiction-dependent)
Mexico INAI (inai.org.mx); 20-business-day bGuru response, then INAI escalation
Other LATAM AAIP (AR), SIC (CO), APDP (PE), Chile authority (TBD post-Law 21.719)
Other MENA SDAIA/NDMO (SA), MCIT (EG), CNDP (MA), MOTC (QA), CITRA (KW)

§5 How we moderate

§5.1 Principles

  • Human review at MVP. All moderation decisions are made by a human (currently the founder personally). No automated content moderation tool makes removal decisions independently — automation may flag content for human review (e.g., hash-matching for known CSAM) but final decisions are human-made, with the CSAM zero-tolerance category being the only exception (immediate automated removal + human escalation).
  • Proportionate response — the enforcement ladder in §6 is calibrated to the severity of the violation.
  • Transparency — users get a reasoned decision (Statement of Reasons for EU users under DSA Art. 17; equivalent for other users).
  • Right to appeal — see §7. CSAM-related decisions are excluded from internal appeal (they may be challenged via judicial remedy).
  • Speed — most reports resolved within 7 days. Safety-critical reports (CSAM, credible threats, terrorism content) actioned same-day. EU DSA Art. 16(3) + Art. 20(4) SLAs apply.

§5.2 EU users — DSA Art. 14 + 17 transparency

DSA Art. 14 requires content-moderation rules disclosure in T&Cs — §2 + §3 + §6 of these Guidelines + ToS §6 (which incorporates by reference) constitute the disclosure.

DSA Art. 17 Statement of Reasons applies to: content removal, content disabling, demotion/restriction, account suspension/termination. Required content per Art. 17(3): (1) nature of decision; (2) facts and circumstances relied on; (3) automated-tool use (at MVP: human only); (4) legal ground if illegal-content based; (5) Guidelines / ToS provision if T&C-based; (6) statement of user's right to internal complaint per §7.1 and judicial remedy.

Statement delivery: in-app notification + email within 48 hours of the moderation decision taking effect (Art. 17 "without undue delay" standard; 48h chosen to give operational headroom).

Statements may be withheld under Art. 17(9)(c) where bGuru is subject to a legal or regulatory obligation not to provide the information (e.g., active law-enforcement investigation) — bGuru notifies that a restriction has been applied with expected disclosure timeline.

Voluntary transparency reporting: bGuru is below the VLOP threshold (45M EU MAU) and not formally required to publish annual transparency reports under Art. 24. Voluntary quarterly summary of moderation statistics published in §12 Changelog beginning first full calendar quarter after launch.

§5.3 UK users — Children's Code + OSA s. 11–12

ICO Age Appropriate Design Code (under DPA 2018 s. 123) applies because the Service is likely to be accessed by under-18s — bGuru's 16+ gate doesn't exempt; it means the Code applies to 16–17 year-olds. bGuru implements the 15 standards: best interests of the child (Standard 1); DPIA for child users (Standard 2 — completed before MVP launch as a non-deferrable obligation); age-appropriate application (Standard 3); transparency in plain language (Standard 4); no detrimental use of data (Standard 5); age-appropriate policies (Standard 6); default to highest privacy (Standard 7 — under-18 leaderboard visibility = followers-only; profile = private); data minimisation (Standard 8); no commercial data sharing of child data (Standard 9); no precise geolocation (Standard 10 — city-level only); parental controls scoped to age-band (Standard 11 — lighter-touch given 16+ baseline); no profiling by default (Standard 12); no nudge techniques (Standard 13 — banner reject-as-prominent-as-accept); IoT N/A (Standard 14); age-appropriate online tools (Standard 15).

OSA ss. 11–12 (child safety duties): bGuru applies the substantive duties immediately regardless of category. Self-harm/suicide content moderated against Samaritans Media Guidelines; bGuru signposts Samaritans (116 123) and PAPYRUS HOPELineUK (0800 068 4141) in-app. Formal OSA s. 10/11 written risk-assessment deferred to UK MAU > 100k (good-practice trigger; formal Category 2B trigger at 7M).

§6 Enforcement ladder

Proportionate response, calibrated to severity:

  1. Warning — first violations of minor rules (single comment, minor incivility); in-app notification.
  2. Mute — restricted ability to comment / post / create groups; duration 24 hours, 7 days, or 30 days.
  3. Suspension — restricted access to most features; duration 1 day, 7 days, or 30 days.
  4. Permanent ban — Account closure + IP/device flagging to prevent evasion.

Escalation triggers:

  • Repeat violations within a rolling window
  • Severity of single violation
  • Multi-accounting to evade prior enforcement = automatic permanent ban
  • Threat to physical safety of any person = immediate ban + law-enforcement coordination

Bypass of ladder for Schedule 7 / priority illegal content: CSAM (zero tolerance, no appeal), terrorism content per Directive 2017/541 Arts. 2–14, grooming behaviour, credible threats of violence, intimate-image abuse — ladder skipped, immediate permanent ban + law-enforcement referral per §4.2–§4.5.

§7 How to appeal a decision

§7.1 EU users — DSA Art. 20 internal complaint-handling

EU/EEA users have the right to appeal any moderation decision (other than CSAM-related — see exclusion note below) via:

  • In-app: Settings → Help → "Appeal a moderation decision"
  • Email: legal@bguru.app, subject "DSA Appeal"

Both channels are free of charge, available to all users including those whose Account has been suspended or terminated, in line with Art. 20.

Appealable decisions: content removal, demotion/restriction, mute, suspension, termination, any access-restriction resulting from moderation.

Not appealable via Art. 20: CSAM-related account terminations (the removal obligation arises directly from EU + member-state criminal law — judicial remedy available, but no internal appeal). Sexual offences involving minors equally outside Art. 20 scope.

Process per Art. 20(4):

  • Acknowledge receipt within 48 hours.
  • Process diligently, non-discriminatorily, non-arbitrarily.
  • Reasoned decision within 14 days of receipt of complete complaint.
  • Original decision upheld → explain why. Reversed → reinstate content/account without unreasonable delay.

Out-of-court dispute settlement (Art. 21): certified bodies under each member state's Digital Services Coordinator. List of certified bodies at bguru.app/legal/dsa-dispute-bodies; for the EU-wide registry see also the European Commission DSA portal at digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/policies/digital-services-act-package.

Digital Services Coordinator: users may lodge complaints directly with the DSC of their member state under Art. 53.

Right to judicial remedy preserved per Brussels I bis Reg. (EU) 1215/2012 Arts. 17–19 and ToS §14.3.

§7.2 All users — universal appeal process

Outside of DSA Art. 20 (which is EU-specific), bGuru offers the same appeal process to all users as a matter of policy:

  • Submission: in-app Settings → Help → "Appeal a moderation decision" OR email legal@bguru.app subject "Appeal"
  • Time to submit: 30 days from decision date
  • Required info: account email, decision being appealed, reason, supporting context
  • bGuru response: reasoned decision within 14 days

If you're unsatisfied: UK → Ofcom complaint (separate from Art. 20-equivalent); rest of world → local consumer-protection or data-protection authority depending on the nature of the dispute. Right to seek judicial remedy preserved per ToS §14.

§8 Examples (borderline cases)

To help users + future moderators reason about edge cases:

Scenario Outcome Reasoning
Sarcastic comment disagreeing with another user's pick Warning (minor incivility) Healthy disagreement is fine; sustained pattern would escalate
User calls another user a slur in a group Immediate suspension + appeal available Hate speech category; ladder bypassed for severity
Script that submits picks based on bookmaker odds Suspension (automation prohibition) Appeal can include "I'll stop using the script"; reinstate on compliance
Second account created because user forgot password Warning + account-merge process Unintentional multi-accounting; not enforcement-evasion
Satirical group called "Pelé for WC 2026 MVP" No violation Political/sport satire in good faith is fine
User posts affiliate link to a sportsbook in a comment Permanent ban (zero tolerance — off-platform gambling solicitation) §3 specific prohibition; protects non-gambling classification
User contests a moderation decision they think was wrong Appeal via §7 Standard appeal flow; reasoned response within 14 days
Content reported as defamation (Israeli user about another Israeli user) bGuru reviews + may remove facially defamatory content; for contested cases, requires Tel Aviv District Court order per §4.4 Israeli defamation = civil matter; platform-liability framework per CA 1239/19
Content depicting violence to children Immediate permanent ban + NCMEC + national CSAM authority CSAM-adjacent; zero tolerance; no appeal
Adult user persistently messaging a 16-year-old user with personal questions, off-platform-contact requests Immediate suspension + report to relevant child-protection authority Grooming-pattern detection; bypasses ladder

§9 Children's safety

§9.1 Coordinator framing

bGuru's flat global minimum age is 16 (see Terms of Service, §3 Age eligibility, and Privacy Policy, §9 Children's data). bGuru does NOT knowingly collect data from any user under 16. If discovered:

  • Under 13: immediate hard-delete per COPPA standard (US federal floor) — no 30-day grace period, no parental-consent option, account permanently closed.
  • 13–15: same immediate-deletion treatment per bGuru's contractual gate, without the COPPA-specific COPPA immediate-deletion timeline.

16–17 users: receive the same data-minimisation + no-behavioural-targeting treatment globally as a max-protection posture.

§9.2 United States — COPPA hard-block + state minor laws

COPPA (15 U.S.C. §§ 6501–6506; 16 CFR Part 312) prohibits collecting personal information from under-13s without verifiable parental consent. bGuru's 16+ gate is designed so COPPA's VPC obligations are never triggered. On actual knowledge of an under-13 user (16 CFR § 312.3): immediate suspension + permanent deletion (no retention) + parental notification if contact info available + refund any inadvertent paid-tier charge. No VPC pathway exists — under-13 accounts are permanently closed.

State minor-data laws (under-18):

  • California KOSMA (Cal. Civ. Code § 1798.99.29 et seq., 2025) — bGuru's gated push-notification opt-in + no algorithmic feed = not currently a "social media platform" under KOSMA's addictive-design definition. Re-evaluate on feed activation.
  • NY SAFE for Kids Act (N.Y. Soc. Serv. Law § 496-a) — same analysis.
  • Maryland MODPA (Md. Code Com. Law § 14-4604(c)) — bGuru's no-advertising posture + no-profiling-of-under-18 satisfies heightened requirements.
  • Colorado CPA (C.R.S. § 6-1-1306(4)) + UOM honouring per § 6-1-1315.
  • Florida HB 3 (Fla. Stat. § 501.1736 et seq.) — bGuru not currently a "social media platform" under HB 3's algorithmic-feed definition. Re-evaluate on feed activation.

Federal KOSA / KOSPA (Pub. L. 118-186, signed Dec 2024) — duty of care for platforms accessible to minors + default protective settings for under-17s + prohibition on targeted advertising to under-17s without parental consent. bGuru's posture (no addictive feed + no targeted advertising + protective defaults) satisfies the statute as written; review against final FTC rules when published.

Grooming under 18 U.S.C. § 2422(b): zero tolerance + immediate ban + NCMEC + FBI IC3 referral.

§9.3 United Kingdom — Children's Code 15 standards + OSA s. 11–12

ICO Children's Code applies to 16–17 users (Code defines "child" as under-18 per DPA 2018 s. 123(1)). bGuru implements all 15 standards (see §5.3). DPIA addendum for child users completed before MVP launch (non-deferrable).

OSA ss. 11–12 priority harm categories for children: CSAM (zero tolerance + CEOP); grooming (immediate review + suspension on grooming-pattern indicators + CEOP ThinkUKnow signposting via in-app help at thinkuknow.co.uk); self-harm/suicide (24-hour priority moderation + Samaritans Media Guidelines + crisis-support signposting via Samaritans 116 123 and PAPYRUS HOPELineUK 0800 068 4141); violent threats involving children (24h target + police referral 999/101 by imminence).

Max-protection defaults for 16–17 UK users: leaderboard visibility = followers-only (not user-overridable to less protective by bGuru/groups); profile visibility = private; no targeted advertising at any version; no DMs at MVP; no default-on push notifications.

Crown Dependencies (Isle of Man, Jersey, Guernsey, Gibraltar) — bGuru applies the same Children's Code standards by policy.

Ofcom complaints: ofcom.org.uk/online-safety/reporting-concerns — separate from §7 internal appeal; no requirement to exhaust internal process before Ofcom complaint.

§9.4 European Union / EEA — DSA Art. 28

GDPR Art. 8 default consent age (16) satisfied by bGuru's 16+ gate across all EU/EEA member states.

DSA Art. 28(2) obligations applied at MVP:

  • No profiling-based advertising to minors — bGuru has zero advertising at MVP; when ads activate, hard "no behavioural advertising to under-18" constraint.
  • No algorithmic recommendation directed at minors — bGuru does not operate an Art. 27 recommender system at MVP. If recommendation systems are introduced later, under-18 users excluded from profiling-driven recommendations + default non-personalised view per Art. 28(1)(b).
  • Age-appropriate design defaults — same max-protection defaults as UK (private profile + followers-only leaderboard + DM-from-unknown confirmation).

CSAM: Directive 2011/93 Art. 25 + DSA Art. 28(3) + criminal law of every member state = immediate removal + NCMEC + INHOPE.

§9.5 Israel + Rest of world

Israel: bGuru's 16+ gate + max-protection treatment for 16–17 users exceeds Israeli legal requirements (no standalone Israeli children's online-design code at MVP). Grooming-pattern detection triggers Lahav 433 referral. No private DMs at MVP eliminates the primary grooming risk-vector.

Rest of world — calibrated 16–17 parental-consent gap (calibrated-risk acceptance per Privacy Policy §9.1):

  • South Africa (POPIA s. 35) — parental consent for under-18 generally required.
  • UAE (PDPL Art. 8) — same.
  • Mexico (LFPDPPP + civil code) — same.
  • LATAM cluster (AR/CL/PE/CO) — comparable parental-consent requirements under each national framework.
  • MENA cluster (SA/EG/MA/QA/KW) — comparable.

The 16+ gate eliminates the gap for under-16s. For 16–17 users in these jurisdictions, bGuru's no-behavioural-targeting + no-payments-required + data-minimisation posture provides substantive mitigation; the formal parental-consent infrastructure gap is documented as calibrated-risk acceptance (Privacy Policy §9.1) and will be closed at v1.1 alongside the parental-consent provider integration (k-ID / PRIVO / SuperAwesome KWS / Yoti shortlist).

Australia: Online Safety Amendment (Social Media Minimum Age) Act 2024 (16+ minimum from end-2026) — bGuru's 16+ gate satisfies natively.

South Korea: Youth Protection Act under-14 — bGuru's 16+ gate exceeds.

Brazil + India (deferred markets, v1.1): Digital ECA Law 15.211/2025 + DPDP Act 2023 — parental consent required for under-18; bGuru not available in BR/IN at MVP per Q10 + Q12.

§10 Changes to these Guidelines

Substantive changes to the moderation rules in §2, §3, §6, or the appeal mechanism in §7 are treated as material changes and follow the 30-day notice flow described in Terms of Service, §15 Changes to these terms, and Privacy Policy, §11 Changes to this Privacy Policy. Non-substantive changes (typos, clarifications, examples, link updates) may be published without 30-day notice; the last_updated date in the document header is the controlling indicator.

Specific triggers for amendment include: introduction of algorithmic content-recommendation feed (DSA Art. 28 + KOSMA + NY SAFE + FL HB 3 + OSA s. 12 — all simultaneously engaged); introduction of direct messaging (grooming-risk + Children's Code re-evaluation); introduction of paid Premium-Tipster tier (refund + ARL + Tipster Contributor Agreement); UK MAU crossing 100k watch threshold (internal OSA risk-assessment); crossing any state minor-data law's effective date.

EU/EEA users (DSA Art. 12): right to terminate Account during 30-day notice period without penalty.

§11 Contact us

For any concern about content, moderation, or these Guidelines:

Email: legal@bguru.app In-app: Settings → Help → Contact Us OR Settings → Help → Appeal a moderation decision

We respond within one month per GDPR Art. 12(3) and equivalent obligations, and faster on urgent matters. CSAM-related reports are actioned same-day.

Sole-proprietorship posture: bGuru is currently operated as a sole-proprietorship project of an Israeli resident (see Privacy Policy, §2 Who we are, and Terms of Service, §16.1 Controller identity). The founder is the sole moderator at MVP.

§12 Changelog

Version Effective date Status Changes Reviewed by
0.1.0-draft 2026-06-01 (target) superseded Initial draft via 5-specialist team workflow (legal-uk + legal-us + legal-eu + legal-il + legal-global). MVP-only scope per Q5 + Q7 (separate document, reference-incorporated from ToS §6). Industry-standard prohibited categories + bGuru-specific prohibitions (multi-accounting, leaderboard manipulation, scraping, automation, off-platform-gambling solicitation zero-tolerance — protects non-gambling classification) + proportionate enforcement ladder + DSA Art. 14/16/17/20/28 EU compliance + UK OSA illegal-content + child-safety duties + COPPA/state minor-laws + Israel platform-liability framework + DMCA §512 + NCMEC/INHOPE coordination. Specialist drafts merged 2026-05-31; flags integrated incl.: §2 universal CSAM treatment (moved out of any jurisdiction silo); §6 ladder-bypass for Schedule 7 priority offences; §9 ZA/UAE/MX/LATAM/MENA 16-17 parental-consent calibrated-risk acceptance (same magnitude as Art. 27 deferral); §4.5 DMCA §512 designated-agent USCO registration gap (flagged for MVP+1 attorney engagement). unreviewed (specialist whole-doc review round pending; superseded by v0.1.1-draft before sign-off)
0.1.1-draft 2026-06-01 (target) draft Site-review consistency pass following 5-specialist mini-site audit (2026-05-31). §1 / §7 / §9 / §10 / §11 cross-document markdown links rewritten from relative .mdx paths to canonical /legal/<slug> URLs (the rendered hrefs were 404 on the live mini-site). §7 DSA Art. 21 out-of-court dispute settlement link now points at the on-domain stub /legal/dsa-dispute-bodies (with the EC DSA portal as the EU-wide registry), so the disclosure is reachable from the live site rather than 404. No substantive change to any moderation rule. unreviewed (consistency fix; specialist redlines from v0.1.0-draft preserved; pending attorney sign-off)