The House Rules for Every EmeraldChat Call

The spirit of it

You're talking to a real person who chose to be there. That's the whole rulebook, really. Everything below is a more detailed version of "treat them the way you'd want a stranger to treat you".

EmeraldChat is for adults. These guidelines apply to video, voice and text alike, and to anything you say or show, including gifts and messages. If you're new, how it works shows the whole flow, and the rules below are what keep it pleasant.

What's welcome

Plenty. These make calls better for everyone:

• Curiosity.Ask questions and listen to the answers.
• Humour.Jokes that don't target the other person are always welcome.
• Honesty about comfort."I'd rather not say" is a complete answer.
• A graceful exit.Ending a call is always fine. A quick "nice talking to you" is a bonus.

What isn't allowed

These lead to a warning, a restriction or removal, depending on how serious or repeated they are:

• Harassment, hate or threatsincluding insults about someone's appearance, background, gender, sexuality or beliefs.
• Explicit or sexual behaviouron camera or in text. This is not that sort of site.
• Pressure for personal details, money or coinsincluding scams, gift-card requests and pushing people to other apps.
• Anyone under 18using the service, or content involving minors in any form.
• Recording or sharing a callwithout the other person's clear permission.
• Spam, advertising or impersonationincluding pretending to be staff or someone else.

How enforcement works

Reports go to our moderators with the context of the call. Depending on what happened, we may warn, temporarily restrict, or permanently remove an account. Serious cases, such as anything involving minors, threats or illegal behaviour, can lead to removal straight away and may be passed to the authorities.

We can't share the outcome of an individual report with the person who made it, because the other account is private. You'll still help: repeated reports of the same behaviour are taken seriously. The practical steps are in help and safety.

Reporting fairly

Report when rules were broken. Don't report because someone was dull, shy, or not what you hoped for. Next exists for that. False or retaliatory reports slow down real ones, and repeated misuse can affect your own account.

If you're unsure whether something counts, report it. We'd rather see a borderline case than miss a bad one.

Nicknames, cameras and what you show

Use a nickname you're happy for strangers to hear. Don't impersonate staff, celebrities or real people. On camera, you're responsible for what the frame shows: keep other people's faces, children and anything private out of shot unless they've agreed to be there.

If you spot someone who appears to be under 18, end the call and report it. That one is not a judgement call: report first and explain afterwards.

If someone breaks the rules around you

You don't need to confront them. End the call with Next, report it, and carry on with your evening. If it was serious, add a short email with the date and time so we can find it quickly. Keeping a calm head is the best thing you can do, and it's also what our moderators find most useful.

Making calls better for everyone

Some things aren't rules, just good manners: say hello, look at the screen, don't chew into the microphone, and tell people if you need to leave. If you want to meet people properly, talk to strangers has more on how to start well, and make friends online covers what to do when it goes well.