Safeguarding
What is TalkLife?
TalkLife is a global peer support community built to help people feel less alone. It’s a safe, welcoming space to share life’s ups and downs, connect with others who truly understand, and give and receive support in a caring environment. Our mission is to empower people everywhere to talk openly and find comfort through genuine human connection.
TalkLife is not a crisis service and cannot provide medical, professional, or emergency care. If you are worried about your mental or physical health, or someone else’s, please seek professional help or contact emergency services in your country.
For more details, see our Community Guidelines for what we allow and don’t allow on TalkLife.
Crisis Support & Boundaries
At TalkLife, we’re here to provide a supportive community, but we are not a crisis service. Safeguarding our community means being clear about these boundaries, while ensuring that anyone in urgent need can quickly find the right professional help.
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TalkLife offers support, but not crisis care. Posts should avoid graphic or detailed descriptions of self-harm or suicide.
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If someone appears to be at immediate risk, in-app prompts guide them to trusted crisis resources.
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The I Need Help section provides quick access to organisations worldwide that offer immediate, professional support.
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In urgent situations, our team takes extra steps to ensure the right help can be found as quickly as possible.
Flagging & Reporting Content
Keeping TalkLife safe is a shared responsibility. Every user can report posts, comments, messages, or profiles that may breach our guidelines.
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Select the content you believe is unsafe or inappropriate.
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Tap Flag and choose a category (e.g., abusive, unsafe, nudity, upsetting, promotional).
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The flagged content is reviewed by our professional Safety Team, typically within 30 seconds.
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If action is taken, you’ll receive an update. If no action is taken, you can appeal and provide context. Content you report will always be hidden from your feed.
This system ensures concerns are acted on quickly while keeping you informed.
Safeguarding Features
Safeguarding is at the very heart of TalkLife. We are proud to set a high standard in online safety, bringing together people, technology, and policies that go well beyond the basics. Every safeguard is designed to protect our community, give users control, and build a space where people can talk openly and feel supported without fear of harm.
From advanced monitoring and rapid response systems to clear guidelines and custom safety controls, our approach combines professional expertise, community care, and smart technology.
We take safeguarding extremely seriously and continue to strengthen the tools and measures that keep our community safe:
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24/7 Professional Monitoring: Our trust & safety team reviews feeds and reports in real time.
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Rapid Response: Content is typically reviewed within 30 seconds and removed when necessary. Where appropriate, accounts may also be suspended or banned.
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AI & Machine Learning: Automated systems detect potentially harmful content for human review.
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Volunteer Moderators: Carefully selected, trained, and security-checked community members support our professional team.
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Incident Reporting: Clear escalation processes ensure urgent issues are prioritised.
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User Guidelines: Every user agrees to our Community Guidelines and Terms & Conditions at registration.
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Frequent Reminders: Guidelines and safety tips appear during everyday use, with extra care for vulnerable users.
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Transparency: Users are updated on moderation outcomes, with the right to appeal.
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Custom Safety Controls: Options to hide posts, apply trigger warnings, filter sensitive content, or block users.
Messaging and Room Safeguards
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Users must engage within the community before unlocking access to rooms and messaging.
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The first private message can be previewed or ignored.
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The first image from another user is blurred until you approve it.
Educational Resources
We provide blogs, videos, and resources to support wellbeing and safe participation.
Trigger Warnings
You can set your own filters, and we encourage users to add warnings to their posts. Posts with graphic detail about suicide or self-harm are not permitted.
Protecting Young Users
Protecting young people online is one of our highest priorities. At TalkLife, we apply extra care and robust safeguards to ensure that teenagers using the platform are supported, shielded from harm, and able to engage safely. We take this responsibility extremely seriously and are proud to exceed industry standards in the protections we provide.
TalkLife users must be 16 or older. The platform is rated 17+ in the Apple App Store and has an IRAC (International Age Rating Coalition) certificate in Google Play.
For users aged 16–17, we apply additional safeguards:
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Age verification (in certain regions)
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Hidden or filtered content by default
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Restricted interactions (no direct messaging or room access)
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Monitoring for inappropriate contact or grooming
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Automatic removal and reporting of explicit content involving minors
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Prevention of off-platform contact (e.g., Discord, WhatsApp)
We also restrict harmful, though not always illegal, content such as:
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Romanticising or promoting self-harm, suicide, or eating disorders
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Calorie counts, “thinspo,” or eating disorder goals
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Graphic or distressing material that could affect vulnerable users
In line with the Online Safety Act, we review safeguarding measures at least annually to ensure protections remain appropriate.
Parents can also set device restrictions to prevent teenagers from downloading unsuitable apps.
Tackling Illegal Harms
We have zero tolerance for illegal activity. Our team proactively detects and removes harmful content in line with the UK Online Safety Act.
Prohibited Content Includes (but isn’t limited to):
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Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM)
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Terrorism, violent extremism, or incitement to violence
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Illegal drugs or weapons
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Human trafficking and modern slavery
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Harassment, blackmail, stalking, or threats
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Non-consensual sexual images (“revenge porn”)
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Fraud, scams, impersonation, or phishing
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Suicide facilitation or encouragement of self-harm
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Criminal hate speech
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Gang or organised criminal activity
Our Response:
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Detection tools and trained moderators remove illegal content quickly, often within minutes.
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Serious issues are escalated to UK or international authorities.
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Users are informed of moderation actions and can appeal.
Reporting Illegal Content
If you see something illegal, tap the flag icon and select Illegal Content. Reports are fast-tracked, urgently reviewed, and may be referred to law enforcement.
Compliance
Our approach aligns with global legislation including the UK Online Safety Act (OSA), the EU Digital Services Act (DSA), and emerging US laws. For more, see our Compliance Page.
Account Bans & Content Removal
We reserve the right to remove content or suspend accounts at our discretion if a user violates our Terms of Service or breaches the Community Guidelines.
In serious or repeated cases, accounts may be permanently banned to protect the community.
If you notice a user acting in violation of these rules, please report it immediately using the in-app reporting tools or contact us at support@talklife.com.
Data Security & Privacy
At TalkLife, protecting user privacy and confidentiality is paramount.
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Content that personally identifies a user (e.g., email addresses, phone numbers, location) is removed.
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We are committed to protecting student privacy and ask users to do the same.
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Members can share content publicly or with friends, but we encourage everyone to consider their own privacy needs and those of others.
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We cannot control what users choose to share publicly.
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Data is stored securely with appropriate safeguards.
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Passwords must be kept confidential. Accounts that violate our policies are swiftly removed.
Contact Us
If you have concerns, spot unsafe behaviour, or simply want to ask a question about safeguarding, please contact us: support@talklife.com