Child Safety Standards
Effective Date: April 1, 2026 | Last Updated: April 22, 2026
Zero-Tolerance Policy. HelpVote has a zero-tolerance policy against child sexual abuse and exploitation (CSAE). Any content, behavior, or account that violates this policy is immediately removed, reported to the proper authorities, and permanently banned from the Service.
HORSX Holdings LLC ("we," "us," or "our") operates the HelpVote mobile application and the website helpvote.app (together, the "Service"). This document describes our published standards for preventing, detecting, and reporting child sexual abuse material (CSAM) and other forms of child sexual abuse and exploitation (CSAE).
1. Age Requirements
- HelpVote is not intended for users under the age of 13. We do not knowingly allow users under 13 to create accounts or use the Service.
- Users in the European Economic Area (EEA) must be at least 16 years old (or the applicable digital-consent age in their country) to use HelpVote.
- Our Google Play content rating is 12+ and our Apple App Store rating is 12+.
- If we become aware that a user is under the minimum age, we will terminate the account and delete all associated data.
2. Prohibited Content and Behavior
The following are strictly prohibited on HelpVote and will result in immediate removal, permanent account termination, and where applicable, reporting to law enforcement:
- Child sexual abuse material (CSAM) in any form — photos, drawings, animations, or text descriptions
- Sexualization of minors, including grooming, solicitation, or sexually suggestive content involving anyone under 18
- Attempts to contact, solicit, or groom minors for sexual purposes
- Sharing of personally identifiable information (PII) of minors without consent
- Content that promotes, normalizes, or glorifies child sexual abuse or exploitation
- Links to, or the trade of, CSAM on external services
- Attempts to evade our detection systems (e.g., obfuscated language, encoded images)
3. Detection and Prevention Measures
3.1 Automated Image Moderation
All images uploaded to HelpVote are automatically scanned in real time using Google Cloud Vision API SafeSearch, which detects:
- Adult and sexually explicit content
- Violence, gore, and graphic content
- Indicators of minors in inappropriate contexts
- Known CSAM signatures
Images flagged as VERY_LIKELY or LIKELY to contain such content are automatically deleted from our servers before being shown to any other user. Images with possible indicators of CSAM are escalated for immediate manual review and reporting.
3.2 Automated Text Moderation
All user-generated text (post titles, captions, and comments) is automatically analyzed using:
- Multi-layer regex pattern matching for known child-exploitation keywords, grooming language, and predatory phrases
- Homoglyph normalization to detect obfuscated or disguised harmful text
- Google Perspective API for toxicity, identity-attack, and threat detection
Flagged text is blocked from being posted and the submitting user is placed under review.
3.3 Account Monitoring
- Rate limiting prevents bulk content uploads that could be used to overwhelm moderation systems
- Behavioral signals (repeated reports, suspicious patterns) trigger account review
- A three-strike system automatically suspends repeat policy violators
4. In-App Reporting
HelpVote provides an easy, accessible in-app reporting mechanism for users to flag content or behavior of concern. To report:
- Tap the three-dot menu ( ⋮ ) on any post, comment, or user profile
- Select "Report"
- Choose a reason — child safety reports are prioritized and routed to urgent review
- Optionally add details to help our moderation team respond
Reports involving potential child safety concerns are reviewed within 24 hours, and confirmed violations are acted on immediately. Reporters remain anonymous to the reported party.
5. Reporting to Authorities
HelpVote complies with all applicable child safety laws, including:
- United States: 18 U.S.C. § 2258A — we report all apparent CSAM to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) via the CyberTipline at www.missingkids.org/cybertipline
- European Union: We comply with the Digital Services Act (DSA) and cooperate with EU CSAM regulations and national authorities
- United Kingdom: We cooperate with the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) and UK Online Safety Act requirements
- Other jurisdictions: We comply with local child protection laws and regulations in every country where the Service is offered
We preserve evidence of reported violations as required by law and cooperate fully with valid law enforcement requests.
6. Response and Enforcement
When a child safety violation is confirmed, we take the following actions:
- Immediate removal of the violating content from all public-facing surfaces
- Permanent ban of the account, with no ability to create new accounts on the same device or email
- Evidence preservation of the violating content, metadata, and account history in accordance with legal requirements
- Report to authorities (NCMEC CyberTipline or equivalent) within the statutory timeframe
- Review of related accounts to detect coordinated abuse or second-order exposure
7. Team Training and Governance
- All staff with access to moderation tools receive training on child safety standards, trauma-informed review practices, and proper reporting procedures
- Our designated child safety point of contact stays current with evolving laws, reporting requirements, and industry best practices
- We conduct periodic reviews of our detection systems, policies, and reporting workflows to ensure they remain effective and current
- We participate in industry coalitions and share signals (where legally permitted) to help the broader ecosystem combat CSAE
8. Transparency
We publish this Child Safety Standards page as a public, permanent commitment. Any substantive updates will be reflected in the "Last Updated" date above. Our broader moderation practices are described in our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.
9. Contact — Child Safety Point of Contact
We have designated a point of contact who is ready and able to speak about our CSAM prevention practices and compliance with child safety laws. To report a child safety concern, or to contact us regarding our child safety practices:
- Email: [email protected]
- Subject line: "Child Safety — [brief description]"
- Response time: Urgent child safety reports are reviewed within 24 hours
- Company: HORSX Holdings LLC
- Address: 75 E 3rd St, Ste 7, Sheridan, WY 82801, United States
If you believe a child is in immediate danger, please contact your local emergency services first, then report to:
HelpVote