Legal

Community rules

Written to be read, not to be survived. Six rules, and what happens when one is broken.

The rules

Be who you say you are

One account, your own photos, your own age. Impersonating anyone — including a celebrity or a person you invented — ends the account.

Nobody under 18

Not on the app, and not in a photo in a way that sexualises them. This is the one rule with no appeal and no second chance, and we report what the law requires us to report.

No harassment

A pass is an answer. Continuing after someone stops replying, following them to other platforms, or contacting them after a block is harassment. So is abuse aimed at who someone is — race, religion, disability, gender, or who they are attracted to. Skein is queer-built, and hostility toward queer and trans people is not a difference of opinion here.

No unsolicited sexual content

Nudity is not allowed in profile photos at all. In a Thread, sexual content the other person did not ask for is a removable offence the first time.

No threats, and nothing that puts someone at risk

Threats of violence, encouraging self-harm, and publishing someone's private information all end an account immediately.

Do not use Skein to sell things

No promotion, no recruiting, no crypto, no links to paid content. If you run a venue and want to host a Gathering, that has its own front door — write to us.

What happens when you report someone

A report attaches the evidence at the moment you file it: up to the last 50 messages in the Thread and a snapshot of their profile. That matters, because it means someone deleting their account or editing their profile afterwards does not erase what you reported.

A person reads every report. We aim to act within 24 hours, and sooner for anything involving a threat or a minor. The outcome is one of four: the report is dismissed, the person is warned, the account is suspended, or the account is banned. Blocking someone is separate, immediate, and does not need us — they are not told.

Appeals

If your account was actioned and you think we got it wrong, write to support@skein.me from the address on the account. Someone other than the person who made the original decision reviews it. We will tell you what the decision was and, unless telling you would put the person who reported you at risk, why.

The exception is the rule about minors. There is no appeal for that one.