Age assurance & child safety

1. Why we check your age

Our Community Rules allow sexual content between consenting adults in rooms set aside for it. Under section 12 of the Online Safety Act 2023 and Ofcom's Protection of Children Codes of Practice, a service that does not prohibit pornographic content must use highly effective age assurance so that children cannot encounter it; the duty has applied since 25 July 2025.

We gate the whole service, because live webcam and private messages cannot be classified before they are seen. Guests and members complete the check before entering any room, even one with no adult theme, or using messages, images or webcam; nothing, not even a blurred preview, is visible before it. Signing in with Google does not replace it.

2. How the check works

AgeVerif (www.ageverif.com), engaged under a written contract, is an independent controller of the data it collects, under its own privacy notice. You choose a method with AgeVerif and return with a pass or a fail. Each method is one Ofcom lists as capable of being highly effective.

• Double anonymity: AgeVerif does not learn which site you are visiting, and ChatNow does not learn who you are.
• Yes or no only: no estimate, date of birth, document, photo or card number is ever transmitted to or stored by ChatNow.
• Session only: the result lives in a session token that expires when you leave, and the check is repeated each session. It is never used for advertising or profiling; see Privacy.
• Choice: the credit-card and wallet methods need no camera and no document. If no method works for you because of a disability, write to contact@chatnow.fr.

3. What is not accepted

Ofcom's guidance rules out self-declared ages or dates of birth, "I am over 18" boxes, adult-only warnings, contractual terms requiring users to be 18, and payment methods open to under-18s, such as debit cards. The age or date of birth on your profile unlocks nothing.

4. Wrong outcome and circumvention

Facial estimation is deliberately cautious, so some adults under about 30 are asked to use another method. If you believe a check wrongly treated you as under 18, press "Challenge this result" on the age-check screen or email safety@chatnow.fr. A member of staff reviews it within 14 days and offers another method free of charge; because nothing is retained, the review is a fresh check, not a re-examination. A pass gives access immediately. See Appeals.

Using another person's document, card or wallet, presenting a photo or video instead of a live face, sharing an age-checked session, helping an under-18 gain access, or posting instructions on defeating the check breaches our Terms and leads to a permanent ban by account, IP address and device.

5. Child sexual exploitation and abuse

We have zero tolerance for the sexual exploitation or abuse of anyone under 18: sexual images of children, including drawn or AI-generated material; grooming; sexual communication with a child; sexual extortion; or bringing a child into a room, conversation or webcam. There are no warnings and no second chances.

• Detection: every uploaded image is hash-matched against known child sexual abuse material through Project Arachnid (Canadian Centre for Child Protection); a match blocks it. Our text classifier screens messages for grooming. Moderators review every flag, and staff are on call 24/7 for child-safety reports.
• Action: the content is removed and blocked from re-upload, the account permanently banned by account, IP address and device (confirmed by staff, never automated-only), and the evidence preserved.
• Reporting: under section 66 of the Online Safety Act 2023 and the 2026 CSEA Reporting Regulations (in force since 7 April 2026) we report all detected CSEA content to the National Crime Agency and report images to the Internet Watch Foundation. Retention of these reports is set out in our Privacy Policy.
• Cooperation: we work with CEOP and UK police and, where a child appears to be at immediate risk, contact the police directly.

6. If you are under 18

ChatNow is not for you, so please leave. You are not in trouble, and help exists:

• If someone has asked you for sexual images, sent you sexual content or wants to meet you, report them to CEOP; a child protection adviser will contact you.
• If a nude image or video of you has been shared, or someone threatens to share one, Report Remove can get it taken down. Do not pay anyone who is threatening you.
• Tell us at safety@chatnow.fr. We close the account, erase your data and act against the adult involved. Childline is on 0800 1111 (see section 9).

7. Parents and carers

Broadband, mobile and device parental controls can block chat-now.uk; Internet Matters and the UK Safer Internet Centre explain how. If you believe a child has used ChatNow, or an adult has used it to contact a child, email safety@chatnow.fr with the username, room and time if known. This route is monitored around the clock: we close the account, ban any adult who lent credentials and report to the NCA where the law requires. If a child is at immediate risk, call 999 first.

8. Staying safe

• Protect your identity: do not share your surname, address, phone number or workplace, and never give anyone your password; ChatNow staff never ask for it.
• Assume anything can be recorded: the other person can record their screen. Only share what you could live with becoming public.
• Sextortion: do not pay. Stop contact, keep screenshots, report the account ("intimate images") and call the police on 101.
• Romance scams: never send money, gift cards, cryptocurrency or bank details to someone you met online.
• Meeting in person: video-call first, meet in a busy public place in daytime, and tell someone where you will be.
• Block, mute and report on every profile and message; the other user is not told. See how to report.

9. Where to get help

These UK services are free and confidential.