Safety Discussion: Bios - Offsite Contact

Hi everyone! 😊

Welcome to part two of a 3-part series of Safety Discussions on bios. The first part, about bio basics, can be found here

As mentioned in our earlier discussion on offsite contact, offsite contact - sharing of personal contact details, social media information, addresses etc. - is prohibited on 7 Cups. 

That is because once a connection between two users moves off 7 Cups to either other sites or in-person, we can no longer protect you. You are on your own, and there is a high risk of dangerous situations, like bullying, stalking, harassment etc., to name just a few.

You may notice in 1-1 chats and rooms that the names of some popular social media sites are censored. This is done to minimize chances of offsite contact.

In this discussion, we will be focusing on the offsite contact within profile bios. There are some things which fall under the offsite contact category, which cannot be included in our bios. 

1. Putting any identifying information in your bio

Example: full name, university name, company name, town/city name

2. The same applies to contact information too

Example: phone number, home address, email address, social media profile links, links to personal websites

3. Social media invite links

Example: invite links to group chat on a messaging app, links to video/audio chat 

4. Links advertising products/services or spam links (more about it in next discussion)

   
   

5. Links for monetary transactions. Read more here 

   
   

6. Finally, for listeners who have been using tools like YouCanBookMe, to allow members to book scheduled chats, kindly note that use of YouCanBookMe has been discontinued recently, as they now mandatorily require exchanging email addresses, which is against guidelines for confidentiality. More about it here

   
   

This time, instead of usual questions, I’ve created a short and easy quiz for you to test your knowledge on offsite contact and what to do if you spot links related to offsite in bios!

I encourage you to take the quiz here

Do share your score here in this thread and also tag a few of your 7 Cups friends to take the quiz!

Our Ambassador @Rebakah has also written about their experiences with offsite contact. You can read more about it here

If you have spotted a profile that needs to be flagged, feel free to message one of the Safety Patrol members with the username here

For any queries on Safety (flagging/outreaching/discussions), you’re welcome to message tommy or Rebekah!

Resources for further reading 👇:

• Permission Clarifications for Leaders: Offsite Tools - Permission Clarification for Leaders

• Teen Safety tips: Internet Safety Tips for Teens

• Staying safe on Internet as a Listener: Internet Safety - Your Role as a 7 Cups Listener

• Update about YouCanBookMe: Discontinuing YouCanBookMe

  
  

(all text in blue are clickable)