Community guidelines
Oh hey there and welcome!
Being part of our global community means that you have a commitment from us to make sure you feel welcomed, safe, and free to be you. To be a part of this group of authentically good humans, we need you to also be authentic and generally a good human so that everyone here can feel safe and happy to be here.
Our four key pillars of standard conduct on our app are:
Be Kind
Spread kindness in all of your interactions. Treat others how you expect to be treated.
Harassment
Don't be rude. Don't bully, intimidate, defame, harass or stalk other members. We have a zero-tolerance policy for abuse. Reports of harassment, intimidation and assault are taken very seriously.
If someone blocks you, do not attempt to circumvent the block feature or try to communicate with them. Just stop.
Violence and physical harm
You should never threaten to harm anyone through your words or physical actions. Inciting any form of physical or mental harm will not be tolerated. Inclusive of this, any content depicting violence, graphic or gory content is not allowed and will result in your account being moderated and may lead to your account being permanently banned.
Discriminatory behaviour and hate speech
You should be respectful in every interaction with other members. There is no place in our community for hate speech, racism, or bigotry towards any individual or group, and will result in your account being permanently banned.
Be kind on your own profile
Your profile should not contain content that is violent, abusive, rude, or defamatory. If you're looking for some tips on how to craft a great dating profile that reflects who you really are, you can find themhere.
Be kind in the messages you send
Your messages to other members should always be kind. If your message is reported by another member, the offense will be investigated. Serious offenses will result in your account being banned.
Be respectful
The foundation of all great relationships is respect. Lead with it.
Nudity and sexual content
Do not upload content that contains any nudity, sexually explicit or pornographic content to Plenty of Fish.
Copyright and trademark infringement
You should not post content that violates or infringes on anyone's rights, rights of publicity, privacy, copyright, trademark or other intellectual property.
Customer care
Our team is here to support you and help make your experience on POF as great as possible. You should never abuse or threaten Customer Care Representatives under any circumstances.
Profile images
There are ground rules that everyone needs to follow when it comes to the types of images we allow on our platform.
Images that have the following content will end up having your account be permanently banned:
- Nudity or sexually explicit imagery
- Shows of violence, violent gestures, or gruesome imagery
- Depictions of criminal activity or drug use
- Racist or hate imagery
Images that have the following aren't allowed and will end up having your account be moderated:
- Shirtless photos out of context (shirtless on a beach is okay, but not in your bathroom)
- Bikinis or swimwear out of context (outside is okay, but not inside)
- Lingerie or underwear
- Shirtless/underwear mirror selfies
We have a zero tolerance policy to have minors featured in photos. Please don't post photos with minors because we will remove them.
Attaching images to messages
We understand that part of getting to know someone else is through sharing pics that speak to you personally. With that in mind, you can attach any image you like, so long as it doesn't contain:
- Nudity or sexually explicit imagery
- Shows of violence, violent gestures, or gruesome imagery
- Depictions of criminal activity or drug use
- Racist or hate imagery
Don't send a message that includes unwelcome sexual propositions or sexually explicit content.If you are married, or part of a couple looking for someone to join you, POF isn't the place for you.
Prostitution, escorting, solicitation and trafficking
Promoting or advocating for commercial sexual services, human trafficking or non-consensual sexual acts on Plenty of Fish is not tolerated and will result in your account being permanently banned.
Private information
You should never solicit another member for their private information, which includes, but not limited to, information such as passwords, SSN / SIN, financial information, and home or work address. Any information regarding a member, public or private, shall not be used for business/commercial use or any other unlawful or nefarious purpose.
To protect yourself and other members, you should never publicly or privately share private information that belongs to you or someone else.
Illegal usage
This should go without saying, but don't use POF to do anything illegal. Any profile or message content depicting criminal activity will be taken very seriously and will cause your account to be permanently banned.
Be safe
Use your best judgment and keep your personal safety top of mind. Always.
Minors
You must be 18 years of age or older to use Plenty of Fish. If you are found to be underage, your account will be immediately removed and banned. In the event you encounter someone that has indicated they are under the age of 18, we ask that you please file a report to keep both them and our community safe.
In general
Never display sensitive personal information on your profile that could compromise the personal privacy and safety of yourself or someone else.
When messaging other members on Plenty of Fish, don't share more than you are comfortable with. When in doubt, keep your communication within the Plenty of Fish app. If you choose to share your personal information, stick to sharing basic contact information only.
Reporting bad actors and users who do not adhere to our terms of service is straightforward and important, and can be done on the POF app by clicking "Report User" on the drop down menu when viewing the profile they wish to report. On the web, members can find the "Report User" button at the very bottom of the profile they wish to report.
For more safety tips, including access to The Safer Dating Report, a resource that empowers members with information and tips to date more safely, please visit ourSafety Page.
Be real
When you're free to be yourself, the right people take notice. Let's take a stand for genuineness.
Scamming
Be human. Do not use Plenty of Fish to spam people, solicit money or business, or defraud people. Do not create accounts that impersonate another person or entity.
Multiple accounts
Do not create multiple accounts on Plenty of Fish, unless permission has been granted by our Customer Support Service staff. Inclusive of this, do not attempt to use an account that isn't yours.
Be real on your profile
All of the information in your profile should be truthful and about you only. Never attempt to mask characters, content, or game the system to get around our rules for content.
Profile images
All your profile images should be focused on you, with your face clearly visible. We may remove images if your face is not clear or overly obscured.
Some exceptions are:
- Sunglasses and hats are allowed as long as your entire face is visible in the image.
- Pets are acceptable as long as your face is clearly visible in the image.
Group shots:
- Images that contain multiple people are confusing to other members as they cannot tell who you are. For that reason, we may remove them.
Filters:
- We ask all members to represent themselves truthfully through the use of clear unedited images. For this reason, images that are heavily edited or use filters (e.g. Snapchat) will be removed.
Memes, cartoons, and text:
- Memes certainly have a time and a place, but it's not here. Images that contain overlaid text or watermarks are not allowed either and will be removed.
Be real in the messages you send
Be mindful in your first messages to someone. In real life you wouldn't introduce yourself with your phone number, email address, Instagram handle, Snapchat or kik, so don't do that here either.
POF isn't the place to promote external links in your messages or on your profile. Same goes for solicitation or commercial promotion of any kind.
Before you go
Account information
Plenty of Fish reserves the right to investigate and, if necessary, terminate your account should one or more of the Community Guidelines have been proven to be violated.
Plenty of Fish also reserves the right to terminate accounts, without refund, if these Community Guidelines were abused or our service was misused in any way.
Offline behavior (IRL)
Being kind, safe, respectful, and real applies to not only your online experience but your offline experience as well. With that said, our Community Guidelines apply, and are enforced, both on Plenty of Fish and in real life. If you've experienced bad behavior with another member in real life, we take that seriously and want to hear about it. Please contact us through ourHelp Center.