3. Community Guidelines / Acceptable Use Policy

Effective date: April 03, 2025 Company: RAB CORP Pvt Ltd Service: SYNC

3.1 Purpose of these Community Guidelines

These Community Guidelines / Acceptable Use Policy (“Guidelines”) explain what is not allowed on SYNC. They apply to all Users, Accounts, private chats, group chats, channels, broadcasts, forwarding, reactions, media, files, profile information, group names, user handles, support communications, Reports, and any other use of the Services.

These Guidelines form part of the Terms of Use / User Agreement. If you violate these Guidelines, we may take action against your Content, Account, device access, group, channel, broadcast, or ability to use the Services.

3.2 General standard

You must not create, generate, modify, alter, host, display, upload, publish, transmit, store, update, share, forward, or otherwise disseminate any Content or conduct that is unlawful, harmful, abusive, unsafe, deceptive, infringing, exploitative, invasive of privacy, or inconsistent with these Guidelines.

The examples below are illustrative. They do not limit our right to act against other harmful or unlawful Content or conduct.

3.3 Content belonging to another person without rights

You must not share Content that belongs to another person unless you have the right, licence, permission, consent, or legal authority to do so.

Examples include:

forwarding private messages, photographs, documents, recordings, or screenshots without authority;

sharing another person’s confidential business file in a group;

uploading documents, identity records, school records, employment records, medical records, or financial records without permission;

using someone else’s profile photo, logo, brand material, personal image, or creative work without rights; and

publishing private group or channel materials outside their intended context.

3.4 Sexual content, nudity, non-consensual intimate imagery, and privacy-invasive content

You must not share Content that is obscene, pornographic, paedophilic, sexually explicit, vulgar, indecent, invasive of another person’s privacy, invasive of bodily privacy, or otherwise unlawful.

You must not share non-consensual intimate imagery, private sexual images, morphed nude images, hidden-camera images, upskirt or voyeuristic images, sexual blackmail material, revenge pornography, intimate screenshots, or Content exposing a person’s private areas without consent.

Examples include:

sending or forwarding a nude image of a person without consent;

using a morphed image to make someone appear nude or engaged in sexual conduct;

sharing private sexual chats, images, or videos in a group;

threatening to release intimate images unless money or favours are given; and

creating or sharing sexually explicit deepfake images or videos of any person.

Complaints involving private areas, full or partial nudity, sexual acts or conduct, impersonation in electronic form, or artificially morphed images may be handled under the urgent two-hour review process described in the Grievance Redressal Policy.

3.5 Child sexual abuse material and child harm

You must never create, generate, upload, share, forward, request, store, solicit, distribute, or threaten to distribute child sexual abuse material, child sexual exploitative material, grooming material, sexualised images of children, sexual comments directed at children, or any Content harmful to a child.

A child is any person below eighteen years of age. This prohibition applies even if the Content is claimed to be a joke, meme, cartoon, AI-generated, edited, fictional, self-generated by a minor, or shared to shock others.

Examples include:

sexual images or videos involving a child;

grooming or soliciting a child for sexual contact;

asking a child to send intimate images;

sharing school group Content to harass or sexualise a minor;

AI-generated sexual images of a child; and

Content encouraging self-harm, exploitation, trafficking, abuse, or endangerment of a child.

We may remove or disable access to such Content, suspend or terminate Accounts, preserve evidence, and report matters to appropriate authorities where required.

3.6 Gender-based harassment, abuse, and intimidation

You must not insult, harass, threaten, shame, abuse, or target a person on the basis of gender, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, pregnancy, bodily privacy, or related characteristics.

Examples include:

repeatedly sending abusive messages to a person after being asked to stop;

creating a group to shame or threaten a woman or gender-diverse person;

using sexual slurs, rape threats, or threats of image-based abuse;

sharing manipulated or private images to humiliate a person; and

organising coordinated harassment through forwarding, groups, or channels.

3.7 Race, ethnicity, caste, religion, and enmity with intent to incite violence

You must not share racially or ethnically objectionable Content, or Content that promotes enmity between different groups on grounds of religion or caste with intent to incite violence.

Examples include:

messages urging violence against a caste, religious, ethnic, racial, or community group;

doctored videos intended to inflame communal tensions;

channel posts calling for attacks on a group or place of worship;

dehumanising or violent slurs combined with calls for action; and

forwarding rumours designed to trigger mob violence.

3.8 Money laundering, gambling, and unlawful financial schemes

You must not use SYNC to promote, facilitate, organise, conceal, or encourage money laundering, unlawful gambling, illegal betting, fraud, scams, unauthorised investment schemes, phishing, mule accounts, illegal payment channels, or other financial crimes.

Examples include:

groups coordinating illegal betting or payment collection;

links to fraudulent investment or job scams;

messages asking Users to transfer money for illegal schemes;

fake customer support accounts requesting OTPs or bank details; and

channels promoting unlawful gambling or money laundering services.

3.9 Online gaming related misuse

SYNC is not an online gaming intermediary unless expressly notified. You must not use SYNC to host, advertise, promote, distribute, or facilitate an online game that causes user harm, an online game that is not verified as a permissible online game where such verification is legally required, or advertisements or surrogate advertisements for non-permissible online games.

Examples include:

promoting a prohibited real-money gaming app through a broadcast;

sharing referral links for illegal betting or wagering games;

running a group to collect deposits for a non-permissible game; and

using misleading messages to promote a gaming intermediary that is not legally permitted.

3.10 Intellectual property violations

You must not share Content that infringes another person’s patent, trademark, copyright, trade secret, database right, design right, or other proprietary right.

Examples include:

sharing pirated movies, music, software, books, or paid documents;

using another company’s trademark to impersonate its support team;

uploading copyrighted training materials without permission;

distributing cracked applications, licence keys, or bypass tools; and

copying another creator’s work into a channel without rights.

3.11 Misinformation, misleading origin, and deceptive Content

You must not deceive or mislead the recipient about the origin of a message. You must not knowingly and intentionally communicate misinformation, information that is patently false or untrue, or information that is misleading in nature where it may cause harm, harassment, injury, fraud, public disorder, or other legal risk.

To the extent recognised under Applicable Law, you must not share Content relating to the business of the Central Government or any public authority that is required by a lawful and valid statutory mechanism to be treated as fake, false, or misleading.

Examples include:

editing a forwarded message to make it look as if it came from a public official;

sending fake emergency warnings likely to cause panic;

sharing fabricated screenshots of government orders;

distributing false medical, public safety, or disaster information likely to cause harm;

using a fake source label to make a rumour appear authentic; and

using channels or broadcasts to intentionally spread false information that may affect public order.

3.12 Impersonation and identity misuse

You must not impersonate another person, organisation, public authority, court, law enforcement agency, bank, employer, platform representative, or public figure. You must not create fake profiles, handles, groups, channels, or broadcasts designed to deceive others.

Examples include:

using another person’s name and photograph to message their contacts;

creating a fake company HR or payroll channel;

pretending to be SYNC support to obtain OTPs or personal information;

using a morphed video or cloned voice to impersonate someone; and

creating a handle that falsely suggests official status.

3.13 National security, public order, incitement, and offences

You must not share Content that threatens the unity, integrity, defence, security, or sovereignty of India, friendly relations with foreign States, or public order. You must not cause incitement to the commission of any cognisable offence, prevent investigation of any offence, insult another nation in a manner prohibited by law, or facilitate terrorism, violent extremism, organised crime, trafficking, or unlawful violence.

Examples include:

sharing instructions to commit violent attacks;

coordinating riots, mob violence, or attacks on public property;

publishing confidential security information unlawfully;

encouraging terrorism or violent extremist recruitment;

intimidating witnesses or obstructing an investigation; and

sharing Content that unlawfully compromises national security.

3.14 Malware, cyber abuse, and technical attacks

You must not upload, transmit, store, share, or link to software viruses, malware, spyware, ransomware, credential stealers, phishing kits, exploit code, malicious files, or any computer code, file, or program designed to interrupt, destroy, damage, or limit the functionality of any Computer Resource.

Examples include:

sending infected files through chat;

sharing phishing links to steal OTPs or passwords;

distributing scripts to attack accounts or servers;

using bots to spam or scrape SYNC Users;

attempting to bypass rate limits, encryption, authentication, or security controls; and

using the Services to coordinate cyber attacks.

3.15 Deepfake, synthetic, morphed, and manipulated Content

You must not create, generate, modify, alter, publish, transmit, share, or disseminate SGI or deepfake Content that violates Applicable Law or these Guidelines.

Prohibited SGI includes Content that:

contains child sexual exploitative or abuse material;

contains non-consensual intimate imagery;

is obscene, pornographic, paedophilic, sexually explicit, vulgar, indecent, or invasive of privacy or bodily privacy;

creates, generates, modifies, or alters a false document or false electronic record;

relates to preparation, development, or procurement of explosive material, arms, or ammunition;

falsely depicts a person or real-world event by misrepresenting identity, voice, conduct, action, statement, or occurrence in a manner likely to deceive;

impersonates a person in electronic form, including through artificially morphed images;

harms public order, national security, children, privacy, or legal rights; or

violates any law for the time being in force.

Where lawful SGI is allowed on a feature, you must comply with labelling, declaration, metadata, and provenance requirements. You must not remove or hide SGI labels or technical identifiers.

3.16 Spam, unsolicited messages, and platform manipulation

You must not use SYNC for spam, bulk unsolicited messages, fake engagement, automated messaging, unauthorised scraping, SIM farms, fake Accounts, deceptive forwarding, bot networks, mass invitations, or manipulation of groups, channels, broadcasts, reactions, or reporting systems.

Examples include:

sending the same promotional message to large numbers of strangers;

creating multiple Accounts to avoid blocks or bans;

using scripts to harvest phone numbers, handles, or profile information;

mass-forwarding harmful rumours;

abusing Reports to silence lawful speech; and

using channels to run scams or phishing campaigns.

3.17 Privacy, doxxing, and confidential information

You must not share another person’s private, confidential, sensitive, or identifying information without lawful authority or consent.

Examples include:

sharing addresses, phone numbers, identity documents, financial data, medical information, school records, workplace records, passwords, private keys, or OTPs;

doxxing a person to invite harassment;

sharing private images, chats, or recordings without consent;

publishing confidential business files in a channel; and

using contact sync or discovery information to harass or target Users.

3.18 Illegal goods, dangerous activity, and unlawful conduct

You must not use SYNC to sell, purchase, distribute, advertise, or facilitate illegal goods or services, including prohibited drugs, illegal weapons, explosives, counterfeit goods, stolen goods, trafficking, unlawful sexual services, illegal financial services, or any other unlawful activity.

You must not share instructions that are intended to facilitate unlawful violence, self-harm, exploitation, illegal surveillance, cybercrime, or serious harm.

3.19 Harassment, bullying, threats, and abuse

You must not harass, bully, threaten, blackmail, extort, stalk, intimidate, or repeatedly contact another person against their wishes. You must not use groups, channels, broadcasts, forwarding, reactions, or fake Accounts to coordinate abuse.

Examples include:

repeated abusive messages after being blocked or asked to stop;

threats of violence or sexual violence;

threats to reveal private information;

coordinated pile-ons in groups or channels;

abusive comments directed at minors; and

targeted harassment of employees, public servants, journalists, creators, or private individuals.

3.20 Use of Reports, grievances, and appeals

Reporting tools must be used in good faith. You must not knowingly submit false Reports, forged evidence, abusive grievances, or malicious complaints. Misuse of reporting tools may result in restriction, suspension, or termination.

3.21 Consequences of violation

Depending on the nature and severity of the violation, we may take one or more of the following actions:

warn the User;

label, limit, or restrict Content;

limit forwarding, group invites, channel posting, broadcasts, or messaging rate;

remove or disable access to Content;

suspend, restrict, or terminate an Account;

disable a group, channel, broadcast, or feature;

preserve Content and associated records as evidence;

notify affected Users where appropriate;

report offences to appropriate authorities where required;

disclose information where lawfully required or permitted;

cooperate with law enforcement, courts, CERT-In, or other authorities; and

take legal action.

We may act immediately where required for child safety, cyber security, legal compliance, evidence preservation, public order, privacy, non-consensual intimate imagery, impersonation, or prevention of harm.

3.22 Appeals and reinstatement

If your Content or Account is acted upon, you may be able to request review or reinstatement through the grievance mechanism, unless the action was required by law, a court order, a government direction, safety risk, child protection need, or other circumstances where review is not available. Our Grievance Redressal Policy explains the complaint and appeal process.

3.23 Relationship with law

These Guidelines are not a complete list of all unlawful conduct. Any Content or conduct that violates Applicable Law is prohibited, even if not specifically listed above. Where Applicable Law requires mandatory reporting, preservation, removal, disablement, or disclosure, we may take such action.

03 April 2026