Safety Center
Draft — last updated 2026-09-04, pending legal review before public launch.
One place for everything about staying safe here: what we do, what you can do, and where to get help that's bigger than an app.
If you need help right now
If you or someone else is in immediate danger, call 911.
For a mental health or suicide crisis, the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline is free, confidential, and open 24/7 — call or text 988.
Age and identity
A plain-language look at what we check today, and what's still coming.
Age verification
Everyone attests their date of birth at signup, and any signup implying under-18 is rejected on our servers — not just checked in your browser. CommonGround does not conduct criminal background checks or verify members' identities beyond self-attested date of birth. Full detail in our Safety Policy.
Status verification
CommonGround doesn't offer a proof-of-status review during this beta — every profile is equally real and equally visible, verified or not.
What we don't do yet
We're upfront about this: we don't run a photo/selfie liveness check (identity verification against your photos), and we don't proactively scan every message — only reported content gets reviewed. Both are real limitations we plan to address as the app grows, not oversights we're hiding.
Our policies
The documents that describe what we do with your information and what we expect from everyone here.
Safety Policy
Our formal policy: prohibited conduct, background checks, enforcement, and appeals.
Community Guidelines
What's expected here, and how enforcement escalates from a warning to a ban.
Privacy Policy
What we collect, how status data is protected, and how to delete your account.
Consumer Health Data Privacy Policy
Detail specific to your HIV/HSV status: collection, disclosure, and retention.
Terms of Service
The agreement between you and CommonGround.
Each is a draft pending legal review before public launch — the page itself says so at the top. They describe how the app actually behaves today; the legal wording isn't final.
Blocking and reporting, plainly
You never have to keep talking to someone to make them stop.
Block
Blocking takes effect immediately and works both ways: they can't see your profile or message you, and they won't appear in your daily candidates again. They aren't notified. You'll find it on any candidate profile and at the top of any conversation.
Report
Reporting is one action, not two: filing a report blocks that person for you at the same moment, so you never need a second step to stop the contact. You'll pick a reason — harassment, a fake profile, inappropriate content, a safety concern, or something else — and can add details if you want to. You don't need proof, and you don't need to be certain.
What happens next
Reports go to a real person for review. An automated system helps sort and prioritize the queue so serious reports surface faster, but it never suspends or removes anyone on its own — a human always makes that call. Consequences scale with severity: a warning for a minor first-time issue, suspension for repeated or serious ones, and an immediate permanent ban for threats, harassment, or a confirmed false claim about status.
Unmatch, when it's not a safety thing
Inside a conversation you can also just unmatch. That ends the match and the conversation without filing anything — for "this isn't going anywhere," not "this person is a problem."
Support beyond CommonGround
Some things are bigger than a dating app. These are independent organizations — we don't run them, we're not affiliated with them, and nothing about you or your account is shared with them when you reach out.
Crisis and mental health support
If you're in distress, thinking about suicide, or just need to talk to someone right now.
988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline
Free, confidential support for suicidal thoughts, emotional distress, or any mental health crisis. Call or text — you don't have to be suicidal to use it.
Crisis Text Line
Crisis counselling entirely over text with a trained volunteer, for when talking out loud isn't an option.
Text HOME to 74174124/7The Trevor Project
Crisis support specifically for LGBTQ+ young people, by phone, text, or chat.
Trans Lifeline
A peer support line staffed by trans people, for trans and questioning callers.
1-877-565-8860Weekdays — current hours are posted on their siteSAMHSA National Helpline
Free, confidential referrals to local mental health and substance use treatment. Not a crisis line — this is how you find ongoing care.
1-800-662-435724/7, English and Spanish
Harassment, abuse, or assault
If someone has hurt you or is threatening to — whether you met them here or anywhere else.
National Domestic Violence Hotline
Support and safety planning for anyone experiencing abuse from a partner or an ex-partner. You don't need to have decided anything to call. Also written 800-799-SAFE.
RAINN National Sexual Assault Hotline
Confidential support for survivors of sexual violence, by phone, text, or online chat, connected to local service providers. Also written 800-656-HOPE.
HIV and HSV information, testing, and care
Reputable, non-commercial sources — for questions about treatment, transmission, or finding care near you.
HIV.gov
The U.S. government's HIV information hub: prevention, treatment basics, and living well with HIV.
OnlineHIV.gov Services Locator
Search by location for HIV testing, care providers, housing, and support services near you.
OnlineCDC-INFO
The CDC's public information line. Live agents answer questions about HIV, STIs, and hepatitis. They can't diagnose you or prescribe anything — that's your clinician.
1-800-232-4636Monday–Friday, 8am–8pm ET (closed federal holidays)American Sexual Health Association — herpes resources
Plain-language herpes information from a long-running sexual health nonprofit, including guidance on talking about it with partners outside this app.
Online
These are United States national services; CommonGround is currently available in a growing set of states as we complete our nationwide rollout. Each entry was checked against the organization's own site on August 8, 2026. Hours and numbers change, so follow the link if you want to confirm one before you call. If you find something here that's out of date, tell us at hello@commongrounddating.com and we'll fix it.