Town

Terms of Service

Working draft, under legal review. The bracketed items are unresolved on purpose — the reviewed version will replace this page before the app is available.

Effective date: [CONFIRM: publication date] Who we are: [CONFIRM: legal entity name, e.g., Town App, Inc., a Delaware corporation] ("Town," "we," "us"), [CONFIRM: registered address] Contact: [CONFIRM: legal-notices mailbox]

Quick stuff before you go in. Town's rules are short: be a real person, treat neighbors like neighbors, no doxxing or harassment, no anyone-under-17. Break those and Town will pull you. The legal version's below — same idea, longer.

1. Agreement to these Terms

Short version: using Town means you agree to these Terms and the Privacy Policy. If the plain-English summaries and the formal text ever differ, the formal text is the one that counts.

These Terms of Service ("Terms") are a binding agreement between you and Town governing your use of the Town iOS application and our websites (townapp.co and apply.townapp.co) (together, the "Service"). By creating an account or using the Service, you agree to these Terms and acknowledge our Privacy Policy. If you do not agree, do not use the Service.

Each section begins with a "Short version" summary. Summaries are provided for readability only; if a summary conflicts with the full text of a section, the full text governs.

[COUNSEL: acceptance mechanics — confirm the in-app signup checkbox is sufficient for clickwrap enforceability, including of Section 17.]

2. Who can use Town

Short version: you have to be 17 or older, a real person, using your real identity, with one account. Verifying your face is part of the deal — it's what makes Town work.

Age. You must be at least 17 years old to use Town. We use a date-of-birth gate at signup. If we learn an account holder is under 17, we will close the account and delete its data as described in the Privacy Policy. [COUNSEL: enforceability against 17-year-old users; NY Child Data Protection Act posture; pending 17-vs-18 age-floor decision.]

Identity and face verification. Town is a face-verified community. As a condition of membership, you must complete identity verification at signup: a live selfie, processed by our verification provider (Persona Identities, Inc.), confirming that you are a live person and that your profile photo is a genuine photo of you. Verification runs again if you change your profile photo. The biometric disclosure, your consent, and the retention and destruction schedule are in Section 3 of the Privacy Policy, which is presented for separate consent before any capture. If you decline verification, you cannot complete signup. We may limit how often you can change your profile photo.

One account, your real self. You may hold one account, registered with accurate information, representing yourself. You may not impersonate any person, create an account for anyone else, or transfer, sell, or share your account. If your account was previously terminated for violating these Terms, you may not create a new one.

Legal capacity. By using the Service you represent that you can form a binding contract with Town [COUNSEL: minors' voidable-contract exposure — risk or mitigation language].

3. Your account

Short version: keep your login to yourself, keep your info accurate, and tell us if something's wrong with your account.

You are responsible for your account and everything that happens under it. Keep your credentials secure and notify us at [CONFIRM: contact address] if you believe your account has been accessed without your permission. You must keep your account information accurate. We may reclaim usernames or display names that violate these Terms (for example, impersonation or reserved names).

You can delete your account at any time in the app (Settings → Delete Account). What happens to your data afterward is described in the Privacy Policy.

4. What Town is — and is not

Short version: Town shows you verified people and happenings nearby so you can meet in person. Use your judgment out there — Town verifies faces, not character.

Town is a location-based social service that shows you face-verified people, posts, and events near you, so that you can meet in person. You understand and agree that:

5. Location features

Short version: other people only ever learn one thing about your location — nearby or not. You can change your radius or go invisible whenever you want. Don't try to figure out where someone actually is.

Town's location features work on a single binary signal: whether another user is within your chosen detection radius (adjustable from 50 feet to 2 miles) — nearby or not nearby. The Service never shows users another user's map location, distance, or direction, and you must not attempt to derive, infer, triangulate, or record any user's actual location from the Service (see Section 7). You can adjust your radius or go invisible entirely (Ghost Mode) in Settings at any time.

Location features depend on your device's permissions, hardware, and network conditions. We do not promise that presence information is accurate, complete, or current, and you should not rely on it for any safety-critical purpose.

6. Your content

Short version: what you post is yours. You give Town the permission it needs to show your content to the people you're sharing it with — and nothing more. We don't use your content to train AI models.

Ownership. You own the content you create on Town — messages, posts, comments, your profile photo, status line, and anything else you submit ("Your Content").

License to Town. So that we can operate the Service, you grant Town a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to host, store, reproduce, process, adapt (for technical purposes such as formatting and thumbnails), publish, and display Your Content — solely to operate, provide, moderate, secure, and improve the Service, and only to the audiences your settings and the feature's design select (for example, message recipients, or people within radius for public posts). This license ends when you delete Your Content or your account, except: (a) copies already delivered to other users (for example, messages in a recipient's thread) remain with them; (b) content we retain for legal, safety, or moderation-audit reasons per the Privacy Policy's retention schedule; and (c) residual backup copies pending deletion cycles. [COUNSEL: confirm license scope.]

No AI training. Consistent with the Privacy Policy, Town does not use Your Content to train AI models, and our vendor contracts are required to exclude it. [CONFIRM: vendor DPAs — mirrors Privacy Policy §2 bracket.]

Your responsibility. You represent that you have the rights to post Your Content and that it does not violate these Terms or any law. We do not endorse and are not responsible for user content.

Feedback. If you send us ideas or suggestions, we can use them without restriction or compensation.

7. Rules of conduct

Short version: be a real person, treat neighbors like neighbors. No harassment, no hate, no doxxing, no scraping, no spam, no one under 17. This is the section that gets you removed if you ignore it.

You agree not to, and not to attempt to, or help anyone else to:

Against people.

Against the community.

Against the Service.

We may remove content, restrict features, or suspend or terminate accounts for violations, as described in Section 8.

8. Moderation, enforcement, and appeals

Short version: Town screens content automatically, humans review reports, and enforcement escalates — a warning first for minor stuff, timeouts if it continues, removal for the serious things. The worst violations skip the ladder entirely. If we get it wrong, you can appeal.

Screening and review. Content on Town may be screened by automated systems before or after it is published, and content that users report is reviewed by our team. Uploaded photos are additionally screened for known child sexual abuse material; apparent CSAM results in an immediate permanent ban and a report to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, as required by law. Details of what our moderation systems process are in the Privacy Policy (Section 5). How moderation works day-to-day is explained in plain language in the app (Settings → Safety Center → How Town Moderates).

Enforcement ladder. Enforcement is proportionate and escalating. In general: a first low-severity violation results in a warning; continued or more serious violations result in temporary suspensions (24 hours, then 7 days); further violations result in permanent removal. Severe violations — including slurs and hate speech, explicit threats, content sexualizing minors, CSAM, doxxing, and repeated targeted harassment — result in permanent removal on the first occurrence. We may also remove individual pieces of content, restrict specific features, or apply rate limits without advancing the ladder. We reserve the right to act outside this ladder where necessary to protect users or comply with law. [COUNSEL: practice vs. contractual entitlement framing.]

Reports. You can report content or people in the app. We review reports and act on violations; reporters are not identified to the person they report. [COUNSEL: whether in-app 72-hour review / 7-day appeal statements should appear here as commitments or targets.]

Appeals. If your account is suspended or permanently banned, you can appeal from the suspension notice in the app (or by email if you cannot access the app: [CONFIRM: appeals email address]). Appeals are reviewed by a human. Permanent bans may be appealed once; subsequent appeals of the same ban will not be re-reviewed.

9. Copyright (DMCA)

Short version: if someone's post uses your copyrighted work without permission, tell our copyright agent and we'll handle it. Repeat infringers lose their accounts.

We respond to notices of alleged copyright infringement under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. To submit a notice, send our designated agent a communication meeting the requirements of 17 U.S.C. § 512(c)(3):

Designated agent: [CONFIRM: agent name] · [CONFIRM: address] · [CONFIRM: email] [CONFIRM: register the agent with the U.S. Copyright Office's DMCA Designated Agent Directory before launch]

If you believe your content was removed by mistake or misidentification, you may submit a counter-notice meeting the requirements of § 512(g). We terminate the accounts of repeat infringers in appropriate circumstances.

10. Town's intellectual property

Short version: the app, the name, and the ✶ mark are Town's. Your stuff stays yours; ours stays ours.

The Service — including its software, design, text, graphics, and trademarks (including "Town" and the ✶ brick-and-speech-bubble mark) — is owned by Town or its licensors and protected by intellectual-property law. Except for the limited rights expressly granted to you (Section 15 and, for the app itself, the applicable app-store license), no rights in the Service are transferred to you. [CONFIRM: trademark application status.]

11. Third-party services

Short version: a few pieces of Town run on other companies' services — verification, venue search, notifications. Their terms cover their pieces.

Parts of the Service depend on third-party providers (for example, identity verification, venue lookup when creating event posts, and push-notification delivery). We are not responsible for third-party services, and your use of features they power may also be subject to their terms. Who processes what data, and why, is listed in the Privacy Policy (Section 6).

12. Termination

Short version: you can leave any time, from inside the app. We can suspend or close accounts that break the rules or put people at risk. Some sections of these Terms outlive the account.

By you. Delete your account at any time (Settings → Delete Account). Data handling on deletion is described in the Privacy Policy.

By us. We may suspend or terminate your access — per the enforcement ladder in Section 8, or immediately where required to protect users, comply with law, or address severe violations. Where practicable and lawful, we will tell you the general reason.

Discontinuance. We may modify or discontinue the Service (in whole or in part) with reasonable advance notice where practicable.

Survival. Sections that by their nature should survive termination do — including 6 (as limited there), 9–10, 13–14, and 16–19.

13. Disclaimers

Short version: Town is provided as-is. We work hard on safety, but we can't guarantee other people's behavior, online or off.

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, THE SERVICE IS PROVIDED "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE," WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, TITLE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. WITHOUT LIMITING THE FOREGOING, TOWN DOES NOT WARRANT THAT: THE SERVICE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED, ERROR-FREE, OR SECURE; PRESENCE OR "NEARBY" INFORMATION WILL BE ACCURATE OR CURRENT; ANY USER'S CONDUCT, IDENTITY BEYOND THE VERIFICATION DESCRIBED IN SECTION 2, OR SUITABILITY WILL BE AS REPRESENTED; OR THAT MODERATION WILL CATCH ALL VIOLATING CONTENT. YOU ASSUME RESPONSIBILITY FOR YOUR INTERACTIONS WITH OTHER USERS, INCLUDING IN-PERSON MEETINGS. SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW CERTAIN WARRANTY DISCLAIMERS, SO PARTS OF THIS SECTION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU. [COUNSEL: full section review.]

14. Limitation of liability

Short version: our liability to you is limited, to the extent the law allows.

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, TOWN AND ITS OFFICERS, EMPLOYEES, AND AGENTS WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, OR FOR LOST PROFITS, DATA, OR GOODWILL, ARISING FROM OR RELATING TO THE SERVICE OR THESE TERMS — INCLUDING DAMAGES ARISING FROM THE CONDUCT OF OTHER USERS OR FROM IN-PERSON MEETINGS ARRANGED THROUGH THE SERVICE — WHETHER BASED IN CONTRACT, TORT, OR OTHERWISE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY. TOWN'S AGGREGATE LIABILITY FOR ALL CLAIMS WILL NOT EXCEED [COUNSEL: cap amount and structure]. SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW CERTAIN LIMITATIONS, SO PARTS OF THIS SECTION MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU. [COUNSEL: full section review, including personal-injury carve-out posture and enforceability against minor users.]

15. The app license and Apple

Short version: the copy of the app on your phone is licensed to you under Apple's standard terms. Apple isn't responsible for Town — we are.

Your license to the Town app itself is governed by Apple's standard Licensed Application End User License Agreement (the "Standard EULA," available in the App Store), except that these Terms govern the Town service and control over the Standard EULA with respect to the service to the extent of any conflict. [COUNSEL: confirm the standard-EULA posture — see counsel draft companion note.]

You also agree that: your use of the app must comply with the App Store Terms of Service; Apple has no obligation to furnish maintenance or support for the app; and Apple is not responsible for addressing any claims relating to the app or your use of it. You represent that you are not located in a country subject to a U.S. government embargo and are not on any U.S. government restricted-party list. [COUNSEL: prune redundant Apple representations as appropriate.]

16. Changes to these Terms

Short version: if the Terms change in a way that matters, we'll tell you in the app before it takes effect. Using Town after that means you accept the change.

We may update these Terms. If a change is material, we will notify you in the app before it takes effect [CONFIRM: notice period]. Continuing to use the Service after the effective date constitutes acceptance. The current version always lives at townapp.co/terms. If you do not accept a change, stop using the Service and delete your account before the change takes effect.

17. Dispute resolution — arbitration and class-action waiver

Short version: if we have a legal dispute, we've agreed to resolve it individually, in arbitration, not in a class action. You can opt out within 30 days of signing up. Small-claims court stays available.

[COUNSEL: THIS ENTIRE SECTION TO BE DRAFTED BY COUNSEL. Open decisions include: whether to adopt pre-dispute arbitration at launch scale given mass-arbitration exposure; provider and consumer rules; 30-day opt-out mechanics; informal-resolution prerequisite; small-claims and IP-injunction carve-outs; class-action and jury-trial waivers with severability structure; enforceability against 17-year-old users; venue. See the counsel draft companion note for the full decision list.]

18. Governing law

Short version: New York law, New York courts — for whatever isn't covered by the arbitration section.

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of New York, without regard to conflict-of-law rules. Subject to Section 17, any dispute not subject to arbitration will be brought exclusively in the state or federal courts located in New York County, New York, and you consent to their jurisdiction. [COUNSEL: confirm NY vs. state of incorporation.]

19. General

Short version: the usual closing provisions — the whole agreement, what happens if a piece is unenforceable, and who can transfer the contract.

These Terms, together with the Privacy Policy and any policies referenced in them, are the entire agreement between you and Town about the Service. If any provision is found unenforceable, the rest remain in effect [COUNSEL: coordinate with arbitration severability]. Our failure to enforce a provision is not a waiver. You may not assign these Terms; we may assign them in connection with a merger, acquisition, or sale of assets, in which case the assignee must honor them. Notices to you may be given in the app or to the contact information on your account; notices to Town go to [CONFIRM: legal-notices address]. The Service is offered from the United States and intended for users in the United States.

20. Contact

[CONFIRM: legal entity name] · [CONFIRM: registered address] · [CONFIRM: legal-notices email]

Town · townapp.co · Privacy Policy