At Badoo, we’re dedicated to ensuring that our community has a safe place to chat and connect with new people. We want to make sure all relationships and exchanges are healthy and equal, and with this comes our efforts to keep sexual harassment off our app.
Badoo defines sexual harassment as non-physical unwanted and unwelcome behaviours between members that are sexual in nature – both on our app and when meeting up in person. What we define as sexual harassment may be a little stricter than elsewhere, so we’ve outlined what behaviours will get you a warning on Badoo (or kicked off our app) below.
Starting a conversation with sexual content
It’s against our policy to begin a conversation with another Badoo member with sexually explicit content. This content includes sexual jokes, sexually explicit memes, GIFs, or emojis, sexual advances, or sexual comments about someone’s appearance. The reason is because at this point, you haven’t obtained the other person’s consent before making things sexual. It’s also not a very respectful way to begin a conversation.
If you’re struggling to think of what to say to a match, try these opening lines.
Sending unsolicited sexual imagery
Sending unsolicited sexual imagery falls under the category of indecent exposure – something that will get you banned from Badoo. If a match hasn’t agreed to receiving a sexual image, sending one can cause distress, upset and make the other person feel violated. This means no sending of nudes, photos in your underwear, explicit videos, audio calls or video calls without your match’s permission.
We also don’t allow the sending of unwanted sexual memes, GIFs, drawings, animations, or links to pornography. The best rule of thumb is to wait until you get the green light of full consent before you send any of these things. If you’ve received an unsolicited image on Badoo, read this and make a report to our safety moderators.
Trying to have virtual sex without consent
We know that sex can be an important part of a relationship, but it’s against Badoo’s policy to try and have virtual sex or start sexting a match without consent. If you’d like some tips on how to have fun, safe, consensual virtual sex, we have some pointers here.
Non-consensual intimate image sharing
Badoo takes non-consensual intimate image sharing (also known as ‘revenge porn’) extremely seriously. If you threaten to send sexual images, videos or text conversations of or depicting another person on any platform without their consent, you will be banned from Badoo immediately. Even if this person shared these intimate images with you, they haven’t said it’s OK for other people to see them. Note: 'revenge porn' is an offence in many countries, and can be reported to the authorities.
Off-app sexual harassment
Your behaviour off our app matters too. You can get banned from Badoo for in-person indecent exposure, such as unwanted flashing on a date, or for sending matches unsolicited or unwelcome sexual photos on another platform or over text.
Consensual sexual exchanges on Badoo
It’s important to note that Badoo members are allowed to use the app as a place to engage in sexual or sexually explicit conversations, as long as they are consensual. Consent is an agreement between our members to participate or engage in sexual conversations and behaviours with each other.
Whether you’re looking for a casual hook-up, short-term romantic relationship, or marriage, all of these intentions are valid. We don’t believe it’s our position to police how members connect with each other, as long as it’s consensual by all parties, honest, law abiding, and aligned with the ethos of our Community Guidelines.
Remember: Consent can be withdrawn at any time. Even if your match has agreed to a sexually explicit chat, they’re free to change their mind and stop the conversation at any point.
There’s a real person behind every profile you come across on Badoo, and their dating expectations may not match yours. Enthusiastic and ongoing consent is a necessity when attempting to make any connection sexual. Please treat others on their dating journey with respect – it makes Badoo a better place for everyone.
If you experience sexual harassment on Badoo or with a Badoo match IRL or on another platform, visit our Safety Centre for tips on how to block and report.
