Sofouw Community Guidelines

Effective date: [EFFECTIVE DATE]

Sofouw is a place for Muslims who are serious about marriage. Everyone here is someone's son or daughter, brother or sister, and deserves to be treated with adab — good manners, respect and dignity. Our members come from many countries, cultures, sects and backgrounds, across the Arab world and the UK. These guidelines explain what we expect from everyone who uses Sofouw, including walis. They form part of our Terms of Use.

1. Be marriage-minded

Sofouw is for finding a spouse, not for casual dating, flirting or passing the time.

• Only join if you are genuinely looking for marriage.
• Be clear and honest about your intentions and timeline.
• If you are no longer looking, pause your profile, or choose "I found someone, alhamdulillah".

2. Be honest

Trust is the foundation of a good marriage, and it starts with your profile.

• Use your real first name and your real age.
• Be truthful about your marital status, your marital history and whether you have children. Never hide a current marriage [POLICY ON USERS WHO ARE CURRENTLY MARRIED — confirm].
• Be truthful about your nationality and the country where you live. These can affect what a marriage involves, including family expectations and, in some countries, government permission to marry a foreign national.
• Be accurate about your religious practice, job, education and family.
• Have only one account, and never pretend to be someone else.

3. Treat everyone with adab

• Be courteous and kind, even when you are not interested. A polite "I don't think we're a match, but I wish you well" is always better than silence or rudeness.
• Respect differences of sect, nationality, tribe, culture, background and level of practice. You are welcome to set preferences about who you are introduced to, but insulting anyone for their nationality, origin, tribe, skin colour or sect is never allowed. Racism, sectarian insults and any other hateful language are not allowed.
• Respect people's boundaries. If someone says no, unmatches or blocks you, accept it and move on.
• Respect the role of family. Be respectful when a wali is present in a conversation, and respect the other person's wish to involve their family — or to take things at their own pace.

4. Keep it modest

• Choose modest photos that you would be comfortable for a potential spouse's family to see, with your face clearly visible and only you in them. Hijab and niqab are welcome.
• Use recent photos of yourself only. Do not use heavy filters or edits that change how you look, or photos of celebrities, models or anyone else.
• No nudity, sexual images or sexually suggestive photos.
• No sexual messages, sexual requests or innuendo.
• Do not pressure anyone to share photos, to remove their hijab or niqab in a photo, to meet in private, or to do anything they are not comfortable with.

Photos are checked automatically before they appear. Explicit content will be removed, and the account may be banned.

5. No harassment or abuse

The following are not allowed:

• threats, intimidation or blackmail, including threatening to share someone's photos or messages with their family or anyone else;
• bullying, insults or repeated unwanted messages;
• stalking, or trying to find someone's home, workplace or family without their agreement;
• contacting someone on another platform after they have blocked or unmatched you;
• pressuring anyone into marriage. Forced marriage is a crime in the UK and in many other countries, and it is never allowed on Sofouw.

6. No money requests, dowry negotiations or scams

• Never ask another user for money, gifts, loans, bank details, mobile credit or help with bills, travel, visas, sponsorship or residency.
• Do not negotiate mahr (dowry), wedding costs or other financial arrangements through chat. These are important matters that belong in conversations between families and walis, once you are both serious.
• Do not promote investments, cryptocurrency, businesses, products or other apps.
• Do not use Sofouw for commercial or recruitment purposes of any kind.

If anyone asks you for money, however genuine their story sounds, do not send it — report them. Common warning signs include someone who quickly declares strong feelings, avoids video calls, meeting your family or meeting in public, describes a sudden emergency, or asks for help with a visa or with moving to your country.

7. Respect privacy

• Do not share anyone's photos, screenshots of their messages or their profile with anyone else, including on social media or in group chats. In many countries this can also be a crime.
• Do not share another person's phone number, address or other personal details.
• Do not put contact details or social media handles in your photos.
• Do not share contact details — phone numbers, email addresses, links or social media handles — in your profile or in chats, or ask anyone for theirs, even after you match. Messages that include them are not sent. When you are ready to take things further, involve your wali or family.

Walis: the wali page gives you a privileged view into someone's search for a spouse. Keep everything you see confidential, do not copy or share it, and use it only to support the person who invited you.

8. Adults only

• Sofouw is strictly for people aged 18 and over, even where local law allows marriage at a younger age.
• Do not post photos that include children, including your own.
• If you believe someone on Sofouw is under 18, report them straight away.

We have zero tolerance for child sexual abuse and exploitation. Please read our Child Safety Standards.

9. Stay within the law

Do not use Sofouw for anything unlawful in the country where you live, or in the country of the person you are talking to, including fraud, impersonation, defamation, or arranging the marriage of anyone under 18.

10. Stay safe

• Involve your family or wali as early as you feel is right.
• Keep conversations on Sofouw until you have built trust.
• When you meet, choose a public place, or meet with your family or a mahram present. Tell someone you trust where you are going, and arrange your own transport.
• Trust your instincts. If something feels wrong, end the conversation and report it.
• If you are ever in immediate danger, call your local emergency number — for example Saudi Arabia 911, UAE 999, Qatar 999, Kuwait 112, Bahrain 999, Oman 9999, Egypt 122, Jordan 911, UK 999.

11. Reporting and blocking

You can report, block or unmatch anyone from their profile or your chat. Reports are confidential — we will not tell the other person who reported them [confirm]. When you report someone, we keep a copy of the reported profile and conversation so that our moderators can review it, even if the other person later deletes their account. Our moderators may read the reported conversation to decide what action to take. You can also contact our safety team at [SAFETY EMAIL], in English or Arabic.

12. What happens if the guidelines are broken

Depending on how serious the breach is, and whether it has happened before, we may:

• remove content, such as a photo or profile text;
• give a warning;
• suspend the account for a period of time;
• permanently ban the account and prevent the person from returning;
• report the matter to the police or other competent authorities.

Serious breaches — such as anything involving children, threats of violence, sexual content, blackmail or scams — may lead to an immediate permanent ban without a warning.

If you think we have made a mistake, you can appeal by contacting [SUPPORT EMAIL]. A member of our team will review the decision.

Thank you for helping to make Sofouw a respectful, safe and blessed place to find a spouse.