Terms of Use

These Terms of Use ("Terms") form a binding legal agreement between you and the operators of Chupke ("Chupke", "we", "us", "our"). By downloading, installing, accessing or using Chupke (the "Service") in any manner, you irrevocably accept these Terms, our Privacy Policy, and our community guidelines. If you do not agree with any part, you must immediately stop using the Service and uninstall the app. Continued use after any update to these Terms constitutes acceptance of the updated Terms.

You must be at least 18 years old and legally competent to enter into a binding contract under the Indian Contract Act, 1872 and any other law applicable to you. By using the Service you represent and warrant that (a) you meet this age requirement, (b) you have never been previously suspended or removed from the Service, and (c) your use of the Service does not violate any law or regulation applicable to you. We reserve the absolute right to terminate any account we reasonably believe belongs to a minor, and to report suspected minor activity to authorities.

Accounts are anonymous and cryptographically tied to your device. You are solely responsible for all activity that occurs under your account, whether or not authorised by you. Your recovery code is the only way to restore access to a previous identity; we do not store, cannot recover, and are not liable for lost or leaked recovery codes. Loss of the recovery code results in permanent loss of the associated account and its data, and we have no obligation to restore it.

You represent, warrant and agree that you will NOT, directly or indirectly, use the Service to:

• Harass, threaten, dox, stalk, defame, blackmail or bully any person.
• Post, request, solicit or transmit any content that sexualises or depicts a minor in any way (CSAM/CSAE) — this is a criminal offence and is reported to authorities.
• Solicit, share, offer or request nudity, sexual services, or sexually explicit material from any user.
• Promote, glorify or incite violence, terrorism, extremism, self-harm, suicide, or hatred against any individual or group on grounds of religion, caste, gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, disability or nationality.
• Post content that is obscene, paedophilic, invasive of another's privacy including bodily privacy, insulting or harassing on the basis of gender, libellous, racially or ethnically objectionable, relating to or encouraging money laundering or gambling, or otherwise inconsistent with or contrary to the laws of India (as defined under Rule 3(1)(b) of the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021).
• Sell or promote illegal goods, controlled substances, drugs, weapons, counterfeit items or fraudulent services.
• Impersonate any person, brand, employee, government official or entity, or misrepresent your affiliation.
• Send spam, chain messages, scams, phishing links, malware, viruses, or unauthorised advertising or promotional material.
• Attempt to deanonymise, unmask, dox, or extract personal information about any other user.
• Bypass, disable, damage, reverse engineer, decompile, scrape or interfere with any safety system, automated moderation, block, ban, rate limit, or security feature of the Service.
• Use bots, scripts, emulators or automation of any kind to access the Service.
• Violate any applicable Indian law including but not limited to the Information Technology Act, 2000, the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (POCSO), the Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act, 1986, or any rules made thereunder.

Any violation of this section may result in immediate, permanent termination without notice or refund, and in disclosure of relevant account and device information to law-enforcement or judicial authorities.

All messages, images, audio, usernames, avatars and any other content transmitted through the Service ("User Content") is created by users, not by us. You are solely and personally responsible for your User Content and for the consequences of transmitting it. We do not endorse, verify, or assume any responsibility for any User Content, and we make no representation as to the accuracy, legality or safety of any User Content or user.

You grant us a worldwide, royalty-free, non-exclusive licence to host, transmit, store, moderate, analyse and remove your User Content solely to operate, secure and improve the Service and to comply with law. You represent that you own or have all rights necessary to grant this licence.

Chupke is an "intermediary" within the meaning of Section 2(1)(w) of the Information Technology Act, 2000. Our role is limited to providing a communications platform. We do not initiate the transmission, select the receiver, or select or modify the information contained in any User Content, and accordingly claim the protection of Section 79 of the Information Technology Act, 2000 and the safe-harbour provisions applicable to intermediaries. Any liability for User Content lies with the user who created or transmitted it.

We use a combination of automated filters, keyword blocks, machine-learning classifiers and human review to enforce these Terms. We may, at our sole discretion and without prior notice, remove any content, restrict any feature, suspend or permanently ban any account or device, and share information with authorities where we in good faith believe it is necessary to comply with law, protect users, or prevent harm.

No moderation system is perfect. You acknowledge that (a) some prohibited content may briefly appear before it is removed, and (b) some legitimate content may be removed in error. We are not liable in either case. If you believe your account was actioned in error, you may appeal via the in-app Appeal screen.

Every chat and profile includes a Report button. Reports are reviewed within 24 hours. For emergencies involving immediate physical harm, contact local authorities first (dial 112).

We cooperate fully with valid legal process. We may preserve, access and disclose account information, device identifiers, IP addresses, message logs and any other data in our possession where we in good faith believe such disclosure is required by law or is reasonably necessary to enforce these Terms, protect the rights, property or safety of Chupke, our users, or the public.

Chupke has zero tolerance for Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation (CSAE). We use proactive detection, hash-matching, keyword filtering, user reporting and human review. Any confirmed CSAE content is removed, the account is permanently banned, device fingerprints are blocked, and the content and account information are reported to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) where applicable and to Indian law-enforcement authorities under the POCSO Act, 2012 and IT Act, 2000.

The Service, including its software, source code, design, trademarks, logos, name "Chupke", and all related branding, are owned by us or our licensors and are protected by copyright, trademark and other intellectual property laws. You are granted a limited, personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable licence to use the Service strictly for its intended personal, non-commercial purpose. Any other use is prohibited.

The Service uses third-party providers including Google AdMob (advertising), Google Firebase (analytics, crash reporting, push notifications) and Supabase (hosting and database). Your use of these services is subject to their own terms and privacy policies, and we are not responsible for their acts or omissions. Advertisements shown in the app are served by third parties; we do not endorse or verify any advertiser or product, and we are not liable for any transaction between you and an advertiser.

THE SERVICE IS PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" BASIS, WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, NON-INFRINGEMENT, ACCURACY, RELIABILITY, UNINTERRUPTED OR ERROR-FREE OPERATION, OR THAT DEFECTS WILL BE CORRECTED. WE DO NOT WARRANT THE CONDUCT, IDENTITY, AGE, INTENTIONS OR SAFETY OF ANY USER. YOU USE THE SERVICE ENTIRELY AT YOUR OWN RISK.

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, IN NO EVENT SHALL CHUPKE, ITS FOUNDERS, DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, CONTRACTORS, AGENTS, LICENSORS OR AFFILIATES BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, PUNITIVE OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO LOSS OF DATA, LOSS OF PROFIT, LOSS OF GOODWILL, EMOTIONAL DISTRESS, PERSONAL INJURY, OR ANY DAMAGES ARISING FROM (a) YOUR USE OR INABILITY TO USE THE SERVICE, (b) THE CONDUCT OF ANY OTHER USER OR THIRD PARTY ON OR OFF THE SERVICE, (c) ANY CONTENT OBTAINED THROUGH THE SERVICE, (d) UNAUTHORISED ACCESS TO OR ALTERATION OF YOUR ACCOUNT OR TRANSMISSIONS, OR (e) ANY MATTER RELATED TO THE SERVICE.

WITHOUT LIMITING THE FOREGOING, OUR TOTAL AGGREGATE LIABILITY ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THESE TERMS OR THE SERVICE SHALL NOT EXCEED INR 1,000 (ONE THOUSAND INDIAN RUPEES). YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THIS LIMITATION IS A FUNDAMENTAL ELEMENT OF THE AGREEMENT AND THAT WE WOULD NOT PROVIDE THE SERVICE ON A FREE BASIS WITHOUT IT.

You agree to defend, indemnify and hold harmless Chupke, its founders, directors, employees, contractors, agents, licensors and affiliates from and against any and all claims, demands, damages, obligations, losses, liabilities, costs and expenses (including reasonable attorneys' fees) arising out of or in connection with: (a) your use of, or interaction on, the Service; (b) your User Content; (c) your violation of these Terms or any applicable law; (d) your violation of any rights of a third party, including any other user; or (e) any misrepresentation made by you. We reserve the right to assume the exclusive defence and control of any matter otherwise subject to indemnification by you, at your expense.

You understand that the Service enables anonymous communication with strangers. Users may act inappropriately, deceptively, or unlawfully despite our safeguards. You knowingly and voluntarily assume all risks associated with interacting with other users, including any emotional, reputational, financial or physical harm. You are solely responsible for your decisions to share any information, meet in person, or otherwise engage with any other user, and you release us from any and all liability arising from such decisions.

You may delete your account at any time from Settings. We may suspend or terminate your account, delete your User Content, and block your device with or without cause and with or without notice, effective immediately. Upon termination, all licences granted to you under these Terms cease. Sections 4, 9–14, 16–21 and any provisions that by their nature should survive termination will survive.

These Terms and any dispute arising out of or in connection with them shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the Republic of India, without regard to conflict-of-laws principles. Subject to Section 17 (Arbitration), the courts at Kapurthala, Punjab, India shall have exclusive jurisdiction.

Any dispute, controversy or claim arising out of or relating to these Terms or the Service shall first be attempted to be resolved amicably by written notice. If not resolved within 30 days, the dispute shall be referred to and finally resolved by arbitration under the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 by a sole arbitrator appointed by us. The seat and venue of arbitration shall be Phagwara, Punjab, India, and the language shall be English. The arbitrator's award shall be final and binding. You agree that any dispute shall be brought only in your individual capacity, and not as a plaintiff or class member in any purported class, collective or representative proceeding.

We shall not be liable for any failure or delay in performance caused by circumstances beyond our reasonable control, including acts of God, natural disasters, pandemics, war, terrorism, riots, government action, power or internet outages, denial-of-service attacks, or failures of third-party providers.

If any provision of these Terms is held invalid or unenforceable, that provision shall be modified to the minimum extent necessary to make it enforceable, and the remaining provisions shall remain in full force. These Terms, together with the Privacy Policy and community guidelines, constitute the entire agreement between you and us regarding the Service, and supersede all prior agreements and understandings.

Our failure to enforce any right or provision is not a waiver of such right or provision. You may not assign or transfer these Terms without our prior written consent; we may assign them freely.

In accordance with the Information Technology Act, 2000 and Rule 3(2) of the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021, the Grievance Officer for Chupke is:

Mr. Manpreet Singh
Grievance Officer, Chupke
Sai Tower, Model Town, Phagwara,
District Kapurthala, Punjab – 144401, India
Email: grievance@chupke.chat
Acknowledgement: within 24 hours. Resolution: within 15 days.

We may update these Terms at any time. Material changes will be signalled by updating the "Last updated" date at the top of this page. Your continued use of the Service after such update constitutes your acceptance of the revised Terms.

General questions: support@chupke.chat

Legal / grievance: grievance@chupke.chat