The short version
vecindad works because the recommendations here come from people you actually trust. These guidelines exist to keep it that way. The whole thing rests on one idea: be honest, and be a good neighbor. Everything below is just detail on those two.
These Community Guidelines are part of our Terms of Service and are incorporated into them by reference. Capitalized terms we don't define here have the meaning given in the Terms. If you break these guidelines, the enforcement actions in our Terms (§8 and §9) can apply to your account.
1. Who belongs here
- You must be at least 18 years old to use vecindad.
- Be a real person using accurate information. One account per person.
- Don't impersonate anyone else, and don't misrepresent who you are or who you're affiliated with.
- Don't use vecindad if you've previously been removed for violating these guidelines or our Terms.
A display name or handle is fine, and you don't have to use your legal name publicly, but the person behind the account must be real and singular.
2. The heart of it: honest recommendations and validations
vecindad only means something if what's on it is true. So:
- Recommend places you actually believe in. A recommendation is your real opinion based on real experience. Not a favor, not a paid placement, not a guess.
- Only validate what you actually experienced. When you mark something "I went" or "I liked it," that has to be true for you. Only the person who received a recommendation can validate it.
- Don't fake it. Marking a recommendation as visited or liked when you didn't actually have that experience is Validation Fraud (Terms §6). It's the one thing that breaks vecindad for everyone, and it's a serious violation.
- Don't manipulate the system. No fake or coordinated accounts, no trading validations, no schemes to inflate, deflate, or game recommendations, validations, or anyone's reputation.
If we reasonably believe validation fraud or related abuse has happened, we may remove the content, reverse any related credits or rewards, limit features, and suspend or remove the account (Terms §6).
3. Be a good neighbor
Treat people the way you'd want to be treated by someone your friend vouched for. Don't:
- harass, threaten, bully, stalk, or intimidate anyone;
- post hateful content or attack people based on race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, age, or any other protected characteristic;
- post content that's violent, graphic, or designed to shock or degrade;
- encourage or celebrate harm to others or yourself.
Disagreeing with a recommendation is fine. Being cruel about it is not.
4. Keep it real and useful
vecindad is a recommendation network, not a billboard or a marketplace for attention. Don't:
- spam: no unsolicited promotions, bulk messaging, repetitive posts, or off-topic advertising;
- self-deal: don't recommend or validate your own business, your employer's, or one you have an undisclosed stake in without disclosing it (see §6);
- post deceptive or fraudulent content, scams, fake offers, or anything misleading;
- post illegal content or content that promotes illegal activity;
- violate others' rights: don't post content you don't have the rights to, including others' photos, copyrighted material, or trademarks. (Copyright complaints: legal@askvecindad.com, per Terms §13.)
5. Respect other people's privacy
The trust circle only works if what's shared inside it stays inside it.
- Don't share another member's private information, asks, responses, or contact details outside the context where they shared them.
- Don't post anyone's personal or sensitive information without their consent (no doxxing).
- Don't take asks, recommendations, or other content that was shared with you privately and republish it publicly or outside your trust circle.
- Don't collect, scrape, or harvest information about members or businesses from vecindad except as the app expressly allows.
How we handle your information is described in our Privacy Policy.
6. Incentives and disclosures
This is about honesty when money or perks are involved, and it follows the FTC's rules on endorsements.
If you get anything of value in exchange for a recommendation or validation, you must clearly disclose it. "Anything of value" includes money, free or discounted products or services, gift cards, credits, rewards, or a meaningful personal, family, employment, or business relationship with the business you're recommending.
- The connection must be disclosed clearly and up front, not buried, vague, or implied. A reader should understand the relationship before they rely on your recommendation.
- Don't post a recommendation or validation you wouldn't otherwise give just because you were compensated or asked to.
- Don't misrepresent your experience, and don't pretend to be an ordinary, independent member when you have a stake in the outcome.
- Businesses and their representatives may not pose as independent members, organize others to post recommendations or validations on their behalf, or offer incentives for reviews without ensuring those disclosures happen.
When vecindad introduces features that involve credits, discounts, or rewards tied to recommendations or validations, the app will provide the disclosure tools and prompts you're required to use, and you must follow any additional disclosure requirements we present in the product or in supplemental terms (Terms §6). Until then, the rule is simple: if you were given a reason to recommend something beyond your honest opinion, say so.
7. Reporting and blocking
If you see something that breaks these guidelines:
- Block a member to stop interacting with them. Use the in-app block control on their profile or content.
- Report content or behavior using the in-app report control, or email support@askvecindad.com with enough detail for us to look into it.
Reporting someone is confidential to the extent we can reasonably keep it so. Don't abuse reporting to harass people or to retaliate. Bad-faith reporting is itself a violation.
If you ever feel you're in immediate danger, contact your local emergency services first.
8. What happens when guidelines are broken
We want enforcement to be fair and proportionate. Depending on what happened, we may:
- remove or hide content;
- issue a warning;
- limit the visibility of content or restrict access to certain features;
- reverse credits, rewards, or benefits tied to fraudulent activity;
- suspend an account; or
- remove an account and, where appropriate, prevent re-registration.
We may, but are not required to, monitor the Service or review content, and we don't guarantee that any specific report will result in a particular action or timeframe (Terms §8). We try to match the response to the severity, the intent, and whether it's a repeat, but serious harms, like threats to safety or validation fraud, can result in immediate removal.
If you believe we got an enforcement decision wrong, you can reach us at support@askvecindad.com.
9. Changes to these guidelines
vecindad is early and still being built, so these guidelines will evolve as the product does. When we make material changes, we'll post the updated guidelines, update the "Last Updated" date above, and provide notice in the app or by other appropriate means. Continuing to use vecindad after changes take effect means you accept the updated guidelines.
10. Contact
- Support, reports, and privacy/data requests: support@askvecindad.com
- Copyright and legal notices: legal@askvecindad.com
- Mail: Vecindad, Inc. 4000 W Montrose Ave #2467, Chicago, IL 60641
Thanks for helping keep vecindad a place built on trust. ask the people you trust.