Terms of Service

Welcome to VENT. By downloading, accessing, or using our mobile application ("the App"), you agree to be bound by these Terms of Service ("Terms"). Please read them carefully before using VENT.

By accessing or using VENT, you agree to these Terms and our Privacy Policy. If you do not agree to these Terms, you must not use VENT. We may update these Terms from time to time, and your continued use of the App constitutes acceptance of any changes.

• You must be at least 17 years old to use VENT
• By using VENT, you represent and warrant that you meet this age requirement
• If we discover you are under 17, your account will be terminated immediately and all associated data will be deleted

VENT is a platform for anonymous, supportive emotional expression. The App enables you to:

• Post text or voice vents to share your thoughts and feelings
• React to and comment on others' vents (text and voice comments)
• Set an optional username and personalize your profile
• Pin a vent to your profile
• Build streaks and earn badges through participation
• Use home-screen widgets for quick check-ins

4.1 Anonymous Access

VENT identifies you primarily through an anonymous device identifier. You are not required to provide your real name, email, or any personally identifying information to use the App.

4.2 Optional Profile

You may optionally set a username and bio. Usernames must be appropriate and may not impersonate others, contain offensive language, or violate these Terms. We reserve the right to remove or reassign usernames that violate these rules.

4.3 Account Security

You are responsible for all activity that occurs under your device or account. If you believe your account has been compromised, contact us immediately at support@vent.so.

VENT is built on mutual respect and support. To keep the community safe, you agree NOT to post, share, or transmit content that:

• Constitutes or depicts child sexual abuse material (CSAM) — VENT has zero tolerance for child sexual abuse material or any content that sexualizes, exploits, or endangers minors. We do not permit the creation, sharing, or distribution of such content. Any such content will be removed immediately, the account will be permanently banned, and we will report it to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) and/or law enforcement as required by law.
• Harasses or bullies others — No personal attacks, threats, intimidation, or targeted abuse
• Contains hate speech — No discrimination based on race, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, disability, age, or any other protected characteristic
• Encourages self-harm or suicide — No content promoting, glorifying, or instructing self-injury or suicidal behavior
• Is sexually explicit — No pornography, sexually explicit content, or sexual solicitation
• Is spam or advertising — No promotional content, solicitations, scams, or repetitive/low-quality posts
• Violates others' privacy — No sharing of others' personal or identifying information (doxxing)
• Promotes illegal activity — No content encouraging or facilitating unlawful conduct
• Infringes intellectual property — Do not post content you do not have the right to share
• Contains misinformation — No deliberate impersonation of others or spreading of known false information
• Manipulates or abuses platform features — No exploiting bugs, creating fake engagement, or circumventing bans or blocks

These rules apply to all content across the App, including vents, comments, usernames, bios, and voice recordings.

VENT allows you to create voice vents and voice comments (audio recordings). When using this feature:

• All Community Rules apply to voice content, including spoken words
• Audio recordings are uploaded to our servers and may be played by other users
• You must only record your own voice — do not record others without their consent
• Voice content is subject to the same moderation policies as text content
• Voice vents are available to subscribers and may be browsed in a dedicated voice feed
• We reserve the right to remove audio content that violates these Terms

You own your content. However, by posting content to VENT, you grant us a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free, transferable license to:

• Display, store, and distribute your content within the App
• Moderate, edit, or remove content that violates these Terms
• Use anonymized and aggregated content data for analytics, research, and product improvement
• Enable other users to share your public content through the App's sharing features

You are responsible for your content. You represent and warrant that:

• You have all necessary rights to post the content
• Your content does not violate any third party's rights
• Your content complies with applicable laws and these Terms

We are committed to maintaining a safe and supportive community. We reserve the right to:

• Remove or restrict content that violates these Terms
• Use automated tools to detect harmful content, including self-harm keywords, profanity, and spam patterns
• Review content that has been reported by users
• Suspend or terminate accounts that repeatedly violate these Terms
• Take action at our sole discretion to protect the safety of users

Reporting: If you see content that violates these Terms, use the in-app Report option on the post. You may report content for harassment, spam, hate speech, self-harm content, misinformation, child safety concerns, or other reasons. You may also contact us at support@vent.so (also shown in the App under Help & safety).

Response to reports: We operate a moderation workflow (including dedicated admin review tools) with a target to review and take appropriate action within three (3) hours for reports of objectionable content or abusive behavior. In all cases we aim to act within 24 hours at the latest, which may include removing the content and suspending or permanently banning the user who posted it, consistent with these Terms and applicable law.

You may block any user at any time. When you block a user:

• They will not see your vents or comments
• Their content will be hidden from your feed and comments
• You can unblock a user at any time

We may suspend or permanently ban your account if:

• You violate these Terms or Community Rules
• You are under 17 years old
• Your account is used for illegal activity
• You attempt to circumvent a previous ban or block
• Required by law or to protect user safety

If your account is banned, you will see a notification explaining the reason. Banned users may not create new accounts.

You may delete your account at any time through the app's Settings. Upon deletion, your data will be permanently removed within 30 days, except for data we are legally required to retain.

11.1 Free Tier

VENT is free to use with the following limits:

• Up to 3 vents per day
• Access to core features (feed, comments, reactions, profiles)

11.2 vent.so +

vent.so + removes the free daily post limit and unlocks subscriber features including custom themes, voice notes where available, sharing and download where the app supports those actions, and priority support. The in-app paywall and subscription screens describe the current benefits. Subscriptions are offered monthly or yearly; yearly pricing is set below twelve times the monthly equivalent where savings are indicated in the subscription picker.

11.3 Payment & Billing

• All subscriptions are processed through Apple's App Store and are subject to Apple's terms and conditions
• Payment is charged to your Apple ID account at confirmation of purchase
• Subscriptions automatically renew unless canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current billing period
• You can manage or cancel your subscription in your device's Settings > Apple ID > Subscriptions

11.4 Refunds

Refund requests are handled by Apple in accordance with their refund policy. We do not process refunds directly.

11.5 Changes to Pricing

We reserve the right to change subscription pricing. Existing subscribers will be notified in advance and price changes will not affect active subscription periods.

VENT tracks your activity (vents posted, comments, reactions, and streaks) and awards badges for reaching milestones.

• Engagement metrics and badges are for community purposes only and have no monetary value
• We reserve the right to adjust scoring and badge criteria at any time
• Manipulating or artificially inflating your engagement metrics is a violation of these Terms

VENT uses server-driven feature configuration. This means:

• Features (such as reactions, audio vents, widgets, sharing, and badges) may be enabled, disabled, or modified at any time without an app update
• You may be enrolled in A/B experiments that provide different feature variations
• We may require you to update to a minimum app version to continue using VENT
• Feature availability does not guarantee permanent access to any specific functionality

VENT, its logo, design, code, and features are owned by us and protected by copyright, trademark, and other intellectual property laws. You may not:

• Copy, modify, or distribute our App or its content
• Reverse engineer, decompile, or disassemble the App
• Use our name, logo, or branding without prior written permission
• Create derivative works based on VENT
• Use automated tools, bots, or scrapers to access or interact with the App

VENT is provided "AS IS" and "AS AVAILABLE" without warranties of any kind, whether express or implied. We do not guarantee:

• That VENT will always be available, uninterrupted, or error-free
• That content posted by users is accurate, reliable, or appropriate
• That VENT is suitable for any particular purpose
• That user-generated content represents our views or endorsement
• The accuracy or availability of mental health resources linked within the App

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law:

• We are not liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages
• Our total aggregate liability to you shall not exceed the amount you paid to us in the 12 months preceding the claim (if any)
• We are not responsible for user-generated content or actions taken by other users
• We are not liable for loss of data, profits, goodwill, or any other intangible losses
• We are not liable for any harm arising from interactions with other users

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless VENT, its officers, directors, employees, and agents from any claims, damages, losses, or expenses (including reasonable legal fees) arising from your use of the App, your content, or your violation of these Terms.

VENT may contain links to third-party websites or services, including mental health resources and crisis hotlines. We are not responsible for:

• The content, accuracy, or practices of third-party services
• Your interactions with third parties
• Third-party privacy policies or terms of service

Use of third-party services is at your own risk and subject to those services' own terms.

We may update these Terms from time to time. We will notify you of material changes by:

• Posting the updated Terms in the App and on our website
• Updating the "Last Updated" date at the top of this page
• Sending an in-app notification for significant changes

Your continued use of VENT after updated Terms are posted constitutes acceptance of the new Terms. If you do not agree with the updated Terms, you must stop using VENT.

These Terms are governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the United States and the state in which VENT operates, without regard to conflict of law principles.

Any disputes arising from these Terms or your use of VENT will be resolved as follows:

1. Informal Resolution: Contact us first at vent@vent.so to attempt to resolve the issue informally. We will work in good faith to address your concern within 30 days.
2. Binding Arbitration: If informal resolution fails, disputes will be resolved through binding arbitration administered under the rules of the American Arbitration Association (AAA). Arbitration will be conducted on an individual basis.

Class Action Waiver: You agree to resolve disputes on an individual basis only. You waive the right to participate in any class action, class arbitration, or representative proceeding.

If any provision of these Terms is found to be unenforceable or invalid by a court of competent jurisdiction, the remaining provisions will remain in full force and effect.

These Terms, together with our Privacy Policy, constitute the entire agreement between you and VENT regarding your use of the App and supersede all prior agreements, understandings, and communications.