Child safety standards

Last updated: 9 September 2026

sparq is an adults-only app. We have no tolerance for child sexual abuse or exploitation (CSAE) in any form. This page sets out the standards we hold ourselves and our users to, how to report a concern, and what happens when you do.

1. sparq is for adults only

Everyone who uses sparq must be at least 18 years old. This is not a box we ask people to tick and then forget about:

• A date of birth is required to create a profile, and we compute age from that date rather than storing a number someone typed in.
• The 18+ rule is enforced on our servers, not only in the app. Our database rules independently reject any profile whose date of birth puts the person under 18, so a modified or tampered-with copy of the app cannot get past it.
• Accounts we find to belong to someone under 18 are terminated, and their content is deleted.

If you believe someone on sparq is a minor, please report them — see section 3. You do not need to be certain.

2. What is prohibited

The following are prohibited on sparq without exception, in profiles, photos, written bios and private chat alike. Breaking any of them results in permanent termination of the account.

• Child sexual abuse material (CSAM) in any form — images, video, links, or text.
• Sexualised depictions of minors, including drawn, computer-generated, animated or AI-generated material.
• Grooming or solicitation — any attempt to contact, befriend or manipulate a minor for sexual purposes.
• Sexual extortion of a minor, including threatening to share intimate images.
• Trafficking, advertising or arranging the sexual exploitation of a minor.
• Using sparq while under 18, or creating a profile on behalf of someone under 18.

These rules form part of our Terms of Use.

3. How to report a child safety concern

From inside the app

Every person you can see in sparq can be reported directly:

1. Open the menu on that person's row in Nearby, or the menu inside an open match.
2. Tap Report….
3. Choose Child sexual abuse or exploitation, or They seem underage, whichever fits.

Filing a report blocks that person at the same time. You do not have to wait for us to act before you are protected, and they are not told who reported them.

By email

If you cannot reach the in-app control — for example the person has already been blocked or has left the app — write to support@sparqdating.app and mark the subject child safety. Please do not attach any suspected illegal imagery to your message; tell us what you saw and where, and we will retrieve it ourselves.

Reporting directly to the authorities

You never need our permission or involvement to contact the authorities, and in an emergency you should not wait for us. If a child is in immediate danger, call your local emergency number. In the Netherlands, that is 112.

You can also report child sexual abuse imagery directly to a hotline, wherever you are:

• NCMEC CyberTipline — takes reports from anywhere in the world and passes them to the appropriate authorities.
• Meldpunt — the Dutch national hotline, operated by Offlimits (formerly EOKM). Free phone: 0800 266 64 36.
• Elsewhere, INHOPE lists the national hotline for your country.

4. What happens after you report

• The report goes to a private moderation queue. It is not visible to other users, and it is not visible to the person you reported.
• A person reviews it, and we aim to act within 24 hours. Reports flagged as child safety concerns are prioritised ahead of everything else in the queue.
• If the report is confirmed, we remove the content, permanently terminate the account, and take the steps in section 5.
• We keep a limited moderation record so that we can enforce our Terms and protect other users. This record deliberately outlives the deletion of the account it concerns, as described on our account deletion page and in our Privacy Policy.
• Where the law requires it, we preserve relevant material and associated records for the authorities rather than deleting them.

5. Reporting to the authorities

We comply with the child safety laws that apply to us, and we do not treat confirmed child sexual abuse material as a matter to be handled quietly in-house.

• Confirmed CSAM is reported to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) through its CyberTipline, which accepts reports from providers outside the United States and refers them to the appropriate authorities worldwide.
• We also report to Meldpunt, the Dutch national hotline for online child sexual abuse material operated by Offlimits (formerly EOKM), since sparq is operated from the Netherlands — and to Dutch law enforcement where appropriate.
• We respond to lawful requests from law enforcement and regulators, and we preserve evidence as required while an investigation is open.

6. Point of contact

Our designated point of contact for child safety matters, including questions from regulators, platforms and law enforcement about our CSAM prevention practices:

These standards are published in line with Google Play's Child Safety Standards policy. We review them periodically and will update this page when our practices change.