Child Safety Reporting

HeyOtto is built for kids, teens, and the families who raise them. When something on our platform doesn't meet that standard, we want to know — and we want you to know exactly how we respond.

This page describes how to report concerns, what our Trust & Safety team does after a report, and how we handle the most serious child-safety situations, including cooperation with law enforcement and the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) where required by law.

Report abuse

If you believe a child is being harmed, exploited, or exposed to abusive content on HeyOtto, report it right away. For emergencies, contact local emergency services first — then tell us so we can act.

Contact us now or email our Trust & Safety team at safety@heyotto.app.

Include what happened, where you saw it, and when. For CSAM, do not share or download the material — see our CSAM policy below.

How to report content

Parents and guardians are the first line of oversight on HeyOtto. If you see content that concerns you — in your child's conversations, in a Marketplace listing, or anywhere else on the platform — you can report it in any of the following ways:

• Parent Dashboard. Use in-page reporting tools to flag a conversation, alert, or activity item.
• Email. Write to safety@heyotto.app with a description of the content, where you found it, and the child profile involved if applicable.
• Marketplace. If the concern is a publicly shared creation, include the Marketplace URL or creator name in your report.

You do not need a perfect writeup. Tell us what you saw, where you saw it, and why it concerns you.

How to report a user

HeyOtto is a family platform, not an open social network. When we refer to "reporting a user," we mean reporting behavior tied to an account — such as a Marketplace creator, a co-parent or caregiver on a family account, or a school user in a HeyOtto for Schools deployment.

• Email safety@heyotto.app with the account or display name, what happened, and when.
• If you are a parent on the account, use Parent Dashboard reporting where available and note the account in your email.
• School staff and administrators should include their district or school name and contact information.

Reports of attempts to groom, exploit, or solicit minors are treated as highest priority.

What happens after a report

When we receive a Trust & Safety report, we typically:

1. Acknowledge it. A member of our team confirms we received your report.
2. Review context. We examine the reported content or behavior, related logs, and account history — using the minimum access needed.
3. Take action. This may include content removal, restricting features, suspending an account, or escalating to law enforcement.
4. Follow up. Where appropriate, we notify the reporting parent, guardian, or school contact about the outcome.

Reports involving CSAM, grooming, or imminent harm to a child bypass the standard queue and are escalated immediately.

Response times

• CSAM, grooming, exploitation, or imminent harm: Immediate triage — we begin review as soon as a report is received.
• Acknowledgment: Within 1 business day for standard Trust & Safety reports.
• Initial review: Within 3 business days for most content and conduct reports.
• Marketplace public listings: Human review of parent-approved share requests typically completes within 3–5 business days; urgent safety flags are prioritized.

Content removal

When we confirm that content violates our policies or poses a safety risk, we remove or restrict it. Depending on the situation, that may include deleting conversation segments, revoking Marketplace publications, restricting accounts, and notifying the parent or guardian.

We may preserve copies of removed content when required for legal obligations, abuse prevention, or law-enforcement requests.

Emergency situations

If a child is in immediate danger, contact local emergency services first. In the United States, dial 911. HeyOtto's safety alerts are not a substitute for emergency response.

For crisis support lines and resources in the US, see our Crisis resources page. After contacting emergency services, email safety@heyotto.app so our Trust & Safety team can preserve relevant records.

Child sexual abuse material (CSAM)

HeyOtto has zero tolerance for child sexual abuse material.

We prohibit the creation, storage, sharing, or solicitation of CSAM on our platform. If we become aware of apparent CSAM on HeyOtto, we remove the content immediately, preserve evidence as required by law, report to NCMEC, and suspend or terminate involved accounts.

If you encounter material you believe is CSAM, do not download, copy, or share it. Report it immediately to safety@heyotto.app and, if you are in the United States, to the NCMEC CyberTipline.

Grooming and exploitation

Grooming — building trust with a minor to exploit or abuse them — is prohibited on HeyOtto. This includes attempts to move conversations off-platform, solicit personal information, send inappropriate material, or manipulate a child emotionally or sexually.

• Conversations with Otto are filtered and monitored for age-inappropriate and harmful content
• Parents receive real-time safety alerts for serious categories of concern
• Public sharing requires explicit parent approval and human review
• HeyOtto is not built for stranger-to-child messaging

If you see grooming behavior, report it immediately to safety@heyotto.app. Otto also follows a maintained self-harm and suicide-risk protocol that refers at-risk users to crisis resources in real time. See our Crisis resources page and AI Ethics page for details.

Mandatory reporting

Where federal or state law requires us to report suspected child abuse, neglect, or exploitation — including when we obtain actual knowledge of apparent CSAM on our service — we will make reports to the appropriate authorities. This may include NCMEC, law enforcement, or state child protective agencies.

Cooperation with law enforcement

We cooperate with law enforcement and respond to valid legal process — including subpoenas, court orders, and emergency disclosure requests — in accordance with applicable law. Child-safety matters take priority.

Law enforcement may contact our Trust & Safety team at safety@heyotto.app. For security vulnerabilities, use security@heyotto.app and our Vulnerability Disclosure Policy.

Reporting to NCMEC (where required by law)

Under U.S. federal law (18 U.S.C. § 2258A), providers like HeyOtto must report apparent CSAM on our service to NCMEC when we become aware of it.

Under the REPORT Act of 2024, we preserve records related to a CyberTipline report for at least one year, as required by 18 U.S.C. § 2258A(h).

Anyone can report suspected online exploitation of a child to NCMEC at report.cybertip.org.

Contact email for Trust & Safety

For content reports, conduct concerns, grooming, CSAM, or any child-safety issue on HeyOtto: safety@heyotto.app.

For general product help, billing, or account access, contact support@heyotto.app or visit Support.