By downloading, installing, or using the Candao mobile application ("App") or website ("Service"), you agree to be bound by these Terms of Service. If you do not agree, do not use the Service.
Candao is a location-based social platform that enables users to discover people, places, projects, and experiences nearby. Features include:
You must create an account using Apple Sign-In or Google Sign-In. You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your account credentials. You must be at least 17 years old to use the Service.
You retain ownership of content you submit. By posting content, you grant Candao a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free license to use, display, and distribute your content in connection with the Service. You agree not to post content that is illegal, harmful, threatening, abusive, defamatory, or otherwise objectionable.
You can report any user-generated content (chat messages, project cards, user profiles) that violates these Terms by tapping the "..." menu on the content and selecting "Report." We review every open report through our internal moderation tool with an internal service-level objective of 24 hours. Content that receives 3 or more distinct reports within a 24-hour window is automatically hidden from public surfaces pending human review.
You may also block other users via the existing Block action. Blocking suppresses push notifications and filters that user's messages from your view where filtering is supported. We do not disclose the reporter's identity to the reported user, and we do not disclose the reported user's identity to other reporters.
We may, at our discretion: warn the user, soft-delete specific content, suspend the user's account temporarily, or permanently terminate the account for repeated or severe violations. We are not obligated to provide notice or a refund. Subscriptions remain governed by §5.
Candao offers optional paid features ("Premium") including Zero Fee membership. All purchases are processed through Apple's App Store. Subscription terms:
Some project cards in the App may display a "Sponsored" badge or appear with preferential ordering. Sponsored placement is sold by Candao to brand customers through channels outside the App (offline wire transfer or direct billing on candao.io). The App itself does not collect payment for sponsored placement, does not charge App Store users for the sponsorship of others, and does not expose any in-app product or subscription representing sponsored placement.
Reward expectations displayed on sponsored or non-sponsored project cards (for example, "500 PROJECT tokens after launch" or "Free weekly meal + friend codes") are informational only. They describe what the project creator offers to contributors. Any settlement happens off-platform between the project creator and the contributor; no digital goods or services are unlocked in the App by this metadata.
You may close your Candao account at any time from Settings → Privacy & Security → Delete Account. Deletion runs an irreversible cascade designed to remove your personal data while preserving the continuity of shared crews and projects you participated in.
Your account record, profile, email, password hash, push tokens, profile photo, bio, private 1:1 conversations on your side, your private engagement signals (Follow, "I'd use this," "I want to test"), and your chat last-read counters are permanently deleted. Your Firebase Authentication record and Firestore participant docs are deleted, removing all future access to crew chats.
An anonymized record of the deletion is retained for six months for dispute resolution and audit purposes. No personal identifiers are retained beyond the anonymized placeholder.
If you require full erasure of message content beyond the standard cascade, contact privacy@candao.io. Standard cascade satisfies Article 17 for the overwhelming majority of users; exceptional erasure is reserved for cases where retained content materially identifies you despite the "Former member" anonymization. We respond within 30 days.
The "Build Together" surface lets you create projects, join other people's projects as a role, and discuss with other members in private group chat.
You retain ownership of the descriptive content of any project you create (title, description, role definitions, reward expectations). By publishing a project on Candao you grant Candao the same content license described in §4 for the purpose of operating the platform.
When you join a project as a role, you submit a short intro message, select a commitment shape (full-time, part-time, flexible, or occasional), an availability window, and a location preference (remote, nearby, either). These describe your intended capacity; they are not a contract. You can leave the role at any time.
Group chat in a crew is visible to active members of that crew. Chat is text-only in this version; no image, voice, or file uploads. Standard prohibited-content rules from §4 apply. Other members may quote or screenshot your messages; we do not control distribution of content shared inside crew chat once it has been seen by another member.
A project may display a reward summary describing what contributors might receive (project tokens, paid gigs, free meals, portfolio pieces, etc.). These are statements of intent by the project creator. They are not promises by Candao, are not guaranteed, and create no payment obligation on Candao. Any settlement happens off-platform between the project creator and the contributor.
See §5.1.
Any user may share a link to a project, crew, profile, or meeting via the operating system's standard share sheet. Shared links carry a referral parameter ("?ref=") identifying the sharer. If you act on a shared link by joining the project, following the user, or RSVP'ing to the meeting, we record the referral relationship in our backend for community-credit purposes. This is currently informational only; future versions may extend this to payouts governed by terms presented at that time.
You agree not to:
We reserve the right to suspend or terminate your account at any time for violation of these Terms, without prior notice. Upon termination, your right to use the Service ceases immediately.
The Service is provided "as is" without warranties of any kind. We do not guarantee the accuracy of user-submitted content or the availability of the Service.
To the maximum extent permitted by law, Candao shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, or consequential damages arising from your use of the Service.
We may update these Terms when product behavior changes materially. The "Last Updated" date at the top of this page reflects the most recent change. Material changes are announced via in-app banner and, for active accounts, email. Your continued use of Candao after the effective date of a change constitutes acceptance.
For questions about these Terms, contact us at support@candao.io.