Terms of Service

These Terms of Service are a binding agreement between you and Blackout Chat, the operator of Blackout Chat and BlackOutChat.com ("Blackout Chat," "we," "us"). They cover the website, the installed app, accounts, messaging, nearby messaging, and every related feature (the "Service").

By using the Service, creating an account, or adding an email for updates, you agree to these Terms and the Privacy Policy. If you do not agree, do not use the Service. If you use the Service for an organization, you bind that organization, and you represent that you have authority to do so.

The Service is provided free of charge, "AS IS" and "AS AVAILABLE." Blackout Chat makes no promise that it will keep offering the Service, that it will work on your device, or that any message will be delivered, stored, or recoverable.

We may change, limit, or shut down any part of the Service at any time, with or without notice. We have no obligation to provide support, backups, exports, or a way to recover anything you lose.

Encryption is a tool, not a guarantee. Blackout Chat does not warrant that messages are unreadable to every person, that a device cannot be compromised, that a key cannot be stolen, that software has no flaws, or that the Service makes you anonymous.

You understand the design: message text is sealed on devices before it is stored, and Blackout Chat is not built to read that text. That is not a promise that no one else can. A person with your unlocked device, your passphrase, your recovery code, your passkey, or a flaw in your browser can read what you can read. Nearby messages travel device to device and can fail or be missed. You use every part of this at your own risk.

You are solely responsible for your password, device passphrase, recovery code, passkey, and devices. If you lose them, forget them, or they are taken from you, Blackout Chat has no duty to restore your account, your keys, or your messages. A recovery code is shown once. Earlier messages stay on the device that already has them. We will not reconstruct a conversation for you.

"Forget this device" deletes the locked key from that browser. That deletion is final. Locking the screen, idle lock, and passkeys are conveniences. They are not a promise that an unattended device stays safe.

You must be at least 18. You must give accurate account information and keep your credentials to yourself. You are responsible for everything that happens under your account until you close it or we disable it.

We may refuse, suspend, or delete any account or handle at any time, for any reason or no reason, including if we believe you broke these Terms or created risk for Blackout Chat. We do not have to explain that decision. You may not sell, transfer, or share your account.

You will not:

break the law, or help anyone else break it, with the Service; try to read, alter, or disrupt anyone else's messages or keys; probe, scrape, overload, or reverse engineer the Service except where the law forbids that limit; send malware; impersonate another person; register a handle to mislead; interfere with safety numbers, key history, or encryption; or use the Service to build a competing product or to train a model.

We do not undertake to monitor message text, and we are not obligated to. We may still block accounts, handles, and traffic using information we do have.

You keep whatever rights you have in what you write. You give Blackout Chat only the limited permission required to host, transmit, and delete the sealed copies, public keys, and account data needed to run the Service. That permission ends when the data is deleted, except for copies we must keep to comply with law or to defend a claim.

You are solely responsible for what you send and who you send it to. Blackout Chat is not the publisher of your messages and is not liable for them.

Handles, safety numbers, and key history are tools you may use. They are not a certification that a person is who they say they are. Comparing a safety number is your job. If you skip it, that is your risk.

Sign-in through another provider, your browser, your operating system, Bluetooth, and your device maker are outside our control. We are not liable for what they do, what they fail to do, or what they log.

To the maximum extent permitted by law, you will defend, indemnify, and hold harmless Blackout Chat and its operators, owners, contractors, and agents from every claim, loss, damage, cost, and attorney fee arising out of your use of the Service, your messages, your account, your devices, your violation of these Terms, or your violation of anyone else's rights. We may control the defense, and you will cooperate. This duty survives after you stop using the Service.

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, BLACKOUT CHAT DISCLAIMS EVERY WARRANTY, EXPRESS, IMPLIED, OR STATUTORY, INCLUDING MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, TITLE, QUIET ENJOYMENT, NON-INFRINGEMENT, AND ANY WARRANTY THAT THE SERVICE IS SECURE, PRIVATE, ERROR-FREE, UNINTERRUPTED, OR FIT FOR SENSITIVE, LEGAL, MEDICAL, OR EMERGENCY USE. DO NOT USE THE SERVICE IF FAILURE COULD CAUSE HARM.

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, BLACKOUT CHAT WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, EXEMPLARY, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, OR ANY LOSS OF MESSAGES, KEYS, DATA, PROFITS, GOODWILL, PRIVACY, OR BUSINESS, WHETHER OR NOT WE WERE WARNED.

OUR TOTAL LIABILITY FOR EVERY CLAIM RELATED TO THE SERVICE WILL NOT EXCEED THE GREATER OF ONE HUNDRED U.S. DOLLARS (US $100) OR THE AMOUNT YOU PAID US FOR THE SERVICE IN THE TWELVE MONTHS BEFORE THE CLAIM. THE SERVICE IS FREE, SO THAT AMOUNT MAY BE $100.

These limits are a basic part of the bargain. They apply to every theory: contract, tort, statute, or otherwise. Some places do not allow certain limits. In those places, the limits apply to the fullest extent the law allows, and the rest of these Terms still stand.

You and Blackout Chat agree that any dispute arising out of these Terms or the Service will be resolved by binding individual arbitration, not in court, except that either of us may bring an individual claim in small claims court. You waive any right to a jury trial. You waive any right to participate in a class action, a class arbitration, or a representative action. The arbitrator may not consolidate claims or preside over any form of a representative proceeding.

The arbitration will be conducted by the American Arbitration Association under its Consumer Arbitration Rules, before one arbitrator, in English. The place of arbitration is Wilmington, Delaware, and it may be held by video. The Federal Arbitration Act governs this section. If a court finds the class waiver unenforceable as to a claim, then that claim proceeds in court and this arbitration section does not apply to it. The rest of these Terms still apply.

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Delaware, excluding conflict-of-law rules. Where a claim is allowed in court, the state and federal courts in Wilmington, Delaware have exclusive jurisdiction, and you consent to them.

We may change these Terms by posting a new version. The new version applies when it is posted. If you keep using the Service after that, you accept it. If you do not accept it, stop using the Service.

We may assign these Terms. You may not. If a provision is held invalid, the rest remains in effect. A failure to enforce a right is not a waiver. These Terms, with the Privacy Policy, are the entire agreement between you and Blackout Chat about the Service. They create no rights for any other person. Sections that should survive, including the warranty disclaimer, liability limit, indemnity, and dispute terms, survive.