Terms of Service (Draft)

Draft — not yet published

This is a starting draft, not a finished legal document. It has not been reviewed by a lawyer and should not be relied on as the app’s real Terms of Service or Privacy Policy until it has been — especially given the open questions about donations and children’s use of the app noted below.

1. Agreement to these Terms

By creating an account, using guest mode, or otherwise using the Minka Asalam app ("the App," "we," "us"), you agree to these Terms of Service. If you do not agree, please do not use the App.

2. What the App Is

The App is a free, ad-free, bilingual (English/Arabic) app for exploring Islamic knowledge through an interactive knowledge map, short video clips, and longer videos, organized around a set of content "modes" (including one intended for children) that the person using the app chooses. The App also lets you comment on content, like and follow other users and featured scholars, bookmark content, and optionally express support for scholars or the app through voluntary donations.

3. Accounts

You can use the App by creating an account with an email address and password, or by using guest mode, which does not require providing an email address at all. If you create an account, you are responsible for keeping your password secure and for all activity under your account.

"Continue with Google" and "Continue with Apple" buttons currently visible in the App are placeholders and are not yet functional — they do not perform a real sign-in.

4. Age, Children & Family Profiles — read before relying on this

The App asks for your birthdate when you sign up or continue as a guest, and uses it to route you to age-appropriate content. If you report being under 13, the App does not open an account or a guest session for you and stores nothing about you: you are shown an "Ask a parent" screen instead. A child uses the App only through a family profile that a parent creates from inside the parent’s own account.

A child profile belongs to the parent’s account. The parent chooses the child’s display name, birthdate (used only to pick the content level), a preset avatar, and which map the child learns from (Children, Teens, or the full curriculum); the parent can also choose the child’s interests, and the child can add interests from the map. A child profile has no email address of its own, no password the child knows, no bio, no photo, no public profile page, and cannot comment. The parent can see the child’s activity (likes, saves, interests, follows) in the Family section, change the child’s interests and map level, open the profile on the child’s own phone with a one-time code, sign the child out of any phone, and delete the profile — a deleted profile can be restored for seven days and is then erased, or is erased at once at the parent’s request. Leaving a child profile on a shared phone needs the parent’s PIN.

This is the mechanism by which a parent, not the child, provides the information and stands as the consent for the child’s use of the App. It does not by itself settle the legal question: the parent’s birthdate is self-reported and not verified, and whether this arrangement meets the requirements of children’s privacy laws such as COPPA (in the United States), where they apply, must be reviewed by a lawyer before this app is published to app stores. If you are under 13 (or the relevant minimum age where you live), use the App only through a profile your parent or legal guardian has created for you.

5. Guidelines for using the App

When posting comments or interacting with other users, you agree not to post anything unlawful, harassing, hateful, or that infringes someone else’s rights.

You can report a comment or block another user from within the App. Reports are reviewed manually by us, not by an automated system, and there is currently no guaranteed response time.

6. Content on the App

Videos, clips, and other educational material on the App are attributed to their scholars or sources. We try to only host content we have a reasonable basis to believe we may use, but rights clearance for religious educational content — particularly where a scholar has passed away or is said to have "publicly waived" copyright — is a genuinely unresolved legal question that has not been fully reviewed by counsel.

If you believe content on the App infringes your rights, contact us at support@minkasalam.com and we will review it.

Anything you post yourself (comments, your profile bio, your avatar photo) remains yours, but by posting it you give us permission to display it within the App as part of its normal operation.

7. Donations

You can currently express an intent to support the App, generally or for a specific scholar, with a suggested-amount, no-benefit-unlocked donation. No real payment processing is connected yet — donations described in the App do not currently collect money.

We do not currently hold registered nonprofit status. Any future donation feature will be described honestly once it is real, including who receives the funds and whether contributions are tax-deductible (likely not, absent formal nonprofit registration).

8. Religious Content Disclaimer

Content on the App is offered for general educational purposes. It is not a substitute for personal guidance from a qualified scholar. Please use your own judgment and consult qualified scholars for religious rulings specific to your own situation.

9. Account Deletion

You can request deletion of your account from Settings. Requesting deletion signs you out immediately and marks your account for deletion, but actually removing your data from our systems is currently a manual process on our side, not an instant one.

10. Disclaimers & Limitation of Liability

The App is provided "as is," without warranties of any kind. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we are not liable for indirect or consequential damages arising from your use of the App. [Placeholder — this section should be tailored by a lawyer to the jurisdiction ultimately chosen below.]

11. Changes to These Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. Continued use of the App after a change means you accept the updated Terms.

12. Governing Law

Placeholder — no governing jurisdiction has been chosen yet, and no formal legal entity currently operates the App. This should be filled in with legal advice before publishing.

13. Contact

Questions about these Terms can be sent to support@minkasalam.com.