Safety Guide
Last updated 6 August 2026
Reality is camera-only, which makes it harder for someone to be a person they are not. It does not make it impossible. We do not run background checks or verify anyone's identity — so here is what actually keeps you safe.
If you are in immediate danger, call 000.
1800RESPECT — national sexual assault, domestic and family violence counselling: 1800 737 732
Lifeline — 24-hour crisis support: 13 11 14
Before you meet
- Talk in the app first. There is no rush to move to another platform. Someone pushing hard to get you onto WhatsApp or Telegram within minutes is a pattern worth noticing.
- Video or voice call before meeting. It is the fastest way to confirm someone is who their photos say they are.
- Search them. A quick look at their name and photos online is normal and sensible.
- Don't share identifying details early. Your last name, address, workplace, daily routine and financial situation can all wait.
- Trust the feeling. If something is off, you do not owe anyone an explanation. Unmatch and block.
Meeting for the first time
- Meet in public, somewhere busy, in daylight if you can. Not their home, not yours, not a private space.
- Tell someone. Who you are meeting, where, and when you expect to be back. Share your live location with a friend.
- Get yourself there and back. Your own transport means you can leave whenever you want.
- Watch your drink. Order it yourself, keep it with you, and do not accept a drink you did not see poured.
- Keep your phone charged.
- You can leave at any time, for any reason or none. Being polite is not worth being unsafe.
Red flags
- Asks for money. Any amount, any reason — an emergency, a plane ticket, a customs fee, a sick relative, a can't-miss investment. This is the single most common scam on every dating app. Never send money to someone you have not met.
- Moves impossibly fast emotionally. Intense declarations within days, from someone who has never met you, is a technique.
- Always has a reason they can't video call.
- Wants to move to another app immediately, before you have talked at all.
- Story keeps changing — job, location, age, why they're here.
- Pressures you for photos, for personal details, to meet somewhere private, or to do anything you have said no to.
- Claims to be overseas on an oil rig, in the military, or on a contract, and needs help getting home.
If you see any of these, report the profile. You are almost certainly not the only person they have contacted.
Protecting your photos and information
- Reality strips location and camera data from every photo automatically, and photos are only ever served through links that expire after an hour.
- But we cannot stop someone screenshotting. Assume anything you send can be saved and shared. Do not send anything you would not want seen.
- Sharing an intimate image of someone without their consent is a criminal offence in Australia. If it happens to you, report it in the app and to the eSafety Commissioner's image-based abuse service — they can compel removal.
Tools in the app
- Block — removes someone from your experience immediately. They are not told. Available on every profile, conversation, like and message request.
- Report — confidential. The person is never told who reported them. Available in the same places, and still available after you decline someone.
- Message requests — you decide who gets to talk to you.
- Photo scanning — every photo is checked automatically for explicit content before it appears.
We aim to act on every report within 24 hours.
Getting help
If something happened to you through Reality, please tell us even if you have also gone to the police. It helps us stop the same person doing it to someone else.