Usage and Content Policies: Rules for Using Meetup
Be Real
Meetup profiles are intended to represent real people in a local area. Meetup member profiles must be honest and authentic.
Be Honest: Intentions, Affiliations, Transparency
All members should be open about who they are, their intentions, and their affiliations. All Meetup group and event descriptions should be accurate, to allow members to make informed decisions about their participation.
Be Yourself: Fake Accounts & Impersonation
Creating fake accounts, malicious accounts, or accounts meant to impersonate another person, is prohibited on Meetup.
Be Respectful
Respecting people's time, attention, personal choices, and personal boundaries is essential to creating safe and trusting communities. Be respectful in interactions with people and in content posted on the platform. Meetup monitors and restricts behaviors that are dishonest, undermine the integrity of the platform, violate personal boundaries, or serve to intentionally upset people.
Message Respectfully: Don't Spam
Content sent to a member that is irrelevant, impersonal, unsolicited, promotional, or repetitive is spam.
Set Appropriate Expectations and Honor Them: Don't Tamper with Meetups
Converting or changing events in a Meetup or a Meetup group so that they no longer align with the expectations and purpose set by the organizer and leadership team is misleading and not allowed. …
The intentions of the Meetup group should remain consistent with member expectations as set in the Meetup group description.
Converting
Stepping up as organizer to a Meetup in order to change the focus of the Meetup, to close the Meetup, to send or post promotional content, or to send or post content not aligned with the original description of the Meetup, is prohibited. If it is your intention to change the meaning or purpose of a Meetup, we advise that you start a new Meetup instead. If a Meetup group gets a new organizer, the mission of that Meetup group should stay the same. Events in a Meetup group should reflect intentions expressed in the Meetup group description.
Tampering
Altering the content or settings of a Meetup group without permission from the main organizer, or in a way that is not aligned with the purpose of that Meetup group, is prohibited. Any use of Meetup tools or features to disrupt the Meetup or destroy content for the purpose of undermining or undercutting the established community is a violation of our policies.
Honor Requests for Distance: About Block and Ban Decisions
If you are blocked, you’re blocked. Members must accept and respect any organizer’s decision to ban a member from a group, or a member's decision to block a member from contacting them. Creating new accounts to circumvent block or ban decisions is prohibited.
Nude and Sexual Content
Sexually-explicit images and pornography are not allowed on Meetup. Non-sexual nude and racy images are generally allowed provided they are shared privately in contextually-appropriate communities, and not on public areas of the platform. …
Nudity
Nude or graphic content, written or uploaded, cannot appear in publicly viewable areas of the platform, including in the main profile photo, Meetup group pages, or public photo albums. In groups where nudity is part of their culture, identity or lifestyle, organizers must keep group visibility set to 'Partially' visible in order to limit access to nude content to their members only. Also, Meetup expects Meetup groups' leadership teams to monitor this content.
Sex Solicitation and Prostitution
Meetup prohibits groups that, or individuals who, use Meetup to proposition for sex, or to promote or engage in prostitution. For policies on Meetup groups that may contain such content, please see Sexual Interests and Adult Interests and Identities in Meetup Group Policies.
Shocking, Disturbing, and Violent Content
Gratuitously graphic, disgusting, obscene, or violent content is prohibited. We don't allow content posted to upset, shock, or disturb a Meetup community or its members. …
Child Exploitation
Meetup has a zero tolerance policy regarding child pornography or anything Meetup HQ believes exploits, sexualizes, or fetishizes minors. Such content will be removed from the platform and the uploader will be banned. Meetup reports all child pornography to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children (NCMEC).
Ask for Permission: Consent
Meetup defines consent as welcomed communications and actions to engage with a member. Engaging with anyone in a non-consensual way is strictly prohibited. If ever in doubt, ask permission.
Respect Privacy: Don't Post Other People's Private Information
Posting other people's private information without their explicit consent is prohibited. …
Members and organizers should always be mindful of privacy and use discretion when sharing any private content that belongs to themselves or to other members. For example, phone numbers, social security numbers, addresses, financial information, passwords, and government identification are considered private information.
Be Kind
Bullying, harassment, exploitation, and acts of hate undermine community building in safe spaces where people can trust one another. Building real relationships requires us to be more compassionate and kinder towards one another. Meetup enforces against behaviors that are threatening, intentionally malicious, or personally harmful--physically, emotionally, or mentally.
Be Compassionate: Don't Harass, Bully or Shame
Harassment and bullying are not allowed on Meetup. Meetup will honor requests to remove content that publicly shames or degrades a private individual. …
Members should first contact the uploader or the organizer to request that content be removed.
Harassment is persistent or non-consensual contact from another member. Bullying is the intentional posting of mean content for the purpose of hurting or embarrassing another.
Meetup will honor requests to remove nude, lewd or shaming photos if the subject of that content reports it. Content targeting a public figure, organization, or anyone who has gained news attention, is not subject to these policies.
Act with Integrity: Do Not Manipulate or Exploit
Any attempt to use someone's insecurities or vulnerabilities for personal gain is considered manipulation or exploitation and is prohibited.
Hate and Supremacy
Hate speech, supremacy, or behavior that incites hate or violence against individuals or groups of people based on who they are or their beliefs, is prohibited.
Be Safe
All organizers and members should take ownership over their personal safety and should never put themselves or others in danger. We expect all organizers and members to be mindful of local laws when engaging with their Meetups. Where appropriate, organizers should also set guidelines for their Meetups to ensure their members are participating safely.
No Threats, Violence, or Personal Endangerment
Using Meetup to promote, facilitate, or organize violent, criminal, or non-consensual actions that endanger anyone, physically, mentally or emotionally, is prohibited. …
Credible threats of violence or aggression will be removed and are grounds for removal.
Self-Injury
Meetup does not allow any content that encourages or glorifies self-injury or encourages others to harm themselves.
Copyright and IP
Intellectual Property
We respect the intellectual property rights of others. Posting content that violates another party's intellectual property rights is prohibited. …
When provided with the requisite information, Meetup will remove or disable access to material that infringes on the intellectual property rights of others or remove accounts of those who may be repeat infringers. Please note that simply holding a Meetup around a similar topic in a shared location is generally not considered a violation of our policies.