Terms & Conditions of Use

Covalent is a platform that connects people going through loneliness or personal difficulties (specific or general) into small groups (of 4 to 6 people) of other users in similar situations, with the goal of providing mutual peer support.

The Platform is NOT:

• A mental health, therapy, psychology, psychiatry, or professional counseling service of any kind.
• An emergency or crisis-intervention service.
• A substitute for medical, psychological, or professional care.

The content and interactions within the groups are generated by the users themselves, without permanent professional supervision or clinical validation.

2.1. To use the Platform you must be at least 18 years of age and have the legal capacity to enter into contracts. We reserve the right to request age verification and to suspend accounts belonging to minors.

2.2. When you register, you agree to provide truthful information and to keep it up to date. You are responsible for the confidentiality of your access credentials and for all activity carried out from your account.

2.3. We reserve the right to refuse, suspend, or delete any account at our discretion, in particular where there are signs of misuse, risk to other users, or breach of these Terms.

3.1. Assignment to a group is based on the information the User reports about their situation at the time of registration or during use of the App. This assignment is carried out through automated and/or manual processes, and does not guarantee compatibility, affinity, or results of any kind among the members of the group.

3.2. We may reorganize groups, remove members, or dissolve a group at any time, without needing to justify the reason to the User, especially in response to reports of inappropriate conduct.

4.1. Within the Platform, personal contact information (phone number, social media, addresses, email addresses, full last names, etc.) is not shared through the App's official tools, and we actively discourage users from sharing it on their own within the groups.

4.2. Each User agrees to:

• Respect the confidentiality of what other members share within the group, and not disclose it outside the Platform.
• Not record, capture, or reproduce others' conversations without consent.
• Maintain respectful treatment, without discrimination, harassment, or offensive content.

4.3. Important — the real limit of this clause: while the Platform prohibits these behaviors and takes action in response to reports, we cannot technically guarantee or control that other users will honor this confidentiality, since interactions take place between people outside our direct control. The User acknowledges this inherent risk of sharing personal information with other people, even in a moderated environment.

4.4. There is a channel within the App for reporting users/conduct. In the event of serious violations, we may suspend or delete accounts.

5.1. The Platform is provided "as is", without warranties of any kind regarding results, emotional improvement, group compatibility, uninterrupted availability, or freedom from errors.

5.2. Covalent is not responsible for:

• The content, comments, advice, or conduct of other users within the groups.
• Emotional, psychological, material, or any other kind of harm that may arise from interactions between users, whether inside or outside the Platform.
• Decisions a User makes based on what was discussed within a group.
• Crisis situations, self-harm, or any event that happens to a User or as a result of their participation in the App.

5.3. To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, Covalent's total liability for any claim related to the use of the Platform is limited to the amount actually paid by the User to Covalent during the twelve (12) months prior to the event giving rise to the claim. If the User used the Platform free of charge during that period, that limit equals USD 0 (zero US dollars).

5.4. The User uses the Platform at their own risk and discretion.

Because the Platform works with people who report feeling lonely or in difficult situations, there is a real risk that some user may go through a serious emotional crisis (including risk of self-harm or suicide) while using the App.

6.1. The Platform is not designed or equipped to intervene in emergencies. In a situation of risk, the User must contact local emergency services or suicide-prevention hotlines in their country, and must not rely on the App or on the other members of the group.

6.2. When the Covalent team becomes aware — whether through a report from another user, content moderation, or any other means — that a User may be going through a situation that puts their safety at risk, it may (without being obligated to do so in every case, and without this implying that it assumes a professional or emergency role):

• Contact the User involved directly.
• Suggest professional help resources and emergency hotlines available in their country.
• Suspend or remove the User from their group and/or from the Platform, temporarily or permanently, when deemed necessary for their safety or that of other members.

6.3. This intervention is a good-faith measure and does not constitute medical, psychological, or emergency assistance, nor does it create a legal obligation for Covalent to detect, prevent, or respond to risk situations affecting any particular User.

7.1. We collect and process the data you provide when you register, when you report your situation, and the data generated by your use of the Platform (interactions, usage metadata, etc.), in accordance with our Privacy Policy.

7.2. By accepting these Terms, you authorize Covalent to use your information to:

• Improve the product, including the group-formation algorithm.
• Conduct internal analysis, statistics, and development of new features.
• Carry out internal research on the use of the Platform.

7.3. Where possible, this information will be used in an aggregated and/or anonymized form. The information you report about your personal situation may constitute a special or “sensitive” category of data under various data-protection regulations (for example, data relating to health or emotional wellbeing). By accepting these Terms and completing your situation report, you give your express consent for Covalent to process this information for the purposes described in this section.

7.4. Covalent may operate with users from different countries. Where the User's local regulations grant additional rights over their personal data (for example, GDPR in the European Union, LGPD in Brazil, or other equivalent laws), Covalent will respect those rights to the extent required by that regulation.

7.5. We do not sell your personal information to third parties for advertising purposes.

7.6. You may request access to, correction of, or deletion of your data by writing to admin.covalent@gmail.com, in accordance with the data-protection regulations applicable in your country.

8.1. We reserve the right to monitor, review, or moderate the content shared within the groups, to the extent necessary to ensure user safety and compliance with these Terms.

8.2. It is prohibited to use the Platform for: harassment, hate speech, sexual content, promotion of self-harm, sale of products or services, spam, impersonation, or any illegal activity.

8.3. We may remove content and suspend accounts without prior notice in the event of serious breaches.

All software, design, brand, logo, and content belonging to the Platform are the property of Covalent and are protected by applicable intellectual property law. The User is granted no license beyond personal, non-commercial use of the App.

The User agrees to indemnify and hold harmless Covalent, its officers, and its employees from any claim, damage, or expense arising from: (a) their misuse of the Platform, (b) their breach of these Terms, or (c) their interaction with other users.

We may modify these Terms at any time. Relevant changes will be notified within the App or by email. Continued use of the Platform after such changes implies acceptance of them.

You may delete your account at any time. We may suspend or delete your account if you breach these Terms, without any obligation to compensate you.

These Terms are governed by the laws of the Oriental Republic of Uruguay. Any dispute will be submitted to the competent courts of Montevideo. This does not limit the rights that, as a consumer, the User may have under the mandatory public-order rules of their own country of residence, to the extent that such rules are mandatorily applicable.

For questions about these Terms, you can write to us at admin.covalent@gmail.com.