Rules governing lawful and responsible use of the 10 Seconds messaging service.
This Acceptable Use Policy ("AUP") governs use of 10 Seconds, operated by Sterling and Pierce Holding L.L.C-FZ ("10 Seconds", "we", or "us"). It applies to individual subscribers (Clear Trail / Ghost Protocol), Enterprise pack purchasers, administrators, and authorised sub-account users, whether acting for personal or professional purposes.
This AUP forms part of the Terms of Service where disclosed and accepted as part of the applicable contract. Mandatory law takes precedence over any inconsistent provision.
Private communications are end-to-end encrypted. This AUP does not represent that we routinely inspect private message contents or maintain an archive of conversations. The service's processing and retention practices are described in the Privacy Policy and Security documentation.
Encryption and ephemeral messaging do not authorise unlawful use or remove legal obligations applicable to users or to 10 Seconds.
10 Seconds is intended for lawful personal and professional communications between participants who arrange to access the same private chat. Appropriate use cases include:
Using 10 Seconds does not, by itself, establish legal privilege, guarantee source protection, or satisfy medical, financial, employment, evidentiary, or other professional recordkeeping requirements. Users must assess any confidentiality, retention, and authorisation duties applicable to their activities.
The service must not be used to circumvent a binding duty to preserve evidence or records. It is not an emergency communications service.
These prohibitions do not treat lawful reporting of abuse, requests for assistance, or lawful journalistic discussion as participation in the underlying misconduct. However, they do not authorise transmission of prohibited material under the pretext of reporting it — see Section 7 for the correct reporting procedure.
You must not use the service to:
A pseudonym is permitted as a chat identifier. It must not be used to impersonate another person deceptively. Where billing, business, or other information is requested, you must not knowingly provide false information or falsely claim authority to act for another person or organisation.
You must not:
Allocation of authorised accesses through an Enterprise pack is permitted within the features and limits of that offer. It is not, by itself, prohibited resale or credential sharing.
These restrictions do not remove rights granted by mandatory law. Authorised security research must remain within its permitted scope. Vulnerabilities may be reported to contact@10seconds.io; we acknowledge every valid report within 72 hours.
You are responsible under applicable law for your conduct, the information you communicate, and any permissions required for that communication. End-to-end encryption does not exempt you from those obligations.
A breach by a user does not, by itself, establish liability on the part of 10 Seconds. Equally, this AUP does not exclude our responsibility for our own acts, omissions, or mandatory legal obligations.
Law enforcement agencies may independently compel access to device-level content through lawful process directed at you or your devices. We may be compelled to provide account-level metadata (as described in our Law Enforcement information) in response to valid legal process.
Suspected misuse may be reported to contact@10seconds.io. Please provide a clear description, the identifiers already available to you (room name, username, approximate date and time), and information reasonably necessary to understand the concern.
Please do not send passwords, private keys, recovery phrases, or unnecessary personal information in support emails.
If someone faces immediate danger, contact the appropriate local emergency services. Our support address is not an emergency response channel.
We assess reports using information lawfully available to us. A report is not automatically treated as proof of misconduct. Our ability to investigate may be limited where communications have expired or relevant information is not held.
Where supported by sufficiently reliable information, a material breach, a serious security risk, or a binding legal requirement, we may take proportionate measures. These may include a warning, a request to remedy a breach, a restriction of relevant functionality, suspension, or termination of access.
Immediate protective action may be necessary for serious exploitation (notably CSAM), credible threats, an active attack, or another situation in which delay would create a serious risk. We may also act immediately where required by law.
Where reasonably practicable and appropriate, we provide notice and an opportunity to remedy a breach before taking action. We explain material restrictions unless disclosure is legally prohibited or would create a justified security or safety risk.
Users may request review of an enforcement decision by contacting contact@10seconds.io. We reassess relevant information and correct unjustified measures without undue delay.
Good-faith complaints, privacy requests, and payment disputes are not, by themselves, violations of this AUP. Suspension or termination does not automatically remove statutory refund or other consumer rights.
We comply with reporting obligations that legally apply to our activities, using the competent recipient, applicable reporting threshold, and required procedure. We do not automatically transmit every allegation to every national or international authority.
Where 18 U.S.C. §2258A applies to us and its reporting conditions are met, we make the required report to NCMEC through its CyberTipline as soon as reasonably possible. We also comply with associated preservation requirements to the extent legally applicable.
Reporting obligations under applicable UAE law are handled through the competent UAE authorities and procedures. Other disclosures must have a lawful basis and comply with applicable privacy and international transfer requirements.
The service's ordinary ephemeral operation does not override a binding legal preservation obligation applicable to information actually within our possession or control. Such an obligation does not mean that previously deleted conversations can be reconstructed — only information still held can be preserved.
This AUP does not promise routine monitoring or decryption of private communications, or the existence of retained account metadata, message histories, logs, or backups beyond what is described in the Privacy Policy.
You must not use 10 Seconds for money laundering, terrorist financing, sanctions evasion, or any other prohibited financial activity.
Restrictions are assessed under the sanctions and other laws applicable to the relevant parties, service, and transaction, taking account of any lawful exemptions or authorisations. A reference to a sanctions regime does not mean that every transaction involving a particular country is prohibited; conversely, the absence of a mention does not authorise an otherwise unlawful transaction.
We may seek proportionate clarification or restrict a transaction where legally required or justified by specific compliance concerns. Payment providers (Stripe, CoinPayments) may conduct separate checks under their own obligations; their checks do not automatically replace obligations independently applicable to 10 Seconds.
Any rejection, refund, blocking, or release of funds must comply with applicable law. We do not promise an immediate refund where a legal freeze or other restriction prevents it. This provision does not authorise us to retain funds without a lawful basis.
Users and partners must not represent that 10 Seconds provides immunity from legal investigation, guarantees absolute anonymity, authorises unlawful activity, or constitutes identity certification of any user.
Affiliates and introducers must comply with their separate Affiliate Terms or Introducer Agreement and applicable advertising rules (notably FTC endorsement guidelines for the US, DGCCRF rules for France, equivalent rules elsewhere). They must not make misleading claims about security, identity verification, legal compliance, earnings, or any form of "untraceability".
Breach of this section may result in immediate termination of the affiliate relationship, forfeiture of pending commissions, and public correction of the misrepresentation.
This AUP may be updated to address changes in the service, security risks, or applicable requirements. Material changes are communicated and implemented in accordance with the Terms of Service and applicable law, including through the blocking acknowledgment screen described in the TOS.
Changes do not retroactively convert previously permitted conduct into a contractual breach or remove accrued rights. Mandatory legal obligations remain applicable when they take effect.
Nothing in this AUP excludes mandatory consumer protections, privacy rights, access to competent authorities or courts, or liability that cannot lawfully be excluded.
Version 2026.14 · Effective 2026-10-22.
Published by Sterling and Pierce Holding L.L.C-FZ, Meydan Free Zone, Dubai (UAE).
Contact: contact@10seconds.io — single point of contact for all matters.