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Safety: distances, reports and blocking

Your position is rounded to ~500 m and never shown; any player can be reported or blocked.

The Messages section is built so that chatting with players nearby is convenient while nobody learns your exact location. If someone behaves unacceptably, you can block them and report them to the moderators.

Distances are approximate — ±500 m

In the nearby chat another player's message shows the distance to its author. Every player's position is snapped to a grid cell of about 500 m, and the distance is measured between cells. That is why it is shown in half-kilometre steps: "< 1 km", "3.5 km", "38 km".

Why this way

Random "noise" in a distance does not protect anyone: it can be averaged out with repeated requests, and by moving around and comparing exact distances one could work out an address. Snapping to a grid removes that: one cell is one point, the same for everyone inside it.

A message's coordinates are stored as a cell only and are never handed out.
The distance is fixed at the moment of sending: if the author moves away, it does not change.
You can shrink the radius of the nearby chat or turn the chat off entirely — then only messages that mention you via @ arrive.

Reporting to the moderators

You can report a message in the nearby chat (the quote is attached) and the other player in a private conversation (the last messages of the conversation are attached — the moderators need the context). The reasons: spam or advertising, rudeness, threats or harassment, other. The author will not learn who reported them.

Personal blocking

Blocking is your personal filter; it needs no report. A blocked player:

is hidden from you in the nearby chat; their private messages and mentions do not reach you;
does not see your Telegram or phone and cannot invite you to a game, a tournament or a booking;
sees in the private conversation that they are blocked and that their messages do not reach you.

You do not write to a blocked player either until you lift the block — that is done in the conversation with them. Tournaments are not restricted: both still see each other's tournaments and sign up for any open ones. Played games and the rating do not change.

Important

A mention via @ always arrives, even outside the radius and with the chat off — that is how you call a specific player. The only protection from intrusive mentions is blocking.