Commitment to Transparency
At Kick, we are committed to transparency and accountability in our operations. We believe that transparency is essential for building trust with our users and the broader community. As part of this commitment, we will regularly publish transparency reports that provide detailed information about how we handle regulator requests, content moderating processes and removal, industry engagement, reporting and other relevant information.
Commitment to Safety
Kick has a comprehensive strategy that addresses various aspects of platform safety, including content moderation, user guidance, user settings, privacy, a compliance program and platform security.
Here are some key components of such an approach:
Content Moderation: We use a combination of human moderators and Artificial Intelligence to monitor and remove harmful content.
User Reporting Mechanism: We make available functionality for users to be able to utilize tools for reporting of harmful content, this ensures that reports are reviewed promptly and effectively.
Channel Management: We maintain enforcement action guidelines to ensure consistency in application of consequences for display of content which is not in line with our community guidelines, this can include shadow, temporary and permanent bans.
User Awareness: We make available online safety guidance via resources available in our Help & Support section available on the Kick website.
Transparent Community Guidelines: We maintain and make available clearly defined community guidelines for users, outlining what is acceptable and when actions will be taken against guideline contravention.
Privacy Protection: We implement measures to protect user privacy, such as data encryption, secure authentication methods, and clear data handling policies.
Establish and Maintain a Safe Environment: We will create and maintain a safe online environment, including implementing appropriate safety measures.
Responding to Regulator Requests: We respond promptly and appropriately to regulatory authorities as required by law.
Regular Audits and Compliance Reviews: Conduct regular audits and reviews of safety practices to identify and address potential vulnerabilities or areas for improvement.
Monitor and Evaluate: We will regularly monitor and evaluate our systems and processes to ensure their effectiveness and we will make improvements where necessary.
Collaboration with Experts: We work with industry experts to develop and improve safety measures.
Platform Security: We will continue to invest in technologies to assist in maintaining a safe and secure platform.
We adopt a holistic approach to create a safe and secure online environment for all Kick users.
Use of Personal Data Transparency
Global
Kick is committed to data privacy, we prioritize the protection and respectful handling of all personal information entrusted to us. We adhere to applicable data protection laws and regulations, ensuring that data is processed lawfully, transparently, and securely. Our commitment includes implementing appropriate technical and organizational measures to safeguard data against unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction. We respect individuals' rights regarding their personal data and strive to fulfill our obligations.
GDPR
Under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), individuals, often referred to as "data subjects," have several rights regarding their personal data. These rights include:
Right to be Informed: Individuals have the right to be informed about the collection and use of their personal data. This right encompasses the obligation for data controllers to provide transparent information about how personal data is processed.
Right of Access: Data subjects have the right to access their personal data and information about how it is being processed. This includes the right to obtain confirmation that their data is being processed, access to their personal data, and other supplementary information.
Right to Rectification: Individuals can request the correction of inaccurate or incomplete personal data.
Right to Erasure (Right to be Forgotten): In certain circumstances, individuals have the right to request the deletion or removal of their personal data when there is no compelling reason for its continued processing.
Right to Restrict Processing: Individuals can request the restriction or suppression of their personal data. This means that while the right is exercised, the data can still be stored but not processed.
Right to Data Portability: Individuals can obtain and reuse their personal data for their own purposes across different services. This right allows individuals to move, copy, or transfer personal data easily from one IT environment to another in a safe and secure way, without hindrance to usability.
Right to Object: Individuals have the right to object to the processing of their personal data in certain circumstances, including direct marketing, profiling, and processing for scientific or historical research purposes or statistical purposes.
Rights in Relation to Automated Decision Making and Profiling: The GDPR provides safeguards for individuals against the risk that a potentially damaging decision is made without human intervention. Individuals have the right not to be subject to a decision based solely on automated processing, including profiling, which produces legal effects concerning them or similarly significantly affects them.
Organizations subject to the GDPR must ensure they comply with these rights and provide mechanisms for individuals to exercise them.
United States
At Kick, we are committed to protecting the privacy and security of our customers' personal information. We are committed to compliance with applicable US privacy laws, including the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) and the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). We collect, use, and disclose personal information only for legitimate purposes and with the consent of our customers. We maintain appropriate security measures to safeguard personal information against unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction. Our privacy policy outlines our practices regarding the collection, use, and disclosure of personal information. We regularly review and update our privacy practices to ensure compliance with US privacy laws and to protect our customers' privacy rights.
Transparency Reporting
As part of our commitment to transparency at Kick we are committed to upholding standards of integrity, respect, and responsibility in all aspects. We strive to act responsibly and with honesty in everything we do, fostering a culture of trust and transparency. Our commitment to good values guides our decisions and actions.
Our transparency reports will include:
Commitments to Transparency: We will outline key components in our approach to safety.
Privacy: We will highlight the steps we take to protect user privacy including that of personally identifiable information.
Reporting of Content Moderation User Reports and Actions Taken: We will provide information on the number of user reports regarding content and the number of those where enforcement actions were undertaken.
Government Requests: We will disclose the number of government requests that we receive and the number of requests where some or all information was produced.
Transparency Enhancements: We will commit to regularly reviewing and updating our transparency reports to ensure they provide the most accurate and up-to-date information possible.
By publishing these reports, we aim to provide our users and the public with a clear understanding of how we handle requests for user data and content removal. We believe that transparency is essential for maintaining trust and accountability, and we are committed to upholding these principles.
Human Content Moderation of User Reports
Human content moderation is important because it plays a crucial role in maintaining online safety, protecting users from harmful and inappropriate content, and upholding community guidelines. Human moderators bring a nuanced understanding of context, cultural sensitivities, and intent that machines often struggle to interpret accurately. Human moderation also allows for more flexible responses to emerging issues and helps ensure we remain inclusive and respectful of diverse viewpoints.
Human Content Moderation of Internally Identified Enforceable Content
Potentially harmful content can be identified internally and a similar process is followed to ensure consistency in our approach to content moderation. Approved team members are able to take necessary action in line with our enforcement action guidelines to remove certain content for the safety of our users.
Technology Assisted Content Moderation
At Kick, we utilize Artificial Intelligence to detect harmful content for removal from our platform. By leveraging machine learning algorithms, Artificial Intelligence can analyze vast amounts of data. Artificial Intelligence algorithms can help in identifying and removing harmful content. This technology plays a crucial role in fostering a healthier online discourse and ensuring the Kick platform remains a safe and welcoming spaces for all users.
The EU Digital Services Act Transparency Reporting
The average monthly active users of Kick in the EEA, as of 31 January 2024, was below 45 million users which is the threshold for being designated as a Very Large Online Platform (VLOP) as defined in the Digital Services Act.
Reports
User Reports
H2 2023
1 July – 31 December 2023
Kick is committed to investing in systems, tools, resources and people to ensure we are continually improving and evolving our processes to best keep our community safe. A system change was implemented over the New Year period 31 December 2023 to 1 January 2024. This system change allows for easier reporting functionality and faster human content moderation. Additional features in our enhanced systems include greater detail to be captured on user reports with rationale regarding outcome of assessment and enforcement captured.
January 2024
Reporting period 1 January – 31 January 2024
Government Requests
All high risk harmful content including that of Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) and notifiable Terrorism related content follows our escalation process whereby our Trust & Safety and Legal teams are immediately notified for reporting to relevant authorities.
Kick was subject to two (2) formal enquiries and requests for information from Regulatory authorities in January 2024. Both of these requests were responded to for cooperation with authorities.
Trust & Safety Compliance Program
The Kick Trust & Safety team manages the Trust & Safety Compliance Program and management of the Framework which outlines our overall approach to managing risks, issues, trending analysis and initiatives.
All internal documents under our Framework are maintained to reflect current operation and approach. This includes separate registers for risk, incidents, industry engagement and regulator engagement. It also covers harmful content assessment guidelines, internal process documents and other relevant documents and key information.
As part of our Trust & Safety Compliance Program and in addition to our Framework, to help ensure we have a structured approach, we maintain a control list based on identified risks and conduct planned assurance testing over controls to review their efficacy.
Scheduled Trust & Safety Governance Meetings are held to ensure there is appropriate senior management oversight where key information surrounding the Safety of our platform, environment and users is presented.