LEGAL DOCUMENT

UK Addendum: Illegal Content Duties

Version 1.0 · effective 2026-07-29

The Old Letters is an adults-only, private correspondence service. Users send stored, asynchronous Letters to named recipients or closed recipient groups. The Service does not provide public posts, feeds, comments, reactions, followers, recommendations or discovery of user content.

The Provider's current position is that the Service is designed to fall within the email-service exemption in paragraph 1 of Schedule 1 to the UK Online Safety Act 2023: stored, email-like correspondence is the only user-generated content enabled by the Service, apart from content identifying a user. This position is kept under review, is subject to independent advice from a qualified UK specialist, and is not a determination by Ofcom or a court. A change to the Service's features or actual use may change the assessment.

1. Reporting illegal or harmful use

You can report suspected illegal content or misuse:

• through the report control available in the Service;
• at /report-illegal-content; or
• by email to support@theoldletters.com.

Where relevant, the reporting route is available without signing in. Please include enough information to identify the account, invitation, Letter or event concerned. Do not send more sensitive material than is necessary.

If there is an immediate threat to life or safety, contact the emergency services first.

2. What happens after a report

We assess reports using the information available to us. Depending on the circumstances, we may preserve relevant technical records, restrict an account or invitation, prevent further contact, suspend or close an account, and refer the matter to a competent authority where required by law.

We may ask for additional information where it is necessary to understand the report. A person affected by an account or content decision may use the appeal route described in our notice-and-action information.

3. End-to-end encryption

Letter content and attachments are encrypted end-to-end. The Provider does not hold the keys needed to read them and does not scan private Letters.

Our safety process therefore relies on:

• reports initiated by users;
• content that a reporting user deliberately selects and discloses after local

decryption;

• technical and account metadata available to the Service; and
• lawful requests from competent authorities.

Submitting a report does not give the Provider general access to your other Letters.

4. Protection against misuse

The Service uses access controls, invitation consent, blocking, rate limits, anti-automation controls and account enforcement to reduce misuse. Access is limited to people aged 18 or over. The adults-only rule does not replace the right to report suspected exploitation, threats, harassment, stalking, fraud or other illegal conduct.

The Provider also keeps under review whether the Service is likely to be accessed by a significant number of children and whether its age-assurance measures remain effective and proportionate. A declaration that the Service is for adults does not by itself decide the scope of UK children's privacy or online-safety law.

5. Contact

Safety and reporting questions may be sent to:

support@theoldletters.com