This Acceptable Use Policy ("AUP") sets out how you may and may not use the AYE Market app and website (the "Service"), operated by AYE Tech Hub ("we," "us," "our"). It applies to every account holder — buyers, sellers, job seekers, and employers — regardless of which role you're using at a given moment. It works alongside our Terms of Service and Community Guidelines, which cover listing content specifically; this policy covers how you're allowed to behave and interact with the Service and its systems.
1. Eligibility
You must be at least 18 years old to hold an account or use the Service in any capacity. Using the Service in any way — including simply browsing, messaging, or applying to a job — constitutes acceptance of this policy.
2. Account conduct
- Sign up with accurate information and keep your credentials confidential — you're responsible for everything done from your account.
- Use AYE Market's multi-role system as designed: one person, one account, with Buyer, Seller, Job Seeker, and Employer roles toggled on the same profile. Do not create a second account to present as a different person.
- Do not create new accounts to evade a warning, suspension, or ban. Accounts created for this purpose are removed on discovery, along with any content posted from them.
- Do not buy, sell, rent, or transfer your account or verified badge to another person.
- Report a compromised account to us immediately so we can help secure it.
3. Technical abuse
The following are prohibited regardless of intent:
- Scraping or automated access — using bots, crawlers, scripts, or any automated tool to extract listings, profiles, prices, or other data from the Service at scale.
- Bypassing security or moderation — attempting to circumvent Firestore security rules, content moderation, ID verification checks, or payment review, whether through technical exploitation or deception.
- Reverse-engineering — decompiling, disassembling, or otherwise attempting to derive the source code, algorithms, or underlying structure of the app or its backend, except where applicable law grants you that right despite this restriction.
- Interfering with infrastructure — attempting to overload, disrupt, or gain unauthorized access to our Firebase backend, admin tools, or any account that isn't yours.
- Manipulating signals — artificially inflating views, favorites, ratings, or ranking through fake accounts, coordinated activity, or automation.
4. Interpersonal conduct
AYE Market's chat, reviews, and reports exist to help real people transact safely — not as a channel for abuse. You must not use any part of the Service to:
- Harass, threaten, stalk, or intimidate another user, whether in a single message or a pattern of contact after being asked to stop.
- Defraud or attempt to defraud another user through a listing, a job post, or a chat conversation.
- Impersonate another person, business, or AYE Tech Hub staff.
- Post or send hate speech, discriminatory language, or content demeaning someone's ethnicity, religion, gender, disability, or other protected characteristic.
- Leave reviews that are fabricated, retaliatory, or unrelated to an actual transaction.
- Submit false or malicious reports intended to punish another user rather than report a genuine violation.
5. Respecting other users' privacy
A deal gone wrong is never grounds to expose someone. Do not publish another user's phone number, home address, ID details, chat screenshots, or other private information outside the Service as a form of pressure, revenge, or public shaming — including on social media. If a transaction goes badly, use the Report button and, where appropriate, involve the police; do not take matters into your own hands by doxxing the other party.
6. Platform integrity
- Do not use the Service for any purpose that is illegal under Ethiopian law.
- Do not use the Service to distribute malware, phishing links, or content designed to compromise another user's device or accounts.
- Do not misrepresent your identity during ID verification, including submitting someone else's documents or an altered document.
- Do not solicit other users to transact or communicate outside the Service specifically to avoid moderation, reporting, or a paper trail.
7. Enforcement ladder
We apply consequences proportionate to the violation, generally following this progression — though severe first-time violations (fraud, threats, technical attacks) can result in immediate suspension or ban without warning:
| Step | What happens |
|---|---|
| 1. Warning | A formal notice explaining the violation and what must change. |
| 2. Content removal | The offending listing, message, or review is removed. |
| 3. Feature restriction | Temporary limits on posting, messaging, or applying. |
| 4. Suspension | Temporary loss of account access while we review. |
| 5. Permanent ban | Account and associated devices/accounts are banned from the Service. |
All enforcement actions are logged. If you believe a decision was made in error, you may appeal via in-app Feedback & Support or by email, and a human reviews the appeal.
8. Reporting a violation
Use the Report option on any listing, chat, or profile — it routes directly to a human moderator's review queue. For issues involving the Service itself (a suspected security or technical abuse issue), see our Security Policy for how to report responsibly. For anything urgent involving your safety, see the Safety Center.
9. Applicable law
This policy is governed by the laws of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia. Any dispute not resolved informally is subject to the jurisdiction of the competent courts of Ethiopia.
10. Changes to this policy
We may update this policy as the Service evolves. Material changes are reflected by updating the "Last updated" date above. Continued use after a change takes effect constitutes acceptance.
11. Contact
Questions about this policy: ayetechub@gmail.com.