Prohibited Causes

1. About this policy

This policy sets out the causes, content and activities that are not allowed on HopeOrigins. It applies to every part of a cause, including its story, images, updates, comments and team fundraising pages. It forms part of our Terms of Use.

Causes go live as soon as they are published, and our team moderates the platform. This list is not exhaustive. We may act against any cause that we reasonably believe is unlawful, misleading or harmful, even if it is not listed here.

2. Illegal activity

You may not raise funds or gather support for:

• any activity that is illegal in South Africa, or that promotes or supports illegal activity
• money laundering, or anything that breaches the Financial Intelligence Centre Act (FICA) or the Prevention of Organised Crime Act
• anything that breaches the acceptable use rules of our payment provider, Paystack

3. Fraud, scams and misleading causes

You may not:

• run a scam or any cause intended to deceive donors
• tell a false or misleading story, or misrepresent how funds will be used
• impersonate another person or organisation
• raise funds for someone else without their permission
• raise funds for personal debt while misrepresenting the reason for the debt or how the funds will be used

4. Weapons, drugs and regulated goods

You may not raise funds for:

• firearms, ammunition, explosives or other weapons
• illegal drugs or drug paraphernalia
• regulated goods or services, where the cause does not comply with the law that regulates them

5. Hate, harassment, violence and discrimination

You may not post a cause or content that:

• promotes hatred, violence or discrimination against people based on race, gender, sex, sexual orientation, religion, ethnicity, nationality, disability, age or any other protected characteristic
• harasses, bullies, threatens or intimidates anyone
• uses a petition to target, harass or expose a private individual
• promotes or glorifies self-harm or violence

6. Sexual content and exploitation

You may not post a cause or content that:

• contains sexually explicit material
• sexually exploits or endangers anyone, and in particular children
• promotes human trafficking or sexual services

7. Terrorism and violent extremism

You may not raise funds for, or promote, terrorism, violent extremism, or any organisation or person involved in them.

8. Gambling, investments and financial schemes

You may not use a cause for:

• gambling, betting, lotteries, raffles or competitions
• pyramid schemes, multi-level marketing or other investment schemes
• loans, or any cause that promises donors repayment, interest, profit or other financial returns

9. Political campaigns and legal defence

[Confirm with legal whether allowed.] You may not raise funds for a political party or for an election campaign.

[Confirm with legal.] You may not raise funds for the legal defence of anyone accused of a violent crime or a hate crime.

10. Misleading medical claims

You may raise funds for medical care, but you may not promote treatments that claim to cure illness without credible evidence, or make false or misleading health claims.

11. Intellectual property and privacy

You may not post content that:

• infringes anyone's copyright, trade marks or other intellectual property
• shares someone's personal information without their permission, or otherwise breaches their privacy

12. What happens if a cause breaks these rules

If we find that a cause, or content on it, breaks this policy, we may do any of the following:

• pause the cause or remove it from the platform
• remove comments, updates or other content
• withhold or delay payouts while we investigate
• refund donors, in line with our Refund Policy
• suspend or close the organiser's account
• report the matter to the police, regulators or other authorities where the law requires it or where we believe it is necessary

13. How to report a cause

If you think a cause, comment or update breaks this policy, please use the report button on the cause page.

You can also email our Trust and Safety team at trust@hopeorigins.co.za. Please include a link to the cause and tell us what concerns you.

Our team reviews every report. We may not be able to share the outcome with you, but we take all reports seriously.

If you believe someone is in immediate danger, contact the South African Police Service or emergency services first.