Guide · checked October 30, 2026
App Store 1.2 and Google Play UGC rules, as one checklist
If people can post anything other people see — reviews, comments, photos, chat, profiles — both stores treat your app as user-generated content. Missing one of these items is one of the most common reasons a social or community app is rejected.
Apple — guideline 1.2
- A method for filtering objectionable material from being posted
- A mechanism to report offensive content, with timely responses to concerns
- The ability to block abusive users from the service
- Published contact information so users can reach you easily
The guideline says “timely”. Rejection messages under 1.2 are more specific: act on reports within 24 hours by removing the content and ejecting the user who posted it. Plan for 24 hours.
Google Play — User Generated Content
- Users accept terms of use or a user policy before they can create or upload content — and cannot skip it
- Those terms define what content and behavior is objectionable, in line with Play’s policies
- An in-app way to report objectionable content and users, easy to find and clearly labeled
- An in-app way to block users
- Ongoing moderation suited to the kind of content — reports reviewed and acted on, not left unaddressed
The same reporting rule covers AI-generated content your app shows to users.
The checklist
1. Put a “Report” action on every piece of user content
Posts, comments, photos, profiles and chat messages. Reviewers open the app and look for it, so it must be visible without digging through settings.
2. Add “Block user” as a separate action
Blocking should hide that person’s content from the blocker immediately. Keep it apart from Report — one button that does both confuses users and reviewers.
3. Filter before publishing
A word list catches the obvious cases; a moderation API catches more. Either counts as a filtering method.
4. Show terms before the first post
A short screen that lists what is not allowed and requires a tap to accept. Google Play checks that it cannot be bypassed.
5. Make sure someone sees every report within a day
Send reports somewhere your team already looks (email, Slack), track a deadline per report, and remove the content and the user when the report holds. Keep a record of what you decided.
6. Tell the reviewer where it is
In App Review notes, list the screens: where Report and Block are, where the terms appear, and how fast you respond. A demo account with some sample content saves a round trip.
The part most small teams skip: step 5
A Report button that writes to a table nobody reads passes review once and fails the next time a reviewer files a test report. You need storage, an alert, a deadline, an admin screen and a way to tell your server what was decided. Telloo’s content report inbox is exactly that — a report link or one API call, Slack alerts, a 24-hour clock and a signed callback. Steps 2–4 stay in your app.
Sources: App Review Guidelines 1.2 · Google Play — User Generated Content. Checked October 30, 2026; the stores update these pages, so read the current text before you submit.
Ship your report button this afternoon
Start the 14-day trial, create a report source and paste the link into your app.