Safety
Our Safety Philosophy
We empower people to make the most informed decisions possible.
CouchSurfing members are active participants in the safety of our community. By sharing information through our systems, educating themselves about trust and safety, and making careful decisions about who to meet, CouchSurfers keep themselves and everyone else safer.
Honest profiles lead to positive experiences.
A profile isn’t a popularity contest. Be yourself, and you’ll have a better chance of meeting people you’ll like. CouchSurfing profiles are designed to encourage members to be clear and honest about their ideas, personalities, lifestyles, and offline identities. We don’t censor member profiles because all information is useful when you’re choosing who to meet.
Reputation is the foundation of a safe community.
Small towns aren’t safer just because they’re filled with upstanding citizens -- they’re safer because people know and respect each other. References and vouching help make our global community as safe as a small town even while it’s as exciting as any big city.
A single perspective can’t compete with multiple points of view.
The CouchSurfing organization is one, but not the only, source of relevant safety information for our community. The announcements, tips, and alerts that we share are a complement to the member-to-member communications that we support through our systems.
We maintain a policy of neutrality when resolving disputes.
It is our role to support you, not to judge you. Cultural perspectives, personal opinion, and individual perception can all be at play when two members disagree. Our team maintains a neutral stance in order to deal with both parties fairly. We will take sides only in the case of a documented crime, a breach of our Terms of Use, or a violation of our safety policies.
Safety and You
Features
Together, our safety features give you a rich variety of information about a person.
A person’s detailed profile and photos show you how they represent themselves. Their references tell you what kinds of experiences others have had with them. You can browse their friend links to see how many close friends they’ve made on CS.
If they’ve been vouched for, that shows that there are CouchSurfers who trust them highly. If they’ve been verified, you know that we’ve checked their name and location.
Searching for friends of friends minimizes risk by showing people connected to your CouchSurfing or Facebook social circles.
Finally, our New Member Welcome team looks at every new profile, which makes it harder for spam profiles to be created.
Tips
A few simple actions can go a long way towards having positive experiences when hosting, surfing, and meeting someone new.
Learn what they are to have a better, safer time in our community.
FAQ
Got a question? Our team has compiled a list of answers to the safety questions most frequently asked by our members.
Read FAQsNews
We publish regular safety updates to help you make safer decisions. You can read our archive for great advice and tips.
News ChannelsReport Abuse
If you see someone using CouchSurfing in a way that is against our Terms of Use, you can -- and ought to -- report them. Learn more about what is considered an abuse of our systems.
Abuse HelpAvoid Scams
Over the years, we’ve gathered information about the types of scams people use when they’re trying to target our community. Protect yourself by learning more about them.
Read Known ScamsIn an Emergency
If you feel that your security has been compromised or your well-being has been hurt after meeting someone through CS, it's important to take action.
What to DoContact Us
If you have a question, a comment, or need our support, contact us. We want to help!
Contact Us