Terms of Use

1. Agreement

These Terms of Use (“Terms”) govern your access to the Horus iOS and Android applications and this website (together, the “Service”). The Service is provided by the Horus project (“we,” “us,” “our”).

By installing, accessing, or using the Service, you agree to these Terms. If you do not agree, do not use the Service.

2. The Service

Horus is software for private messaging. You create cryptographic keys on your device, pair with other users through one-time invites, and exchange end-to-end encrypted messages, media, and (where available) calls. Delivery in production uses Tor. Optional features include a findable @ handle and a content-free wake ping.

We do not operate a Horus account for you and we do not host a copy of your chat history. The Service is a client and a protocol — not a cloud inbox.

Features may change, break, or be unavailable. Voice and video over Tor can be slow. Video is beta. Notifications are best-effort and are not promised to match other messengers.

3. Eligibility

You must be at least 13 years old, or the minimum age required in your country to use a messenger without parental consent, whichever is higher. You must be able to form a binding contract. You are responsible for complying with the laws that apply to you, including export and sanctions rules that may apply to encryption software.

4. No account, no recovery

There is no Horus login. Your identity is the keys on that install. We cannot reset a passphrase we do not hold, merge two phones into one identity, or restore chats after uninstall, device loss, or a broken backup you made yourself.

If you enable App Lock, you are responsible for the biometric or device credential the operating system uses. If you lose access to the device, the chats on it are gone.

5. Your responsibilities

• Keep unused invites secret until they are burned or expired.
• Only pair with people you intend to talk to. Accepting a session is your confirmation.
• Do not interfere with other users’ devices, the Tor network, or optional infrastructure except as the protocol allows.
• You are responsible for the content you send. We cannot see it and cannot moderate it in transit.

6. Acceptable use

You may not use the Service to:

• Violate the law, or the rights of others
• Exploit, abuse, or traffic children, or share sexual content involving minors
• Distribute malware, or attempt to compromise other users’ devices or the Service
• Harass, stalk, or threaten people
• Spam, or automate abuse of invites, handles, or wake pings
• Misrepresent the Service as audited, guaranteed anonymous, or immune to a determined adversary

We may refuse to provide optional hosted pieces (for example wake pings or handle claims) to anyone who abuses them. Because we do not host your chats, uninstalling is how a user leaves. We cannot remotely delete a transcript on your phone.

7. Invites, handles, and names

Invites are single-use and time-limited. Claiming an @ handle does not transfer ownership of chats. Changing a handle frees the old name; someone else may claim it later. Display names are local labels, not verified identity.

8. Third-party networks

The Service relies on networks we do not control, including Tor and, if you opt in, Apple or Google push, and a public handle registry. Their availability, logs, and terms are their own. Outages, blocking, or delay are not a breach by us of a delivery SLA — we do not offer one.

9. Intellectual property and source

Horus, the eye mark, and this website’s layout are provided for use with the Service. You may not suggest we endorse you without permission.

Protocol and client source is published in the public repository at github.com/julienlhk/horus, under the license files in that repository. These Terms do not replace that license for the code.

10. Privacy

The Privacy Policy explains what stays on the device and what optional features send elsewhere. It is part of how the Service works; read it.

11. Disclaimer of warranties

The Service is provided “as is” and “as available,” without warranties of any kind, whether express, implied, or statutory, including merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, quiet enjoyment, and non-infringement.

We do not warrant that Horus is free of defects, that encryption or Tor will hide you from a particular adversary, that messages will arrive, that notifications will fire, or that the software has been independently audited. You use it at your own risk.

12. Limitation of liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law, we are not liable for indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages, or for lost profits, data, goodwill, or device access, whether or not we were told they were possible.

To the fullest extent permitted by law, our total liability for any claim arising out of the Service is limited to the amount you paid us for the Service in the twelve months before the claim — which is zero if the app is distributed without a fee.

Some places do not allow certain limitations. In those places, our liability is limited to the minimum the law requires. Nothing in these Terms limits liability that cannot be limited, including for fraud or for death or personal injury caused by negligence where that rule applies.

13. Indemnity

You will defend and indemnify us against claims arising from your content, your use of the Service, or your violation of these Terms or the law, except to the extent a claim is caused by our willful misconduct.

14. Termination

You may stop using the Service at any time by uninstalling the app. We may stop offering the website, optional wake, or handle registry at any time. Existing local chats remain on devices that still have them until those users delete them.

15. Changes

We may update these Terms by posting a new version on this page and updating the date. If you continue to use the Service after the new terms take effect, you accept them. If you do not, uninstall.

16. General

These Terms are the agreement between you and us for the Service. If a court finds a section unenforceable, the rest still applies. We may assign the project; you may not assign these Terms. Failure to enforce a term is not a waiver.

These Terms are written in English. We do not designate a courtroom on this page. Mandatory consumer protections in your country still apply where they cannot be waived.

17. Contact

Questions about these Terms: github.com/julienlhk/horus/issues.