Ground rules for using ReverseRef.

1. The service and operator

ReverseRef is an early-stage independent project and service operated under the name “ReverseRef.” A separate legal entity has not yet been formed. References in these terms to “ReverseRef,” “we,” or “us” mean the operator of the service and do not represent that an incorporated company currently exists.

By accessing the site, submitting a request, purchasing a service, or participating in an interview, you agree to the terms that apply to your use. If you do not agree, do not use the service. You must be at least 18 and legally able to agree to these terms.

2. Candidate-only purpose

ReverseRef provides private decision support to a candidate evaluating their own potential job opportunity. It is not an employer background-check, employee-monitoring, reputation-management, investigation, or source-identification service.

You may not use ReverseRef on behalf of an employer or manager; to make an employment, promotion, compensation, credit, housing, insurance, or other eligibility decision about another person; to discover a participant’s identity or take adverse action against them; to monitor employees; or to misrepresent yourself as a candidate. Recruiters and other intermediaries may not request a review for an employer’s benefit.

A requester must provide a LinkedIn profile, a public job posting or ATS link for an open role, and accurate opportunity context. We review the connection between the role and prospective manager and may require further evidence of an active late-stage interview process. ReverseRef currently accepts requests only for technology positions based in the United States or Canada. United Kingdom requests are on hold during a privacy-law review. We may reject a request, pause work, or cancel access when eligibility cannot be verified or misuse is suspected. ReverseRef is not affiliated with or endorsed by LinkedIn.

3. Candidate responsibilities

Candidates must provide accurate information, have a genuine active connection to the open opportunity described, respond to reasonable verification questions, use the report only for their own decision, protect the report from unauthorized access, and avoid sharing it publicly or using it to harass, threaten, discriminate, take adverse action against someone, or make claims the report does not support.

You may not submit unlawful content, impersonate another person, interfere with the service, scrape or reverse engineer it, or use case information to create a public rating, list, or profile.

4. Reference participant terms

Participation is voluntary. Participants may decline, skip a question, or end a conversation. Participants agree to speak honestly from firsthand experience, distinguish opinion from fact, and avoid knowingly false, harassing, or unlawful statements.

Current interviews are live and audio-only. The requesting candidate does not attend, and cameras stay off. ReverseRef does not make an audio or video recording or create an automated transcript. Participants must not record the conversation or introduce a recording, transcription, meeting-bot, or AI-assistant service into it.

Participants may ask to see the current synthesis drawn from their interview at any time. Before report delivery, participants may review the de-identified version and correct, narrow, or remove their contribution. Interview content is specific to that case and is not used in another case without fresh, case-specific consent. After delivery, participants may ask us to delete retained interview material, subject to legal and operational requirements, but ReverseRef cannot retrieve a copy already delivered to a candidate.

If ReverseRef offers a participant priority access, a future review credit, or another benefit, its terms will be set before the interview. The benefit recognizes the participant’s time and will not depend on the sentiment, substance, usefulness, or inclusion of anything they share. A participant may skip questions or remove their contribution before delivery without losing a benefit they have already earned. ReverseRef may disclose the existence of participant benefits at the case level without identifying which participant received one.

When employment or reporting history cannot be verified with sufficient confidence, ReverseRef may request redacted proof of employment. Participants should hide compensation, tax and national identification numbers, home address, birth date, banking details, and unrelated information. We use the document only for verification and delete it afterward unless retention is reasonably necessary for a legal, security, or dispute reason.

ReverseRef does not solicit trade secrets, customer information, unreleased financial information, source code, security credentials, coworker personal data, or other confidential or proprietary information. Participants must not disclose information they are not permitted to share.

Participants remain responsible for understanding and honoring their own confidentiality, nondisclosure, non-disparagement, separation, settlement, fiduciary, and other obligations. ReverseRef does not interpret individual agreements, provide legal advice, or guarantee that participation will not create legal, contractual, reputational, or professional risk. If uncertain, a participant should omit the information and seek independent advice.

5. Human process and supporting tools

Every incoming request is reviewed by a human, source relationships are human-verified, and interviews are conducted by humans. No AI voice, chatbot, meeting bot, or automated interviewer talks with reference participants. The interviewer takes structured notes, but ReverseRef does not record or automatically transcribe the conversation.

We may use AI-assisted and other software tools internally for research organization, note structure, pattern review, and drafting support. A human remains responsible for interviews, verification, contextual judgment, quality review, and the final report.

6. Reports, anonymity, and confidentiality

Reports are confidential decision-support materials prepared for one candidate. They summarize interviews and research, may include subjective opinions, and are not findings of legal fact. Reports are not consumer reports, employment background checks, or recommendations to accept or reject a job.

We do not include participant names or direct contact details in candidate reports and seek to reduce identifying context. No candidate-facing finding relies on fewer than two independently verified participants. We omit or generalize distinctive single-source material, do not report how many eligible people declined or failed to respond, and may require more participants or decline a case when someone could be reasonably identified.

We cannot guarantee that a participant will never be inferred from the circumstances. Candidates must not try to identify a participant or share the report with the manager, employer, public, or unrelated third parties. A candidate may share limited information with their own attorney or professional adviser if that person is bound to keep it confidential.

ReverseRef does not build a persistent manager dossier or merge interview content across cases. We never give participants the candidate’s name or direct contact details, although limited opportunity context may sometimes allow them to infer who requested the review.

ReverseRef owns the site, process, report design, and original materials. Subject to these terms and payment, the candidate receives a limited, personal, non-transferable right to use the delivered report for their own career decision.

7. Fees, timing, and cancellations

Any scope, fee, source threshold, timing estimate, payment schedule, or refund term stated in a written order or confirmation forms part of these terms and controls if it conflicts with general website copy. Unless explicitly stated in writing, timing is an estimate and depends on source availability and response.

The current founding price is US$499 per role. Each role and manager match is a separate scope. After a request is validated, payment is processed through Stripe before paid work begins. If ReverseRef cannot verify and interview at least two former direct reports, or cannot prepare a useful report without an unreasonable identification risk, no service fee is due. If the fee has already been charged, ReverseRef will refund it to the original payment method. Any other cancellation, refund, or exception will be explained before payment.

8. No professional advice or guaranteed outcome

The service provides limited, subjective information to support your judgment, not replace it. It is not legal, employment, psychological, financial, investigative, or other professional advice. We do not guarantee that sources are complete or error-free, that all perspectives are represented, that a manager’s behavior will remain consistent, or that any career outcome will occur.

9. Disclaimers and limitation of liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law, the site and service are provided “as is” and “as available,” without implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, noninfringement, or uninterrupted availability.

To the fullest extent permitted by law, ReverseRef will not be liable for indirect, incidental, special, consequential, exemplary, or punitive damages, lost income, lost opportunity, reputational harm, or decisions made using the service. ReverseRef’s total liability arising from a paid case will not exceed the amount the candidate paid for that case. Some jurisdictions do not allow certain exclusions, so these limits apply only to the extent permitted.

10. Suspension, changes, and general terms

We may reject or stop a request, participation, or use that creates safety, legal, ethical, quality, or misuse concerns. If these terms change, the updated effective date will be posted. Material changes will apply prospectively unless law requires otherwise.

If one provision is unenforceable, the remaining provisions remain effective. Failure to enforce a provision is not a waiver. You may not transfer your rights under these terms without permission. These terms and any written case confirmation are the entire agreement about the service.

Questions about these terms can be sent to hello@reverseref.com.