FIELD GUIDE · Nearish: Local Posts
Read a nearby community feed with privacy in mind
A privacy and safety checklist for reading local posts, choosing an approximate area and using Nearish's aliases and moderation controls.
Editorial review:
Understand what nearby means
Nearish asks for location access to place an account in an approximate area. The app rounds coordinates on the phone and uses a roughly 10 km radius around broad area centers rather than showing a precise public map pin. Location can still reveal routine details when a post names a venue, schedule or small community, so read each post with that context in mind.
The hosted API requires an account, and the iPhone app is in internal testing. No public App Store release is available. The feed is not anonymous to the service: account and moderation controls still apply even though the public author name is an alias.
Separate aliases from real identity
Nearish uses an alias per thread rather than displaying the same author name everywhere. An alias reduces direct cross-thread linking, but it is not identity verification and it cannot prevent someone from recognizing a distinctive story or schedule. Avoid posting home addresses, contact details, predictable routines or information about another person without consent.
The 18+ gate is a self-declaration. Do not treat it as age verification or as evidence that other participants have been checked.
Use the feed and safety controls
Choose New or Hot, then use a topic filter to focus on the conversation you need. Thread aliases differ so readers cannot easily connect the same author across posts, but recognizable details can still identify someone. Avoid posting a home address, contact details, predictable routine or another person's private information.
Real-area posts and replies remain pending until a moderator approves them. If a post concerns you, report it; it is immediately hidden from your own feed and sent to the moderation queue. Blocking hides that author's posts and replies from your account, and you can clear blocks in account controls. Sample neighborhood posts are fictional and kept out of real feeds.
Keep age and area claims in perspective
The app asks people to confirm they are 18 or older and accept community rules. This is a self-declaration, not identity or age verification. The area value is approximate and client-supplied, not proof that a person is physically present; do not use the feed to verify someone else's location.
Nearish is in internal testing and has not been publicly released on the App Store. Its hosted API is authenticated. Moderation and reporting controls reduce some exposure but cannot guarantee that every post is safe or that a report receives immediate resolution. Avoid using any local social feed for emergencies.