Whatβs new
Last updated: 2026-08-05 Β· Major product updates
Stars & reputation
Safety
Live chat
Apps
Highlights only β not every commit. Newest first. Peer-to-peer video, no classic account, free social score (not money).
August 2026
Server hardening & ops
- Firewall β UFW deny-by-default; only SSH, HTTPS, and TURN open.
- SSH β keys only, no passwords; root key-only; fail2ban on login storms.
- Deploy user β non-root
deployaccount for day-to-day ops. - Backups β daily data backups + operator pull script for off-box copies.
- Auto security reboot β unattended upgrades can reboot off-peak when a kernel needs it.
Stars reputation β social score v2
- Dual system β Balance (spend on gifts) vs Trust (peer β gifts only). Hour bonuses raise balance, not trust.
- Wealth chrome β high spendable β (e.g. 250+) looks legendary even if trust is still low.
- Status ladder β New / Known / Trusted / Senior language (not βreporter ΓN ban powerβ).
- Social map β Power/Status tab: balance, trust, gifters, decay countdown, soft match-rank.
- Gifter strip β progress dots to 5 (Trusted floor) and 12 (Senior floor).
- Gift unlock bar β mid-chat β progress (50% / 80% / ready) next to the timer.
- Thanks β post-chat Thanks/vouch (no trust mint) alongside gift / skip.
- Mutual bonds β friends list β β / πβ chips; bonded friends sorted first.
- Partner praise β βpraised by Nβ on the partner tile; gift-back reciprocity nudge.
- Stuck CTA β clear next step when wealth is high but trust/gifters block tier.
Brigade-resistant reports
- Stars β ban guns β non-underage auto-bans use independent reporters, not Γ2/Γ3 star weight.
- Higher consensus β explicit needs 3 independent reports; spam/other need 4; underage stays 1 for safety.
- Mutual feud β AβB report wars donβt auto-ban either side.
- Raid soft-handle β spike windows cap permanent escalate; ops webhook for raid events.
Live chat UX
- 3-way / multi-party layout β real vertical stack + 2Γ2 grid toggle.
- Compose dock β partner chat pinned to the viewport bottom in stack mode.
- Camera & identity β fixed local tile nesting; name/flag/avatar paint immediately and stay above video.
- Remember devices β last camera, mic, speaker, and volume across visits.
- Audio modes β clearer low-delay vs noise-reduction; multi-peer NS/AGC for parties.
- Cleaner Start β removed under-Start invite coaching clutter while searching.
- History Block β block past partners from history without needing a live call.
- Friend invites β share links always open
/live.html; last-partner popup can Add friend.
Mobile app & store path
- Expo app β scaffold + WebRTC media session; stranger prefs, report/block, friends, call.
- Stars on mobile β gifts, rate prompt, profile backup (Phase 3).
- Push foundation β register tokens + offline friend ring webhook path.
- App Links β Universal Links / Android App Links endpoints live for friend invites.
- i18n β full overlay packs for all app languages.
- Play / App Store β EAS profiles, store assets, AAB upload docs (vc4/vc5 path).
July 2026 & earlier foundations
Stars foundation
- Post-chat gifts β after long chats, gift β once per person (15 min; first partners 5 min early ramp).
- Hour reward β both get +1β balance after a full hour together.
- Spend gifts β hearts, bars, flowers, balloons, confetti, fireworks, Please stay.
- Trust vs balance β ledger split; gifter floors; soft idle decay; ban clawback.
- Soft match rank β Trusted/Senior lightly preferred when the lobby is busy (never blocks matches).
- Never for sale β stars stay hub-side; profile export never includes balances.
Core chat roulette
- P2P WebRTC β video browser-to-browser; hub for match + signaling only.
- No classic account β browser identity + export/import profile (QR / share / file).
- Friends β codes, requests, DMs, call when online; party / find-third paths.
- Safety tools β Next, Block, Report, blur-first strangers, optional on-device NSFW skip.
- Hide my IP β force TURN relay-only ICE when you want extra path privacy.
- Languages β 10 UI languages at full parity.
- Open source β self-host docs, Docker, desktop helper ZIPs (Windows / macOS / Linux).
- Speed β lean first paint, SW update banner, live stack no-stale deploys.
Full commit history on GitHub. Report issues there or via in-app report during a call.