Deliberately false allegations — a balanced view
This is a sensitive subject, and it is often discussed badly. CSent's position is simple: it does not presume guilt or innocence about anyone.
Two things are true at once
Sexual violence and abuse are serious, and cause lasting harm to the people who experience them.
Deliberately false allegations are also serious, and cause lasting harm to the people they are made against.
Holding both of these in mind is not a contradiction.
What a deliberately false allegation is not
A deliberate fabrication is different from many other situations that can look similar from the outside:
- Two people genuinely remembering an evening differently.
- A misunderstanding about what was agreed.
- Someone's feelings about an experience changing afterwards.
- Consent that was given and then withdrawn.
- An account that is disputed, incomplete or hard to describe.
- A report not proceeding, or evidence being insufficient.
None of these mean someone lied
Delayed reporting, an account that changes in detail, or a case that does not go forward are common and do not indicate fabrication.
Most allegations are not deliberately false, and treating them as suspect by default is both unfair and unsafe.
What CSent does about it
CSent records the choices people make in the app, with timestamps. That is all.
A CSent record does not prove that an allegation is false, and the absence of a record does not prove anything either.
CSent does not determine truth, guilt, innocence or legal liability. Those questions belong to investigators and courts, not to an app.
General information only, not legal advice. The framing here reflects England and Wales; rules differ elsewhere.