Info › Help › Connecting

Why do I have to connect before I can contact someone?

Because being on the map is not the same as agreeing to be contacted.

So on 8nOut you find someone, and then you ask. You send a connection request; they accept, or they do not. Contact details are only visible to accepted connections, so until they have accepted there is nothing of theirs to see, and nothing of yours either.

It works in your favour in both directions. If a request does not appeal to you, you decline it and that is the end of it — no message is sent, and the other player cannot reach you.

This is the part of 8nOut people question most, so it is worth being plain about why. A map of players only works if players are willing to be on it, and knowing that a stranger cannot simply pick up your number is what makes that willingness possible. The small step of asking first is what buys it.

And it does not have to be slow. If you are standing next to the person, you do not need a request at all — show your connect code, they scan it, and you are connected on the spot.