Making website where client will upload pictures of men and women estate agents

27 Feb 2023 Ref-No#: 4951

I am writing to seek your advice on a matter related to my work as a web designer for a real estate brokerage company. My job is to create and maintain their website, which serves as a platform for customers who are looking to buy a house. The website allows customers to choose an area and get assigned a real estate agent who will help them find a suitable house, negotiate the price with the seller, and close the transaction.

The assigned agent receives a commission from the sale of the house, which is a percentage of the total sale price. The real estate brokerage company, which operates the website, also receives a percentage of the commission as their fee for facilitating the transaction.

The company has both male and female agents, and the website does not distinguish between them. Non-Muslim employees at the company upload pictures of agents, including female agents who may not have a headscarf in their photos. I have been working on this website for six months and receive regular payments. I have also taken a loan from the client to pay for my upcoming wedding in six days.

Today, the client has asked me to include pictures of two women on the website’s home page, which I know is not permissible for me as a Muslim. While I can refuse to do so, I am concerned about the pictures that customers will see when they are assigned an agent. As the company team is responsible for uploading those pictures, I am not directly involved, but I am aware that they may include photos of women without headscarves.

My question is, would it be considered haram for me to continue working for this client under these circumstances? And what should I do about the loan that I have taken from them? Should I continue working to pay off the loan or stop working altogether?

I would greatly appreciate your guidance on this matter.

Answer

Wa’alaykum as Salām wa raḥmatullāhi wa barakātuhu,

It is permissible to continue with all the other maintenance and services that you are doing for the website, but you should not upload any images.

Your income is Ḥalāl.

You are not responsible if they upload images.

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