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Terms of Service

Effective Date: March 16, 2026

1. Acceptance of Terms

By accessing or using the FossilVault mobile application and website (the "Service"), you agree to be bound by these Terms of Service ("Terms"). If you do not agree to these Terms, do not use the Service.

2. Description of Service

FossilVault is a digital collection management application designed for fossil collectors. The Service allows users to:

  • Catalog and organize fossil specimens with detailed metadata
  • Store and manage photographs of fossil specimens
  • Record GPS locations and discovery information
  • Analyze collection statistics and generate reports
  • Export collection data in various formats
  • Sync data across multiple devices, subject to your plan
  • Optionally make selected specimens visible to other users or the public

3. User Accounts

Account Creation

  • You may use certain parts of the Service anonymously without creating an account
  • Anonymous usage does not provide cloud backup or multi-device access to your data
  • Account creation may be available via email/password, Google Sign-In, or Apple Sign-In
  • Account information must be accurate and kept up to date
  • You are responsible for maintaining the security of your account credentials
  • You must notify us immediately of any unauthorized access to your account

Account Responsibilities

  • You are solely responsible for all activities under your account
  • You must be at least 13 years old, or the minimum age required in your country, to create an account
  • One person may not maintain more than one account without our permission

4. Intended Use and Acceptable Use

You agree to use the Service only for lawful purposes and in accordance with these Terms.

FossilVault is intended for cataloging fossil specimens and related collection records. It is not a general-purpose cloud storage, file hosting, backup, or media sharing service.

You agree NOT to:

  • Use the Service for any illegal or unauthorized purpose
  • Upload, store, publish, request, transmit, or share content that is illegal, exploitative, harmful, fraudulent, defamatory, harassing, hateful, or deceptive
  • Upload, store, publish, request, transmit, or share child sexual abuse material or any content that sexually exploits or endangers minors
  • Upload, store, publish, request, transmit, or share pornography, explicit sexual content, or non-consensual intimate imagery
  • Use public specimen pages for unrelated personal media, promotion, spam, link farming, or other non-specimen content
  • Upload content that infringes intellectual property, privacy, publicity, or other rights
  • Publish personal data of another person without permission
  • Attempt to gain unauthorized access to the Service or other users' accounts
  • Transmit viruses, malware, or other harmful code
  • Interfere with or disrupt the Service or servers
  • Use automated systems to access the Service without permission
  • Share accounts or transfer accounts to third parties
  • Use the Service in a way that could expose sensitive fossil site information, private property information, or other data where disclosure could cause harm or unlawful conduct

5. Public Content Rules

If you choose to make a specimen public, you are responsible for ensuring that the specimen record, images, and related metadata are suitable for general audiences and comply with these Terms.

Public content must:

  • Be directly related to a fossil specimen, collection record, or lawful educational context connected to the Service
  • Be accurate to the best of your knowledge and not misleading about provenance, ownership, legality, or authenticity
  • Omit information that you do not have the right to disclose

Public content must not:

  • Include nudity, pornography, sexually explicit material, or fetish content
  • Include illegal content of any kind
  • Include graphic violence, gore unrelated to legitimate specimen documentation, or content intended to shock
  • Include hate symbols, extremist propaganda, threats, or harassment
  • Include unrelated selfies, personal photo backups, memes, advertisements, or other non-specimen media
  • Include exact location details, private land information, or other sensitive information if disclosure would be unlawful, unsafe, or likely to facilitate trespass, looting, or other misuse

6. Content and Intellectual Property

Your Content

  • You retain ownership of all content you upload to the Service
  • You grant us a limited license to host, store, process, reproduce, and display your content solely to operate, secure, improve, and provide the Service
  • If you make content public, you also grant us a limited license to display and distribute that content as part of the public features of the Service
  • You represent and warrant that you have the right to upload and share your content and that your content complies with these Terms
  • You are responsible for backing up your important data

Moderation and Enforcement

We may, but are not obligated to, review, screen, restrict, unpublish, remove, preserve, or disclose content, metadata, or account information if we believe it may violate these Terms, create risk for users or third parties, or expose FossilVault to legal liability.

We may take any of the following actions, with or without notice, depending on severity and urgency:

  • Remove or disable access to content
  • Unpublish public specimens
  • Limit upload, sharing, or account features
  • Suspend or terminate accounts
  • Preserve evidence and cooperate with law enforcement, regulators, or other authorities where required or appropriate under applicable law

Serious violations, including apparent child sexual abuse material, content involving sexual exploitation of minors, or repeated abuse of public sharing features, may result in immediate account termination.

Our Intellectual Property

  • The Service, including its software, design, and content excluding user content, is owned by FossilVault
  • You may not copy, modify, distribute, or reverse engineer our software except as permitted by applicable law
  • Our trademarks and logos may not be used without permission

7. Reporting Abuse and Complaints

If you believe public content on the Service violates these Terms or applicable law, please report it to [email protected] with enough detail for us to investigate.

When reviewing reports, we may request additional information, remove or restrict content, suspend accounts, or take other action we consider appropriate. We may also preserve relevant records for safety, legal, and enforcement purposes.

8. Privacy and Data Protection

Your privacy is important to us. Our collection and use of your information is governed by our Privacy Policy, which is incorporated into these Terms by reference. By using the Service, you consent to the collection and use of your information as described in the Privacy Policy.

We may process account data, uploaded content, report data, and related records as reasonably necessary to detect, investigate, prevent, and respond to fraud, abuse, safety incidents, and legal violations.

9. Subscription and Payment Terms

Free and Premium Tiers

  • Basic features are available for free with limitations
  • Premium features require a paid subscription
  • Subscription pricing is displayed in the app
  • Subscriptions auto-renew unless cancelled

Payment and Billing

  • Payments are processed through the Apple App Store or Google Play Store, as applicable
  • Subscription fees are non-refundable except as required by law or the applicable store terms
  • Price changes will be communicated in advance where required
  • You can cancel subscriptions through your App Store or Play Store account settings

Downgrades and Data Limits

If your paid subscription ends and your account exceeds the limits of the Free Plan, FossilVault may provide a grace period during which you may view your collection but may not add new content. During that period, you may remove items or re-subscribe to bring your account back within the Free Plan limits. After any applicable grace period ends, content exceeding the Free Plan limits may be permanently deleted from our servers and may not be recoverable. It is your responsibility to ensure your collection complies with your plan's limits before the grace period expires.

10. Service Availability

  • We strive to maintain high service availability but cannot guarantee uninterrupted or error-free operation
  • The Service may be temporarily unavailable due to maintenance, abuse mitigation, security work, or technical issues
  • We may modify, suspend, or discontinue features with reasonable notice when practicable

11. Termination

Termination by You

  • You may stop using the Service at any time
  • You may delete your account through available account settings, if applicable
  • Deleting your account may permanently remove your cloud data, subject to legal retention requirements and backup cycles

Termination by Us

  • We may suspend or terminate accounts that violate these Terms
  • We may discontinue the Service with reasonable notice
  • Upon termination, your right to use the Service ceases immediately
  • We may retain certain information as required by law, for legitimate safety and security purposes, or to resolve disputes and enforce these Terms

12. Disclaimers and Limitations

Disclaimers

  • The Service is provided "as is" and "as available" without warranties of any kind, to the extent permitted by law
  • We do not guarantee the accuracy of fossil identification or other informational features
  • GPS coordinates, map data, and location data may not be perfectly accurate
  • We are not responsible for data loss due to user error, third-party outages, abuse response actions, or device failure

Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent permitted by law, FossilVault shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, exemplary, or punitive damages, or for any loss of profits, revenues, data, goodwill, or other intangible losses arising from or related to your use of the Service.

13. Legal Compliance

  • You are responsible for complying with laws applicable to fossil collection, possession, trade, export, publication, and location disclosure
  • Some locations may require permits or prohibit collecting altogether
  • We do not provide legal advice regarding fossil collection regulations
  • You must respect private property, protected areas, cultural heritage rules, and applicable permit conditions

14. Governing Law

These Terms shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of Germany, without regard to conflict of law principles. Any disputes arising under these Terms shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts in Berlin, Germany, except where mandatory consumer protection law provides otherwise.

15. Changes to Terms

We reserve the right to modify these Terms at any time. We will notify users of material changes through the app, website, or email where appropriate. Continued use of the Service after the effective date of updated Terms constitutes acceptance of the revised Terms.

16. Contact Information

If you have questions about these Terms or need to report abuse, please contact us:

Important Note

These Terms of Service constitute a legally binding agreement. Please read them carefully and contact us if you have any questions before using the Service.