1. Acceptance of Terms

By accessing or using Scribefully ("Service"), you agree to be bound by these Terms of Service ("Terms"). If you disagree with any part of these Terms, you may not access the Service.

2. Description of Service

Scribefully is a content aggregation and voting platform that enables users to discover thought leadership content, submit links to articles, vote on submissions, claim authorship of content, and build professional portfolios.

3. User Accounts and Registration

3.1 Anonymous Use

You may use certain features of the Service anonymously, including viewing content, submitting URLs, and voting. We collect limited data from anonymous users as described in our Privacy Policy.

3.2 Authenticated Accounts

To access full features including authorship claiming, portfolio building, and commenting, you must create an account by providing:

• Email address
• First and last name (for professional attribution)
• Password

3.3 Account Security

You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your account credentials and for all activities under your account. Notify us immediately of any unauthorized use of your account.

4. User Content and Conduct

4.1 Content Submissions and Profile Information

Users may submit links to third-party content. Scribefully does not host the content itself but generates link previews including title, description, and image.

Users may also add the following optional profile information:

• Bio text (up to 500 characters)
• Professional headline (up to 120 characters)
• Both bio and headline are publicly visible on your portfolio page and may be displayed alongside your content

4.2 Authorship Claims

When claiming authorship of content, you represent and warrant that:

• You are the original creator of the claimed content
• You have the legal right to claim authorship
• Your claim does not infringe on any third-party rights

4.3 Comments

Users with registered accounts may post comments on article pages. When posting comments, you agree that:

• Your real first and last name will be displayed publicly with your comment
• Comments cannot be edited after posting
• You may delete your own comments at any time
• All comments are publicly visible to anyone visiting the site
• You are solely responsible for the content of your comments
• We reserve the right to remove any comment at our sole discretion

4.4 Profile Photos/Avatars

Users with registered accounts may upload profile photos. When uploading a profile photo, you agree that:

• You own or have the necessary rights to use and share the image
• Your profile photo will be displayed publicly alongside your name and comments
• You grant Scribefully a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to store, process, and display your profile photo in connection with the Service
• We may process your image (compression, resizing, metadata removal) for technical and security purposes
• You may delete or replace your profile photo at any time
• We reserve the right to remove any profile photo at our sole discretion

4.5 Prohibited Conduct

You agree not to:

• Use the Service for any illegal purpose or in violation of any local, state, national, or international law
• Make false authorship claims
• Manipulate votes or engagement metrics
• Submit spam, malicious, or illegal content
• Harass or abuse other users
• Circumvent technical measures
• Reverse engineer the Service
• Attempt to gain unauthorized access to other computer systems or networks
• Upload or transmit viruses, malware, or other malicious code
• Engage in any activity that interferes with or disrupts the Service
• Post comments that are illegal, harmful, threatening, abusive, harassing, defamatory, vulgar, obscene, or otherwise objectionable
• Use comments to impersonate others or misrepresent your affiliation with any person or entity
• Post excessive comments in a manner that disrupts normal discussion
• Upload profile photos that are inappropriate, offensive, illegal, infringe on others' rights, or contain adult content

4.6 Curated Virtual Portfolios

As part of our content discovery mission, Scribefully may create virtual portfolios showcasing the work of thought leaders, academics, and content creators. These portfolios:

• Are created by Scribefully for business and marketing purposes
• Aggregate publicly available content through URL links only
• Include basic professional information derived from public sources
• Are offered to the featured individual for claiming through email verification
• Can be removed immediately upon request by the featured individual
• Transfer full ownership to the individual upon successful claim and verification

Featured individuals have the right to:

• Claim their virtual portfolio by completing email verification
• Request immediate removal of their virtual portfolio
• Modify or delete the portfolio after claiming ownership

4.7 Content Visibility Controls

Users may control the visibility of their submitted content through the following settings:

• Public (default): Content appears in both the main site feed and on your portfolio page, visible to all visitors
• Private: Content is hidden from both the main site feed and your public portfolio page. Only you can see this content when logged into your account
• Master Toggle: Allows you to quickly make all your content private or public at once

Virtual Portfolio Claims: When claiming a virtual portfolio created by Scribefully, all content defaults to public visibility to enable immediate professional showcase. You may adjust individual item visibility after claiming.

Privacy Settings Explained:

• When content is set to "Private," it is only visible to you when logged in
• Visitors to your portfolio page will NOT see your private content
• Private content remains in our database but is not publicly accessible
• You can change visibility settings at any time through your account settings
• Scribefully reserves the right to override visibility settings for legal compliance or Terms violations

5. Intellectual Property Rights

5.1 Platform Content

The Service, including its design, functionality, and underlying technology, is owned by Scribefully and protected by applicable laws.

5.2 User Submissions

For content you submit, claim, comment, or upload:

• You retain ownership of your submitted links, profile content, comments, and profile photos
• You grant Scribefully a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to display, distribute, and use such content for operating the Service
• By submitting URLs to the Service, you grant Scribefully a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to fetch, store, and display previews of the linked content, including titles, descriptions, and images
• You represent and warrant that you have all necessary rights to share such content
• You are solely responsible for content you submit, claim, comment, or upload

5.3 Dispute Resolution for Authorship Claims

If your authorship claim is disputed:

• We may request evidence of authorship
• We reserve the right to remove disputed claims pending resolution
• False claims may result in account termination

5.4 Technical Requirements for Profile Photos

Profile photos must meet the following requirements:

• Maximum file size: 5MB
• Supported formats: JPEG, PNG, GIF, WebP
• Appropriate content suitable for a professional platform
• You must have the legal right to use and share the image

5.5 Copyright Infringement and DMCA

If you believe content on Scribefully infringes your copyright, please send a notice to support@scribefully.com with identification of the copyrighted work, the allegedly infringing content, your contact information, and a statement of good faith belief. We will respond to legitimate DMCA notices promptly.

6. Privacy and Data Protection

Your use of the Service is also governed by our Privacy Policy, which is incorporated by reference into these Terms.

7. Service Availability and Modifications

7.1 Service Availability

We strive to provide uninterrupted service but do not guarantee the Service will be available at all times. We reserve the right to modify, suspend, or discontinue the Service at any time.

7.2 Beta Testing

The Service may include beta features that are still being tested. By using beta features, you agree that:

• Functionality may change without notice
• Your feedback may be used to improve the Service
• Beta features may be discontinued

8. Termination and Account Deletion

8.1 Termination by You

You may terminate your account at any time through the account settings or by contacting us.

8.2 Termination by Scribefully

We may terminate or suspend your account for violations of these Terms, illegal activity, or for any other reason at our sole discretion.

8.3 Effect of Termination

Upon termination:

• Your access to the Service will cease
• Your portfolio and claimed authorship will be removed
• Your comments will be permanently deleted from the database
• We may retain certain information as required by law

9. Disclaimers and Limitation of Liability

9.1 Disclaimers

THE SERVICE IS PROVIDED "AS IS" WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND. SCRIBEFULLY DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT.

9.2 Professional Attribution Disclaimer

Scribefully does not endorse or verify the accuracy of user-submitted content or authorship claims. Professional attribution features are provided for portfolio-building purposes only.

9.3 Limitation of Liability

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, SCRIBEFULLY SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES ARISING FROM YOUR USE OF THE SERVICE.

10. Third-Party Services

10.1 Analytics and Communication

We use PostHog for analytics to improve our Service. By using Scribefully, you acknowledge that your usage data may be collected and analyzed to enhance platform features and user experience. You can opt out of PostHog tracking by enabling "Do Not Track" in your browser settings.

We use Resend for sending transactional emails such as comment notifications and achievement milestones. These are not marketing emails and are directly related to your use of the Service.

10.2 Service Providers

Our Service relies on third-party providers including Supabase (database and authentication), Render (hosting), PostHog (analytics), and Resend (email notifications). While we work to ensure Service availability, we cannot guarantee uninterrupted access if these providers experience issues.

11. Dispute Resolution and Governing Law

11.1 Governing Law

These Terms shall be governed by the laws of California without regard to conflict of law principles.

11.2 Dispute Resolution

Any disputes arising from these Terms shall be resolved exclusively in the courts of Marin County, California.

12. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless Scribefully and its operators from and against any claims, liabilities, damages, losses, costs, expenses, or fees (including reasonable attorneys' fees) that arise from or relate to:

• Your use of the Service
• Your violation of these Terms
• Your violation of any rights of another person or entity
• Your User Content

13. General Provisions

13.1 Entire Agreement

These Terms constitute the entire agreement between you and Scribefully regarding the Service.

13.2 Severability

If any provision of these Terms is found to be unenforceable, the remaining provisions will remain in effect.

13.3 Changes to Terms

We may modify these Terms at any time. We will notify users of material changes by posting the updated Terms on the Service. Continued use constitutes acceptance of modified Terms.

13.4 Force Majeure

Scribefully will not be liable for any failure or delay in performance resulting from causes beyond its reasonable control, including but not limited to acts of God, natural disasters, pandemic, war, terrorism, riots, civil unrest, government action, labor disputes, or internet service provider failures.

13.5 Contact Information

For questions about these Terms, contact: support@scribefully.com