Terms of Service

Agreement to Terms

By accessing or using VoteStack ("the Platform"), you agree to be bound by these Terms of Service ("Terms"). If you do not agree to these Terms, you may not access or use the Platform. These Terms apply to all users, including election organizers and voters.

Use of the Platform

Eligibility

You must be at least 13 years old to use the Platform. By using the Platform, you represent and warrant that you meet this age requirement and have the legal capacity to enter into these Terms.

Account Registration

To use certain features of the Platform, you must create an account. You agree to:

• Provide accurate, current, and complete information during registration
• Maintain and promptly update your account information
• Maintain the security of your password and account credentials
• Accept responsibility for all activities that occur under your account
• Notify us immediately of any unauthorized access or security breach

Acceptable Use

You agree not to:

• Use the Platform for any illegal, fraudulent, or unauthorized purpose
• Attempt to manipulate, interfere with, or compromise election integrity
• Engage in vote buying, selling, or coercion
• Submit false, misleading, or fraudulent voter information
• Attempt to vote multiple times in the same election
• Access another user's account without permission
• Interfere with or disrupt the Platform's operation
• Attempt to bypass security measures or access controls
• Use automated tools to access the Platform without authorization
• Upload malicious code, viruses, or harmful content

Election Management

Your Responsibilities

As an election organizer, you are responsible for:

• Ensuring the accuracy of election information, candidates, and voter lists
• Obtaining necessary permissions to use voter data
• Complying with applicable election laws and regulations
• Maintaining the confidentiality of voter information
• Ensuring fair and transparent election practices
• Resolving disputes arising from your elections

Platform Capabilities

VoteStack provides tools for election management but does not validate the legality or appropriateness of your elections. You are solely responsible for ensuring compliance with applicable laws and regulations.

Biometric Data and Face Verification

Optional Feature

VoteStack offers an optional biometric face verification feature. Election organizers may choose to enable this feature for their elections. It is disabled by default and must be explicitly enabled per election.

How It Works

When face verification is enabled for an election:

• The election organizer enrolls a reference photo of each voter
• Reference photos are processed immediately - a mathematical face embedding (a 512-dimensional vector) is generated and stored
• The original photos are never stored on our servers; only the mathematical embedding is retained
• At voting time, a live camera capture is compared against the stored embedding using cosine similarity
• Liveness detection (blink/head movement) is applied to prevent static photo spoofing

Organizer Responsibilities

If you enable face verification as an election organizer, you:

• Must obtain explicit written consent from each voter before enrolling their biometric data
• Are responsible for informing voters how their biometric data will be used
• Must comply with applicable biometric privacy laws (e.g. BIPA, GDPR Article 9)
• Acknowledge that embeddings are stored encrypted in your election's database records
• Can delete voter embeddings at any time by removing the voter from your election

Voter Rights

As a voter subject to face verification:

• You may refuse face verification and should contact your election organizer to discuss alternatives
• Your biometric embedding is used solely to verify your identity for this election
• Embeddings are not shared with third parties or used for any other purpose
• You may request deletion of your biometric data by contacting the election organizer

Data and Privacy

Your use of the Platform is subject to our Privacy Policy. You acknowledge and agree that:

• We collect and process data as described in our Privacy Policy
• You are responsible for obtaining consent from voters to process their data
• You grant us permission to use your data to provide and improve our services
• Data isolation is maintained between different organizations
• We implement reasonable security measures but cannot guarantee absolute security

Intellectual Property

Platform Ownership

The Platform, including all content, features, functionality, software, and design, is owned by VoteStack and protected by intellectual property laws. You may not copy, modify, distribute, or reverse engineer any part of the Platform without our express written permission.

Your Content

You retain ownership of any data, content, or information you submit to the Platform ("Your Content"). By submitting Your Content, you grant us a limited license to use, store, and process it solely to provide our services.

Service Availability

We strive to maintain high availability and performance, but:

• The Platform is provided "as is" and "as available"
• We do not guarantee uninterrupted or error-free service
• We may modify, suspend, or discontinue features with or without notice
• We may perform maintenance that temporarily affects availability
• We are not liable for service interruptions or data loss

Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent permitted by law:

• VoteStack is not liable for indirect, incidental, special, or consequential damages
• Our total liability shall not exceed the amount you paid us in the past 12 months
• We are not responsible for election outcomes, disputes, or legal challenges
• We are not liable for damages caused by unauthorized access or security breaches
• We are not responsible for your failure to comply with applicable laws

Indemnification

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless VoteStack, its affiliates, and personnel from any claims, damages, losses, or expenses (including legal fees) arising from:

• Your violation of these Terms
• Your use of the Platform
• Your elections and election management practices
• Your violation of any rights of third parties
• Your violation of applicable laws or regulations

Termination

We may suspend or terminate your access to the Platform at any time, with or without cause or notice, if we believe you have violated these Terms or engaged in fraudulent activity. You may terminate your account at any time by contacting us or using account deletion features.

Upon termination:

• Your right to access and use the Platform ceases immediately
• We may delete your account and associated data (subject to legal retention requirements)
• Provisions that by their nature should survive termination will remain in effect

Dispute Resolution

Governing Law

These Terms are governed by and construed in accordance with applicable laws, without regard to conflict of law principles.

Arbitration

Any disputes arising from these Terms or your use of the Platform shall be resolved through binding arbitration, except where prohibited by law. You waive your right to participate in class action lawsuits.

Changes to Terms

We reserve the right to modify these Terms at any time. We will notify you of material changes by:

• Posting the updated Terms on this page
• Updating the "Last updated" date
• Sending email notification for significant changes

Your continued use of the Platform after changes constitutes acceptance of the updated Terms. If you do not agree to the changes, you must stop using the Platform.

Miscellaneous

Entire Agreement

These Terms, together with our Privacy Policy, constitute the entire agreement between you and VoteStack regarding the Platform.

Severability

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

Waiver

Our failure to enforce any right or provision of these Terms will not constitute a waiver of that right or provision.

Assignment

You may not assign or transfer these Terms without our prior written consent. We may assign these Terms without restriction.

Contact Us

Questions or concerns about these Terms: