Terms of Service
 

By using the TrustLink Services ("TrustLink "), as defined below, and by accessing the TrustLink site located at https://www.trustlink.org, and all linked pages owned and operated by TrustLink (the "TrustLink Site"), you agree to be bound by these terms of service, as well as any other guidelines, rules and additional terms referenced herein, and all such guidelines, terms and rules are hereby incorporated herein by this reference (collectively, "Terms of Service"). You understand that these Terms of Service, the TrustLink Site and TrustLink Services may be modified by TrustLink at any time without prior notice, and such modifications will be effective upon TrustLink's posting of the new terms and/or upon implementation of the new changes on the TrustLink Site. You agree to review the Terms of Service periodically so that you are aware of any modifications. Your continued use of the TrustLink Service after any modifications indicates your acceptance of the modified Terms of Service. Unless expressly stated otherwise by TrustLink, any new features, new services, enhancements or modifications to the TrustLink Service implemented after your initial access to the Service shall be subject to these Terms of Service. Please contact us with any questions or to report any violations regarding these Terms of Service by using the "Contact Us" page on our website.

TrustLink's on-line services, which are available at the TrustLink Site, will, among other things, help you find trustworthy businesses/services by allowing you to get reviews from other TrustLink users ("TrustLinkers"), post and share these reviews with TrustLinkers, and view third party postings/reviews regarding similar businesses/services. These Terms of Service set out the legally binding terms with respect to your use of and our provision of the TrustLink Site and TrustLink Services. Please read these Terms of Service carefully. Your access to or use of the TrustLink Service constitutes your acceptance of all the provisions of these Terms of Service. If you are unwilling to be bound by these Terms of Service, do not access or use the TrustLink Service.

1. Eligibility

You must be 18 years or over, or the legal age to form a binding contract in your jurisdiction if that age is greater than 18 years of age, to register as a member of TrustLink or use the TrustLink Site and TrustLink Services. If you are under the age of 18 or the applicable legal age in your jurisdiction, you can use the TrustLink Service only in conjunction with, and under the supervision of, your parent or guardian, who has agreed to the Terms of Service. If you do not qualify, do not use the TrustLink Service. Membership in the TrustLink Service is void where prohibited by applicable law, and the right to access the TrustLink Site is revoked in such jurisdictions. You must be 13 years or older to use the TrustLink Site, in compliance with the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998. By using the TrustLink Site and/or TrustLink Services, you represent and warrant that you have the right, authority, and capacity to enter into these Terms of Service and to abide by all of the terms and conditions set forth herein. The TrustLink website is administered in the United States and is intended for United States users; any use outside of the United States is at the user's own risk and users are responsible for compliance with any local laws applicable to their use of the service or the website.

2. Registration and Security

In order to use or access some of the TrustLink Services, you may be required to register with TrustLink and to select a password and user name, which shall consist of an email address you own and use ("User ID"). If you register, you agree to provide TrustLink with accurate, complete, and updated registration information. Failure to do so shall constitute a breach of these Terms of Service, which may result in immediate termination of your account. You may not: (a) enter, select or use a false name or an email address owned or controlled by another person with the intent to impersonate that person, or (b) use as a User ID a name subject to any rights of a person other than yourself without appropriate authorization. TrustLink reserves the right to refuse registration of, or cancel a, User ID in its discretion. You shall be responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your password and are fully responsible for all activities that occur under your User ID and password. Any User ID and password provided to you for your access to the TrustLink Service shall be for your personal use only. You agree to (a) immediately notify TrustLink of any unauthorized use of your User ID or password, and (b) ensure that you exit from your account at the end of each session.

 

3. Use of the Site/Services by Members

Subject to the restrictions on use and on posting set forth in these Terms of Service, you may use the TrustLink Site to solicit reviews from, and share reviews with, other TrustLinkers; search the TrustLink database for reviews and business contact information; forward reviews to people you know, whether or not they are existing TrustLinkers; invite people you know to join the TrustLink community; and download or copy the portions of the information, data, text, sound, photographs, graphics, video, messages and other materials available via the TrustLink Service ("Content"), and other items displayed on the TrustLink Site, for your own use. You may not copy or distribute any portion of the TrustLink Site and/or TrustLink Service for any purpose not authorized above without the express written permission of TrustLink. TrustLink does not control the Content posted by third parties via the TrustLink Service, including the content of any messages or reviews, and does not guarantee the accuracy, integrity or quality of such Content. TrustLink will make a good faith effort to monitor the Content for authenticity and to prevent the use of inappropriate language; however, you understand that by using the TrustLink Service, you may be exposed to Content that is offensive, indecent or objectionable. Under no circumstances will TrustLink be liable in any way for any Content, including any errors or omissions in any Content, or any loss or damage of any kind incurred as a result of your use of any Content. You are responsible for complying with all laws applicable to the Content you submit via the TrustLink Service. You agree that you must evaluate and bear all risks associated with the use of any Content, including any reliance on the content, integrity, and accuracy of such Content.

4. Restrictions on Rights to Use

You agree that you shall not (and you agree not to allow any third party to):

· modify, adapt, translate, or reverse engineer any portion of the TrustLink Site and/or TrustLink Service;

· remove any copyright, trademark or other proprietary rights notices contained in or on the TrustLink Site and/or TrustLink Service or in or on any Content or other material obtained via the TrustLink Site and/or TrustLink Service.

· use any robot, spider, site search/retrieval application, or another automated device, process or means to access, retrieve or index any portion of the TrustLink Site and/or TrustLink Service;

· access, retrieve or index any portion of the TrustLink Site and/or TrustLink Service for purposes of constructing or populating a searchable database of business reviews;

· collect any information about other users or members (including user names and/or email addresses) for any purpose other than to solicit and share reviews with other TrustLinkers or members;

· reformat or frame any portion of the web pages that are part of the TrustLink Site and/or TrustLink Service;

· create user accounts by automated means or under false or fraudulent pretenses;

· create or transmit unwanted electronic communications such as "spam" to other users or members of the TrustLink Site and/or TrustLink Service or otherwise interfere with other user's or member's enjoyment of the TrustLink Site and/or TrustLink Service;

· transmit any viruses, worms, defects, Trojan horses or other items of a destructive nature;

· use the TrustLink Site or TrustLink Services to violate the security of any computer network, crack passwords or security encryption codes, transfer or store illegal material, including material that is deemed threatening or obscene;

· copy or store any Content offered on the TrustLink Site for other than your own use;

· use any device, software or routine that interferes with the proper working of the TrustLink Site and/or TrustLink Service, or otherwise attempt to interfere with the proper working of the TrustLink Site and/or TrustLink Service;

· take any action that imposes, or may impose in our sole discretion, an unreasonable or disproportionately large load on our IT infrastructure;

· use any Content marked as obtained from or belonging to TrustLink, except in compliance with the additional terms specified below;

· use the TrustLink Site and/or TrustLink Service, intentionally or unintentionally, to violate any applicable local, state, national or international law; or

· collect or store personal data about other users in connection with the prohibited activities described in this paragraph.

5. Content Posted By You on the TrustLink Site

· You are solely responsible for any Content and other material that you submit, publish or display on the TrustLink Site or transmit to other members and/or other website users (hereinafter, "Posted Content").

· You may not post, distribute, or reproduce in any way any copyrighted material, trademarks, or other proprietary information without obtaining the prior written consent of the owner of such proprietary rights. You may not submit any Content or material that infringes, misappropriates or violates the intellectual property, publicity, privacy or other rights of any party.

· You may not provide any Posted Content that falsely expresses or implies that such Content or material is sponsored or endorsed by TrustLink.

· You may not provide any Posted Content that is unlawful or that promotes or encourages illegal activity.

· You understand and agree that TrustLink may perpetually review, edit, rewrite, amend, annotate, editorialize, emphasize or delete ("Manage") any Posted Content including business listings (business name, address, phone, fax, hours, type of business, distance and other business information), questions, answers, responses, communiques, reviews, ratings, photos, videos, logos, drawings, or other Posted Content that, in the sole judgment of TrustLink, violates these Terms of Service or which might be harmful, offensive, illegal, false, misleading, or outside TrustLink’s scope of business, customer or audience, or that might violate the rights of, harm, or threaten the safety of other users or members of the TrustLink Site and/or other websites or users. TrustLink’s authority to Manage Posted Content shall be unlimited.

· You are solely responsible for your ratings and reviews of businesses listed on the TrustLink Site. TrustLink reserves the right, but has no obligation, to monitor disputes between you and any entity which you have reviewed.

· You agree that you will only provide Posted Content that you believe to be true and you will not purposely provide false or misleading information.

· By posting Posted Content on the TrustLink Site, you agree to and hereby do grant, and you represent and warrant that you have the right to grant TrustLink, its contractors, and the users of the TrustLink Site, an irrevocable, perpetual, royalty-free, fully sub-licensable, fully paid up, worldwide license to use, copy, publicly perform, digitally perform, publicly display, and distribute such Posted Content and to prepare derivative works of, or incorporate into other works, such Posted Content. This license is non-exclusive, except you agree that TrustLink shall have the exclusive right to practice this license to the extent of combining your Posted Content with the Posted Content of other TrustLink users for purposes of constructing or populating a searchable database of business reviews.

· The following is a partial list of the kind of Content and communications that may be illegal or prohibited on or through the TrustLink Site. TrustLink reserves the right to investigate and take appropriate legal action in its sole discretion against anyone who violates this provision, including without limitation, removing the offending communication from the TrustLink Service and terminating the membership of such violators or blocking your use of the TrustLink Service and/or TrustLink Site. TrustLink is not obligated to remove any reviews or take any action against any user. You may not post Content that:

i. is false or intentionally misleading;

ii. is patently offensive to users of the TrustLink Site, such as Content or messages that promote racism, bigotry, hatred or physical harm of any kind against any group or individual;

iii. harasses or advocates harassment of another person;

iv. involves the transmission of unsolicited mass mailing or "spamming;"

v. violates the intellectual property or other rights of any person;

vi. promotes illegal activities or conduct that is abusive;

vii. is threatening, obscene, defamatory or libelous;

viii. is pornographic or sexually explicit in nature; and,

ix. seeks or recommends providers of material that exploits people under the age of 18 in a sexual or violent manner, or seeks or recommends providers that solicit personal information from anyone under 18.

6. Copyright Dispute Policy

TrustLink has adopted the following general policy toward copyright infringement in accordance with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act of 1998 (posted at http://www.copyright.gov/legislation/dmca.pdf). The address of TrustLink's Designated Agent to Receive Notification of Claimed Infringement ("Designated Agent") is provided at the bottom of this section.

· TrustLink Policy. It is TrustLink's policy to (a) block access to or remove material that it believes in good faith to be copyrighted material that has been illegally copied and distributed by any of our subscribers, affiliates, Content providers, or TrustLinkers; and, (b) remove and discontinue service to repeat offenders.

· Procedure for Reporting Copyright Infringements. If you believe that material or Content residing on or accessible through the TrustLink Site or TrustLink Service infringes a copyright, please send a notice of copyright infringement containing the following information to the Designated Agent listed below ("Proper Bona Fide Infringement Notification"):

i. a physical or electronic signature of a person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of the copyright that has been allegedly infringed;

ii. identification of works or materials being infringed;

iii. identification of the material that is claimed to be infringing, including information regarding the location of the infringing materials that the copyright owner seeks to have removed, with sufficient detail so that TrustLink is capable of finding and verifying its existence;

iv. contact information about the notifier, including address, telephone number, and, if available, email address.

v. a statement that the notifier has a good faith belief that the material is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law; and,

vi. a statement made under penalty of perjury that the information provided is accurate and the notifying party is authorized to make the complaint on behalf of the copyright owner.

· Upon Receipt of a Bona Fide Infringement Notification. Once a Proper Bona Fide Infringement Notification is received by the Designated Agent, it is TrustLink's policy:

i. to remove or disable access to the infringing material;

ii. to notify the Content provider or TrustLinker that it has removed or disabled access to the material; and,

iii. that for repeat offenders, TrustLink will also terminate such Content provider's or TrustLinker's access to the service.

· Procedure to Supply a Counter-Notice to the Designated Agent. If the Content provider, member or user believes that the material that was removed or to which access was disabled is either not infringing, or the Content provider, member or user believes that it has the right to post and use such material from the copyright owners, the copyright owner's agent, or pursuant to the law, the Content provider, member or user must send a counter-notice containing the following information to the Designated Agent listed below:

i. a physical or electronic signature of the Content provider or TrustLinker;

ii. identification of the material that has been removed or to which access to has been disabled and the location at which the material appeared before it was removed or disabled;

iii. a statement that the Content provider or TrustLinker has a good faith belief that the material was removed or disabled as a result of mistake or a misidentification of the material; and,

iv. the Content provider's or TrustLinker's name, address, telephone number, and, if available, email address and a statement that such person or entity consents to the jurisdiction of the Federal Court for the judicial district in which the Content provider's or TrustLinker's address is located, or if the Content provider's or TrustLinker's address is located outside the United States, for any judicial district in which TrustLink is located, and that such person or entity will accept service of process from the person who provided notification of the alleged infringement.

· Removal. If a counter-notice is received by the Designated Agent, TrustLink may send a copy of the counter-notice to the original complaining party informing that person that it may replace the removed material or cease disabling it in 10 business days. Unless the copyright owner files an action seeking a court order against the Content provider, member or TrustLinker, the removed material may be replaced or access to it restored in 10 to 14 business days or more after receipt of the counter-notice, at TrustLink's discretion.

· Address for Designated Agent. Please contact TrustLink's Designated Agent to receive Notification of Claimed Infringement at the following address:

TrustLink
525 South Rancho Avenue
Colton, CA 92324

7. Venue Only

If you enter into correspondence or engage in commercial transactions with third parties in connection with your use of the TrustLink Service, such activity is solely between you and the applicable third party. TrustLink shall have no liability, obligation or responsibility for any such activity. You hereby release TrustLink from all claims arising from such activity.

8. Privacy

Use of the TrustLink Site and/or the TrustLink Service is also governed by our Privacy Policy, which is incorporated in these Terms of Service and a copy of which is also currently located at https://www.trustlink.org/privacy.aspx.

9. Term

These Terms of Service will remain in full force and effect while you use the TrustLink Site and/or TrustLink Services. Either Party may terminate these Terms of Service for any reason, at any time. Sections 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14 shall survive any termination or expiration of these Terms of Service.

10. Ownership

The TrustLink Site and TrustLink Service (including, but not limited to, text, photographs, graphics, video and audio Content) are protected by copyright as collective works or compilations under the copyright laws of the United States and other countries. All individual articles, Content and other elements comprising the TrustLink Site and TrustLink Service are also copyrighted works. Except for the Content submitted by members TrustLinkers, the TrustLink Service and all aspects thereof, including all copyrights, trademarks, and other intellectual property or proprietary rights therein, is owned by TrustLink or its licensors. You acknowledge that the TrustLink Service and any underlying technology or software used in connection with the TrustLink Service contain TrustLink's proprietary information. You may not modify, reproduce, distribute, create derivative works of, publicly display or in any way exploit, any of the content, software, and/or materials available on the TrustLink Site, or TrustLink Services in whole or in part except as expressly provided in TrustLink's policies and procedures made available via the TrustLink Service. Except as expressly and unambiguously provided herein, TrustLink and its suppliers do not grant you any express or implied rights, and all rights in the TrustLink Service not expressly granted by TrustLink to you are retained by TrustLink.

11.  Preferred Memberships for Businesses

Businesses choosing to enhance their local online presence through the Preferred Membership program are subject to the following terms and conditions.  Membership dues are paid in advance and automatically renew on each annual, semi-annual, quarterly or monthly anniversary, based on the billing period. After the first year, annual and semi-annual memberships are automatically converted into monthly memberships unless notice of cancellation or alteration is received. After the first year and for each successive year, quarterly and monthly memberships renew as quarterly and monthly memberships, respectively.  Renewal notices may not be provided by TrustLink. Memberships can be cancelled at any time by mail, email or phone.  No additional membership payments will be made after the cancellation and the Preferred Membership will expire upon the next scheduled anniversary date.  Memberships are deemed consumed as used and non-refundable.. 

12. Disclaimer

THE TRUSTLINK SITE IS PROVIDED BY TRUSTLINK ON AN "AS IS" BASIS. TRUSTLINK AND ITS LICENSORS AND AFFILIATES MAKE NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS, STATUTORY OR IMPLIED AS TO THE OPERATION OF THE TRUSTLINK SITE, TRUSTLINK SERVICE OR SOFTWARE OR THE INFORMATION, CONTENT, MATERIALS, OR PRODUCTS INCLUDED ON THE TRUSTLINK SITE OR IN ASSOCIATION WITH THE TRUSTLINK SERVICES. TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMISSIBLE BY APPLICABLE LAW, TRUSTLINK AND ITS LICENSORS AND AFFILIATES DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS, STATUTORY, OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. TRUSTLINK AND ITS LICENSORS AND AFFILIATES FURTHER DO NOT WARRANT THE ACCURACY OR COMPLETENESS OF THE INFORMATION, TEXT, GRAPHICS, LINKS OR OTHER ITEMS CONTAINED WITHIN THE TRUSTLINK SITE. SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW LIMITATIONS ON HOW LONG AN IMPLIED WARRANTY LASTS, SO THE ABOVE LIMITATIONS MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU. TRUSTLINK IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE CONDUCT OF ANY USER OF THE TRUSTLINK SITE. TrustLink does not warrant or covenant that the TrustLink Service will be available at any time or from any particular location, will be secure or error-free, that defects will be corrected, or that the TrustLink Service is free of viruses or other potentially harmful components. Any material or Content downloaded or otherwise obtained through the use of the TrustLink Service is accessed at your own discretion and risk and you will be solely responsible for any damage to your computer system or loss of data that results from the download of any such material. NO ADVICE OR INFORMATION, WHETHER ORAL OR WRITTEN, OBTAINED BY ANY USER FROM TRUSTLINK, THE TRUSTLINK SITE OR THROUGH OR FROM THE TRUSTLINK SERVICE SHALL CREATE ANY WARRANTY NOT EXPRESSLY STATED HEREIN.

13. Limitation on Liability

TrustLink shall not be liable for any failure to perform its obligations hereunder where such failure results from any cause beyond TrustLink's reasonable control, including without limitation, mechanical, electronic or communications failure or degradation (including "line-noise" interference). WITHOUT LIMITING THE FOREGOING, TRUSTLINK AND ITS AFFILIATES AND SUPPLIERS WILL NOT BE LIABLE UNDER ANY THEORY OF LAW, FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, PUNITIVE, AND CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO LOSS OF PROFITS, BUSINESS INTERRUPTION, AND/OR LOSS OF INFORMATION OR DATA. SOME JURISDICTIONS DO NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, SO THE ABOVE LIMITATIONS AND EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES, MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU, NOTWITHSTANDING ANYTHING TO THE CONTRARY CONTAINED HEREIN, TRUSTLINK'S MAXIMUM AGGREGATE LIABILITY TO YOU FOR ANY CAUSES WHATSOEVER, AND REGARDLESS OF THE FORM OF ACTION, WILL AT ALL TIMES BE LIMITED TO THE GREATER OF (a) THE AMOUNT PAID, IF ANY, BY YOU TO TRUSTLINK FOR THE TRUSTLINK SERVICES IN THE 12 MONTHS PRIOR TO THE ACTION GIVING RISE TO LIABILITY OR (b) $100. IF YOU ARE A CALIFORNIA RESIDENT, YOU WAIVE YOUR RIGHTS WITH RESPECT TO CALIFORNIA CIVIL CODE SECTION 1542, WHICH SAYS "A GENERAL RELEASE DOES NOT EXTEND TO CLAIMS WHICH THE CREDITOR DOES NOT KNOW OR SUSPECT TO EXIST IN HIS FAVOR AT THE TIME OF EXECUTING THE RELEASE, WHICH, IF KNOWN BY HIM MUST HAVE MATERIALLY AFFECTED HIS SETTLEMENT WITH THE DEBTOR."

14. Indemnity

You agree to indemnify and hold TrustLink, its parents, subsidiaries, affiliates, officers and employees, harmless, including costs and attorneys' fees, from any claim or demand made by any third party due to or arising out of (a) your access to the TrustLink Site, (b) your use of the TrustLink Services, (c) the violation of these Terms of Service by you, or (d) the infringement by you, or any third party using your account or User ID or password, of any intellectual property or other right of any person or entity.

15. Third Party Content Providers

With respect to any Content marked as Content obtained from or belonging to TrustLink, the following applies:

This information is proprietary to TrustLink and is protected under U.S. copyright laws and international treaty provisions. This information is licensed for your personal or professional use and may not be resold or provided to others. You may not distribute, sell, rent, sublicense, or lease such information, in whole or in part to any third party; and you will not make such TrustLink information available in whole or in part to any other user in any networked or time-sharing environment, or transfer the information in whole or in part to any computer other than the PC used to access this information.

16. Miscellaneous

If there is any dispute about or involving the TrustLink Site and/or the TrustLink Service, by using the TrustLink Site, you agree that the dispute will be governed by the laws of the State of California without regard to its conflict of law provisions. You agree to personal jurisdiction by and venue in the state and federal courts of the State of California, City of Colton. No agency, partnership, joint venture, or employment is created as a result of these Terms of Service and you do not have any authority of any kind to bind TrustLink in any respect whatsoever. TrustLink may provide you with notices, including those regarding changes to the Terms of Service by email, regular mail or postings on the TrustLink Service. These Terms of Service, accepted upon use of the TrustLink Site, and all terms, guidelines and rules referenced herein contain the entire agreement between you and TrustLink regarding the use of the TrustLink Site and/or the TrustLink Service. The failure of TrustLink to exercise or enforce any right or provision of these Terms of Service shall not constitute a waiver of such right or provision. The failure of either party to exercise in any respect any right provided for herein shall not be deemed a waiver of any further rights hereunder. If any provision of the Terms of Service is found to be unenforceable or invalid, that provision shall be limited or eliminated to the minimum extent necessary so that these Terms of Service shall otherwise remain in full force and effect and enforceable. These Terms of Service are not assignable, transferable or sub-licensable by you except with TrustLink's prior written consent. The section titles in these Terms of Service are for convenience only and have no legal or contractual effect. These Terms of Service include TrustLink's acceptable use policy for Content posted on the TrustLink Site and any notices regarding the TrustLink Site.

 
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