Terms of Service

EBIWAWA — African Family Digital Heritage Platform

Last updated: 8 July 2026 Effective date: 8 July 2026

1. Introduction

These Terms of Service ("Terms") govern your use of the EBIWAWA platform ("Service"), operated by Ebiwawa, Inc. ("we", "us", "our").

By creating an account or using the Service, you agree to these Terms. If you do not agree, do not use the Service.

2. Eligibility

You must be at least 16 years old (UK and EU/EEA), 14 years old (Quebec), or 13 years old (rest of US/Canada) to create an account
You must provide accurate registration information
During our initial launch, access is by invitation only

3. Your Account

3.1 Account Security

You are responsible for maintaining the security of your account credentials
You must notify us immediately if you believe your account has been compromised
We use industry-standard authentication infrastructure to manage your login securely

3.2 Account Information

You must provide accurate and current information
You may update your information at any time through your profile settings

3.3 One Account Per Person

Each person may maintain only one account
Accounts are non-transferable

4. What You Can Do on EBIWAWA

The Service allows you to:

Create and manage family trees
Add family members and relationships
Upload and share photos, videos, and documents
Write posts and comments
Send direct and group messages
Use our AI-powered Photo Analysis feature (with additional AI features added over time and disclosed in our Privacy Policy)
Create and manage photo albums
Verify family member information through the Trust Score system
Manage calendar events
Search for and connect with family members

5. Your Content

5.1 Ownership

You retain ownership of all content you create or upload ("Your Content"), including posts, photos, videos, documents, messages, and family tree data.

5.2 Licence to Us

By uploading content to EBIWAWA, you grant us a limited, non-exclusive, worldwide licence to:

Store, display, and distribute Your Content to other users according to the privacy settings you choose
Process Your Content through AI features when you request it
Create backups of Your Content for service reliability

This licence exists solely to operate the Service and ends when you delete Your Content or your account.

5.3 Privacy Levels

You control who sees your posts through privacy settings:

Private: Only you
Family: Members of your family tree
Public: All EBIWAWA users

5.4 Content Standards

You agree not to upload or share content that:

Is defamatory, threatening, or harassing
Infringes on anyone's intellectual property, privacy, or other rights
Contains malware or harmful code
Is knowingly false or misleading
Is illegal under the laws of the European Union, United Kingdom, United States, or Canada
Constitutes spam or unsolicited commercial content
Contains explicit sexual content or graphic violence
Promotes hatred or discrimination

We may remove content that violates these standards and may suspend or terminate accounts for repeated violations. To report content you believe violates these standards, write to safety@ebiwawa.com (see §8.1).

6. Family Tree Data — Special Responsibilities

6.1 Adding Family Members

When you add a person to a family tree, you:

Confirm you have a genuine familial connection to that person
Accept responsibility for the accuracy of the information you provide
Agree to make reasonable efforts to inform living, identifiable individuals that their data is recorded on the platform
Understand that other family tree members may verify the data you add

6.2 Editing and Verification

Any family tree member can edit person records
Edits clear all existing verifications (the Trust Score system requires re-verification after changes)
The last_edited_by field records who made the most recent edit

6.3 Disputes About Family Data

If family members disagree about data accuracy:

Use the Trust Score verification system to record verification of accurate data
Contact us if you cannot resolve a dispute
We reserve the right to mediate or remove disputed data if necessary

6.4 Removal Requests

Any identifiable living person may request that their data be removed from a family tree, whether or not they are a user of the platform. We will honour such requests in compliance with applicable data protection law.

7. AI Features

7.1 Availability and Limits

AI features are provided through an AI sub-processor
Usage is rate-limited to a small number of requests per user per day to prevent misuse
AI features may be modified, limited, or discontinued at any time

7.2 AI Output

AI-generated content (stories, descriptions, captions, transcriptions) is provided as suggestions only
You are responsible for reviewing AI output before using or sharing it
AI output may contain errors or inaccuracies
We do not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or appropriateness of AI-generated content

7.3 Data Processing

Data sent to the AI model is processed transiently and not stored by the AI service
AI processing occurs in the United States
Your use of AI features is subject to our Privacy Policy

8. Acceptable Use

You agree not to:

Access the Service through any means other than our provided interfaces
Attempt to gain unauthorised access to other users' accounts or data
Scrape, crawl, or automatically collect data from the Service
Interfere with or disrupt the Service's infrastructure
Use the Service for any commercial purpose without our written consent
Circumvent rate limits or security measures
Impersonate another person or misrepresent your identity
Use the Service to stalk, harass, or harm another person

8.1 Reporting violations

If you encounter behavior that violates these Terms — harassment, impersonation, unauthorised use of family data, or other unsafe conduct — report it to safety@ebiwawa.com. We review every report and may take action including content removal, account restriction, or account termination.

If you believe you have discovered a security vulnerability in the Service, report it to security@ebiwawa.com under our responsible disclosure policy (see Privacy Policy §7.1).

9. User Blocking

You may block any other user at any time
Blocking a user removes all shared family tree access and relationships between you
Blocked users cannot see your content or contact you
You can unblock a user at any time, but removed connections are not automatically restored

10. Intellectual Property

10.1 Our Property

The Service — including its underlying software, design, features, database structure, content we create, and branding — is our intellectual property or is used by us under licence. These Terms do not grant you any rights to our intellectual property except the limited right to use the Service as intended.

10.2 Trademarks

"Ebiwawa"™, the Ebiwawa logo, "EBIWAWA"™, and related word marks and design marks (collectively, the "Ebiwawa Marks") are trademarks of Ebiwawa, Inc. They are protected under United States and international trademark law as unregistered common-law marks. Registration is pending in one or more jurisdictions.

You may not:

Use the Ebiwawa Marks in any way that suggests endorsement, sponsorship, or affiliation with Ebiwawa, Inc. without our prior written consent.
Register, adopt, or use domain names, social media handles, business names, product names, or trademarks that incorporate the Ebiwawa Marks or confusingly similar variations.
Use the Ebiwawa Marks in advertising, merchandise, printed materials, or promotional content without our prior written consent.
Modify, distort, or alter the Ebiwawa Marks, or use them together with any other mark in a way that could imply a combined identity.

You may:

Refer to "Ebiwawa" in ordinary editorial, journalistic, or informational contexts (for example, telling family or friends "I'm on Ebiwawa"), provided the reference is truthful and does not imply endorsement.
Include screenshots or plain-text references of your own account or content on Ebiwawa when the reference is about your experience.

For any use beyond these terms — including partnership, press coverage, or promotional use — contact us at legal@ebiwawa.com.

10.3 Your Content

You retain ownership of the content you upload to Ebiwawa (family history, photos, biographies, posts, messages, etc.). By posting content on the Service, you grant Ebiwawa, Inc. a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free licence to host, display, transmit, store, back up, and process that content solely to provide the Service to you and to the other family members you have shared it with. This licence ends when you delete the content or your account, except as needed for backup retention, audit logs, legal preservation, or anonymised content that remains on shared family trees (see §12.1).

10.4 Feedback

If you provide suggestions, ideas, or feedback about the Service, we may use them to improve the platform without obligation or compensation to you.

11. Service Availability

We aim to keep the Service available but do not guarantee uninterrupted access
We may perform maintenance, updates, or changes that temporarily affect availability
We will make reasonable efforts to notify you of planned downtime
We are not liable for any loss or damage resulting from Service unavailability

12. Termination

12.1 By You

You may delete your account at any time from within the platform (Profile → Privacy & Data → Delete Account), or by contacting us at privacy@ebiwawa.com
Upon deletion, we will remove your personal data in accordance with our Privacy Policy
Content you added to shared family trees may be retained if other tree members depend on it, but will be anonymised where possible

12.2 By Us

We may suspend or terminate your account if you:

Violate these Terms
Use the Service to harm others
Provide false registration information
Remain inactive for an extended period (with prior notice)

12.3 Effect of Termination

Upon termination:

Your right to access the Service ends immediately
We will retain or delete your data as described in our Privacy Policy
Provisions of these Terms that by their nature should survive termination will continue to apply

13. Limitation of Liability

13.1 Service Provided "As Is"

The Service is provided on an "as is" and "as available" basis. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we disclaim all warranties, express or implied, including warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement.

13.2 Limitation

To the maximum extent permitted by law:

We are not liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages
Our total liability for any claim arising from or relating to these Terms or the Service shall not exceed the amount you have paid us in the 12 months preceding the claim, or GBP 100, whichever is greater
We are not liable for the accuracy of family tree data entered by users
We are not liable for the accuracy of AI-generated content

13.3 Exceptions

Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits our liability for:

Death or personal injury caused by our negligence
Fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation
Any liability that cannot be excluded by law

14. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify and hold us harmless from any claims, damages, or expenses (including reasonable legal fees) arising from:

Your use of the Service
Your violation of these Terms
Content you upload or share
Family tree data you add about third parties
Your violation of any third party's rights

15. Disputes

15.1 Governing Law

For UK users: These Terms are governed by the laws of England and Wales. Disputes shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.
For EU/EEA users: These Terms are governed by the laws of England and Wales, without prejudice to the mandatory consumer-protection rules in force in your country of habitual residence within the EU/EEA. You may bring disputes related to the Service in the courts of your country of habitual residence.
For Canadian users (outside Quebec): These Terms are governed by the laws of Ontario and the federal laws of Canada applicable therein.
For Quebec residents: These Terms are governed by the laws of Quebec and the federal laws of Canada applicable therein. Nothing in these Terms limits your rights under Quebec's Consumer Protection Act or Act respecting the protection of personal information in the private sector (Law 25).
For US users: These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Delaware, without regard to conflict of law principles.

15.2 Informal Resolution

Before bringing a formal claim, you agree to contact us and attempt to resolve the dispute informally for at least 30 days.

16. Invite-Only Access

During our initial launch phase:

Access is by invitation only
Invitations are personal and non-transferable
We reserve the right to limit the number of users
We may revoke access at our discretion
Features and availability may change as we develop the platform

17. Changes to These Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. We will:

Notify you of material changes via the platform or email
Give you reasonable notice before changes take effect
If you continue to use the Service after changes take effect, you accept the updated Terms
If you disagree with changes, you may delete your account

18. General

Language: These Terms are drafted in English. A French-language version will be made available for Quebec residents. In the event of a discrepancy, the French version prevails for Quebec residents.
Entire agreement: These Terms, together with our Privacy Policy, constitute the entire agreement between you and us regarding the Service
Severability: If any provision is found unenforceable, the remaining provisions continue in effect
Waiver: Our failure to enforce any provision does not waive our right to enforce it later
Assignment: We may assign our rights under these Terms. You may not assign yours without our written consent.

19. Contact Us

For questions about these Terms:

Email: legal@ebiwawa.com Post: Ebiwawa, Inc. 16192 Coastal Highway Lewes, DELAWARE 19958 USA

Other addresses:

General inquiries: info@ebiwawa.com
Account or product support: support@ebiwawa.com
Privacy / data requests: privacy@ebiwawa.com
Trust & Safety reports: safety@ebiwawa.com
Security disclosure: security@ebiwawa.com

Data-protection enquiries from EU/EEA and UK users may also be addressed to our representative, DataRep (Data Protection Representative Limited) — see Privacy Policy §1.1 for the available contact channels.

By using EBIWAWA, you acknowledge that you have read, understood, and agree to these Terms of Service.