Terms of Use

Effective Date: July 3rd, 2021

1.   General

Herstory is a platform designed for adult female survivors of acquaintance sexual assault. Our objective is to first and foremost provide survivors of sexual assault with the information survivors need to make sense of what happened. We also share resources to help survivors navigate their options and take action – should they choose to do so.

These Terms of Service (these “Terms”) are a set of rules that we enforce to keep our website, platform and services safe for our users, for us, and for third parties. They also outline rights and responsibilities of you and of Herstory.

Please find information below about the rules and restrictions (these “Terms”) that govern your access to and use of our website, www.herstory.global (the “Site“) and all other products, services and applications made available by us from time to time (collectively, the “Services”).

If you provide any personal information on or through this web site, such information is provided on the terms set out in our Privacy Policy. The Privacy Policy is deemed to be incorporated by reference into these Terms.

2.   Acceptance of the terms

The following Terms are a binding agreement between Herstory (“we” or “our”) and you (“you” or “your”). By accessing the www.herstory.global website, and service, you agree to be bound by these Terms and you consent to our Privacy Policy. If you do not agree to or understand these Terms, do not access or otherwise use any of our services.

3.   Changes to the terms

We try to continuously improve the Services for you, so our Terms may change from time to time. Do note that these Terms may be amended from time to time without prior notice to you.

 In order to understand when the terms have been updated last, please see the “Effective Date” at the top of this page. If we make significant changes, we’ll update you through e.g. a pop-up notice on the Services or through other reasonable means. If you continue to use the Services after we make any changes to these Terms, you agree to be bound by these Terms as modified. If you do not agree with any changes that we make to these Terms, please do not access or otherwise use any of our services.

4.   Eligibility requirements

You have to be at least 18 years or older to use our service.

5.  Use of the Website, and Services

Our website and the information it contains are provided to you on an “AS IS” basis. You agree that we may, at any time and without prior notice to you, modify or discontinue this website or any part thereof, whether temporarily or permanently. We shall have no responsibility or liability for the timeliness, deletion, failure to store, inaccuracy, or improper delivery of any data, information or service.

We believe the information set out in this website to be correct at the date which it was first published. However, the information provided is not complete and should not be relied on as definitive. No warranty is given that it is free from error or omission. We accept no responsibility for any loss or damage that you may suffer as a consequence of visiting this website. You are strongly advised to check the accuracy of any information that is of importance to you with another reference source.

You accept that only basic security is presently provided at this website and information transmitted to and from this website to your computer or device could be subject to sniffers and other intrusion/hacking methods.

 Survivor story submissions must be made by survivors: Please do not submit a survivor story on behalf of someone else even if you consider yourself a supporter or ally of survivors of sexual assault. Survivors should be empowered to decide whether or not they want to share their story, and fully agree to submitting their information. If we discover that a survivor story has been made by a person who was not the survivor of the reported assault, this entry will be removed from the website, and related platforms.

Survivor story submissions will be published, edited and/or removed at our discretion: Submitting a story can lead to the story being published on our website (www.herstory.global), platforms, newsletters and/or our social media accounts (e.g. herstory.global on Facebook, Instagram) but does not guarantee it will be featured on Herstory’s website or related platforms or services.

You accept that we have the right to:

  1. make edits to submissions including but not limited to removing identifying factors, correcting grammar and editing the length of a submission; and
  2. remove a story from our website and related platforms after publishing it, without notice to the maker of the story or any users.

Survivor story submissions must be truthful:

We believe survivors and we expect that all entries created by our users are truthful. However, we do not verify, validate or investigate claims or accusations made by survivors in the story submissions, or their truthfulness.

By reading, re-posting or otherwise consuming a survivor story submission, users agree as follows:

  1. Not to rely on the truthfulness of any survivor story submission;
  2. Not to rely on the contents of any survivor story submission to identify (or attempt to do so) any character in the story; and
  3. Not to hold us responsible for the truthfulness or lack thereof of any survivor story submission or investigation of the same at all.

By making an entry, submitting a story or otherwise posting on our website, platforms or our social media accounts, you agree and undertake as follows:

  1. To remove any identifying factors which may allow for identification of any of the characters in the story (including yourself), including but not limited to names, addresses or specific place references, specific descriptors of physical appearance and so on;
  2. To ensure that the entry, submission or post is factually accurate and to take full and sole responsibility for the contents thereof in the event of any lawsuit, including any action for defamation or otherwise;
  3. To indemnify Us for any and all loss or damage (including reputational damages) that may result or arise from the said entry, submission or post to the fullest extent permitted by law. This shall include losses suffered or damages payable us in the event of any lawsuit; and
  4. That you are at least 18 years or older to submit a story, and all parties featured in the story are at least 18 years or older at the time of the featured incident.

Please refer to the sections on “Warranty and disclaimer as well as limitations of liability” and “Indemnity and limitation of liability” below for the detailed terms in the regard.

Requests for resources: Please do not include any sensitive or confidential information when submitting questions or requesting resources. The information you share with us through our Service including our website www.herstory.global is not protected by the attorney-client privilege. When you request a resource or ask a question through the form at https://herstory.global/requestaresource/ you agree to have the question or request shared below the form on the same page (https://herstory.global/requestaresource/) along with an answer and/or available resource. We will however never share any identifying details without your permission. Although we want to reply to each question and request for resources, we cannot guarantee we will do so for all questions and requests. Although we will respond with care, we cannot also guarantee the completeness, reliability, accuracy, or quality of each response. Questions and requests for resources should only be made on a general basis, not for a particular situation. If you want help understanding how the law applies to your particular circumstances or need medical advice, you should consult with a qualified attorney or medical professional. 

Other terms of use:

You explicitly agree, by using this website or any service provided, that you shall not:

  • provide any Content or perform any conduct that may be unlawful, illegal, threatening, harmful, abusive, tortious, defamatory, libellous, vulgar, obscene, offensive, objectionable, pornographic, designed to or does interfere or interrupt this web site or any service provided, infected with a virus or other destructive or deleterious programming routine, give rise to civil or criminal liability, or which may violate an applicable local, national or international law;
  • impersonate or misrepresent your association with any person or entity, or forge or otherwise seek to conceal or misrepresent the origin of any Content provided by you;
  • collect, harvest, frame or deep-link any data or Content from this website;
  • provide or use this website and any Content or service in any commercial manner or in any manner that would involve junk mail, spam, chain letters, pyramid schemes, or any other form of unauthorised advertising, whether with or without our prior written consent;
  • introduce anything (including any virus, worm, Trojan horse, timebomb, keystroke logger, spyware, malware or other similar software) that in any way compromises, or may compromise, the website or any underlying hardware or software;
  • Provide any Content that may give rise to our civil or criminal liability or which may constitute or be considered a violation of any local, national or international law, including but not limited to laws relating to copyright, trademark, patent, or trade secrets.

6.   Privacy policy

Please read our Privacy Policy, which outlines what personal information we collect from you and how we use and disclose that information to provide our Services.

7.   Consent to receive periodic communications

As part of the Services, you may receive e.g. emails from us. By signing up for our newsletter or following us on our social media accounts, you agree to receive these communications from us as outlined in our Privacy Policy.  

To stop receiving marketing emails, you can opt-out by clicking the unsubscribe link in the emails you receive. 

8.   Intellectual Property

All rights to the Herstory platform and services including our website, platform and social media accounts, and future iterations of any of them (collectively, the “Services”) as well as materials displayed or made available by us on the Services, including, but not limited to text, graphics, data, articles, photographs, images, illustrations, trademarks, logos, domain names, and other distinctive brand features (collectively, the “Herstory Content”) will remain the exclusive property of Herstory and its licensors.

You agree you will abide by all copyright notices, trademark rules, information, and restrictions contained in any Herstory Content accessed through the Services, and will not use, copy, modify, publish, distribute, upload, display, license, sell or otherwise exploit for any purposes whatsoever any Herstory Content. The following applies:

  1. Reproduction of part or all of the Herstory Content in any form is strictly prohibited. None of the content of this website may be copied or otherwise incorporated into or stored in any other website, electronic retrieval system, publication or other work in any form (whether hard copy, electronic or other). For the avoidance of doubt, framing of this site or any part of it is not permitted without our written permission.
  2. The use of our rights and property requires our prior written consent. We are not providing you with any implied or express licenses or rights by making services available to you and you will have no rights to make any commercial uses of this website or service without our prior written consent.
  3. While accessing or using the Herstory website, platform, and services you may not tamper with, modify, copy or create a derivative work based on Herstory.

We reserve all of our rights, including but not limited to any and all copyrights, trademarks, patents, trade secrets, and any other proprietary right that we may have in this website, its content, and the goods and services that may be provided.

9. Links to third party resources

On our website or related platforms, we link to third party sources, websites, publications and resources. While we review these resources carefully, we are not the owners and do not control said resources. Therefore, we disclaim any and all responsibility for the content or any other aspect of these third party sites, including the potential collection of information about you on these sites, information which is accessible through this website and liability associated therewith.

When visiting any of these third party resources, you should read their privacy policies and terms and conditions of use. In addition, we are not in a position to verify, validate and confirm the completeness, reliability, accuracy, quality or availability of the resources we quote, refer to or link to.

All links from this website are included on the basis of good faith, and shall not be construed as a claim to any interests or rights over such links, sites, trademarks or other intellectual property rights of the rightful owners. If for any reason you are the owner of any such right and object to its inclusion in this website, please contact us immediately by email to contact@herstory.global.

10. Warranty and disclaimer as well as limitations of liability

You understand and agree that your use of this website and any services or content provided is made available and provided to you at your own risk. It is provided to you “as is” and we do not make any representations, guarantees or warranties with respect to the completeness, reliability, accuracy, quality or availability of the Services or any information or guidance provided in connection with the Services.

We expressly disclaim all warranties, implied or express, that any part of the service will be uninterrupted, error-free, virus-free, timely, secure, accurate, reliable, of any quality, nor that any content is safe in any manner for download. Some jurisdictions may not allow disclaimers of implied warranties and the above disclaimer may not apply to you only as it relates such warranties.

By using our Service, you acknowledge that any information, advice, suggestions, recommendations or guidance provided by our Service is not prescriptive or binding and that you are solely responsible for your interpretations of any such advice or information, for the results of any actions or omissions that you may choose to take as a result of using the Services, and for any loss, damage or other liability that may arise in connection with your use of the Services.

We do not assume any liability for the use of any information, methods, or materials found herein or for damages arising from such use, nor do we assume any responsibility for any injury to individuals or property, or for any financial loss, sustained as a result of the use or application of the information, methods, or materials that are available, or described, in our links to other sites.

We have no control over the resources that can be accessed from this website. Some of these resources may not be accessible or available from time to time.

You also acknowledge that we are not a law firm or medical professionals and do not practice law or medicine. No part of the Services should be construed as legal or medical advice. We do not have an attorney-client relationship with you and our communications are not protected by attorney-client privilege. All content is for informational purposes only and is not meant to substitute for legal or medical advice. If you want help understanding how the law applies to your particular circumstances or need medical advice, you should consult with a qualified attorney or medical professional. Never disregard professional legal / medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on this Website.

Moreover, you acknowledge that this website deals with and contains material relating to sexual assault, abuse, violence, harassment, sexism and hateful or misogynistic behaviour. As such, some of our content may be “triggering”, distressing, and/or prompt severe negative physiological and/or psychological effects especially on those suffering from trauma or who have been through related traumatic experiences.

By choosing to use our Service, you acknowledge that you will be exposed to such content. In the event that you experience any significant physiological and/or psychological reaction(s), we encourage you to seek the advice of a qualified medical professional.

11. Indemnity and limitation of liability

Please keep in mind that you are solely responsible for your use of the Services. You agree to indemnify and hold us, and any past, present or future parents, subsidiaries, affiliates, shareholders, officers, founders, owners, directors, employees, volunteer, contractors, suppliers, consultants, agents and third party partners harmless (including, without limitation, from all damages (actual and consequential), losses, liabilities, settlements, costs and attorney fees) from any claim or demand, including legal costs on an indemnity cases, made by any third party due to or arising out of your use of the Services, including any acts or omissions you may take in reliance on the Services or your violation of these Terms.

You expressly understand and agree that we shall not be liable for any direct, indirect, special, incidental, consequential or exemplary damages, including but not limited to, damages for loss of profits, goodwill, use, data or other intangible loss (even if we have been advised of the possibility of such damages), resulting from or arising out of:

  1. a) the use of or the inability to use this website,
  2. b) the cost to obtain substitute goods and/or services resulting from any transaction entered into on through this website,
  3. c) unauthorised access to or alteration of your data transmissions,
  4. d) statements or conduct of any third party on this website, or
  5. e) any other matter relating to this website.

In some jurisdictions, it is not permitted to limit liability and therefore such limitations may not apply to you.

12. Notification of Copyright Infringement

If you believe that your property has been used in any way that would be considered copyright infringement or a violation of your intellectual property rights, please contact us immediately by email to contact@herstory.global.

13. Applicable Law 

You agree that these Terms of Use and any dispute arising out of your use of this website or our products or services shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of Singapore, without regard to its conflict of law provisions. By registering or using this website and service you consent and submit to the non-exclusive jurisdiction and venue of the courts of Singapore.

Should any dispute arise concerning these Terms of Use or your use of this website, you agree to have the dispute mediated by the Law Society of Singapore according to its rules of mediation. If the dispute is not resolved by mediation, you agree that the dispute be submitted to arbitration according to the rules of arbitration of the Law Society of Singapore. The arbitration shall be in English before a single arbitrator with its seat in Singapore.

14. Miscellaneous Information

In the event that these Terms of Use conflicts with any law under which any provision may be held invalid by a court of competent jurisdiction, such provision will be interpreted to reflect the original intentions of the parties in accordance with applicable law, and the remainder of these Terms of Use will remain valid and intact.

The failure of either party to assert any right under these Terms of Use shall not be considered a waiver of any right of that party and that right will remain in full force and effect.

15. Contact

You can reach us at contact@herstory.global. Please do not include any sensitive information in your emails to us.