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Terms of Use

By using any Stanford alumni websites, which include but are not limited to websites for the Stanford Alumni Association (SAA), STANFORD Magazine, Giving to Stanford, and alumni sites for the Stanford Graduate School of Business, Stanford Law School, Stanford School of Engineering, Stanford School of Medicine, Stanford School of Earth Sciences and Stanford School of Education, hence forth collectively referred to as the "Websites", you agree to be bound by the following terms and conditions ("Terms of Use"). This agreement is personal to you; it cannot be assigned or transferred. If any provision of this agreement is invalid or unenforceable under applicable law, the remaining provisions will continue in full force and effect.

1. Your Acceptance

By using and/or visiting any of the Stanford alumni Websites you signify your agreement to:

  • I. These terms and conditions (the "Terms of Use"); and
  • II. The Stanford Alumni Association privacy policy, which is incorporated here by reference.

If you do not agree to any of these terms, or the privacy policy, please do not use these Websites. Nothing in this Agreement shall be deemed to confer any third-party rights or benefits.

2. Websites

These Terms of Use apply to all users of the Websites, including users who are contributors of content and other materials or services on the Websites. The term Websites shall be understood to include all aspects and services of the Stanford alumni websites, including but not limited to all products, software and services offered via any website such as the blogs, groups, clubs, directories, discussion boards, messaging, social and professional networking, photo and video uploading, commenting, mailing lists, and other applications.

The Websites electronically publish news and information that may include facts, views, opinions and recommendations of individuals and organizations deemed of interest to alumni. The Alumni Association does not review, monitor, verify or guarantee the accuracy, completeness or timeliness of or otherwise endorse information provided by any organization or individual, give advice or advocate the purchase or sale of any product or service not directly offered by Stanford University or its affiliates.

The Websites may include unmoderated forums containing the personal opinions and other expressions of the persons who post entries on a wide range of topics. The text and other materials on these Websites are the opinion of the specific author and are not statements of advice, opinion, or information of Stanford.

The Websites may contain links to third-party websites that are not owned by, affiliated with or controlled by Stanford. Stanford has no control over, and assumes no responsibility for, the content, privacy policies, or practices of any third-party websites not directly affiliated with Stanford. In addition, the Websites will not and cannot censor or edit the content of any non-affiliated third-party site. By using the Websites, you expressly release Stanford from any and all liability arising from your use of any third-party website.

3. Your Account

In order to access some features of the Websites, you will have to create an alumni account. By creating an account you agree to these Terms of Use and thereby agree to use of the Websites in a manner consistent with all applicable laws and regulations and in accordance with the terms and conditions set out in the policies and guidelines outlined here. Please note that you will be referred to as "User" from time to time in this Agreement. You may never use another's account. Your User account may not be shared, transferred, or sold to other parties. When creating your account, you must provide accurate and complete information. You are solely responsible for the activity that occurs on your account, and you must keep your account password secure. You must notify Stanford immediately of any breach of security or unauthorized use of your account. Although the Stanford Alumni Association will not be liable for your losses caused by any unauthorized use of your account, you may be liable for the losses of Stanford or others due to such unauthorized use.

ADDITIONAL USER RESTRICTIONS

Users of the Websites who sign up for "Alumni User Accounts" acknowledge that they are alumni or students of Stanford University. Alumnus/a is defined as a person who: has attended Stanford University as a student for at least three quarters in a degree-earning program. This does not include students and/or graduates of the Stanford Continuing Studies program. Students will also be granted access to the Websites, but if they leave Stanford without meeting the above requirements for becoming an alum, their access may be revoked by Stanford. Stanford students using Stanford sites are expected to abide by the Fundamental Standard which has set the standard of conduct for students at Stanford since 1896 and which provides:"Students at Stanford are expected to show both within and outside the University such respect for order, morality, personal honor and the rights of others as is demanded of good citizens. Failure to do this will be sufficient cause for removal from the University." If you are under 18, you may purchase products or services or register for an event only through a parent or guardian. If you are under 13, you may not create an account on the Websites or access features that require you to have an account.

Each of the Websites reserves the rights to define its alumni body at its own discretion.

In addition, you agree to use content on the Websites that is restricted to Alumni for your personal use only, and to not provide access, in any format, to anyone who is not an Alumnus/a of Stanford University.

4. Rules for Online Conduct

You agree to use the Websites in accordance with all applicable laws. Because Stanford is a nonprofit, tax-exempt organization, you agree that you will not use the Websites for organized partisan political activities or commercial purposes. You further agree that you will use all of the services or information provided on the Websites in accordance with the rules of conduct set forth below. This includes interactions with other users by email, web post, postal mail, or phone.

Prohibited conduct:

  • Posting content that defames or threatens others
  • Posting statements that are bigoted, hateful or racially offensive
  • Posting content that infringes another's intellectual property, including, but not limited to, copyrights, trademarks or trade secrets. When quoting copyrighted material, please adhere to the Electronic Frontier Foundation's Fair Use Guidelines
  • Posting material that contains obscene language or images
  • Advertising or any form of commercial solicitation

Statements or postings which violate the above terms will be deleted from the Websites upon discovery. Copyrighted material, including without limitation software, graphics, text, photographs, sound, video and musical recordings, may not be placed on the Websites without the express permission of the owner of the copyright of the material, or other legal entitlement to use the material. Any person posting material protected by copyright for the benefit of any third-party represents and warrants consent or permission has been obtained to post such materials. Although Stanford does not screen or monitor content posted by users to the Websites, Stanford reserves the right to remove content that violates the above rules of which it becomes aware.

You may not attempt to use or distribute tools designed for compromising security or take any action to compromise the security of this site. Examples of these tools include but are not limited to password guessing programs, cracking tools or network probing tools. You may not "flood" or disrupt the Websites through any means or process.

You may not copy, scrape, download, export or otherwise capture any data obtained in the Websites, e.g., the alumni directory, and/or store it outside of the system, e.g., in a separate spreadsheet, email list, database or other external repository.

You agree that you will not access or attempt to access any other user's account, or misrepresent or attempt to misrepresent your identity while using the Websites.

5. Online Communication Services

Communication services provided through the Websites, such as the Alumni Directory, online alumni communities, discussion boards, blogs, messaging, social and professional networking and other services in the future, are a part of the Websites designed for communication between alumni Users. Stanford will not monitor these communications, but reserves the right to take action against any User who defames or harasses another User through any of the services offered through the Websites, if it comes to Stanford's attention.

6. Email Service

Stanford currently offers a webmail account to all alumni who register on the Stanford Alumni Association website and desire the service. The account will remain accessible to the alum as long as activity is shown and as long as the alum complies with the "Terms of Use" outlined in this document as such Terms of Use may be changed or amended from time-to-time. Activity is defined as having logged into the webmail account within the past three months, having your Stanford Alumni email messages automatically forwarded to another email account, or subscribing to a Stanford Alumni Association premium email service. If an alum does not meet one of these criteria, Stanford reserves the right to deactivate the account. Before any action is taken the alum will be given 30 days notice via email to meet one of the stated requirements for maintaining an accessible account. If the alum does not show activity within those 30 days, the account may be deactivated and all email, address book entries and personalization in the account will be lost. The email account will be available to the alum for reactivation through the Stanford Alumni Association website, but deleted email will not be recoverable. Even if the alum meets one of the activity requirements, Stanford reserves the right to discontinue an alum's email access if the alum uses the account in a way that, in the sole discretion of Stanford, it deems inappropriate as defined in the section regarding Rules for Online Conduct. Notwithstanding the above, Stanford reserves the right to terminate the webmail service at any time at its discretion.

7. Online Alumni Communities

The Stanford Alumni Association provides a platform on which alumni can create and join online alumni communities based on shared interests or experiences. There are three types of online alumni communities: chartered clubs, SAA-created groups and alumni-created groups. Unlike chartered clubs, SAA- and alumni-created groups are not branch organizations of the Stanford Alumni Association, a division of Stanford University. SAA- and alumni-created groups are associated with the Stanford Alumni Association and are subject to SAA?s Terms of Use and the policies set forth in Alumni-Created Groups, a Quick Start Guide, which is incorporated here by reference. Online alumni communities may include unmoderated forums containing the personal opinions and other expressions of the persons who post entries or contribute content on a wide range of topics. Participants in online alumni communities may not represent or imply that their opinions represent those of the Stanford Alumni Association or Stanford University. Stanford reserves the right to remove all or any portion of an online alumni community?s information from the platform at any time and at Stanford?s sole discretion. All online alumni community participants and organizers agree not to post or facilitate the posting of any material in violation of these Terms of Use. Online alumni community participants and organizers also agree to provide reasonable assistance at the request of Stanford and its representatives to address any violations of this policy as determined by Stanford. Participants and organizers also agree not to use the online alumni community for any activity that violates any federal, state or local law.

The following naming restrictions apply only to alumni-created groups. If alumni-created groups choose to use "Stanford" in the group name, they must also include the word "Alumni." Alumni-created group names may not include any of the following terms: "Association," "Chapter," "Club," "Fund," "Official," "CYA" or "Cardinal Young Alumni." Alumni-created groups may not use the Block "S", Block "S" with tree, Stanford University Seal or Stanford Alumni Association logos in print or online, including on web pages not hosted by Stanford. Additionally, alumni-created groups must include the following statement on their main page: "This group is an alumni-created group and is not a chartered or official Stanford University group."

8. Disclaimer of Warranty / Limitation of Liability

Stanford does not warrant that the Websites will operate in an uninterrupted or error-free manner or that the Websites are free of viruses or other harmful components. Use of information obtained from or through these Websites is at your own risk.

YOU AGREE THAT STANFORD WILL NOT BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR ANY LOSS OR DAMAGES, EITHER ACTUAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL, ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THESE TERMS OF USE, OR TO YOUR (OR ANY THIRD PARTY'S) USE OR INABILITY TO USE THE WEBSITES, OR TO YOUR PLACEMENT OF CONTENT ON THE WEBSITES, OR TO YOUR RELIANCE UPON INFORMATION OBTAINED FROM OR THROUGH THE WEBSITES, OR YOUR INVOLVEMENT WITH ANY ONLINE ALUMNI COMMUNITY. IN PARTICULAR, STANFORD WILL HAVE NO LIABILITY FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE, SPECIAL OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES, WHETHER FORESEEABLE OR UNFORESEEABLE, (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, CLAIMS FOR DEFAMATION, ERRORS, MISUSE OF EMAIL OR OTHER SERVICES, LOSS OF DATA, OR INTERRUPTION IN AVAILABILITY OF DATA), ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THESE TERMS, YOUR USE OF OR INABILITY TO USE A WEBSITE, OR ANY PURCHASES ON THE WEBSITES, OR YOUR PLACEMENT OF CONTENT ON A WEBSITE, OR YOUR INVOLVEMENT WITH AN ONLINE ALUMNI COMMUNITY OR YOUR RELIANCE UPON INFORMATION OBTAINED FROM OR THROUGH A WEBSITE, WHETHER BASED IN CONTRACT, TORT, STATUTORY OR OTHER LAW, EXCEPT ONLY TO THE EXTENT THAT APPLICABLE LAW REQUIRES SUCH LIABILITY.

Stanford makes no representation regarding your ability to transmit and receive information from or through the Websites and you agree and acknowledge that your ability to access the Websites may be impaired. Stanford disclaims any and all liability resulting from or related to such events.

9. Choice of Law/Forum Selection

The Websites are hosted by Stanford on computing resources located on the Stanford campus. You agree that any dispute arising out of or relating to these Terms of Use or any content posted to a Website, including copies and republication thereof, whether based in contract, tort, statutory or other law, will be governed by the laws of the State of California, excluding its conflicts of law provisions. You further consent to the personal jurisdiction of and exclusive venue in the federal and state courts located in and serving Santa Clara County, California, as the legal forum for any such dispute.

10. Notice

Stanford may, in its sole discretion, modify or revise these Terms of Use and policies at any time. Notice of any such change or addition will be made within approved interfaces to the Websites and/or by email. By using the Websites after any change or addition is announced, you agree to be bound by all such changes or additions.

If you become aware of any unauthorized use of your Stanford Alumni User account, you agree to notify Stanford by telephone at (866) 543-0243 Toll-free, (650) 724-0627 International, email at alumniwebhelp@stanford.edu or in writing at the address below:

Stanford Alumni Association
Attn: Online Services Accounts
Frances C. Arrillaga Alumni Center
326 Galvez St.
Stanford, CA, 94305

11. Termination of Service

User may terminate this Agreement by cancelling his or her account. To do this the user must contact Stanford through phone or mail as listed above.

Stanford may terminate your account or access rights to the Websites at any time, without notice, for conduct that Stanford believes violates this Agreement or other policies or guidelines that Stanford has posted. Stanford may terminate your account or your access rights to the Websites for online conduct that Stanford believes is harmful to other Users, to Stanford's business, or to other information providers.

12. Trademarks

The logo, name and all graphics on the Websites or their affiliates are trademarks of Stanford or its affiliates. Use, reproduction, copying or redistribution of trademarks without the written permission of Stanford or its affiliates is prohibited. All other trademarks or service marks appearing on the Websites are the marks of their respective owners.

13. Indemnification

You agree to defend, indemnify and hold Stanford, its trustees, officers, employees and agents harmless from any claims, losses or damages, including legal fees, resulting from your violation of these Terms of Use, your use of the Websites or your placement of any content onto the Websites, and to fully cooperate in Stanford's defense against any such claims.

14. Copyright License & Complaints

Owner of posted materials grants Stanford a non-exclusive, royalty-free, perpetual license to reproduce and distribute any content posted on the Websites.

Stanford respects the intellectual property rights of others and complies with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). If you believe your copyright has been violated on the Websites, please provide the following information to the contact information listed under the notice section of this document .

  • The name, address, and physical or electronic signature of the complaining party
  • Identification of the infringing materials and their Internet location, or if the service provider is an "information location tool" such as a search engine, the reference or link to the infringing materials
  • Sufficient information to identify the copyrighted works
  • A statement by the copyright holder of a good faith belief that there is no legal basis for the use complained of
  • A statement of the accuracy of the notice and, under penalty of perjury, that the complaining party is authorized to act on the behalf of the copyright holder