Terms of Service

Last Updated: January 19, 2026

1. Acceptance of Terms

By accessing or using Get Causality ("Service," "Platform," "we," "our," or "us"), you agree to be bound by these Terms of Service ("Terms"). If you do not agree to these Terms, do not use the Service.

2. Description of Service

Get Causality is a Software as a Service (SaaS) platform for Fuzzy Cognitive Mapping (FCM) research. We provide an end-to-end research platform including:

• Survey Platform: Create specialized FCM surveys with causal mapping questions
• Workshop Facilitation: Tools for in-person and virtual FCM workshops
• Automated Analysis: Build FCM models from survey responses and workshop data
• Network Visualization: Interactive network graphs and visualization tools
• Statistical Analysis: Centrality measures, consensus analysis, and advanced statistics
• Model Simulation: Dynamic system simulation and scenario testing
• Multi-Model Analysis: Compare multiple FCM models across stakeholder groups
• Export & Publication: Export to academic formats, generate reports
• Team Collaboration: Share models and collaborate with research teams
• Cloud Storage: Secure storage for your research data and models

3. Account Registration

3.1 Eligibility

• You must be at least 18 years old to use this Service
• You must provide accurate and complete information
• You are responsible for maintaining account security
• You must not share your account credentials
• One person per account; team plans available for multiple users

3.2 Authentication

We support multiple authentication methods:

• Email and password (with optional two-factor authentication)
• Google OAuth login
• GitHub OAuth login

4. Acceptable Use Policy

4.1 Permitted Uses

• Academic research and scholarly publications
• Organizational strategy and decision-making analysis
• Policy research and stakeholder consultation
• Environmental and social science research
• Systems thinking and complexity science research
• Educational purposes and teaching

4.2 Prohibited Uses

You agree NOT to:

• Violate any applicable laws or regulations
• Upload malicious code, viruses, or harmful content
• Attempt to gain unauthorized access to our systems or other users' data
• Use the Service for illegal surveillance or manipulation
• Reverse engineer or copy our proprietary technology
• Resell or redistribute the Service without written permission
• Abuse our API or exceed rate limits
• Upload data you do not have rights to use
• Use the Service to violate research ethics or IRB protocols
• Impersonate other users or researchers

5. Intellectual Property

5.1 Your Content

By using the Service, you grant us a limited license to:

• Store and process your data to provide the Service
• Create backups for disaster recovery
• Use anonymized, aggregated data to improve our platform (only with your consent)
• Display your shared models to users you grant access to

5.2 Our Platform

All platform code, algorithms, designs, branding, and documentation are owned by Get Causality and protected by copyright, trademark, and other intellectual property laws. The FCM methodology itself is in the public domain, but our specific implementation is proprietary.

6. Subscription and Payment

6.1 Pricing Tiers

• Free Plan: Limited features for exploring the platform
• Academic Plan: For students, faculty, and academic researchers
• Professional Plan: For independent researchers and consultants
• Team Plan: For research teams and small organizations
• Enterprise Plan: Custom pricing for large organizations and institutions

Detailed feature comparison and current pricing available at get-causality.com

6.2 Billing Options

• Monthly billing: Billed monthly, cancel anytime
• Annual billing: Billed yearly with discount, pro-rated refunds available

6.3 Payment Terms

• Payments are processed securely by Stripe
• Subscriptions renew automatically unless cancelled
• Cancellations take effect at the end of the current billing period
• Annual subscriptions may be eligible for pro-rated refunds within 30 days
• Prices may change with 30 days advance notice
• Failed payments may result in account suspension after 7 days

6.4 Free Trial

New paid plans may include a free trial period. Trial terms will be disclosed at signup. No payment method required for free accounts.

7. Service Availability

7.1 Uptime

We strive for 99.9% uptime for paid plans. We reserve the right to:

• Perform scheduled maintenance with advance notice (typically 24-48 hours)
• Make emergency fixes without notice
• Modify, add, or discontinue features
• Temporarily suspend service for security reasons

7.2 Service Level

• Free Plan: Best-effort support
• Paid Plans: Email support within 24-48 hours
• Enterprise: Priority support with SLA agreements

8. Data Privacy and Security

8.1 Data Storage

• Database hosting provided by Neon (serverless PostgreSQL)
• Application hosting provided by Vercel
• We perform regular automated backups (retained for 90 days)
• Data is encrypted in transit (HTTPS/TLS)
• Database connections use SSL encryption
• All survey responses and research data stored in secure cloud databases

8.2 Research Ethics

8.3 Your Responsibilities

• Maintain your own backups of critical research data
• Obtain necessary consent from survey participants
• Comply with applicable research ethics guidelines
• Protect personally identifiable information
• Do not store highly sensitive data without additional encryption

9. Limitation of Liability

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW:

• The Service is provided "AS IS" without warranties of any kind
• We are not liable for indirect, incidental, or consequential damages
• Our total liability shall not exceed the amount you paid in the last 12 months
• We are not responsible for third-party services (Stripe, Vercel, Neon, Google Cloud)
• We are not liable for research conclusions or decisions based on FCM analysis
• We are not responsible for data loss, though we make reasonable efforts to prevent it

10. Academic and Research Use

10.1 Methodology Support

We provide documentation and support for FCM methodology, but you are responsible for proper application of research methods and interpretation of results.

11. Surveys and Data Collection

11.1 Survey Distribution

You are responsible for:

• Distributing survey links to participants through your own channels
• Obtaining informed consent from participants
• Complying with data protection laws (GDPR, CCPA, etc.)
• Ensuring participants understand how their data will be used

11.2 Participant Data

• Survey responses are stored securely and only accessible to you
• We do not contact your participants
• You can export and delete participant data at any time
• Anonymization features available for sensitive research

12. Termination

12.1 By You

• You may cancel your subscription at any time through account settings
• Download your data before cancelling (use export features)
• Data is retained for 30 days after cancellation, then permanently deleted
• You may request immediate deletion by contacting support

12.2 By Us

We may suspend or terminate your account for:

• Violation of these Terms
• Non-payment of subscription fees
• Abuse of the Service, API, or other users
• Illegal activity or research ethics violations
• Security concerns

We will provide notice when possible and allow data export before deletion.

13. Privacy

Your use of the Service is also governed by our Privacy Policy. Please review it to understand how we collect, use, and protect your information.

14. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless Get Causality from any claims, damages, or expenses arising from:

• Your use of the Service
• Your violation of these Terms
• Your violation of any rights of another party
• Your use of data you do not have rights to use
• Research ethics violations or lack of proper consent
• Your survey content or data collection practices

15. Changes to Terms

We may update these Terms periodically. We will notify you of significant changes via:

• Email notification to your registered email
• In-app notification banner
• Notice on our website

Continued use of the Service after changes constitutes acceptance of the updated Terms. Material changes will have a 30-day notice period.

16. Governing Law

These Terms are governed by the laws of the United States. Any disputes shall be resolved through binding arbitration or in the courts having jurisdiction over the matter.

17. Dispute Resolution

• Disputes should first be raised with our support team at [email protected]
• If unresolved, we encourage good-faith mediation
• Binding arbitration may be required for certain disputes
• You waive the right to participate in class action lawsuits

18. Export Control

You may not use the Service in violation of U.S. export control laws. You certify that you are not:

• Located in an embargoed country
• Listed on any U.S. government restricted parties list

19. Accessibility

We strive to make our platform accessible to users with disabilities. If you encounter accessibility barriers, please contact us at [email protected].

20. Entire Agreement

These Terms, along with our Privacy Policy and any additional service-specific terms, constitute the entire agreement between you and Get Causality regarding the Service.

21. Contact Information

For questions about these Terms, please contact us:

• General Support: [email protected]
• Legal Questions: [email protected]
• Website: get-causality.com

22. Severability

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

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