Last Update: 9 August ‘20

Welcome to TechieFriends.com.  

The following terms of service (these "Terms of Service") govern your access to and use of the Techie Friends website, including any content, functionality and services offered on or through www.TechieFriends.com (the "Site") by Techie Friends Inc., the company established in Canada under “7321821 Canada Inc.” (Trade name “Techie Friends Inc.”).

Techie Friends Inc. and its subsidiaries are collectively referred hereto as "Techie Friends", "TechieFriends" Techie Friends Inc.", "we" or "us".

Please read the Terms of Service carefully before you start to use the Site. By using the Site, opening an account or by clicking to accept or agree to the Terms of Service when this option is made available to you, you accept and agree to be bound and abide by these Terms of Service and our Privacy Policy, found here, incorporated herein by reference. If you do not want to agree to these Terms of Service or the Privacy Policy, you must not access or use the Site. For more detailed policies surrounding the activity and usage on the Site, please access the designated articles herein.  

 This Site is offered and available to users who are 18 years of age or older. If you are under 18 you may not use this Site or the Techie Friends services. By using this Site, you represent and warrant that you are of legal age to form a binding contract and meet all of the foregoing eligibility requirements. If you do not meet all of these requirements, you must not access or use the Site.  

1.   Key Terms

Buyer or Customers or “you” are users who purchase Services on Techie Friends. The “Platform Services” or “Marketplace Platform” or “TechieFriends Services” is a technology platform that enables you to arrange and schedule Technical Support with the independent technician or an independent third party providers.
User is Buyer or Seller using the platform services with the registered account.
Disputes are disagreements experienced during an order between a Buyer and Seller on Techie Friends. Techie Friends Balance is the aggregated amount of Revenue as a Seller and/or returned payments from canceled orders as a Buyer.
Support Service® Page is where the seller can describe their Support Service and the Support Service’s terms, and the Buyer can purchase the Support Service and create an order.
Support Service® / Services® are services offered on Techie Friends.
Order Page is where Buyers schedules the service and makes the payment. Orders are the formal agreement between a Buyer and Seller after a purchase was made from the Seller’s Services Page.
Payment Services Provider(s) are service providers that provide payment services to Buyers and Sellers in connection with the Techie Friends platform, including with respect to the collection of Charges from Buyers in connection with the purchase of Services, remittance, and withdrawal of Charges to Sellers in connection with completed Services, currency exchange services in connection with payments in local currencies, and the holding of Charges in connection with Techie Friends Platform Charges or any other Balances.
Revenue is the money that Sellers earned from completed orders post order clearance period and after reduction of Platform Service Charges.
Payment is the payout amount ready to be paid to the Seller, based on the orders and Order clearance.
Sellers or “Techie” or “Third Party Service Provider” are users who offer and perform services through Services on Techie Friends.
User-Generated Content ("UGC") refers to the content added by users as opposed to content created by the Site.
Order Clearance Period is the period between service completion and customers confirmation of satisfactory service, to the maximum of 7 days.
Platform Services Charges are the platform service charges per transaction. It is set to 20% of the total transaction value. TechieFriends Platform Subscription $50 for a month is paid by the seller as a platform subscription charge. This is applicable only if the seller’s revenue, is more than $1500 in a month from the platform.  

2.   Overview   ·        

• TechieFriends Platform Services enable registered Techie’s, to offer their services through a medium hosted by the Platform to the registered users. 
• Your use of the Platform Services is voluntary and at your sole risk. TechieFriends has no control over and does not guarantee (i) the existence, quality, safety, suitability, or legality of any Listings or Services, (ii) the truth or accuracy of any Listing descriptions, ratings, reviews, or other information about you including, without limitation, your name, likeness, biographical information (collectively, “User Content”), or (iii) the performance or conduct of any technician or third party. TechieFriends does not endorse any technician, listing, or service. You should always exercise due diligence and care when deciding whether to use a service, or communicate and interact with other users of Marketplace Services.
• YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT TECHIEFRIENDS DOES NOT PROVIDE TECHNICAL SUPPORT OR ANY RELATED SERVICES OR ADVICE AND THAT ALL SUCH SUPPORT OR RELATED SERVICES OR ADVICE ARE PROVIDED BY INDEPENDENT THIRD PARTY CONTRACTORS WHO ARE NOT EMPLOYED BY TECHIEFRIENDS OR ANY OF ITS AFFILIATES. TECHIEFRIENDS IS NOT DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY LIABLE FOR ANYTHING ON ACCOUNT OF SERVICE PROVIDED BY THE THIRD PARTY PROVIDERS DATA CORRUPTION OR LOSS OR TAKEN.
• Only registered users may buy and sell on Techie Friends. Registration is free. 
• Services on Techie Friends may be offered at any price. 
• Customer pay Techie Friends in advance to create an order (see Purchasing The section below regarding payment terms).
• Orders are purchased through the Order button found on a Seller’s Support Service page. 
• For fees and payments please read the purchasing section here.
• Techie must fulfill their orders, and may not cancel orders on a regular basis or without cause. Canceling orders will affect sellers’ reputation and status.
• Techie gain customer review rating based on their performance and reputation. 
• Customer may not offer or accept payments using any method other than placing an order through TechieFriends.com. 
• Techie Friends retains the right to use all User Generated Content (UGC) for Techie Friends marketing and promotion purposes.
• We care about your privacy. You can read our Privacy Policy. The Privacy Policy is a part of these Terms of Service and incorporated herein by reference. 
• All content uploaded to Techie Friends by our users (Buyers and Sellers) is User Generated Content. Techie Friends does not check user uploaded/created content for appropriateness, violations of copyright, trademarks, other rights, or violations. We invite everyone to report violations together with proof of ownership as appropriate. Reported violating content may be removed or disabled. 
• TechieFriends retain the rights to modify, add or delete any clause of this agreement at any time.  

3.  SELLERS OR TECHIE OR THIRD PARTY PROVIDER

3.1 Basics

• Sellers create Services on Techie Friends to allow Customer to purchase their services. 
• Sellers are required to submit the background and criminal record check information to the Techiefriends. Any cost related to this check is borne by the Seller. From where and how the check is to be carried out will be defined by Techiefriends at their website. 
• Each order you sell and successfully complete accredits your account with net revenue of 80% of the purchase amount. Platform usage charges are 20% of each transaction over the platform. With the minimum Platform usage charge per to $5/-.
• Techie Friends accredits Sellers once an order is completed. See our "Orders" section below for a definition of a completed order.
• If an order is canceled (for any reason), the Charges paid will be returned to the Buyer’s Credit Card or mode of payment used.
• The Seller's rating is calculated by the Techie Friends platform based on various factors like reviews posted by Buyers and many more. High ratings allow Sellers have more orders. In certain cases, exceedingly low ratings may lead to the suspension of the Seller’s account. 
• TechieFriends is going to charge $50 per month, as a Platform usage charges if Sellers monthly revenue from the TechieFriends platform is more than $1500 per month §  For security concerns, Techie Friends may temporarily disable a Seller’s ability to withdraw revenue to prevent fraudulent or illicit activity. This may come as a result of security issues, improper behavior reported by Buyers, or associating multiple Techie Friends accounts to a single withdrawal provider. 
• Sellers are responsible for paying any direct or indirect taxes, including any GST, VAT, or otherwise, which may apply to them depending on residency or location. Sellers represent and warrant that they comply, and will comply at all times, with their obligations under income tax provisions in their jurisdiction. The Support Service price shown on the Support Service page is inclusive of all such taxes and charges that may apply to the Sellers. 
• Appointment as Limited Payment Collection Agent: Seller hereby appoints Techie Friends as Seller’s limited authorized payment collection agent solely for the purpose of accepting payments (via its Payment Services Provider, if applicable) from Buyer, and remitting those payments to Seller. Seller agrees that payment from Buyer to Techie Friends shall be considered the same as payment made directly to Seller. Buyer’s payment obligation to Seller will be satisfied upon receipt of payment by Techie Friends (or its Payment Services Provider, as applicable), and Techie Friends (via its Payment Services Provider, as applicable) is responsible for remitting the Charges to the Seller in the manner described in these Terms of Service. In the event that Techie Friends (via Payment Services Provider) does not remit any such amounts to Seller, the Seller will have recourse only against Techie Friends and not the Buyer directly. Seller agrees that Techie Friends may describe or otherwise reflect the terms contained herein in any terms of service, receipts, disclosures, or notices including, but not limited to, receipts provided to Buyers that Techie Friends may deem necessary or prudent. 
• Techie Friends partners with Payment Services Providers for purposes of collecting Support Service-related payments from Buyers, transferring such payments from Buyers to Sellers. All payments services in connection with the collecting the charges from the customers on the Techie Friends platform is performed by Techie Friends’s Payment Services Providers. 
• Sellers are responsible for obtaining a general liability and professional service insurance policy with coverage amounts that are enough to cover all risks associated with the performance of their services. Techiefrineds on its discretion may ask to demonstrate or show the professional insurance coverage. 
• By offering a service, the Seller undertakes that he/she has sufficient knowledge, permissions, rights and/or licenses to provide, sell the service that is offered on Techie Friends. 
• Sellers agree not to sell services to the customers outside of the TechieFriends platform.   

3.2 Services

• Sellers are allowed to post any amount of active services. 
• Services charges are to be defined by the Seller and should be inclusive all local and any other taxes. 
• Services created on Techie Friends are User Generated Content. 
• Services and/or users may be removed by Techie Friends from the Site for violations to these Terms of Service, which may include (but are not limited to) the following violations and/or materials: 

 o    Illegal or Fraudulent services
 o    Copyright Infringement, Trademark Infringement, and violation of a third party's terms of service reported through our Intellectual Property Claims Policy found here
 o    Adult oriented services, Pornographic, Inappropriate/Obscene
 o    Intentional copies of Services
 o    Spam, nonsense, or violent or deceptive Services
 o    Services misleading to Buyers or others
 o    Reselling of regulated services
 o    Offering to prepare academic works on behalf of Buyers
 o    Exceedingly low quality Services
 o    Looking into customers private files, financial data or anything similar nature
 o    Promoting Techie Friends and/or Techie Friends Services through activities that are prohibited by any laws, regulations, and/or third parties' terms of service, as well as through any marketing activity that negatively affects our relationships with our users or partners.

• Services that are removed for violations mentioned above, may result in the suspension of the Seller’s account.
• Services that are removed for violations are not eligible to be restored or edited.
• Services may be removed from our Search feature due to poor performance and/or user misconduct.
• Services may include pre-approved website URLs contained within the Support Service description and requirements box. Services containing websites promoting content, which violates Techie Friends’ Terms of Service, will be removed. 
• Services are required to have an appropriate Support Service image related to the service offered. 
• Statements on the Support Service Page that undermine or circumvent these Terms of Service is prohibited. 
• Eligible Services in select Categories may set up Support Service Packages to offer their services in structured formats with multiple prices points for the selected Support Service.   

3.3 Payments

• To receive payment, Seller must update the bank account details at the Platform. 
• Revenue eligible for the payment will be held on your behalf at an account with Techie Friends or Techie Friends’ Payment Services Provider. 
• Only one account can be associated with a Seller’s profile. 
• Payment will be made in the Currency the service is listed. 
• Techie Friends will payout the revenue once every 7 days for the orders that have passed the order clearance. Pay-outs will happen every Monday (Mountain Time Zone) §  Payment fees vary depending on the payment method. (Until we add payment methods, the only method available is local bank transfer and till Dec’20, no payment fee will be charged.

• Payment Methods 
  

• • METHOD                                              FEE                                 SERVICE AVAILABILITY 
• • Withdraw to your PayPal Account    $0*                                    For a list of PayPal services by country 
• • Local Bank Transfer (LBT)                *CAD$5 per transfer*.        Worldwide 
• • Direct Deposit (ACH)                         CAD $2 pertransfer.            Canada and US only 

* Additional fees may apply based on your location and currency.  

3.4 Platform Service Usage

• All Chat and Remote connection activities will be recorded.
• A copy of the recording will be made available for 7 days for Seller and Buyer to download. After that, it will be removed from the system.
• The seller should only use TechieFriends provided Remote Access and Chat services.
• Using TechieFriends Remote Connect and Chat services other than to services the TechieFriends customer is not allowed.  

4. BUYERS OR CUSTOMER

4.1 Basics

 §  You may not offer direct payments to Sellers using payment systems outside of the Techie Friends Order system.
 §  User Accounts: Portion of the Platform Services can be viewed without TechieFriends account. In order to use most aspects of Platform Services, the Buyer must register for and maintain an active personal user account (“Account”). You must be at least 18 years of age, or the age of legal majority in your jurisdiction (if different than 18), to obtain an Account. Account registration requires you to submit to TechieFriends certain personal information, such as your name, address, and mobile phone number. You agree to maintain accurate, complete, and up-to-date information in your Account. Your failure to maintain accurate, complete, and up-to-date Account information, may result in your inability to access and use the Platform Services or TechieFriends‘s termination of these Terms with you. You are responsible for all activity that occurs under your Account, and you agree to maintain the security and secrecy of your Account username and password at all times. Unless otherwise permitted by TechieFriends in writing, you may only possess one account.
§  Email or Text Messaging or Other forms of messages; By creating an Account, you agree that the Platform Services may send you an email, text (SMS) messages or any other form of communication, as part of the normal business operation of your use of the Platform Services.
 §  Promotional Codes or discounts; TechieFriends may, in TechieFriends’s sole discretion, create promotional codes that may be redeemed for Account credit, or other features or benefits related to the Platform Services and/or a Third-Party Provider’s services, subject to any additional terms that TechieFriends establishes on a per promotional code basis (“Promo Codes”). You agree that Promo Codes: (i) must be used for the intended audience and purpose, and in a lawful manner; (ii) may not be duplicated, sold or transferred in any manner, or made available to the general public (whether posted to a public form or otherwise) unless expressly permitted by TechieFriends; (iii) maybe disabled by TechieFriends at any time for any reason without liability to TechieFriends; (iv) may only be used pursuant to the specific terms that TechieFriends establishes for such Promo Code; (v) are not valid for cash; and (vi) may expire prior to your use. TechieFriends reserves the right to withhold or deduct credits or other features or benefits obtained through the use of Promo Codes by you or any other user in the event that TechieFriends determines or believes that the use or redemption of the Promo Code was in error, fraudulent, illegal, or in violation of the applicable Promo Code terms or these Terms.    

4.2 Purchasing

 §  Buyers pay TechieFriends to create an order from a Seller’s Service page, using the Order Now button. TechieFriends partners with Payment Services Providers for purposes of collecting Support Service-related payments from Buyers, transferring such payments from Buyers to TechieFriends and holding Charges during the order clearance period.
§  Services are charged by per ticket or hours. If services selected are charged by the hour, the minimum order is for 1 Hour service. Even if, Techie resolves the problem or answers queries sooner than 1 hour, the minimum charge would be for 1 hour.
 §  Techie Friends serves as Seller’s limited authorized payment collection the agent solely for the purpose of accepting payments (via its Payment Services Provider, if applicable) from Buyer, and remitting those payments to Seller. Buyer’s payment obligation to Seller will be satisfied upon receipt of payment by TechieFriends (or its Payment Services Provider, as applicable), and Techie Friends (via its Payment Service Provider, as applicable) is responsible for remitting the Charges to the Seller in the manner described in these Terms of Service. In the event that TechieFriends (via Payment Services Provider) does not remit any such amounts to Seller, the Seller will have recourse only against TechieFriends and not the Buyer directly.
§  In most locations, Services may be purchased on TechieFriends by using one of the following payment methods: Credit Card or Debit Card accepted by the TechieFriends’s payment service provider.
§  Payment Service Providers processing fees are added at the time of purchase where a Buyer can review and accept the total amount requested to pay. These fees cover administrative fees. As of Aug’20, the current fees assessed to the total purchase amount are CAD $3 on purchases up to CAD $60 and 5% on purchases above CAD$60.
§  To protect against fraud, unauthorized transactions (such as money laundering), claims or other liabilities, payment information in connection with payments made track. Payment Services Providers may also collect such other information as necessary for proposes of processing payments. Techie Friends are not exposed to the payment information provided to Payment Services Providers and this information are subject to the privacy policy applicable to the Payment Service Provider. Please see our Privacy Policy for more information.
 §  By using any payment method and/or providing payment details for making purchases on TechieFriends, you represent and warrant that: (a) you are legally authorized to provide such information; (b) you are legally authorized or have permission to make payments using the payment method(s); (c) if you are an employee or agent of a company or person that owns the payment method, you are authorized by that company or person to use the payment method to make payments on Techie Friends; and (d) such actions do not violate any applicable law.

4.3 Local Currencies

§  Buyers may pay on TechieFriends in several different currencies. Unless stated otherwise, you will be charged in the currency displayed on the Order page. All currency exchange services in connection with payments and withdrawals in local currencies are performed by Techie Friends’s Payment Services Providers. In certain cases, however, when certain currencies are not supported by certain payment methods, you will be charged in US$ even if the price is displayed in another currency. In any event, the actual charged amount (in the actual payment currency) will be clearly disclosed to you before you complete the Order.
 §  Buyers should note that the Services’ pricing is derived always from their original currency CAD $ price and, therefore, non-CAD$ currency prices may change daily in accordance with exchange rates fluctuations and may also include conversion fees. Buyers always have the option to pay in CAD$ by changing their selected displayed currency.
 §  If you paid for an Order in a currency other than CAD$ and your Order was later canceled for any reason, the amount returned would be based on the exchange rate as of the date of cancellation. Therefore, the returned amount may vary from the paid amount in local currency terms, while always maintaining the same CAD$ value.
 §  Your TechieFriends Revenue is always valued at CAD$.  Therefore, if you are listing your services in any currency other than CAD$, it may change daily in accordance with the exchange rate fluctuations, while always maintaining the same CAD$ value.

4.4Taxes
 §  Buyers may be charged with indirect taxes (such as Sales Tax, VAT or GST) depending on their residency, location and any applicable law, in addition to the Support Service price shown on the Support Service page.
 §  Buyers agree that they are responsible to comply with all tax requirements applicable to them, including but not limited to any obligation to deduct or withhold taxes. It is hereby clarified that all prices and fees that appear on the Site are the net amounts that will be paid following any direct or indirect taxes, levy, withholding tax, and/or deductions.

5.       ORDERS

5.1 Basics

 §  Once payment is confirmed, your order will be created and given a unique TechieFriends order number. (TF#)
 §  Once the order is to be accepted by the Seller. In case the seller rejects the order, payment will be refunded back to the Customer.
 §  When a Buyer orders a Support Service, the Seller is notified by email as well as notifications on the site while logged into the account.
 §  Sellers must deliver the services on agreed time to customer satisfaction. Failing to do so will allow the Buyer to cancel the order when an order is marked as late and may harm the Seller's status.  
 §  After completion of the services, the order will be awaiting Customer feedback.
 §  Payment will be released to the Techie after receiving the Customer feedback. If no feedback is received within 7 days, payment will be made to the Techie and Order will be marked as Completed.  

5.2 Reviews
 §  Feedback reviews provided by Buyers while completing an order are an essential part of Techie Friends's rating system. Reviews demonstrate the Buyer's overall experience with the Sellers and their service. Buyers are encouraged to communicate to the Seller any concerns experienced during their active order in regards to the service provided by the Seller.
 §  Leaving a Buyer's feedback is a basic prerogative of a Buyer. Feedback reviews will not be removed unless there are clear violations of our Terms of Service.
 §  To prevent any misuse of our Feedback system, all feedback reviews must come from legitimate sales executed exclusively through the TechieFriends the platform from users within our Community. Purchases arranged, determined to artificially enhance Seller ratings, or to abuse the TechieFriends platform with purchases from additional accounts, will result in a permanent suspension of all related accounts.
 §  Feedback comments given by Buyers are publicly displayed on a Seller’s Support Service page.
 §  Responding and posting a review: Once work is delivered, the Buyer has seven days to respond. If no response is provided within the response period, the order will be considered completed.
 §  Sellers may not solicit the removal of feedback reviews from their Buyers through mutual cancellations.  

6.           Disputes and Cancellations

If for any reason, there is a dispute, on the service delivered or if you encounter non-permitted usage on the Site, users can contact Techie Friends's Customer Service for assistance.

6.1 Basics
 §  Order can be canceled anytime, only before the start of the service.
§  Order cancellations can be performed on Techie Friends, when eligible, by email to the  OrderCancellation@techiefriends.com. §  Filing a transaction dispute or reversing a payment through your payment provider or your bank is a violation of these Terms of Service. Doing so may get your account temporarily or permanently disabled. Note: once you have filed a dispute with your payment provider, the Charges will be ineligible for a refund due to our obligations towards the payment provider.
 §  In the event that a Buyer or Seller encounters an issue related to the service provided in an order, you are encouraged to use to attempt to resolve the matter involving Techie Friends’ customer services.
 §  TechieFriends, through its Payment Services Providers, reserves the right to cancel orders or place Charges on hold for any suspected fraudulent transactions made on the Site. §  If an order is canceled (for any reason), the Charges paid will be returned to the Buyer. §  Revisions to service can be performed by Sellers based on the Seller.  For any revision order, contact customer service center.  

6.2 Order Cancellations
 §  Order can be canceled anytime, but at least 4 hours before start before start of the service.
 §  Eligibility for requests to TechieFriends to cancel an order will be assessed by our dispute management team based on a number of factors, including violations to our Terms of Service, general misconduct, and improper usage of the TechieFriends delivery system. See below for Order specific eligibility.
 §  Orders are not eligible to be canceled based on the quality of service/materials delivered by the Seller if the service was rendered as described in the Support Service page. Buyers may rate their experience with the Seller on the order page, including the overall level of service quality received.
 §  Buyers must use TechieFriends Customer Service to address their concerns and desired resolution related to the service provided by their Seller.
 §  Any non-permitted usage of TechieFriends encountered during an Order, after being reviewed by our Customer Service Center, may result in the order being canceled. This includes, but not limited to; harassment, unlawful behavior, or other violations to TechieFriends’s Terms of Service. §  TechieFriends Customer Service Centre will cancel orders based on, but not limited to, the following reasons:
o    Active Orders (after the Buyer submits the order and before the Seller shows up for the Service on TechieFriends Platform) o    The Seller is late and unresponsive for more than 24 hours.

 o    Users are abusive towards the other party through threats of low ratings or leveraging order materials (such as logins, personal information) against each other.
o    Users supplied or included copyright/trademark infringing materials as part of the Buyer requirements or the Seller’s delivery. o    The user is no longer an active TechieFriends user due to Terms of Service violations or closure of their account.

o    Delivered Orders (after the Seller clicks Service Completed and before the order is marked as complete)

o    The Seller requests additional payments, on or off the TechieFriends platform, by withholding the final delivery of services directly related to the agreed requirements.
o    The Seller is withholding the final delivery of services for improved ratings.
o    Buyers who abuse to gain more services from Sellers beyond the agreed request.
o    Buyers who threaten to leave a damaging review to gain more services from the Seller not related to the agreed requirements.

o    Completed Orders (after the order is marked as complete and before the 7 days limitation)

o    Users who have been reported to use copyright/trademark infringing materials after verification and with proof.
o    TechieFriends Customer Support will review cases of Order delivery manipulation that prevents Buyers and Sellers from fully utilizing our Customer Service Centre that enabled the order to be marked as complete.

7.           User Conduct and Protection

TechieFriends enables people around the world to receive/provide the best home tech support services at an unbeatable value. Services offered on TechieFriends reflect the diversity of an expanding Support Service economy. Members of the TechieFriends community communicate and engage through orders, chat and social media, and on TechieFriends’s Community Forums.   TechieFriends maintains a friendly, community-spirited, and professional environment. Users should keep to that spirit while participating in any activity or extensions of TechieFriends. This section relates to the expected conduct users should adhere to while interacting with each other on TechieFriends. To report a violation of our Terms of Service, User Misconduct, or inquiries regarding your account, please contact our Customer Service Center.

7.1 Basics

• To protect our users' privacy, user identities are kept anonymous. Requesting or providing Email addresses, Skype/IM usernames, telephone numbers or any other personal contact details to communicate outside of TechieFriends in order to circumvent or abuse the TechieFriends messaging system or TechieFriends the platform is not permitted.
• Any necessary exchange of personal information required to continue a service may be exchanged within the Chat session.
• TechieFriends does not provide any guarantee of the level of service offered to Buyers. You may use the Customer Service center.
• TechieFriends does not provide protection for users who interact outside of the TechieFriends platform.
• All information and exchanges must be performed exclusively on TechieFriends's platform.
• Rude, abusive, improper language or violent messages will not be tolerated and may result in an account warning or the suspension/removal of your account.
• TechieFriends is open to everyone. Discrimination against a community member-based on gender, race, age, religious affiliation, sexual preference or otherwise is not acceptable and may result in the suspension/removal of your account.
• Users may not submit proposals or solicit parties introduced through TechieFriends to contract, engage with, or pay outside of TechieFriends.

7.2 Orders

• Users with the intention to defame competing Sellers by ordering from competing services will have their reviews removed or further account status related actions determined by review by TechieFriends.
• Users are to refrain from spamming or soliciting previous Buyers or Sellers to pursue removing/modifying reviews or canceling orders that do not align on Order Cancellation or Feedback policies.
• TechieFriends reviews cases of payment provider chargebacks and disputes on behalf of Sellers. Although results vary per case due to each chargeback reason, we work hard on resolving disputes in the Seller’s favor. If the chargeback case allows, TechieFriends (or one of TechieFriends’s Payment Services Providers) will return parts or full revenue back to Sellers, otherwise, the chargeback amount will be borne by the Seller.

7.3 Services

• The seller should only use TechieFriends provided Remote Access and Chat services.
• Using TechieFriends Remote Connect and Chat services other than to services the TechieFriends customer is not allowed.

7.4 Reporting Violations

If you come across any content that may violate our Terms of Service, you should report it to us through the appropriate channels created to handle those issues as outlined in our Terms of Service. All cases are reviewed by us. To protect individual privacy, the results of the investigation are not shared. You can review our Privacy Policy for more information.

7.5 Violations

Users may receive a warning to their account for violations of our Terms of Service or any user misconduct reported to our Trust and Safety team. A warning will be sent to the user's email address and will be displayed for such users on the Site. Warnings do not limit account activity but can lead to your account losing seller statuses or becoming permanently disabled based on the severity of the violation.

7.6 Non-Permitted Usage

Adult Services & Pornography - Techie Friends do not allow any exchange of adult-oriented or pornographic materials and services.
Inappropriate Behavior & Language - Communication on Techie Friends should be friendly, constructive, and professional. Techie Friends condemns bullying, harassment, and hate speech towards others. We allow users a medium for which messages are exchanged between individuals, a system to rate orders and to engage on larger platforms such as our Community Forum and Social Media pages.
Phishing and Spam - Techie Friends takes the matter its members’ security seriously. Any attempts to publish or send malicious content with the intent to compromise another member’s account or computer environment is strictly prohibited. Please respect our member's privacy by not contacting them with offers, questions, suggestions, or anything which is not directly related to their Services or orders.
Privacy & Identity - You may not publish or post other people's private and confidential information. Any exchange of personal information required for the completion of a service must be provided on the order page. Sellers further confirm that whatever information they receive from the Buyer, which is not public domain, shall not be used for any purpose whatsoever other than for the delivery of the work to the Buyer. Any users who engage and communicate off of TechieFriends will not be protected by our Terms of Service.
Authentic TechieFriends Profile - You may not create a false identity on TechieFriends, misrepresent your identity, create a TechieFriends profile for anyone other than yourself (a real person), or use or attempt to use another user’s account or information; Your profile information, including your description, skills, location, etc., while may be kept anonymous, must be accurate and complete and may not be misleading, illegal, offensive or otherwise harmful. TechieFriends reserves the right to require users to go through a verification process in order to use the Site (whether by using ID, phone, camera, etc.).
Fraud / Unlawful Use - You may not use TechieFriends for any unlawful purposes or to conduct illegal activities.

7.7 Abuse and Spam
Multiple Accounts - To prevent fraud and abuse, users are limited to one active account. Any additional account determined to be created to circumvent guidelines, promote competitive advantages, or mislead the TechieFriends community will be disabled. Mass account creation may result in disabling of all related accounts. Note: any violations to TechieFriends’s Terms of Service is cause for permanent suspension of all accounts.
Targeted Abuse - We do not tolerate users who engage in targeted abuse or harassment towards other users on TechieFriends. This includes creating new multiple accounts to harass members through our message or ordering system.
Selling Accounts - You may not buy or sell TechieFriends accounts.

7.8 Proprietary Restrictions

Users have no right, and specifically agree not to do the following with respect to the Site or any part, component or extension of the Site (including its mobile applications): (i) copy, transfer, adapt, modify, distribute or reproduce it, in any manner; (ii) reverse assemble, decompile, reverse engineer or otherwise attempt to derive its source code, underlying ideas, algorithms, structure or organization; (iii) modify or create derivative works; (iv) remove any copyright notice, identification or any other proprietary notices, or; (v) use the Site in any manner that could damage, disable, overburden or impair the The site, or interfere with any other users’ enjoyment of the Site. Users also agree not to permit or authorize anyone else to do any of the foregoing.  

8.           General Terms

• TechieFriends reserves the right to put any account on hold or permanently disable accounts due to breach of these Terms of Service or due to any illegal or inappropriate use of the Site or services.
• Violation of TechieFriends's Terms of Service may get your account disabled permanently.
• Users with disabled accounts will not be able to sell or buy on TechieFriends.
• Users who have violated our Terms of Service and had their account disabled may contact our Customer Support team for more information surrounding the violation and status of the account.
• Users have the option to enable account Security features to protect their account from any unauthorized usage.
• Users must be able to verify their account ownership through Customer Support by providing materials that prove ownership of that account.
• Sellers will be paid out their revenues from disabled accounts after a safety period of 90 days following full verification of ownership of the the account in question, from the day of the last cleared payment received in their account and subject to TechieFriends's approval. §  Disputes should be handled by contacting TechieFriends Customer Service Center.
• TechieFriends may make changes to its Terms of Service from time to time. When these changes are made, TechieFriends will make a new copy of the terms of service available on the Site.
• You understand and agree that if you use TechieFriends after the date on which the Terms of Service have changed, Techie Friends will treat your use as acceptance of the updated Terms of Service.  

9.         User Generated Content

User-Generated Content ("UGC") refers to the content added by users as opposed to content created by the Site. All content uploaded to TechieFriends by our users (Buyers and Sellers) is User Generated Content. Techie Friends does not check user uploaded/created content for appropriateness, violations of copyright, trademarks, other rights, or violations. We invite everyone to report violations together with proof of ownership as appropriate. Reported violating content may be removed or disabled. Furthermore, Techie Friends is not responsible for the content, quality, or the level of service provided by the Sellers. We provide no warranty with respect to the Services, their delivery, and any communications between Buyers and Sellers. We encourage users to take advantage of our rating system, our community, and common sense in choosing the appropriate Services provider.   User agrees to not provide User Generated Content that is defamatory, libelous, hateful, violent, obscene, pornographic, unlawful, or otherwise offensive, as determined by TechieFriends in its sole discretion, whether or not such material may be protected by law. TechieFriends may, but shall not be obligated to, review, monitor, or remove User Content, at TechieFriends’s sole discretion and at any time and for any reason, without notice to you.   By offering a service, the Seller undertakes that he/she has sufficient permissions, rights, and/or licenses to provide, sell, or resell the service that is offered on Techie Friends. Sellers advertising their Support Service online must comply with laws and terms of service of the advertising platform or relevant website used to advertise. Failing to do so may result in the removal of the Support Service and may lead to the suspension of Seller's account.   By providing User Generated Content to TechieFriends, the user grants TechieFriends a worldwide, perpetual, irrevocable, transferrable, royalty-free license, with the right to sublicense, to use, copy, modify, create derivative works of, distribute, publicly display, publicly perform, and otherwise exploit in any manner such User Content in all formats and distribution channels are now known or hereafter devised (including in connection with the Services and TechieFriends’s business and on third-party sites and services), without further notice to or consent from you, and without the requirement of payment to you or any other person or entity.   You agree to not provide User Content that is defamatory, libelous, hateful, violent, obscene, pornographic, unlawful, or otherwise offensive, as determined by TechieFriends in its sole discretion, whether or not such material may be protected by law. TechieFriends may, but shall not be obligated to, review, monitor, or remove User Content, at TechieFriends’s sole discretion and at any time and for any reason, without notice to you.  

10.       Disclaimer of Warranties

 YOUR USE OF THE SITE, ITS CONTENT, AND ANY SERVICES OR ITEMS OBTAINED THROUGH THE WEBSITE IS AT YOUR OWN RISK. THE SITE, ITS CONTENT, AND ANY SERVICES OR ITEMS OBTAINED THROUGH THE WEBSITE ARE PROVIDED ON AN "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" BASIS, WITHOUT ANY WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED. NEITHER TECHIEFRIENDS NOR ANY PERSON ASSOCIATED WITH TECHIEFRIENDS MAKES ANY WARRANTY OR REPRESENTATION WITH RESPECT TO THE COMPLETENESS, SECURITY, RELIABILITY, QUALITY, ACCURACY, OR AVAILABILITY OF THE WEBSITE. THE FOREGOING DOES NOT AFFECT ANY WARRANTIES WHICH CANNOT BE EXCLUDED OR LIMITED UNDER APPLICABLE LAW.

11.       Limitation on Liability

 IN NO EVENT WILL TECHIEFRIENDS, ITS AFFILIATES OR THEIR LICENSORS, SERVICE PROVIDERS, EMPLOYEES, AGENTS, OFFICERS OR DIRECTORS BE LIABLE FOR DAMAGES OF ANY KIND, UNDER ANY LEGAL THEORY, ARISING OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH YOUR USE, OR INABILITY TO USE, THE WEBSITE, ANY WEBSITES LINKED TO IT, ANY CONTENT ON THE WEBSITE OR SUCH OTHER WEBSITES OR ANY SERVICES OR ITEMS OBTAINED THROUGH THE WEBSITE OR SUCH OTHER WEBSITES, INCLUDING ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, CONSEQUENTIAL OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO, PERSONAL INJURY, PAIN AND SUFFERING, EMOTIONAL DISTRESS, LOSS OF REVENUE, LOSS OF PROFITS, LOSS OF BUSINESS OR ANTICIPATED SAVINGS, LOSS OF USE, LOSS OF GOODWILL, LOSS OF DATA, AND WHETHER CAUSED BY TORT (INCLUDING NEGLIGENCE), BREACH OF CONTRACT OR OTHERWISE, EVEN IF FORESEEABLE. IN ACCEPTING LIABILITY AS THE LIMITED AUTHORIZED PAYMENT COLLECTION AGENT OF SELLER, TECHIEFRIENDS AND ITS AFFILIATES ASSUME NO LIABILITY FOR ANY ACTS OR OMISSIONS OF SELLER. THE FOREGOING DOES NOT AFFECT ANY LIABILITY WHICH CANNOT BE EXCLUDED OR LIMITED UNDER APPLICABLE LAW. The term “Affiliate” referred to herein, is an entity that, directly or indirectly, controls, or is under the control of or is under common control with Techie Friends, where control means having more than fifty percent (50%) voting stock or other ownership interest or the majority of voting rights of such entity.

12.       Indemnity.

User agrees to indemnify and hold TechieFriends and its officers, directors, employees, and agents harmless from any and all claims, demands, losses, liabilities, and expenses (including attorneys’ fees) arising out of or in connection with: (i) your use of the Services or services or goods obtained through your use of the Services; (ii) your breach or violation of any of these Terms; (iii) TechieFriends’s use of your User Content; or (iv) your violation of the rights of any third party, including Third-Party Providers.

13.       Governing Law; Arbitration.

Except as otherwise set forth in these Terms, this agreement shall be construed and interpreted in accordance with the laws of the Province of Alberta and the federal laws of Canada applicable therein. Each of the parties hereby irrevocably attorns to the jurisdiction of the courts of the Province of Alberta with respect to any matters arising out of this Agreement. The Vienna Convention on the International Sale of Goods of 1980 (CISG) shall not apply. Any dispute, controversy or claim arising out of or relating to this contract including any question regarding its existence, interpretation, validity, breach or termination of the business relationship created by it shall be referred to and finally resolved by arbitration under the Canadian Arbitration Association Arbitration Rules.

14.          Other Provisions Claims of Copyright Infringement.

Claims of copyright infringement should be sent to TechieFriends’s designated agent. Please visit TechieFriends’s web page at https://www.TechieFriends.com/legal for the designated address and additional information.

TechieFriends's Privacy Policy

Last update: 9 August’20

Please read this privacy policy (the “Policy”) carefully to understand how we use your personal information. If you do not agree with this Policy, your choice is not to use TechieFriends.com (the “Site”). By accessing or using this Site, you agree to this Policy. This Policy may change from time to time; any changes we make to this Policy will be posted on this Site, we may also take any other steps, to the extent required by applicable law, including notifying you and/or seeking your explicit consent to material changes. Changes to this Policy are effective as of the stated "Last Updated" date. Other than where we have sought such explicit consent from you, your continued use of the Site after we make changes will constitute acceptance of, and agreement to be bound by, those changes, so please check the policy periodically for any updates or changes.

THE SHORT VERSION

At Techie Friends we care about your privacy. We do not sell or rent your personal information to third parties for their direct marketing purposes without your explicit consent. We do not disclose it to others except as disclosed in this Policy or required to provide you with the services of the Site and mobile applications and its related sites, applications, services, and goods (collectively, the “Site”), meaning - to allow you to buy, sell, share the information you want to share on the Site; to contribute on the forum; pay for products; post reviews and so on; or where we have a legal obligation to do so.

We collect information that you provide us or voluntarily share with other users, and also some general technical information that is automatically gathered by our systems, such as IP address, browser information, and cookies to enable you to have a better user experience and a more personalized browsing experience. We will not share information that you provide us in the process of the registration - including your contact information - except as described in this Policy. Information that you choose to publish on the Site (photos, videos, text, music, reviews, deliveries) - is no longer private, just like any information you publish online. Technical information that is gathered by our systems, or third party systems, automatically may be used for Site operation, optimization, analytics, content promotion, and enhancement of user experience. In accordance with applicable local law, we may use your information to contact you - to provide notices related to your activities or offer you promotions and general updates, but we will not let any other person, including sellers and buyers, contact you, other than through your user profile on the Site.

Your personal information may be stored in systems based around the world and may be processed by third-party service providers acting on our behalf. These providers may be based in countries that do not provide an equivalent level of protection for privacy as that enjoyed in the country in which you live. In that case, we will provide adequate safeguards to protect your personal information.

You can exercise your rights over your personal information, by contacting Customer Service. If you do not have an active Techie Friends account, please contact us at privacy@Techie Friends.com. More details about the rights applicable to you are in the long version of the Policy. The above are just the highlights. We encourage you to read more about the information we collect, how we use it, understand the meaning of cookie (no, you can’t eat it), and more in the long version of our Policy below.

THE LONGER VERSION

Techie Friends Inc. respects your privacy and is committed to protecting the personal information of its users - buyers, sellers, collaborators, and other visitors browsing the Site (“Users”) as well as affiliates, influencers, and other collaborators interacting with Techie Friends. We believe that you have a right to know our practices regarding the information we collect when you visit and/or use the Site. This Policy explains our privacy practices for the Site and services provided by Techie Friends as well as privacy practices that apply to affiliates, influencers, and other collaborators who are individuals. By accessing and/or using the Site and its related sites, applications, services, goods and/or registering for a Techie Friends account and/or using it as a collaborator to share comments on a specific project and/or registering to our affiliate or influencer or similar program, you agree to the terms and conditions of this Policy, including to our collection, use, disclosure, processing and retention of your personal information. You can also learn how to limit the sharing of information in this Policy.

Information We Collect

When you register to the Site, we ask you to provide certain personal information, including a valid email address, Facebook or Google account log in details and username. We may ask you to provide or otherwise collect additional information that you provide us, such as, your profile details, physical address, telephone number or other contact details, financial information (such as payment method and credit card number), details about other social networks linked accounts, details about your listed skills, experience, education, profession and expertise, and additional authentication information (such as your government-issued ID, passport, or driving license, as permitted by applicable laws to verify the identity and background check. We also collect information about your communications with Techie Friends as well as communication with other users of Techie Friends.

In addition, we collect information while you access, browse, view, remote control, or otherwise use the Site. In other words, when you access the Site we are aware of your usage of the Site and gather, collect and record the information relating to such usage, including geolocation information, IP address, video recording of your actions while remote controlling the device, device and connection information, browser information and web-log information, and all communications recorded by Users through the Site. We use that information to enhance the user experience, personalize your browsing experience as well as monitor the Site for preventing fraud and inappropriate content or behavior. We also use this information to educate users. We also collect supplemental information obtained from third parties such as demographic and navigation data, if applicable.

To improve your online experience at Techie Friends, we have implemented impression reporting. While you view our ads, we gather user Global Unique Identifier, HTTP request data like, user agent, IP, host, URL, country/continent from which request made, browser info, device/operating system/operating system version. Once you register, your username and additional information regarding your activity is made public and is visible to all users of the Site. This information includes photos you upload, your published portfolio, Gig information, ratings, and additional information you may choose to add to your profile.

How do we collect Information?

You directly provide us with most of the information we collect. You do this by filling out the registration details on the Site, linking to your Techie Friends account accounts of other social networks (please also see the External Links section below), completing application forms, skill tests and customer surveys (if any) as well as by posting and sharing additional information voluntarily. This can include information about sellers and their skills, expertise, User's location, education and profession, sharing of portfolio, ratings, and feedbacks by buyers and anything you choose to add to your user profile. We also collect technical information indirectly and automatically through our systems. This information includes logging your Internet Protocol (IP) address, software configuration, operating system, and use of cookies (cookies are small files sent from us to your computer and sometimes back). Cookies ultimately help us improve your navigation and ease of use of our Site. You can find further information about Cookies in this Policy below, under "Cookies". We also collect information from third party vendors and/or partners and/or other commercially available sources such as data aggregators and public databases, who provide us data to supplement the information we collect about you, in accordance with applicable laws. For example, we may receive fraud warnings from service providers for our fraud prevention and risk assessment efforts. We also collect and record information when Techie remotely connects to the users. If you link, connect, or login to your Techie Friends Account with a third-party service (e.g. Google, Facebook, LinkedIn), we receive certain information, such as your registration and profile information from that service. This information varies and is controlled by that service or as authorized by you via your privacy settings at that service. We also receive certain information about you, if you are invited to Techie Friends by another user (for example, as part of our collaboration tools and referral program), in such case we will receive limited information, such as your email address or other contact information, and we will use it for the same purpose it was provided and in accordance with the terms of this Privacy Policy.

Do Not Track

Do Not Track (DNT) is a privacy preference that users can set in some web browsers, allowing users to opt-out of tracking by websites and online services. We do not honor browser requests not to be tracked online (known as “Do Not Track”), but our cookie policy below describes how you can opt-out of receiving cookies.

How do we use the Information collected?

Where relevant under applicable laws, all processing of your personal information will be justified by a "condition" for processing. In the majority of cases, processing will be justified on the basis that:

• you have provided your consent for us to use your personal information for a specific purpose;
• our use of your personal information is necessary to perform a contract or take steps to enter into a contract with you (e.g. to provide you with services which you have purchased);
• the processing is necessary to comply with a relevant legal obligation or regulatory obligation that we have (e.g. fraud prevention); or
• the processing is necessary to support our legitimate interests as a business (e.g. to improve our services to you), subject to your interests and fundamental rights and provided it is proportionately conducted at all times. We will use your personal information for the following purposes:
• to provide you with quality service and security, to operate the Site, and to perform our obligations to you. For example, we use the information collected from you to verify your identity. We also use this information to establish and set up your account, verify or re-issue a password, log your activity, enable your communications with other members, provide customer support and contact you from time to time. The information helps us develop and improve our services to you and customize and personalize your experience (including by making gig suggestions, ranking search results, etc.).
• to ensure marketplace integrity, prevent fraud, and maintain a safe and secure marketplace. For example, we use your information to track and prevent fraudulent activities and other inappropriate activities and, monitor content integrity, conduct security investigations and risk assessments, verify or authenticate information provided by you, enforce our Terms of Service and comply with applicable laws. We conduct certain behavioral analytics to achieve the above objectives and in limited cases, if we detect activity that we think poses a risk to the Techie Friends marketplace, other users, our community, or third parties, automated processes may restrict or limit your ability to use Techie Friends. If you would like to challenge any such decision, please contact us at privacy@Techie Friends.com.
• to promote and advertise the Techie Friends Site and marketplace. For example, we use the information collected from you to send direct marketing messages (as detailed below), to show you information that may be of interest to you, to organize and facilitate referral programs, contests, or other promotional activities or events.
• to maintain appropriate business records, to comply with lawful requests by public authorities and to comply with applicable laws and regulations or as otherwise required by law. We will ask for your consent before using information for a purpose other than those set out in this Policy. Direct marketing:
• We use your personal information to send you direct marketing communications about our products, services, or promotions from Techie Friends that may be of interest to you or our related services. This may be via email, post, SMS, telephone, or targeted online advertisements.  In most cases, our processing of your personal information for marketing purposes is based on our legitimate interest, although some cases (such as where required by law) will be based on your consent. You have a right to prevent direct marketing of any form at any time - this can be exercised by following the opt-out link attached to each communication or by sending an email to optout@Techie Friends.com.
• We take steps to limit direct marketing to a reasonable and proportionate level and to send you communications which we believe may be of interest or relevance to you, based on the information we have about you.

How long do we keep your information?

We apply a general rule of keeping personal information only for as long as is required to fulfill the purpose for which it was collected. However, in some circumstances, we may retain your personal information for longer periods. We may retain your information for the following purposes:

• as long as it is necessary and relevant for our operations, e.g. so that we have an accurate record of your dealings with us in the event of any complaints or challenge; and
• concerning personal information from closed accounts to comply with applicable laws, prevent fraud, collect any fees owed, resolve disputes, troubleshoot problems, assist with any investigation, enforce our Site terms and take other actions as permitted by law.

Children Under the Age of 13

Our Site is not intended for children under 13 years of age. No one under age 13 should provide any personal information to or on the Site. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. Parents and guardians should at all times supervise their children's activities. If we learn we have collected or received personal information from a child under 13, we will delete that personal information. If you believe we might have any information from or about a child under 13, please contact us at customerservice@techiefriends.com

Sharing Personal Information with Third Parties

We do not sell or rent your personal information to third parties for their marketing purposes without your explicit consent. We combine your personal information with information we collect automatically or obtain from other companies and use it to improve and personalize our services, content, and advertising and/or to prevent fraud. If you do not wish to receive marketing communications from us, you can opt-out through the link attached to each communication or by sending an email to optout@Techie Friends.com. We provide your personal details to third parties, only to operate the Site, provide our services to you, fulfill obligations imposed on us by applicable laws and regulations, and prevent fraud and illegal activities, as detailed below:

• We share your information with service providers that provide us with services for the purpose of operating the Site, opening and operating your account as well as providing ancillary services (example - payment vendors, CRM systems, forum hosting, community management services, IT SaaS services, mailing systems or technical consultants). Our contracts with these service providers do not permit the use of your information for their own (marketing) purposes. Consistent with applicable legal requirements, we take commercially reasonable steps to require third parties to adequately safeguard your personal information and only process it in accordance with our instructions;
• We will share your information to law enforcement agencies, public authorities or other organizations to respond to a subpoena or court order, judicial process or regulatory authorities, if we believe we are required to do so by law, or that doing so is reasonably necessary to comply with legal processes; when we believe it necessary or appropriate to disclose personal information to law enforcement authorities, such as to investigate actual or suspected fraud or violations of law, breaches of security, or breaches of this Policy; to respond to claims against us; and to protect the rights, property, or personal safety of Techie Friends, our customers, or the public;  We share your information with payment processors, fraud detection agencies and similar third parties to secure the site and protect it against fraud, unauthorized transactions (such as money laundering), claims or other liabilities;
• We share your information to help facilitate interactions between Users. For example, if you are a Buyer we may share certain limited information about you (such as the fact it is your first purchase on Techie Friends) with the Seller to ensure the services you receive from the Seller will fit your needs; such sharing of information is limited in scope, will not include personal identifying information (PII) and is only intended to improve the services provided by the Seller and your user experience;
• We share your information with Techie Friends’s platform partners to operate the Site, providing our services to you and for other purposes listed herein; and
• Your personal information will also be disclosed if we go through a business transition such as a merger, sale, transfer of all or a portion of Techie Friends's assets, acquisition, bankruptcy or similar event. In the event that we sell any business or assets, we will disclose your data to the prospective buyer. If we or substantially all of our assets are acquired by a third party, information held by us about our users will be one of the transferred assets. Please note, your profile information and additional information regarding your activity is made public and is visible to all users of the Site. When you publish your information and/or share your data with other Techie Friends Users, you do so at your own risk. While Techie Friends strives to protect your privacy and our Terms of Service require our Users not to use the data shared with them, Techie Friends cannot ensure that all Users will do so.

Where We Store Your Personal Information

Some of the personal information you provide to us will be stored or processed on our behalf by third party suppliers and data processors and may be located in other across the world, such as the United States, Canada, whose laws may differ from the jurisdiction in which you live. Whether to third parties or internally, any transfers of personal information from the European Economic Area (“EEA”) to countries not deemed to provide an adequate level of data protection are governed by European Union (EU) standard contractual clauses, or in the case of the United States, the EU - US Privacy Shield, and/or equivalent data transfer regulations to protect the security and confidentiality of personal information. We will take all steps reasonably necessary to ensure that your personal information is treated securely and in accordance with this Policy.

Cookies

When you visit the Site, we use industry-wide technologies such as "cookies" (or similar technologies), which store certain information on your computer and which will allow us, among other things, to enable automatic sign-in to the Site, make your browsing much more convenient and effortless and allow us to test user experience and offer you personalized browsing or promotions. By continuing to use this Site, you are agreeing to our placing cookies on your computer or device in accordance with the terms of this Policy. The Site uses cookies to collect statistical data about its use, to tailor the Site's functionality to suit personal preferences, and to assist with various aspects of Site operation. These files contain a variety of information such as information about Techie Friends webpages visited by you, the length of time you visited the Site, data about how you came to visit the Site, areas viewed by you within the Site, and additional information. Cookies remain on your device for the period described below. The following is a more detailed explanation of the types of cookies we use:

• Necessary cookies Necessary cookies are essential and help you navigate the Site. This helps to support security and basic functionality and is necessary for the proper operation of the Site, so if you block these cookies we can't guarantee your use or the security during your visit.
• Functionality cookies Functionality cookies are used to provide you the best user experience. These cookies are, for instance, used to personalize content for you in line with your location. It also allows the Site to remember choices made (like turning off the use of cookies or which location you have previously selected) to provide more personal features.
• Performance cookies Performance cookies help us to understand the behavior of users of the Site. This allows us to continuously improve the Site to provide the best information in support of our project aims. These cookies are also used to help us understand how effective our Site is; for instance, these cookies tell us which pages visitors go to most often and if they get error messages from web pages. All of the information that these cookies collect is aggregated, to assist us to improve how the Site works. Some of these cookies are managed by third parties, and you may refer to the third parties' website privacy notifications for further information. In particular, we use Google Analytics cookies to obtain an overall view of user habits and volumes and to help improve the overall experience on the Site. Google Analytics is a third-party web analysis service provided by Google Inc, which uses performance cookies and targeting cookies. The information generated by these cookies about your use of the Site (including your IP address) will be transmitted to and stored by Google Inc on servers in the United States. Google will use the information collected to evaluate your use of our Site on our behalf, compiling reports on website activity, and providing other services relating to activity and internet usage to us. Google will not associate your IP address with any other data held by Google. You may refuse the use of cookies by selecting the appropriate settings on your browser as described below. Furthermore, you can prevent Google’s collection and use of data (cookies and IP address) by downloading and installing the browser plug-in available under https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout?hl=en-GB. This creates an opt-out cookie which prevents the further processing of your data. For more information about Google Analytics cookies, please see Google's help pages and privacy policy. If you prevent these cookies, we cannot guarantee how the site will perform for you.

Blocking or Deleting Cookies

We shall store a cookie on your computer or device to remember this for next time so that we can store your preferences and save you time on subsequent visits by eliminating the need to repeatedly enter the same data. You may set your browser to block all cookies, including cookies associated with our services, or to indicate when a cookie is being set by us. You should do this through the browser settings for each browser you use. Please be aware that some of our services will not function if your browser does not accept cookies. However, you can allow cookies from specific websites by making them "trusted websites" in your internet browser. The following links may assist you in managing your cookies settings, or you can use the 'help' option in your internet browser for more details:

• Internet Explorer
• Google Chrome
• Safari
• Adobe (flash cookies)

If you share the use of a computer or device, accepting or rejecting the use of cookies may affect all users of that computer or device. Information on deleting or controlling cookies is also available at www.aboutcookies.org (note that this website is not provided by Techie Friends, and we, therefore, cannot ensure its accuracy, completeness, or availability). It is important to remember that many of our services may not function properly if your cookies are disabled. For example, cookies may, in certain cases, save you from the need to enter usernames and passwords and allow session continuity.

External Links

Please note that the Site contains links to third party sites and if you link to a third-party site from the Site, any data you provide to that site and any use of that data by the third party are not under the control of Techie Friends and are not subject to this Policy. You should consult the privacy policies of each site you visit. This Policy applies solely to personal information collected by our Site. If you upload content, including your personal information, to a social network, and then tag the Site, your submission will be subject to that social network's terms of use and privacy policy, even where you post on an official Fiver page on the social network. We do not have control over these terms of use and privacy policies and have not reviewed their adequacy. You should, therefore, review these before submitting any personal information.

Security

We take great care in maintaining the security of the Site and your information and in preventing unauthorized access, loss, misuse, alteration, destruction, or damage to it through industry standard technologies and internal procedures. Among other things, we regularly maintain a PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standards) certification (concerning payment by credit cards). Also, we contractually ensure that any third party processing your personal information equally provides for the confidentiality and integrity of your data securely. However, the transmission of data via the internet is not completely secure, and although we will do our best to protect your personal information, we cannot guarantee the security of your data transmitted to the Site; any transmission is at your own risk. Once we have received your data, we will use strict procedures and security features to try to prevent unauthorized access. Users who have registered to the Site agree to keep their password in strict confidence and not disclose such password to any third party. Further information about our data security practices can be provided on request.

Rights of EU Users and Data Subjects

Under applicable EU regulation, you have the following rights in respect of your personal information:

• to obtain a copy of your personal information together with information about how and on what basis that personal information is processed;
• to rectify inaccurate personal information;
• to erase your personal information in limited circumstances where (a) you believe that it is no longer necessary for us to hold your personal information; (b) we are processing your personal information based on legitimate interests and you object to such processing, and we cannot demonstrate an overriding legitimate ground for the processing; (c) where you have provided your personal information to us with your consent and you wish to withdraw your consent and there is no other ground under which we can process your personal information, and (d) where you believe the personal information we hold about you is being unlawfully processed by us;
• to restrict processing of your personal information where: (a) the accuracy of the personal information is contested; (b) the processing is unlawful but you object to the erasure of the personal information; (c) we no longer require the personal information for the purposes for which it was collected, but it is required for the establishment, exercise or defense of a legal claim or (d) you have objected to us processing your personal information based on our legitimate interests and we are considering your objection;
• to challenge processing which we have justified based on our legitimate interest;
• to object to decisions which are based solely on automated processing or profiling;
• where you have provided your personal information to us with your consent, to ask us for a copy of this data in a structured, machine-readable format and to ask us to share (port) this data to another data controller; or
• to obtain a copy of or access to safeguards under which your personal information is transferred outside of the EEA. In addition to the above, you have the right to lodge a complaint with a supervisory authority for data protection. We will ask you for additional data to confirm your identity and for security purposes, before disclosing data requested to you. We reserve the right to charge a fee where permitted by law. We will decline to process requests that jeopardize the privacy of others, are extremely impractical, or would cause us to take any action that is not permissible under applicable laws. Additionally, as permitted by applicable laws, we will retain where necessary certain personal information for a limited period for record-keeping, accounting, and fraud prevention purposes. Updating Your Information We take steps to ensure that the personal information we collect is accurate and up to date, and we provide you with the opportunity to update your information through your account profile settings. If you believe your information is in any way incorrect or inaccurate, please let us know immediately. We will make sure we investigate the matter and correct any inaccuracies as quickly as possible where necessary or give you ways to update it quickly or to delete it - unless we have to keep that information for legitimate business or legal purposes. When updating your personal information, we will ask you to verify your identity before we can act on your request. If for any reason you have a problem with deleting your personal information, please contact Techie Friends's Customer Support and we will make reasonable efforts to delete any such information according to any applicable privacy laws. You can review and change your personal information by logging into the Site and visiting your account profile page. If you delete your User Generated Content (“UGC”), as defined in the Techie Friends Terms of Service, from the Site, copies of your UGC may remain viewable in cached and archived pages, or might have been copied or stored by other Site users. Proper access and use of information provided on the Site, including UGC, is governed by our Terms of Service. Contact Us To exercise any of your rights in connection with your personal information, we kindly ask that you contact Customer Service. Please include all the relevant details, so your ticket can be handled correctly. We will process any requests in line with any local laws and our policies and procedures. If you do not have an active Techie Friends account, please contact us at privacy@Techie Friends.com. If you have any questions (or comments) concerning this Policy, please email our team at privacy@Techie Friends.com, and we will make an effort to reply within a reasonable timeframe.