Terms of Service

1. Who We Are and South African Law

Specifying Techniques CC, registration number CK98/052094/23, P.O. Box 4008, The Square, 4021, operates the Services. These Terms are governed by the laws of the Republic of South Africa, subject to mandatory rights and remedies under applicable law. The South African courts have jurisdiction, without limiting a consumer's right to approach a competent forum.

2. Eligibility and Accounts

You must be authorised and legally able to accept these Terms. Keep account credentials confidential, use an individual account only as authorised, and promptly notify us of suspected unauthorised access. You are responsible for activity performed through your account, except to the extent caused by our breach or otherwise provided by law.

3. Services and Information

We provide project, product and related information and tools for professional and business use. Information may be incomplete, delayed or supplied by sources outside our control. It is general information, not legal, engineering, safety, procurement or other professional advice; independently verify it and make your own decisions. We do not guarantee any project, product, contact, price, specification, availability or outcome.

4. Limited Permission and Ownership

Subject to these Terms, the EULA and any signed agreement, we grant you a limited, personal or internal-business, non-exclusive, non-transferable and revocable permission to use the Services for their intended purpose. S.T. or its licensors retain all rights in the Services, software, databases, design, documentation, marks and supplied materials. No ownership is transferred.

5. Restrictions and Confidentiality

You must not, and must not enable another person to, access or use the Services beyond the permission we grant. In particular, you must not use a robot, spider, crawler, scraper, script, browser automation or other automated means to access, search, monitor, copy, extract or harvest content or data from the Services, or use manual methods at scale to do so, unless we have given prior written permission. You must not bulk-download content, build or enrich a database from Service data, or use Service content to train, test or improve an external model or competing product without our prior written permission.

You must not: copy, publish, sell, rent, sublicense, distribute or disclose non-public Service content to a third party; share credentials or permit unauthorised access; reverse engineer, decompile, disassemble, adapt or derive source code, except to the extent a restriction is prohibited by non-waivable law; bypass security, authentication, rate limits or other access controls; probe, scan, test or assess the security or vulnerability of any Service or connected system without our prior written authorisation; introduce malicious code; or access, use, interfere with or disrupt any system, network, account or data without authorisation.

Do not overload or impair the Services or their supporting infrastructure, interfere with another person's use, attempt to gain unauthorised access, or use the Services to send spam, conduct fraud, distribute malware or engage in unlawful activity. Do not evade a block, suspension or usage limit, or create accounts or identities deceptively. Any permission for automated access must identify the approved purpose, method and limits, and may be withdrawn by us.

Use content only for the authorised purpose and protect it against unauthorised access or disclosure. Disclosure to an employee or professional adviser is permitted only when necessary, authorised and subject to confidentiality duties; this does not authorise onward disclosure. Do not upload information you lack the right to provide.

6. Availability, Changes and Suspension

We may update, suspend or discontinue a feature for operational, security or legal reasons. We will take reasonable steps to give notice where practicable. To protect the company, users, data, systems and infrastructure, we may rate-limit, block, investigate or suspend activity or access where we reasonably suspect a breach, abusive or automated access, a security threat, service degradation, or unlawful activity. Where appropriate, we may preserve relevant records and refer suspected unlawful conduct to competent authorities. We will restore access when appropriate and as required by law.

7. Fees and Separate Agreements

Fees, subscriptions, service scope, contract duration and cancellation are set out in the applicable order, subscription or signed Client Contract Terms. Nothing on this page replaces a signed agreement or removes rights that cannot lawfully be excluded.

8. Third-Party Services and Data

Features may depend on hosting, communications, payment, mapping or other service providers, and content may originate from third-party sources. We do not sell personal information or permit providers to use confidential customer content for their own purposes. Where a provider must process information to deliver or secure the Services, we require appropriate confidentiality and data-protection safeguards. See our Privacy Policy.

9. Disclaimers and Liability

To the extent permitted by law, the Services are provided on an "as available" basis and we do not warrant uninterrupted availability, error-free operation or the completeness or accuracy of information. Nothing in these Terms excludes a warranty or liability that South African law does not permit us to exclude, including applicable rights under the Consumer Protection Act, 2008 ("CPA"). Subject to those rights, S.T. is not liable for indirect or consequential damages, loss of profits, business, anticipated savings or data arising from use of the Services. Our aggregate liability for a claim is limited to the fees paid for the affected Services in the 12 months before the event giving rise to the claim, except for liability that cannot lawfully be limited.

10. Your Responsibility

You are responsible for your unlawful use, unauthorised disclosure or breach of these Terms. To the extent permitted by law, you must indemnify S.T. for third-party claims and reasonable costs directly resulting from that conduct; this does not apply to loss caused by S.T.'s own breach, negligence or unlawful conduct.

11. Privacy and Cookies

Our Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy explain how we process personal information and use cookies in accordance with POPIA and applicable law. They form part of the rules for using the Services, but do not convert consent into a condition where another lawful basis applies.

12. Changes, Notices and General

We reserve the right to revise or replace these Terms at any time without prior notice by publishing the updated version here. Changes apply prospectively from publication or any later effective date stated in the updated Terms, and continued use indicates acceptance only where legally effective. Changes do not amend an existing signed agreement unless agreed in writing or required by law. If a provision is unenforceable, the remainder continues to apply. A failure to enforce a right is not a waiver. These Terms do not create an agency, partnership or employment relationship.

13. Contact

Questions or notices: info@spectechonline.com. Contract notices must also follow the notice requirements in the applicable signed agreement.