Copyright & Trademark Use Policy

Contents

1. 1. Purpose
2. 2. Data Sole Intellectual Property
3. 3. Copyright
4. 4. Permitted Copyright Use
5. 5. Prohibited Copyright Use
6. 6. Data Sole Trademarks
7. 7. Permitted Trademark Use
8. 8. Use of the Data Sole Logo
9. 9. Prohibited Trademark and Logo Uses
10. 10. Modification of Logos
11. 11. Domain Names and Websites
12. 12. Social Media
13. 13. Advertising and Search Engines
14. 14. Partners, Resellers and Affiliates
15. 15. Screenshots and Product Interfaces
16. 16. Software, APIs and Developer Materials
17. 17. Artificial Intelligence and Automated Use
18. 18. Reporting Copyright Infringement
19. 19. Reporting Trademark Infringement
20. 20. Enforcement
21. 21. No Transfer of Rights
22. 22. Requests for Permission
23. 23. Changes to This Policy
24. 24. Contact
25. Appendix A: Definitions
26. Appendix B: Quick-Reference – Permitted and Prohibited Uses
27. Appendix C: Reporting Checklist by Complaint Type
28. Appendix D: Worked Scenarios
29. Appendix E: Copyright and Trademark Notices
30. Appendix F: Frequently Asked Questions

1. Purpose

This Copyright and Trademark Use Policy (“Policy”) explains how Data Sole’s copyrighted materials, trademarks, service marks, logos, product names, designs and other intellectual property may and may not be used.

Data Sole encourages legitimate references to its products and services. Independent commentary, honest comparisons, technical documentation written by customers about their own use of Data Sole, and factual statements that a product is compatible with or built on Data Sole infrastructure are all part of a healthy ecosystem around any technology platform, and this Policy is not intended to discourage them.

However, Data Sole intellectual property must not be used in a way that falsely suggests ownership, endorsement, sponsorship, partnership, affiliation or authorisation. Brand and copyright protections exist not to suppress legitimate discussion of Data Sole, but to prevent confusion, protect customers from impersonation and fraud, and preserve the value of the investment Data Sole has made in its products, content and reputation.

This Policy applies to customers, partners, developers, resellers, suppliers, media organisations and other third parties using or referring to Data Sole intellectual property. It is intended to be read by a broad, largely non-legal audience — marketing teams preparing a case study, developers naming an integration, journalists writing a product review, and partners producing co-branded materials — and is written accordingly, in plain language, with illustrative examples throughout and consolidated in Appendix D.

1.1 Relationship to Other Data Sole Policies

This Policy should be read alongside Data Sole’s Terms and Conditions of Use, which govern use of the Services generally, and any specific partner, reseller or licensing agreement a party has entered into with Data Sole, which may grant broader rights than this Policy in relation to specific brand assets. Where a signed agreement grants rights that differ from this Policy, the signed agreement takes precedence for the specific use it covers.

1.2 Who Should Use This Policy

This Policy is written for several overlapping audiences, each of whom will typically be most interested in different sections. Customers referencing Data Sole in their own marketing will find Sections 4 and 7 most relevant. Partners and resellers should pay particular attention to Sections 8, 10 and 14. Developers building integrations should focus on Sections 16 and 17. Journalists, reviewers and educators will find Section 15 directly relevant to their work. Rights holders who believe their own intellectual property has been infringed through Data Sole’s services should turn to Sections 18 and 19. Appendix B provides a single quick-reference table that cuts across these audiences for anyone wanting a fast answer to a specific question.

1.3 Interpretation

Headings in this Policy are for convenience only and do not affect interpretation. Examples given throughout this Policy are illustrative and non-exhaustive; the absence of a specific scenario from this Policy does not mean it is permitted, and Data Sole applies the underlying principles set out in each Section to situations not expressly listed. Where this Policy uses the word “may” in relation to Data Sole’s own actions, it indicates a discretion Data Sole may exercise having regard to the circumstances, not an obligation to act in every case.

2. Data Sole Intellectual Property

Data Sole intellectual property may include:

• The Data Sole name;
• Data Sole logos and symbols;
• Product and service names;
• Trademarks and service marks;
• Brand identities and visual assets;
• Website designs and graphical elements;
• Icons and illustrations;
• Marketing materials;
• Advertising materials;
• Documentation;
• Written content;
• Software and source code owned by Data Sole;
• APIs and SDK materials where protected;
• User-interface elements;
• Videos, photographs and multimedia;
• Technical diagrams;
• Training and educational materials; and
• Other original works owned or licensed by Data Sole.

Copyright, trademark and other intellectual-property rights remain with Data Sole or their respective licensors. This list is illustrative rather than exhaustive: new products, features, campaigns and content are added to the Data Sole portfolio on an ongoing basis, and the absence of a specific item from this list does not mean it falls outside Data Sole’s intellectual-property rights.

2.1 Different Rights, Different Rules

Copyright and trademark rights are legally distinct, and this Policy addresses them separately because the rules that apply to each are different in important ways. Copyright protects original creative and technical works — text, images, software code, video — against unauthorised copying, and generally arises automatically on creation. Trademark rights protect signs, such as names and logos, that distinguish Data Sole’s products and services from those of others, and their strength and scope often depend on registration, use and the specific goods or services concerned. A use that is lawful from a copyright perspective (for example, describing a product in your own words) can still infringe trademark rights if it creates confusion about the source of a product or service, and vice versa. Sections 3–5 address copyright; Sections 6–14 address trademarks and brand assets; several later sections, such as those on domain names, social media and screenshots, necessarily touch on both.

2.2 Illustrative Portfolio Examples

To make the categories in this Section more concrete: Data Sole’s copyright portfolio includes its help-centre articles, blog posts, whitepapers, onboarding videos, product screenshots used in marketing, and the source code of its proprietary control-panel software. Its trademark portfolio includes the Data Sole word mark, its primary logo and any secondary or product-specific logos, and the names of individually branded features and programmes, such as a named partner tier or a named security certification badge. Where a specific item is unclear — for example, whether a particular internal diagram style has been adopted widely enough to function as a recognisable brand asset — the Section 24 contact channel can confirm its status.

3. Copyright

Unless otherwise stated, original content created and published by Data Sole is protected by applicable copyright law.

Copyright protection may apply to software, documentation, text, graphics, photographs, videos, designs, diagrams, website content and other original works. Copyright generally protects the specific expression of an idea — the particular words, images or code used — rather than the underlying idea, fact or concept itself; a competitor is free to build a similar product or explain a similar concept, but not to copy Data Sole’s particular expression of it.

Access to publicly available Data Sole content does not automatically grant permission to reproduce, redistribute, modify or commercially exploit that content. The fact that a webpage, document or image can be viewed without a login, or found through a search engine, does not mean it is free to copy; publication and permission are different things, and this is one of the most common misunderstandings this Policy is intended to correct.

3.1 Duration and Ownership

Copyright in works created by Data Sole employees or contractors in the course of their engagement is generally owned by Data Sole from the moment of creation, subject to the terms of the relevant employment or engagement agreement. Where Data Sole licenses third-party content — for example, stock imagery, open-source components, or externally commissioned material — that content remains subject to the rights of its original owner, and Data Sole’s own permissions under this Policy do not extend beyond what Data Sole itself is entitled to grant.

3.2 User-Generated and Community Content

Where Data Sole hosts community forums, comment sections, customer testimonials or similar user-generated content, the individual contributor generally retains copyright in their own original contribution, subject to any licence they grant to Data Sole to display and distribute that contribution as part of operating the relevant platform, as described in the applicable terms for that feature. This Policy governs Data Sole’s own original content; it does not purport to grant third parties rights in another user’s contribution, and a person wishing to reuse another contributor’s content should seek that contributor’s permission separately.

4. Permitted Copyright Use

You may generally:

• Link to publicly available Data Sole webpages;
• Refer to publicly available Data Sole information for legitimate informational purposes;
• Quote limited portions of Data Sole material where permitted by applicable law and accompanied by appropriate attribution;
• Use materials expressly designated by Data Sole as downloadable or reusable according to the licence accompanying those materials; and
• Use Data Sole materials where Data Sole has provided prior written permission.

Any permitted use must be accurate and must not materially alter the meaning or context of the original material. For example, quoting a single sentence from a Data Sole blog post in a news article, with a link back to the original and clear attribution, is the kind of limited, accurate use this Section contemplates; editing that same sentence to reverse its meaning, or presenting it without attribution as though it were the publication’s own analysis, would not be.

4.1 Materials Designated as Reusable

From time to time, Data Sole may publish specific materials — such as a press kit, a set of approved product icons, or an open-source code sample — under an explicit licence permitting broader reuse. Where such a licence is provided, its specific terms govern that material and may permit uses that would otherwise require separate permission under this Policy, such as commercial redistribution of an approved press photograph. Users should check the terms accompanying any specific asset before assuming a broader licence applies to Data Sole content generally.

4.2 Media and Press Use

Journalists and media organisations reporting on Data Sole may generally quote from Data Sole’s public statements, press releases and published documentation under the same limited-quotation-with-attribution principle that applies to other permitted copyright uses, and may request access to Data Sole’s press kit, where available, for approved logos and imagery suitable for editorial use. Editorial use of an approved press image does not require case-by-case permission provided it is used for genuine news or commentary purposes and is not materially altered.

5. Prohibited Copyright Use

Unless expressly authorised by Data Sole or otherwise permitted by law, you must not:

• Copy substantial portions of Data Sole websites or documentation;
• Republish Data Sole content as your own;
• Sell or commercially redistribute Data Sole copyrighted materials;
• Remove copyright notices;
• Remove ownership or attribution information;
• Modify protected materials and represent them as official Data Sole content;
• Reproduce Data Sole marketing materials for unauthorised commercial purposes;
• Copy Data Sole website designs or proprietary graphical assets;
• Create unauthorised derivative versions of protected materials;
• Scrape or systematically reproduce protected content contrary to applicable terms or law;
• Copy proprietary software or source code;
• Circumvent technological measures protecting copyrighted material; or
• Encourage another person or organisation to infringe Data Sole’s intellectual-property rights.

These restrictions apply regardless of whether the copying is done manually or through an automated tool, and regardless of whether the resulting material is distributed for profit or free of charge; commercial gain is relevant to the seriousness of an infringement and to the remedies available, but is not a precondition for infringement to occur.

6. Data Sole Trademarks

Data Sole trademarks distinguish Data Sole products and services from those offered by other organisations.

Rights may arise through registration and/or use depending on the relevant jurisdiction. In the United Kingdom and many other jurisdictions, trademark rights can arise both through formal registration with the relevant trademark office and, to a more limited extent, through established use in trade that generates recognisable goodwill, even absent registration. Data Sole maintains a portfolio of registered and unregistered marks appropriate to the jurisdictions in which it operates.

Nothing in this Policy transfers ownership of any Data Sole trademark to another party. A licence, permission or partnership arrangement granted under this Policy is not, and must not be represented as, an assignment or sale of any trademark right.

6.1 What Counts as a Data Sole Trademark

Data Sole trademarks include the Data Sole word mark, associated logos and symbols, and the names of specific Data Sole products, services, features and programmes, whether or not each individual name has been separately registered. A name adopted by Data Sole to identify a product or service in trade is treated as a Data Sole trademark for the purposes of this Policy from the point Data Sole begins using it, regardless of registration status, though the strength of any legal claim may vary.

6.2 Well-Known Marks and Dilution

Beyond ordinary confusion-based infringement, some jurisdictions offer additional protection to marks that have become well known, against uses that would dilute their distinctiveness or unfairly trade on their reputation, even in the absence of direct customer confusion — for example, using a famous mark's name for unrelated goods in a way that weakens its distinctive character. Where applicable, Data Sole may rely on this additional protection alongside its ordinary trademark rights.

7. Permitted Trademark Use

Third parties may generally use the words “Data Sole” solely where reasonably necessary to make an accurate factual reference to Data Sole or its products and services.

Examples may include:

• “Compatible with Data Sole”;
• “Hosted using Data Sole”;
• “Customer of Data Sole”;
• “Available on Data Sole”; or
• A factual comparison involving Data Sole services.

Such references must be truthful and must not imply an official relationship that does not exist. This is sometimes called “nominative” or “descriptive” use: using a trademark to refer to the trademark owner’s actual goods or services, rather than to describe or brand your own. The use should be limited to what is reasonably necessary for the factual reference, should use no more of the mark (in terms of size, prominence or stylisation) than necessary, and should not suggest sponsorship or endorsement beyond the factual relationship being described.

Where appropriate, Data Sole may require an acknowledgement such as:

“Data Sole and associated Data Sole marks are trademarks of their respective owner. Use of the Data Sole name does not imply endorsement or affiliation.”

7.1 Comparative Use

Truthful, non-misleading comparisons that reference Data Sole by name — for example, in a competitor’s marketing material comparing pricing or features — are generally permitted to the extent required by applicable comparative-advertising law, provided the comparison is accurate, capable of substantiation, and does not create confusion about the source of either party’s products or unfairly denigrate Data Sole’s trademarks.

8. Use of the Data Sole Logo

The Data Sole logo is a protected brand asset.

The logo may only be used:

• With prior permission from Data Sole;
• Under an applicable partnership, reseller or licensing agreement;
• Through an authorised Data Sole brand programme; or
• Where Data Sole has expressly published the logo for a specified permitted use.

Authorised users must follow applicable Data Sole brand guidelines, which set out matters such as minimum clear space around the logo, minimum display size, approved colour variants, and placement rules relative to other logos in co-branded material. Brand guidelines are made available to authorised users as part of the relevant permission, agreement or programme.

9. Prohibited Trademark and Logo Uses

You must not use Data Sole trademarks, logos or brand assets:

• As your own company, trading or product identity;
• In a manner likely to cause customer confusion;
• To falsely imply endorsement by Data Sole;
• To falsely claim partnership, certification or accreditation;
• To impersonate Data Sole;
• As part of an unauthorised business name;
• As part of an unauthorised product or service name;
• As the principal element of another organisation’s logo;
• On counterfeit products or services;
• On misleading certificates or qualifications;
• On unauthorised merchandise;
• In fraudulent communications;
• In phishing websites or messages;
• In misleading advertising;
• In unlawful activities; or
• In any manner that infringes Data Sole’s legal rights.

These prohibitions apply irrespective of intent in most cases: even a well-meaning use that a reasonable observer would interpret as suggesting an official relationship can cause the kind of confusion this Section is designed to prevent, and Data Sole may need to act on that basis regardless of the user’s subjective motive. Where Data Sole becomes aware of an innocent, low-risk mistake, its first step is typically to request a correction rather than to escalate directly to formal enforcement, consistent with Section 20.

9.1 Assessing Likelihood of Confusion

In deciding whether a particular use is likely to confuse customers, Data Sole generally has regard to factors such as: the similarity between the third-party use and the genuine Data Sole mark; the relatedness of the goods or services involved; the sophistication of the likely audience; the context in which the use appears, including any disclaimers; and any evidence of actual confusion, such as support enquiries mistakenly directed at Data Sole. No single factor is decisive, and the assessment is necessarily fact-specific.

10. Modification of Logos

Unless expressly authorised, users must not:

• Change the logo’s proportions;
• Change its colours;
• Rotate or distort the logo;
• Separate protected graphical components;
• Add text or graphics inside the logo;
• Combine the logo with another brand to create a new mark;
• Animate the logo in a misleading manner;
• Apply effects that materially alter the brand identity; or
• Create a confusingly similar version of the Data Sole logo.

Authorised partners must use approved brand assets supplied by Data Sole. Where a partner requires a variant of the logo not already provided — for example, a monochrome version for a specific print application — the correct process is to request that variant from Data Sole rather than to create one independently, since even a well-intentioned modification can fall outside the approved brand guidelines and create the kind of inconsistency this Section is designed to prevent.

11. Domain Names and Websites

Data Sole trademarks must not be registered or used within domain names in circumstances that create confusion regarding ownership, affiliation or endorsement.

Prohibited activities may include creating domains intended to:

• Impersonate Data Sole;
• Divert Data Sole customers;
• Conduct phishing;
• Distribute malware;
• Sell counterfeit services;
• Mislead users into believing a website is operated by Data Sole; or
• Exploit Data Sole’s reputation without authorisation.

Legitimate commentary, criticism and other legally protected uses will be assessed according to applicable law. A domain used, for example, to host a genuine independent review site, a technical support forum for users of Data Sole products, or academic commentary is not automatically prohibited merely because it references the Data Sole name, provided it does not create the false impression that it is an official Data Sole property and complies with the trademark-use principles set out in Section 7.

11.1 Assessing Domain Disputes

Where a domain name dispute arises, Data Sole generally considers factors such as: whether the domain is identical or confusingly similar to a Data Sole trademark; whether the registrant has any legitimate interest in the name; whether the domain was registered or is being used in bad faith, for example to extract payment from Data Sole, to disrupt Data Sole’s business, or to attract users for commercial gain through confusion; and the nature of the content actually hosted at the domain. Section 20 describes the range of enforcement options available once a dispute is assessed.

11.2 Genuine Criticism Sites

A website genuinely dedicated to criticism, commentary or consumer advocacy concerning Data Sole is treated differently from an impersonating or diversionary domain, even where it references the Data Sole name, provided its content and presentation make clear that it is not an official Data Sole property and it is not being used as a vehicle for phishing, malware distribution or unfair commercial advantage. Data Sole’s enforcement focus under this Section is confusion and harm, not the presence of criticism itself.

12. Social Media

Users must not create social-media accounts, pages, usernames or profiles that falsely appear to be official Data Sole accounts.

Unauthorised accounts must not use Data Sole branding in a way that creates a misleading impression of official status. This includes using the Data Sole logo as a profile image, adopting a handle identical or confusingly similar to Data Sole’s official handles, or otherwise presenting an account so that a reasonable user would believe they were interacting with Data Sole itself.

Fan, community, review or informational accounts should clearly distinguish themselves from official Data Sole communications where confusion could otherwise arise — for example, through a clear disclaimer in the account’s bio or description stating that the account is unofficial and not operated by or affiliated with Data Sole.

13. Advertising and Search Engines

Data Sole trademarks must not be used in advertising in a deceptive or misleading manner.

Third parties must not create advertisements that falsely suggest that they are Data Sole, are authorised representatives of Data Sole, or provide official Data Sole services where no such relationship exists.

Use of Data Sole trademarks as advertising keywords or within advertising content remains subject to applicable trademark law, advertising rules and this Policy. Bidding on a Data Sole trademark as a search-advertising keyword is not automatically prohibited in every jurisdiction, but the resulting advertisement, and the landing page it leads to, must not itself create confusion about the advertiser’s relationship with Data Sole, consistent with the principles in Sections 7 and 9.

13.1 Affiliate and Referral Marketing

Where a customer or partner participates in a Data Sole affiliate or referral programme, any advertising conducted under that programme must comply with both this Policy and the specific programme terms, which may impose additional restrictions on keyword bidding, landing-page content, or claims made about pricing and features. Advertising conducted outside the scope of an affiliate agreement is not authorised by virtue of programme membership alone.

14. Partners, Resellers and Affiliates

Being a Data Sole customer does not automatically grant the right to describe an organisation as a:

• Data Sole Partner;
• Data Sole Certified Partner;
• Data Sole Authorised Reseller;
• Data Sole Distributor;
• Data Sole Representative; or
• Data Sole Affiliate.

Such descriptions may only be used where the relevant status has been formally granted, typically through a signed partner, reseller or affiliate agreement that sets out the specific rights and brand permissions attached to that status.

When a partnership or reseller relationship ends, associated trademark and logo permissions may also terminate. A former partner should remove Data Sole branding, partner-tier badges and related status claims from its marketing materials, website and communications promptly following termination, unless the relevant agreement provides for a wind-down period.

15. Screenshots and Product Interfaces

Screenshots of Data Sole products may be used for legitimate commentary, reviews, news reporting, educational purposes or other uses permitted by law, provided that:

• Confidential information is not exposed;
• Personal information is appropriately protected;
• Security credentials are not displayed;
• The screenshot is not materially manipulated to misrepresent Data Sole; and
• The use does not falsely suggest endorsement.

Commercial reproduction may require additional permission — for example, using a Data Sole product screenshot as a decorative element in unrelated third-party advertising is a different use from illustrating a genuine review, and is more likely to require separate authorisation.

15.1 Practical Guidance for Reviewers and Educators

Where a reviewer or educator captures a screenshot for a tutorial or review, blurring or redacting account identifiers, API keys, customer data and similar sensitive elements before publication both protects the individuals concerned and reduces the risk that the screenshot is mistaken for an authoritative Data Sole publication. Captioning the screenshot to make clear it is a third-party illustration, rather than official Data Sole material, further reduces that risk.

15.2 Video and Recorded Demonstrations

The principles in this Section apply equally to video recordings, screen-capture tutorials and livestreamed demonstrations of Data Sole products, in addition to static screenshots. A recorded walkthrough intended for legitimate commentary, review or education should follow the same conditions — avoiding exposure of confidential or personal information, avoiding manipulation that misrepresents the product, and avoiding any suggestion of official endorsement — and creators are encouraged to state clearly in the recording or its description that the content is independently produced.

16. Software, APIs and Developer Materials

Access to Data Sole software, APIs, SDKs or developer tools does not transfer ownership of the underlying intellectual property.

Developers must comply with applicable licences and developer terms, including any restrictions on redistribution, reverse engineering or use of Data Sole developer materials in a competing product.

Developers must not use Data Sole trademarks to name an application in a manner suggesting that the application is officially produced by Data Sole unless permission has been granted. A name such as “WidgetSync for Data Sole”, used descriptively and with a clear disclaimer of non-affiliation, is generally a more defensible approach than a name such as “Data Sole Sync”, which places the Data Sole mark at the front of the product identity and is more likely to suggest official origin.

16.1 Open-Source Components

Where Data Sole publishes software components under an open-source licence, that licence governs use of the underlying code, including any rights to copy, modify and redistribute it. An open-source licence for code does not, by itself, extend to Data Sole’s trademarks or logos; a project built on or forked from Data Sole’s open-source code should generally adopt its own distinct name and branding rather than continuing to present itself under the Data Sole name, unless the specific licence or a separate trademark permission says otherwise.

17. Artificial Intelligence and Automated Use

Data Sole copyrighted materials and brand assets must not be used to create misleading AI-generated content that impersonates Data Sole or falsely represents generated material as an official Data Sole communication.

Users must not use Data Sole trademarks to falsely authenticate AI-generated websites, applications, advertisements, documents or communications as originating from Data Sole. This includes generating synthetic support pages, synthetic press releases, deepfake video or audio content, or automated social-media posts that are designed to be mistaken for genuine Data Sole output.

Any automated collection or use of Data Sole content remains subject to applicable law, contractual terms and technical access restrictions. Bulk or automated retrieval of Data Sole website or documentation content — for example, to train a machine-learning model, populate a competing knowledge base, or construct a derivative dataset — is subject to the copyright restrictions in Section 5 and any applicable robots.txt directives, API terms or access controls published by Data Sole, and is not authorised merely because the content is technically accessible.

18. Reporting Copyright Infringement

Copyright owners or authorised representatives who believe material hosted through Data Sole services infringes their copyright may submit an infringement notice.

A notice should normally identify:

• The copyrighted work;
• The allegedly infringing material;
• The relevant URL or location;
• The complainant’s contact information;
• The basis of the complaint;
• Evidence of ownership or authority where appropriate; and
• Any other information reasonably necessary to investigate the report.

Data Sole may request additional information before taking action. Appendix C provides a consolidated checklist summarising the information typically needed for each type of report described in this Policy.

19. Reporting Trademark Infringement

Trademark owners may report suspected infringement involving Data Sole services.

Reports should normally contain:

• The trademark concerned;
• Registration details, where applicable;
• The relevant jurisdiction;
• Evidence of ownership or authority;
• Identification of the allegedly infringing material;
• Relevant URLs or account information; and
• An explanation of the alleged infringement.

Data Sole will assess reports according to applicable law, contractual obligations and its internal procedures. Where a report is incomplete, Data Sole will typically request the missing information before proceeding further, rather than declining the report outright.

20. Enforcement

Where Data Sole reasonably believes its intellectual property is being infringed, Data Sole may take appropriate action, which may include:

• Requesting that unauthorised use stops;
• Issuing an infringement notice;
• Requesting removal of infringing content;
• Suspending applicable permissions;
• Terminating trademark licences;
• Reporting infringement to hosting, platform or marketplace providers;
• Pursuing domain-name dispute procedures;
• Seeking injunctive or other legal remedies; or
• Commencing legal proceedings where appropriate.

The appropriate response will depend on the nature and seriousness of the infringement. Data Sole generally aims to respond proportionately, starting with the least intrusive step reasonably likely to resolve the issue — such as a direct request to stop — before escalating to formal notices, platform reports or legal action, except where the nature of the infringement (for example, active fraud, phishing or counterfeiting) warrants immediate escalation.

20.1 Good-Faith Errors

Where an infringing use appears to result from a good-faith misunderstanding rather than deliberate infringement — for example, a small business incorrectly describing itself as a “Data Sole Partner” after a single purchase — Data Sole’s typical first step is to explain the issue and request a correction within a reasonable period, reserving formal enforcement for cases where the request is ignored or the conduct is repeated.

20.2 Working with Platforms and Marketplaces

Where infringing content, listings or accounts are hosted by a third-party platform, marketplace, domain registrar or social-media service, Data Sole may report the matter directly to that provider under its own infringement-reporting process, in addition to or instead of contacting the infringing party directly, particularly where the infringing party cannot readily be identified or where urgent removal is needed to protect customers from fraud.

20.3 Record-Keeping

Data Sole keeps a record of infringement reports received, action taken, and the outcome, both to support consistent handling of repeat issues involving the same party and to inform periodic review of this Policy under Section 23.

21. No Transfer of Rights

Permission to use a Data Sole trademark, copyrighted work or other intellectual property does not transfer ownership.

All goodwill arising from authorised use of Data Sole trademarks belongs to the applicable trademark owner. This is a standard feature of trademark licensing: because a trademark’s value lies in the association the public makes between the mark and a consistent source of goods or services, any positive reputation built through an authorised third party’s use of the mark accrues to the mark’s owner, not to the third party.

Permissions may be limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable and revocable unless a written agreement expressly provides otherwise. A party granted permission to use Data Sole intellectual property for one purpose should not assume that permission extends to a different purpose, a different territory, or a successor entity, without confirming this with Data Sole.

22. Requests for Permission

Organisations wishing to use Data Sole intellectual property beyond the permissions provided by this Policy should obtain written authorisation before use.

Requests should identify:

• The material or trademark requested;
• The intended purpose;
• Where it will appear;
• Whether the use is commercial;
• The duration of the proposed use; and
• The organisation requesting permission.

Permission should not be assumed merely because a request has been submitted. Data Sole aims to respond to permission requests within a reasonable period, and may request further information, propose conditions, or decline a request at its discretion, having regard to factors such as brand consistency, potential confusion, and the nature of the requesting organisation.

22.1 Typical Conditions Attached to Permission

Where Data Sole grants a permission under this Section, it commonly attaches conditions such as a defined term, a right for Data Sole to review the specific placement before publication, a requirement to use only current, unmodified brand assets in line with Section 10, and a right for Data Sole to withdraw the permission on reasonable notice if the use ceases to meet the conditions on which it was granted, such as where a co-marketing relationship ends.

23. Changes to This Policy

Data Sole may update this Policy to reflect changes in its branding, intellectual-property portfolio, services, legislation or enforcement requirements.

The version and effective date displayed at the beginning of this Policy identify the current edition. Where a change is material — for example, a significant change to the permitted-use provisions in Sections 4 or 7 — Data Sole will take reasonable steps to bring the change to the attention of parties known to hold an active permission, licence or partnership arrangement affected by it.

24. Contact

Copyright, trademark, licensing and intellectual-property enquiries should be submitted through Data Sole’s designated legal or intellectual-property contact channel.

This includes requests for permission under Section 22, infringement reports under Sections 18 and 19, and general questions about how this Policy applies to a proposed use not clearly addressed elsewhere in this document.

24.1 Summary of Key Principles

For readers who take away only one thing from this Policy, the underlying principle running through every Section is the same: reference Data Sole honestly, don’t suggest a relationship that doesn’t exist, and don’t copy, modify or repurpose Data Sole’s protected content and brand assets without a clear basis for doing so, whether that basis is a specific permission in this Policy, a signed agreement, or a right available under applicable law. Where a proposed use does not clearly fit within a permitted category described above, the safest course is to ask, using the contact channel above, before proceeding.

Copyright Notice

© 2026 Data Sole. All rights reserved.

Unless otherwise stated, Data Sole website content, documentation, graphics, software and other original materials are protected by applicable intellectual-property laws.

Trademark Notice

Data Sole™ and associated names, logos, product identities and brand assets are trademarks or other proprietary marks of their respective owner.

The ® symbol should only be used for a mark in jurisdictions where that mark is actually registered for the relevant goods or services.

Appendix A: Definitions

• “Brand Guidelines” means the visual and usage rules — covering matters such as clear space, colour, sizing and placement — that authorised users of the Data Sole logo must follow.
• “Derivative Work” means a work based on or adapted from an existing copyrighted work, such as a modified version of a Data Sole diagram or document.
• “Goodwill” means the reputation and consumer recognition associated with a trademark, which accrues to the trademark owner.
• “Nominative Use” means using another party’s trademark to refer to that party’s actual goods or services, rather than to identify or brand one’s own, as described in Section 7.
• “Proprietary Marks” means trademarks, service marks, trade names, logos and other brand assets owned or licensed by Data Sole.
• “Substantial Portion” means, in the copyright context, an amount of a work that is qualitatively or quantitatively significant enough that reproducing it without permission is likely to infringe copyright, as opposed to a brief, attributed quotation.

Appendix B: Quick-Reference – Permitted and Prohibited Uses

The table below is a plain-language quick reference illustrating how the principles in this Policy apply to common situations. It is illustrative only and does not replace the operative Sections referenced in the final column, which govern in the event of any difference.

Appendix C: Reporting Checklist by Complaint Type

Use the checklist below as a starting point when preparing a report under Sections 18 or 19. Data Sole may request further information depending on the specifics of a given case.

Appendix D: Worked Scenarios

Scenario 1: A Hosting Reseller

A reseller purchases Data Sole hosting capacity and resells it under its own brand. Because no reseller agreement has been signed granting Data Sole partner status, the reseller may accurately describe its offering as “powered by Data Sole infrastructure” under the nominative-use principles in Section 7, but must not describe itself as a “Data Sole Authorised Reseller” or use the Data Sole logo on its own marketing materials, as neither has been formally granted under Section 14.

Scenario 2: An Independent Technical Blog

A technical writer publishes a tutorial explaining how to configure a virtual machine on Data Sole’s platform, including two annotated screenshots of the configuration screen with account identifiers blurred, and a single quoted sentence from Data Sole’s official documentation with a link back to the source. This falls within the permitted uses described in Sections 4 and 15: the quotation is limited and attributed, and the screenshots do not expose confidential or personal information and are not manipulated to misrepresent the product.

Scenario 3: A Confusingly Similar Domain

An unrelated party registers a domain closely resembling Data Sole’s own domain and uses it to host a page soliciting account credentials from visitors who believe they are logging into their genuine Data Sole account. This is domain impersonation and phishing under Sections 11 and 17, and is subject to the full range of enforcement options described in Section 20, including reporting to the relevant domain registrar and, where appropriate, pursuit of a domain-name dispute procedure or legal action.

Scenario 4: A Former Partner’s Website

A former Data Sole partner’s reseller agreement expires and is not renewed. The former partner’s website continues to display the “Data Sole Certified Partner” badge and logo six months later. Under Section 14, the associated trademark and logo permissions terminated with the agreement, and continued display of the badge is a prohibited use under Section 9. Data Sole’s typical first step, consistent with Section 20.1, is to contact the former partner and request prompt removal before considering further enforcement action.

Scenario 5: An AI-Generated Support Page

A third party uses an AI tool to generate a webpage styled to resemble Data Sole’s official support portal, including the Data Sole logo and a synthetic “live chat” feature that requests payment to resolve a fabricated account issue. This is prohibited under Sections 9, 17 and 11 as an impersonating, fraudulent use of Data Sole’s brand assets, and would typically be treated as a priority enforcement matter given the fraud risk to genuine Data Sole customers.

Scenario 6: A Conference Presentation

An independent consultant delivers a public conference talk about migrating workloads to the cloud, using two Data Sole product screenshots and a diagram adapted from Data Sole’s public architecture documentation, with attribution shown on each slide. Because the use is limited, attributed, non-manipulated and does not claim official endorsement of the consultant’s wider talk, it sits within the permitted uses in Sections 4 and 15. If the same consultant’s slide deck were later sold as a commercial training course reproducing substantial portions of Data Sole’s documentation verbatim, that would move the use toward the prohibited commercial redistribution described in Section 5, and separate permission would be advisable.

Scenario 7: A Merchandise Seller

An online marketplace seller lists mugs and T-shirts printed with the Data Sole logo, unconnected to any Data Sole merchandising programme. This is unauthorised merchandise under Section 9, regardless of whether the seller intends any harm or confusion, and Data Sole may pursue the range of options in Section 20, including reporting the listing to the marketplace operator.

Appendix E: Copyright and Trademark Notices

The notices below are the standard notices referred to elsewhere in this Policy and may be reproduced by authorised users where required as part of a permitted use.

Standard Copyright Notice

© 2026 Data Sole. All rights reserved. Unless otherwise stated, Data Sole website content, documentation, graphics, software and other original materials are protected by applicable intellectual-property laws.

Standard Trademark Notice

Data Sole™ and associated names, logos, product identities and brand assets are trademarks or other proprietary marks of their respective owner. The ® symbol should only be used for a mark in jurisdictions where that mark is actually registered for the relevant goods or services.

Standard Non-Affiliation Acknowledgement

“Data Sole and associated Data Sole marks are trademarks of their respective owner. Use of the Data Sole name does not imply endorsement or affiliation.”

Appendix F: Frequently Asked Questions

Can I mention that my company is a Data Sole customer?

Yes. A truthful statement that your organisation is a customer of Data Sole, such as “Customer of Data Sole”, is a permitted factual reference under Section 7, provided it does not imply a broader relationship, such as partnership or endorsement, that does not exist.

Can I use the Data Sole logo on my company website if I am a paying customer?

Not automatically. Being a customer does not itself grant logo-use rights under Section 8; the logo may only be used with specific permission, under a partner or licensing agreement, through an authorised brand programme, or where Data Sole has published it for a specified permitted use.

Am I allowed to write a negative review of Data Sole's services?

Yes. This Policy protects Data Sole’s copyright and trademark rights; it does not restrict honest opinion, criticism or review, which is a separate matter from intellectual-property use. Screenshots used to illustrate a review should follow the conditions in Section 15.

Can I include the Data Sole name in the metadata or keywords of my website?

Use of the Data Sole name in metadata or keywords is subject to the same nominative-use principles as any other use under Section 7: it must be truthful, necessary to accurately describe a genuine relationship with or reference to Data Sole, and must not be used in a way designed to mislead search engines or users about your organisation’s relationship with Data Sole.

What happens if I stop being a Data Sole partner?

Section 14 explains that trademark and logo permissions associated with partner, reseller or affiliate status generally terminate when the underlying relationship ends. You should remove Data Sole branding and status claims from your materials promptly following termination, unless your agreement specifies a wind-down period.

Who do I contact if I think someone is impersonating Data Sole?

Use the contact channel described in Section 24, or the specific reporting routes in Sections 18 and 19 depending on whether the issue concerns copyright or trademark rights. Appendix C summarises the information that will help Data Sole investigate quickly.