Terms of Service

1. Acceptance of These Terms

By accessing or using the Services, creating an account, submitting a form, making a payment or otherwise clicking to accept, you confirm that you have read, understood and agree to be bound by these Terms. If you do not agree, you must not use the Services.

If you use the Services on behalf of an organization, you confirm that you have the authority to bind that organization to these Terms.

2. Eligibility

You must be at least 18 years old and capable of entering into a legally binding contract under Indian law to make a payment, create an account or apply as a volunteer. Persons under 18 may browse the public parts of the website and may take part in IWF programs only with the verifiable consent and supervision of a parent or legal guardian, who is responsible for their participation.

3. Accounts and Security

• Some features, such as the dashboard and your profile, require an account. You must give accurate, current and complete information and keep it up to date.
• You are responsible for keeping your login credentials confidential and for all activity under your account. Do not share your password and use a strong, unique one.
• Tell us immediately at info@iwf.org.in if you suspect unauthorized use of your account.
• Access to certain areas depends on the role assigned to you by IWF. You must not attempt to access areas or data beyond your assigned role.
• You may ask us to close your account at any time. We may retain records where the law or legitimate record-keeping requires it, as described in our Privacy Policy.

4. Acceptable Use

You agree to use the Services only for lawful purposes and in line with these Terms. You must not:

• violate any applicable law, including the Information Technology Act, 2000 and the rules made under it;
• attempt to gain unauthorized access to our systems, accounts, databases or networks, or probe, scan or test their vulnerability, except as permitted under the "Reporting Security Issues" section;
• introduce malware or other harmful code, or interfere with or disrupt the Services, servers or networks (including through denial-of-service attacks);
• bypass or tamper with authentication, rate limits, payment flows or other security measures;
• use automated tools such as bots, scrapers or crawlers to collect content or personal data, other than standard search-engine indexing;
• impersonate any person or organization, or misrepresent your affiliation with IWF;
• submit false, misleading, defamatory, obscene, hateful or unlawful content, or content that infringes the rights of others;
• use the Services to spread disinformation, harass or threaten anyone, or to carry out any activity related to cyber-attacks or information operations; or
• use the Services to make a payment with a card, account or instrument you are not authorized to use.

5. Donations and Payments

• Voluntary and final. Donations and other payments to IWF are voluntary. As set out in our Refund Policy, all payments are final and non-refundable. A refund may be requested only by writing to donate@iwf.org.in and refund@iwf.org.in with an explanation of your grievance, and any refund is subject to IWF's official approval.
• Payment processors. Payments are processed by third-party payment gateways (such as Razorpay) and banks. Your payment is also subject to their terms. IWF does not store your full card number, CVV, UPI PIN or net-banking credentials.
• Accurate details. You must provide correct payment and contact details. You are responsible for checking the amount and the details before you confirm a payment.
• Confirmation. A payment is treated as received only when IWF has received confirmation from the payment gateway. If money is debited but no confirmation is received, write to us with the transaction ID and we will look into it.
• Receipts and tax. We issue acknowledgements for payments received. Whether a donation qualifies for any tax deduction or exemption depends on applicable law and on IWF holding the relevant approvals at the time of the donation. IWF does not promise any tax benefit, and you should take your own tax advice. If you want a tax receipt, you may be asked for details such as your PAN.
• Use of funds. IWF will apply donations towards its mission and the purpose stated at the time of donation, where one is stated. If the specific purpose cannot be carried out, IWF may apply the funds to a similar purpose in line with its objectives.
• Lawful funds. You confirm that the funds you give are lawfully yours and do not come from any unlawful activity. We may decline a payment, or report it to the authorities, where required by law or where we suspect fraud or misuse.
• Chargebacks. If you raise a payment dispute with your bank without first contacting us, we may share the relevant information to resolve it. Please write to us first so that we can help.

6. Volunteers, Programs and Services

• Applications to volunteer, join programs, attend events or request consultations are reviewed by IWF. Submitting an application does not guarantee selection, a placement or any particular outcome. IWF decides on applications at its discretion.
• Volunteers are not employees, agents or partners of IWF. Unless IWF agrees otherwise in writing, volunteering is unpaid and creates no employment relationship or right to compensation.
• Volunteers and participants must follow IWF's reasonable instructions and policies, keep confidential any non-public information they receive, and act honestly and respectfully. IWF may end a person's participation if they do not.
• Work that a volunteer produces for IWF as part of an assignment belongs to IWF unless a written agreement says otherwise.
• Details of schedules, fees (if any), eligibility and delivery of programs, events and services may change. IWF may reschedule, modify or cancel any of them.
• Any separate written agreement for a particular service or engagement prevails over these Terms for that service, to the extent the two conflict.

7. Information and No Professional Advice

The articles, reports, case studies, guides and other material on the website are published for general information, awareness and education. They are not legal, financial, technical or other professional advice, and they are not a guarantee of security. Cyber threats change quickly, and we make no promise that the content is complete, current or suitable for your situation. You should get qualified professional advice before you act on it. Any views expressed by contributors are their own and are not necessarily those of IWF.

8. Intellectual Property

The website and its contents, including text, graphics, logos, names, images, reports, software, layout and design, are owned by or licensed to IWF and are protected by Indian and international intellectual property laws. "IWF", the IWF logo and related marks are our marks and may not be used without our written permission.

We give you a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable licence to view the website and to print or download a reasonable number of pages for your personal, non-commercial use, provided that you keep all copyright and other notices. Apart from that, you must not copy, reproduce, modify, distribute, publicly display, create derivative works from, sell or otherwise exploit any part of the website without our prior written consent. You may quote short extracts with clear attribution to IWF and a link back to the source.

If you believe that content on the website infringes your rights, please write to legal@iwf.org.in with the details, and we will review it promptly.

9. Your Submissions

"Submissions" means anything you send or post through the Services, such as contact-form messages, applications, comments, feedback, ideas and profile details.

• You keep ownership of your Submissions. You give IWF a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free licence to use, store, reproduce, adapt and display them as needed to run and improve the Services, to review and respond to you, and to carry out IWF's activities. Where we want to publish something that identifies you, such as a testimonial, we will ask you first.
• You confirm that you own your Submissions or have the right to submit them, that they are accurate, and that they do not break the law or infringe anyone's rights.
• Personal data in your Submissions is handled as described in our Privacy Policy. Please do not send sensitive information, such as passwords, card numbers or government ID numbers, through general contact forms or email.
• We may remove or decline any Submission that breaks these Terms, but we are not required to monitor Submissions.

10. Third-Party Links and Services

The Services may link to websites, tools and services run by others, such as social media platforms, maps and payment providers. These are outside our control. We do not endorse them and are not responsible for their content, security or practices. Your use of them is at your own risk and under their own terms and privacy policies.

11. Privacy

We collect and use personal data in line with our Privacy Policy and applicable Indian law, including the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023. By using the Services you acknowledge the Privacy Policy.

12. Reporting Security Issues

As a cybersecurity organization we welcome responsible reports of security weaknesses in our website. If you find one, please email info@iwf.org.in with the details and steps to reproduce it. We ask that you:

• act in good faith, and avoid accessing, changing, copying or deleting data that is not yours, and avoid degrading the Services;
• do not use social-engineering, physical attacks or denial-of-service testing;
• give us reasonable time to fix the issue before you disclose it publicly; and
• stop and report immediately if you come across personal data.

IWF will not take legal action over good-faith research that follows these rules and the law. This is not an invitation to test our systems, and we do not offer a reward for reports unless we say so in writing.

13. Suspension and Termination

We may suspend, restrict or end your access to all or part of the Services, with or without notice, if we reasonably believe that you have broken these Terms or the law, that your use creates a security or legal risk, or if we need to do so to protect IWF, other users or the public. You may stop using the Services at any time. The sections that by their nature should continue after termination, including those on intellectual property, disclaimers, liability, indemnity and governing law, will continue to apply.

14. Disclaimer of Warranties

To the fullest extent permitted by law, the Services and all content are provided on an "as is" and "as available" basis, without warranties of any kind, whether express or implied, including implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, accuracy and non-infringement.

We do not promise that the Services will be uninterrupted, timely, secure or free of errors, viruses or other harmful components, or that defects will be corrected. Your use of the Services is at your own risk.

15. Limitation of Liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law, IWF and its trustees, directors, officers, members, volunteers, employees and agents will not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential or punitive loss, or for any loss of profits, revenue, goodwill, data or use, arising out of or in connection with the Services or these Terms, including loss caused by:

• your use of, or inability to use, the Services;
• content or conduct of any third party;
• reliance on any content on the website; or
• unauthorized access to or alteration of your data, despite our reasonable security measures.

Where liability cannot be excluded, IWF's total liability to you for all claims relating to the Services will not exceed the amount you paid to IWF through the Services in the three (3) months before the event that gave rise to the claim, or INR 1,000 if you paid nothing. Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits any liability that cannot be excluded or limited under applicable law, including liability for fraud.

16. Indemnification

You agree to defend, indemnify and hold harmless IWF and its trustees, directors, officers, volunteers, employees and agents from any claims, losses, liabilities, damages, costs and expenses (including reasonable legal fees) arising from your breach of these Terms, your Submissions, or your violation of any law or the rights of another person.

17. Governing Law and Disputes

These Terms are governed by the laws of India. If a dispute arises, you and IWF will first try to settle it in good faith by written notice and discussion for at least thirty (30) days. If it is not settled in that time, the courts at Kendrapara, Odisha, India, will have exclusive jurisdiction, subject to any right you have under law to approach another forum.

18. Grievance Redressal

If you have a complaint about the Services, our content, or the handling of your personal data, please write to legal@iwf.org.in with your name, contact details and a description of the issue. We will acknowledge your complaint within 48 hours and aim to resolve it within 30 days of receiving it. Payment and refund grievances should be sent as described in the Refund Policy.

19. General Provisions

• Entire agreement. These Terms, the Privacy Policy and the Refund Policy are the entire agreement between you and IWF about the Services and replace earlier understandings on the same subject.
• Severability. If a provision is found invalid or unenforceable, it will be limited or removed to the minimum extent needed, and the rest of the Terms will remain in force.
• No waiver. If IWF does not enforce a right or provision, this is not a waiver of it.
• Assignment. You may not transfer your rights or obligations under these Terms without our written consent. IWF may transfer its rights and obligations to a successor or affiliated organization.
• Force majeure. IWF is not responsible for any failure or delay caused by events beyond its reasonable control, such as natural disasters, power or network failures, cyber-attacks, government action or public-health emergencies.
• Electronic communications. You agree that we may communicate with you electronically, and that electronic records and notices satisfy any requirement for them to be in writing, in line with the Information Technology Act, 2000.
• Notices. We may give notice by posting on the website or by email to the address you gave us. You may give notice to IWF at the addresses in the Contact section.
• Language. These Terms are in English. If a translation is provided, the English version prevails.

20. Changes to These Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time, for example to reflect changes in our Services or the law. The updated Terms will be posted on this page with a revised "Last Updated" date. If a change is material, we will make reasonable efforts to bring it to your attention, such as by a notice on the website. Your continued use of the Services after the change takes effect means that you accept the updated Terms. If you do not agree, you should stop using the Services.

21. Contact Us

If you have any questions about these Terms, please contact us at: