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Terms and Conditions

Last updated: May 21, 2026

Welcome to HUB Digital - INOV-NORTE (“the Platform”). By accessing or using our website, services, and applications, you agree to comply with and be bound by these Terms of Service.

1. Definitions

  • Platform: The HUB Digital - INOV-NORTE system, including all web properties, applications (such as the Nuxt-based portal), and hosted services.
  • Toti AI Assistant: The multilingual virtual assistant integrated within the Platform, utilizing advanced language models and vector database retrieval (Qdrant RAG architecture) to provide catalog guidance.
  • Gamification System: The interactive platform framework that processes and tracks experience points (XP), user levels, unlocked achievements, active streaks, and public rankings.
  • Content Suggestion Wizards: The multi-step interfaces through which registered users suggest and submit educational assets to the public directory.
  • OER Catalog: The curated public directory containing courses, Open Educational Resources (OERs), digital teaching tools, best practices, case studies, and pedagogical methods.
  • User: Any educator, researcher, student, or institutional representative accessing or using the Platform.
  • Content: Any text, image, file, link, discussion, or data posted, transmitted, or suggested on the Platform.

2. Acceptance of Terms

By creating an account, accessing the Platform, or contributing to the catalog, you confirm that you have read, understood, and accept these Terms of Service in full. You must be 18 years or older, or have explicit parental or guardian consent if younger.

3. Account Registration and Security

  • You must provide accurate, complete, and truthful information during registration.
  • Accounts are personal and non-transferable. You must not share your account credentials with others.
  • You are solely responsible for all activities, content uploads, and conversational assistant interactions that occur under your account.

4. User Obligations and Conduct

You agree to use the Platform in compliance with applicable laws, ethical standards, and academic integrity. Specifically, you agree not to:

  • Misrepresent your professional credentials, institutional affiliation, or identity.
  • Suggest or upload content that is illegal, defamatory, offensive, or infringes third-party rights.
  • Attempt to bypass security, access restricted administrative endpoints (e.g., Directus CMS directly), or reverse-engineer platform components.
  • Exploit or manipulate the Gamification System (such as utilizing automated scripts, bots, or fake accounts to artificially gain XP, advance levels, or forge login streaks).
  • Input malicious, abusive, or spammy queries into the Toti AI Assistant, or attempt to perform prompt injections or vector exploits.

5. Intellectual Property and Open Licensing

  • Platform Material: All Platform interfaces, designs, software modules, and tools (excluding User-Generated Content) are owned by HUB Digital - INOV-NORTE or its licensors and are protected by copyright and intellectual property laws.
  • User Contributions & Open Licensing: Since the Platform acts as a collaborative educational directory, when you suggest or upload resources, tools, case studies, best practices, or pedagogical methods, you retain your ownership rights. However, you grant the Platform a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free, perpetual license to host, display, translate, and distribute such content for educational purposes.
  • Educational Sharing: By contributing to the OER Catalog, you agree that your suggested resources may be shared with and adapted by other Platform members for non-commercial educational purposes, in alignment with open education practices (such as Creative Commons principles).
  • Copyright Infringement: You must not suggest or upload any materials that infringe upon the copyright, patent, or intellectual property rights of others.

6. User-Generated Content & Moderation

  • Users are solely responsible for all content suggested, uploaded, or discussed.
  • We reserve the right, but assume no obligation, to review, moderate, edit, or permanently remove suggested resources, tools, or user posts that violate these Terms or do not meet our pedagogical directory standards.

7. Account Suspension and Termination

  • We reserve the right to suspend, restrict, or permanently terminate your account and leaderboard visibility at any time, without prior notice, if you breach these Terms, engage in gamification manipulation, or disrupt community operations.

8. Data Protection and Privacy

  • Your use of the Platform is governed by our Privacy Policy, which details how we process personal data, user suggestions, gamification progress, and AI assistant interactions.

9. Public Educational Initiative (No Fees)

  • Platform Cost: The HUB Digital - INOV-NORTE platform is a fully funded public initiative sponsored by INOV-NORTE as part of an educational transformation project. As such, the Platform is entirely free of charge for the Portuguese higher education community.
  • No Paid Offerings: There are no subscription fees, billing cycles, payment options, or charges applicable to any courses, certificates, or resource directories hosted directly on the Platform.

10. AI Assistant Disclaimer (Toti)

  • AI-Generated Responses: The Toti AI Assistant compiles responses using generative artificial intelligence and vector databases containing Platform catalog metadata.
  • Disclaimer of Accuracy: While Toti is constrained by strict RAG (Retrieval-Augmented Generation) business rules, AI-generated outputs may occasionally contain errors, inaccuracies, or incomplete suggestions. The Platform does not warrant the correctness or completeness of answers provided by Toti. Users should independently verify critical information before relying on it.
  • Responsible Input: You must not submit sensitive personal identifiers, confidential information, or protected data into the AI chat interface.

11. Disclaimer of Warranties

  • The Platform and all of its directories, tools, courses, and AI services are provided on an “as is” and “as available” basis without warranties of any kind, either express or implied.
  • We do not guarantee that the Platform will be uninterrupted, error-free, secure, or free from viruses or other harmful elements.

12. Limitation of Liability

  • To the fullest extent permitted by Portuguese and European law, HUB Digital - INOV-NORTE, its consortium partners, and sponsors shall not be liable for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, or consequential damages resulting from your use of (or inability to use) the Platform, catalog resources, gamification rankings, or outputs generated by the Toti AI Assistant.

13. Governing Law

  • These Terms of Service are governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of Portugal and applicable European Union regulations. Any disputes arising under these Terms shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Porto, Portugal.

14. Changes to Terms

  • We reserve the right to update these Terms of Service at any time. Substantive updates will be announced directly on the Platform. Continued use after changes have been published constitutes full acceptance of the revised Terms.

15. Contact

For any questions, concerns, or requests regarding these Terms, please contact us:

  • Email: cip@sc.ipp.pt
  • Address: Edifício da Biblioteca do Politécnico do Porto, Rua Dr. Roberto Frias, 712, 4200-465 Porto, Portugal
Last updated: 5/21/2026