Terms of Service

1. Eligibility

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account or use the Platform. By using the Platform, you represent and warrant that you meet this age requirement and that you have the legal capacity to enter into these Terms. Public Vantage is only available to users 18 years of age or older, and any account found to belong to a user under 18 may be terminated immediately and without notice.

2. Account Registration and Verification

To submit ratings, comments, polls, or other content, you must create an account using Google authentication and verify a valid phone number via SMS. You agree to:

• Provide accurate information during registration and verification.
• Maintain the confidentiality of your account credentials.
• Not create multiple accounts, impersonate another person, or use automated means (bots, scripts, or scrapers) to create accounts or submit content.
• Notify us promptly of any unauthorized use of your account.

We reserve the right to suspend or terminate any account that we reasonably believe violates these requirements, including accounts used to manipulate ratings, scores, or community polls.

3. User-Generated Content

The Platform allows users to submit ratings, written comments, replies, links to external articles or videos, and other content ("User Content"). By submitting User Content, you represent that:

• You believe the information is true and accurate to the best of your knowledge.
• You are not posting content that you know to be false, defamatory, or misleading.
• You will not upload, link, or share proprietary, confidential, or trade secret information belonging to any business, employer, or third party, including information protected by a non-disclosure agreement.
• You will not post content that violates the intellectual property rights of any third party.

You are solely responsible for the User Content you submit. Public Vantage does not create, write, edit, or endorse User Content submitted by other users. Public Vantage acts solely as a platform host for User Content under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act and does not function as the publisher or speaker of any User Content provided by users.

4. Nature of Ratings and Scores

The Platform displays aggregated numerical scores ("Integrity Scores") across five categories (the "Five Pillars") that are calculated as a mathematical average of individual user submissions. These scores reflect the subjective, aggregated opinions and sentiment of Platform users, do not constitute factual claims, legal findings, or professional assessments made by Public Vantage, and may be supplemented with publicly available factual information sourced from public records.

Public Vantage does not independently investigate, verify, or audit every claim made within User Content. We do not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of any score, rating, or User Content displayed on the Platform.

Integrity Scores may be calculated from partial pillar data where not all five pillars have received votes, and will display an "In Progress" label when based on limited voting data.

Factual company information (including revenue, ownership, and leadership data) is sourced from public filings and reputable business reporting. Where official figures are unavailable for privately held companies, reasonable estimates are used and clearly marked as such.

Users may submit an audit rating as few as one of the five pillars; a valid audit does not require all five pillars to be rated.

5. No Pay-to-Improve Guarantee

Public Vantage does not accept payment from any business to alter, remove, or improve its Integrity Score or any component thereof. Businesses may pay for visibility features, response tools, or monitoring services, but such payments never influence the underlying score calculation.

6. Prohibited Conduct

You agree not to: submit false, defamatory, or knowingly misleading statements of fact; use the Platform to harass, threaten, or incite violence; submit content that infringes on any third-party rights; attempt to manipulate Integrity Scores through coordinated, automated, or fraudulent voting; upload malicious code or attempt to bypass security features; or scrape, copy, or republish Platform data for commercial purposes without our express written consent.

7. Reporting and Content Removal

If you believe content on the Platform is false, defamatory, or violates these Terms, you may submit a report through our reporting tool. We reserve the right, but do not assume the obligation, to review, remove, or restrict access to any User Content at our sole discretion. Businesses may submit disputes through our reporting process. We will review such disputes in good faith but are under no obligation to remove content that constitutes a user's genuine opinion or that is supported by publicly available information.

8. Disclaimer of Affiliation

References to company names, brands, and trademarks on the Platform are used solely for identification purposes. Public Vantage is not affiliated with, sponsored by, or endorsed by any company, brand, or organization rated or discussed on the Platform unless explicitly stated otherwise.

9. Disclaimer of Warranties

THE PLATFORM AND ALL CONTENT ARE PROVIDED "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED. PUBLIC VANTAGE DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES OF ACCURACY, MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT.

10. Limitation of Liability

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, PUBLIC VANTAGE AND ITS FOUNDERS, EMPLOYEES, AND AFFILIATES SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES ARISING FROM YOUR USE OF THE PLATFORM OR ANY USER CONTENT.

11. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless Public Vantage, its founders, employees, and affiliates from any claims, damages, losses, or expenses (including reasonable attorneys' fees) arising from your User Content, your violation of these Terms, or your violation of any third-party rights.

12. Platform Development

Public Vantage was built using AI-assisted development tools as part of our commitment to building efficiently and transparently from day one.

13. Account Termination

We reserve the right to suspend or terminate your account at any time, with or without notice, for conduct that we believe violates these Terms or is harmful to other users, third parties, or the Platform.

14. Dispute Resolution and Governing Law

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Florida, without regard to its conflict of laws principles. Any dispute arising from these Terms or your use of the Platform shall be resolved through binding arbitration on an individual basis, and you waive any right to participate in a class action lawsuit or class-wide arbitration. Any arbitration shall be administered by the American Arbitration Association (AAA) under its Consumer Arbitration Rules. Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit any rights you may have under applicable anti-SLAPP statutes, including Florida Statute § 768.295.

15. Service Availability

Public Vantage does not guarantee uninterrupted access to the Platform and is not liable for outages, delays, or disruptions caused by third-party hosting providers or circumstances beyond our reasonable control.

16. Severability

If any provision of these Terms is found unenforceable, the remaining provisions shall remain in full force and effect.

17. Changes to These Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. Continued use of the Platform after changes are posted constitutes acceptance of the revised Terms.

18. Contact

Questions about these Terms may be directed to support@publicvantage.org.