Pinterestand their ‘Terms of Service’…

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What is it…

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“Pinterest - the explosively popular image-sharing site”

A.Williams New York Times

Screen shot: www.pinterest.com

“Pinterested”?Need to store all the treasures you uncover online?

Want somewhere to share pictures and ideas?

What a great idea…

Sign me up?

Screen shot: w

ww.pinterest.com

“With more than 2.5 million active users, Pinterest has fast become a major player”

J. Evans Cario

Reference: Z. Wilkinson

Signing up… or signing over?

Do you:

entrust your name,

email & gender?

allow them to follow

you online?

agree to their terms &

conditions?

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Screen shot: www.pinterest.com

“Many people will provide the most intimate and revealing details on their personal profile”.

Qi & Edgar-Nevill

By signing up you agree to Pinterest:

Terms of Service (TOS)

Privacy Policy

Acceptable Use Policy

Responsible Disclosure Statement.

Now for a closer look at those TOS

So I’m agreeing to…..

Pinterest "is a marketing platform"

Lawrence Lenihan

Are they complicated?

snapshot from www.pinterest.com/terms

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The TOS are:

written in plain English

covered in 12 sections…

have ‘More simply put’ translations.

So what do they mean to you?

“articles are highlighting elements of the Terms of Service as problems” that may result in “criminal charges against you”

N.Sims

1. Using Pinterest

So you need to:

give accurate personal details

be over 13

agree to software upgrades without notice

get a business account if you are a

business user.

In return… you get to use Pinterest.

“access to personal identity information supports the relationship-formation process”

Ellison et al

1a. PrivacyBy agreeing to the TOS you also agree to

the Privacy Policy.

Enabling Pinterest to store your:

personal details

pin boards

location data if selected (mobiles)

links to social media

logs of your cookie and device data.

“Responsibility of privacy protection often falls solely on the individual”

Goettke & Christiana

1b. Privacy continuedYour info is used to:

tailor what you see (including advertising)

help ‘friends’ find your board.

You can change your settings to:

Stop being findable

create secret boards

stop Pinterest tracking you online

unlink from other accounts like Facebook.

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“It’s important for users to -- edit their privacy options”

Qi & Edgar-Neville

Screen shot: www.pinterest.com

2.Your ContentThe things you post are yours but

Pinterest can show them to everyone.

Other pinners can collect, change and

pin to your posts.

Pinterest can keep your posts for as

long as they like.

If you send Pinterest feedback, they can

reuse your feedback anyway they like.

“Pinterest unveiled secret boards - only visible to people who are authorized”

Z.Wilkinson

3. Copyright Policy By agreeing to the TOS you also agree to

the Copyright Policy:

Pinterest can “disable and/or terminate the

accounts of users” caught infringing

copyright.

Content owners can:

request removal of pins they think infringe

their copyright

attach a ‘no-pin’ rule to their site to

block pinning attempts.

“Copyright holders have been ferocious in their pursuit of people who reuse their copyrighted work”

Aufderheide

Reference: www.pinterest.com/copyright

3a. Copyright & Fair Use As “Pinterest makes copies of the images people pin”, pinning to copyrighted info is your problem…

“Fair use certainly sometimes allows for making copies” as the “copy does link to the source”.

“Fair use probably covers some pinning, and implied or explicit licenses cover some more”.

If you pinned “at the behest of the original creator” then its probably ok, as they may want their content pinned.

References: N. Sims

“users could be exposed to copyright suits by pinning content without a license”

S.Eder

4. Security The security of your personal info is not

guaranteed.

You can notify if you think your account

was hacked.

The risk is yours but Pinterest suggests:

“Pick a strong password”

“Watch where you log in”

“Protect your devices”

“Know the risks of unsecured Wi-Fi”..

References: www.pinterest.com

“It is vital that all -- users restrict access to their profiles”

Qi & Edgar-Neville

5. Third-Party Links, Sites, and ServicesPinterest takes no responsibility for

pin links.

It’s too bad if you click on a pin and:

are offended by the content you find

pick up a virus.

Your responsible if you pin to someone

else’s pin, and the content was

copyrighted.

Pinterest…“is now studying a potential advertising system”

Pui-Wing & Ante

6. TerminationPinterest can cancel your access at any time.

They don’t have to give you a reason to do it.

Your pinned items can be kept by Pinterest even if you don’t have access.

You can try writing to Pinterest to ask them to reinstate your account.

“messages that have been captured and stored in a publically-accessible space have no privilege whatsoever”

Walther

7. Indemnity

You are responsible for all damages

including legal and accounting costs

if…

you are a business user who didn’t

sign up for a business license

and…

Pinterest is sued because of something

you put on the site.

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“The site is becoming more and more popular for business and educational use”

Hansen

8. Disclaimers

If you find something offensive or

illegal, Pinterest probably won’t take

responsibility.

They may remove content they determine

is offensive or copyrighted.

If that was your content, you may not be

able to re-pin it to your board.

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“Pinterest will have "simpler tools" to report alleged copyright or trademark infringement”.

S. Eder

9. Limitation of LiabilityPinterest will do their best to make sure you are liable for any damages incurred… not them.

If you pin to copyrighted content and the owner sues, you are liable.

If you suffer damage because of a Pinterest related mistake or failure, they probably won’t accept liability.

If something happens to your personal account, they probably won’t pay damages.

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“Pinterest, itself, is well-protected from lawsuits because of its policies”

S. Eder

10. ArbitrationIf you have a problem, tell Pinterest first.

If that doesn’t work you can try the American Arbitration Association (no alternative yet for overseas users).

You might have to pay for that service.

Damages for data security, intellectual property or un-authorised access may be taken to court.

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“Pinterest said it also plans to launch international sites this year”

Pui-Wing & Ante

11. Governing Law and JurisdictionPinterest is governed by the laws of California in the United States.

If you want to sue Pinterest, you will have to do it in California.

Pinterest does not guarantee use or support outside the United States.

Pinterest is looking to offer an international service in the future…

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To “expand their customer base outside the U.S. borders, they will need to comply with other nations' privacy laws“.

J. Mont

12. General TermsPinterest will update the sites TOS as often as they like.

If you keep using Pinterest after the change then you are accepting those changes.

You don’t get to give your Pinterest account to someone else but Pinterest can.

Pinterest is happy to provide your information to the US government if asked…

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If you are violating the TOS, they can... um... cut you off? Delete your account? They can also sue you…

N. Sims

The end?The choice to use Pinterest and agree to it’s terms and conditions is yours.

The site offers rich social media opportunities for individuals and businesses.

“It is the fastest growing online social platform, outstripping even Facebook in its growth”.

So sign-up, adjust your settings and get pinning?

Pinterest’s member community demonstrates rich digital literacy practices by creating elaborate information-sharing networks

Tekobbe

Reference: C. Tekobbe

ReferencesAuferheide, P. (2011). Copyright, Fair Use, and Social Networks. In Z. Papacharissi (Ed.), A Networked Self: Identity, Community, and Culture on Social Network Sites (pp. 276–290). New York and London: Routledge.

BBC News - Pinterest moves to address copyright fears with opt-out. (2012, February 21). BBC News. Retrieved October 8 2013 from http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-17111041

Eder, S. (2012). In Shift, Pinterest Says to Pin Your Own Stuff - WSJ.com. Wall Street Journal. Retrieved October 6 2013 from http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702304177104577305832731077746

Ellison, N. Vitak, J. Steinfield, C. Gray, R. Lampe, C. (2011). Negotiating Privacy Concerns and Social Capital Needs in a Social Media Environment. In L. Trepte, S. Reinecke (Ed.), Privacy Online: Perspectives on Privacy and Self-Disclosure in the Social Web (p. 280). Berlin: Springer.

Evans Cario, J. (2012). Pinterest Marketing : An Hour a Day (p. 336). Somerset, NJ, USA: Wiley.

Hansen, K., Nowlan, G., & Winter, C. (2012, December 5). Pinterest as a Tool: Applications in Academic Libraries and Higher Education. Partnership: the Canadian Journal of Library and Information Practice and Research. Retrieved from https://journal.lib.uoguelph.ca/index.php/perj/article/view/2011/2631

Mont, J. (2013). Terms-of-Use Agreements Pose Reputational Risks. Compliance Week, 10(110), 40–43. Retrieved from http://web.ebscohost.com

Pinterest Privacy Policy. (2013). Pinterest Website. Retrieved October 08, 2013, from http://about.pinterest.com/privacy/

More references…

Pinterest Terms of Service. (2013). Pinterest Website. Retrieved October 5 2013, from http://about.pinterest.com/terms/

Pinterest Terms of Service that apply to federal agencies using Pinterest : Help Center. (2013). Pinterest Website. Retrieved October 5 2013, from https://en.help.pinterest.com/entries/22787291

Pui-Wing, T. Spencer, A. As Pinterest Grows, Startup Seeks $2.5 Billion Valuation - ProQuest. The Wall Street Journal (2013, 6 February). Retrieved October 8 2013, from http://search.proquest.com

Sims, N. (2012). Pinterest, copyright, and Terms of Service - Copyright Librarian. Copyright Librarian. Retrieved October 5 2013 from http://blog.lib.umn.edu/copyrightlibn/2012/03/pinterest-copyright-and-terms-of-service.html

Tekobbe, C. K. (2013). A SITE FOR FRESH EYES. Information, Communication & Society, 16(3), 381–396. doi:10.1080/1369118X.2012.756052

Watters, P. Qi, M. Edgar-Nevill, D. (2011). Social networking searching and privacy issues. Information Security Technical Report, 16(2), 74–78. Retrieved from http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1363412711000562

Wilkinson, Z. (2013). Oh, how Pinteresting! An introduction to Pinterest. Library Hi Tech News, 30(1), 1–4. doi:10.1108/07419051311320904

Williams, A. (2012, October 4). Shakespeare vs. Elizabeth Taylor: ProQuest. New York Times. Retrieved October 4 2013 from http://search.proquest.com