Acceptable Use Policy

COPIC Acceptable Use Policy

Effective Date: July 1, 2026

1. Purpose

This Acceptable Use Policy ("Policy") explains the rules and standards that apply when using the COPIC platform, including the website, mobile applications, and any related services (collectively, the "Platform").

The purpose of this Policy is to maintain a safe, lawful, professional, and trustworthy marketplace where clients and workers can connect. Every user agrees to comply with this Policy when creating an account or using any part of the Platform.

Violation of this Policy may result in warnings, suspension, permanent account termination, cancellation of services, or legal action where appropriate.

This Policy should be read together with COPIC's:

Terms and Conditions

Privacy Policy

Cookie Policy

Payment and Refund Policy

Identity Verification Policy

Community Guidelines

If there is any conflict between this Policy and the Terms and Conditions, the Terms and Conditions will prevail unless stated otherwise.

2. Definitions

For the purposes of this Policy:

"COPIC" means the owners, operators, employees, contractors, affiliates, successors, and representatives of the COPIC platform.

"Platform" means the COPIC website, applications, software, services, APIs, communications, and all related systems.

"User" means any individual or organization accessing or using the Platform.

"Client" means a user who posts jobs or seeks services through the Platform.

"Worker" means a user who applies for or performs work through the Platform.

"Content" includes text, images, videos, documents, messages, reviews, profile information, job descriptions, comments, and any other information uploaded or shared through the Platform.

"Account" means a registered COPIC user profile.

"Verification" means any identity or account verification process required by COPIC.

"Applicable Law" means all laws and regulations that apply in the jurisdiction where COPIC operates or where a user accesses the Platform.

3. Scope

This Policy applies to every person or organization using COPIC, regardless of location.

It applies to:

registered users;

visitors browsing the Platform;

clients;

workers;

administrators;

businesses using COPIC services;

anyone communicating through the Platform.

This Policy applies to all Platform activities, including:

creating accounts;

posting jobs;

applying for jobs;

sending messages;

uploading files;

making payments where applicable;

participating in verification processes;

submitting reviews and ratings;

interacting with customer support.

Users remain responsible for their conduct even if they access COPIC through third-party devices, browsers, or networks.

4. Eligibility

To use COPIC, users must:

provide accurate registration information;

maintain only one personal account unless expressly authorized by COPIC;

use a valid email address;

comply with all applicable laws;

have the legal capacity to enter into binding agreements.

Users may not:

create accounts using false identities;

impersonate another individual or organization;

register accounts on behalf of another person without authorization;

use disposable or fraudulent identity information;

create accounts that have previously been permanently banned.

COPIC reserves the right to request additional information before allowing continued access to the Platform.

5. User Responsibilities

Users agree to:

act honestly and professionally;

provide truthful information;

maintain accurate account details;

protect their login credentials;

immediately report unauthorized account access;

comply with all Platform policies;

respect other users;

communicate respectfully;

complete transactions honestly;

report suspected fraud.

Users are responsible for everything that occurs through their accounts unless they promptly notify COPIC of unauthorized access.

Users must not encourage, assist, or instruct others to violate this Policy.

6. Lawful Use

The Platform may only be used for lawful purposes.

Users must not use COPIC to:

commit criminal offences;

facilitate fraud;

launder money;

traffic illegal goods or services;

recruit for illegal activities;

violate employment laws;

infringe intellectual property rights;

evade taxes or legal obligations;

promote violence or unlawful conduct.

Users are solely responsible for ensuring that their activities comply with applicable law.

COPIC may remove any content or account that appears to violate the law or expose the Platform or its users to legal or security risks.

7. Account Security

Every user is responsible for maintaining the security of their account.

Users must:

keep passwords confidential;

use strong passwords;

avoid sharing login credentials;

update passwords after suspected compromise;

notify COPIC immediately if unauthorized access is suspected.

Users must not:

share accounts;

sell accounts;

transfer accounts without permission;

purchase another user's account;

attempt to access another user's account.

COPIC may temporarily suspend accounts where suspicious login activity or security threats are detected.

8. Identity Verification Rules

COPIC may require identity verification before granting access to certain Platform features.

Verification may include requesting:

a government-issued identification document;

photographs of the front and back of the identification document;

a selfie holding the identification document;

additional supporting documents where reasonably required.

Users must submit authentic, unaltered, and current documents.

Users must not:

upload forged documents;

edit identification images;

submit another person's identification;

use stolen identities;

submit AI-generated or manipulated identification images.

Providing false verification information may result in immediate suspension or permanent termination of the account.

COPIC reserves the right to reject any verification request at its sole discretion where authenticity cannot be reasonably confirmed.

9. Client Responsibilities

Clients using COPIC agree to:

post truthful job descriptions;

accurately describe duties and compensation;

communicate respectfully with workers;

avoid misleading advertisements;

comply with applicable employment and business laws;

honour agreed commitments;

avoid discriminatory job postings unless permitted by law.

Clients must not:

post fake jobs;

collect personal information for unrelated purposes;

deceive workers;

recruit for illegal activities;

require unlawful acts;

request passwords or banking credentials from workers;

threaten, harass, or intimidate workers.

Clients remain responsible for the information they publish and any commitments they make through the Platform.

10. Worker Responsibilities

Workers using COPIC agree to:

provide accurate profile information;

represent their skills honestly;

perform accepted work professionally;

communicate respectfully;

protect confidential information;

comply with applicable laws;

maintain professional conduct while using the Platform.

Workers must not:

misrepresent qualifications or experience;

submit fraudulent applications;

impersonate another individual;

use fake references or certifications;

abandon work without reasonable explanation where contractual obligations exist;

harass clients or other users;

solicit payments through deceptive means.

Workers are responsible for ensuring that all information submitted to COPIC remains accurate and up to date. Failure to do so may result in account restrictions or other enforcement actions under this Policy.

11. Prohibited Activities

To protect the integrity of the Platform and its users, the following activities are strictly prohibited.

Users must not:

create fake or misleading accounts;

impersonate another person, business, or organization;

provide false identity information;

use another person's account without permission;

create multiple accounts to bypass restrictions;

manipulate ratings or reviews;

submit false complaints;

post misleading job advertisements;

apply for jobs with false qualifications;

intentionally waste another user's time;

interfere with Platform operations;

misuse customer support services;

exploit software bugs or system vulnerabilities;

violate any applicable laws while using the Platform.

COPIC reserves the right to remove any content or suspend any account involved in prohibited activities without prior notice where necessary to protect the Platform or its users.

12. Fraud Prevention

COPIC maintains a zero-tolerance policy toward fraud.

Fraud includes, but is not limited to:

identity theft;

forged identification documents;

fake payment confirmations;

false employment offers;

fraudulent job applications;

payment scams;

account takeovers;

stolen payment methods;

impersonation;

document forgery;

manipulation of verification systems.

Users agree not to participate in any activity intended to deceive another user or COPIC.

Where fraud is suspected, COPIC may:

temporarily suspend accounts;

permanently terminate accounts;

cancel transactions;

freeze Platform access while investigations are conducted;

retain evidence;

cooperate with financial institutions;

cooperate with law enforcement where legally required.

Users found engaging in fraudulent conduct may lose access to the Platform permanently.

13. Fake Jobs and Fake Accounts

Clients may only advertise genuine employment or service opportunities.

Job listings must:

accurately describe the work;

include truthful payment information;

avoid misleading promises;

represent legitimate opportunities.

Clients must not post jobs intended to:

collect personal information without a legitimate business purpose;

recruit for unlawful activities;

advertise pyramid schemes;

advertise investment scams;

promote multi-level marketing without clear disclosure;

deceive workers.

Workers must not:

create fake profiles;

use false names;

upload fake qualifications;

use AI-generated identities;

impersonate existing professionals.

COPIC reserves the right to verify the authenticity of any account or job posting.

14. Payment Abuse

Users must not manipulate or misuse any payment-related features of the Platform.

Prohibited conduct includes:

submitting false payment confirmations;

attempting to reverse legitimate payments without valid reason;

abusing refund procedures;

intentionally delaying payment after satisfactory completion of agreed work;

requesting payment through fraudulent means;

using stolen financial information;

engaging in money laundering;

conducting unauthorized financial transactions.

Where payment disputes arise, COPIC may request additional evidence from either party before making an administrative decision.

COPIC reserves the right to suspend accounts involved in suspicious payment activity while investigations are ongoing.

15. Platform Fee Circumvention

Where COPIC charges Platform service fees, users must not intentionally avoid those fees.

Users must not:

encourage off-platform transactions solely to avoid Platform fees;

request another user to cancel Platform transactions to avoid fees;

create duplicate accounts to obtain discounts or promotions;

manipulate payment systems to reduce fees unlawfully.

Nothing in this Policy prevents users from communicating outside the Platform where permitted by COPIC; however, any attempt to intentionally avoid legitimate Platform charges may result in enforcement action.

16. Prohibited Content

Users must not upload, publish, transmit, or distribute content that:

is illegal;

contains threats of violence;

promotes criminal activity;

contains malware or malicious code;

infringes intellectual property rights;

contains defamatory statements;

promotes hate or discrimination;

contains fraudulent advertisements;

misrepresents products or services;

violates another person's privacy;

contains sexually explicit material where prohibited by applicable law;

encourages illegal conduct.

COPIC may remove content without prior notice where it reasonably believes that the content violates this Policy or applicable law.

17. Intellectual Property

Users retain ownership of content they create and upload.

By uploading content to COPIC, users grant COPIC a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free licence to:

display;

host;

reproduce;

store;

transmit;

format;

distribute;

such content solely for the purpose of operating, maintaining, improving, promoting, and securing the Platform.

Users must only upload content they have the legal right to use.

Users must not upload:

copyrighted works without authorization;

stolen photographs;

copied logos;

pirated software;

unauthorized trademarks;

confidential business information belonging to others.

Where COPIC receives a valid intellectual property complaint, the Platform may remove the disputed content while the matter is reviewed.

Repeated infringement may result in permanent account termination.

18. Artificial Intelligence and Automated Tools

COPIC may use artificial intelligence, machine learning, or automated systems to improve user experience, assist with moderation, support verification, detect fraud, recommend jobs, or enhance Platform security.

Users must not:

manipulate AI systems;

intentionally submit misleading information to influence automated decisions;

exploit AI-generated recommendations;

use automated tools to disrupt Platform operations.

Where automated systems are used, users acknowledge that such systems may occasionally produce inaccurate or incomplete results.

COPIC reserves the right to review or override automated decisions where appropriate.

Users remain responsible for their own decisions and should not rely exclusively on AI-generated recommendations.

19. Security and Responsible Disclosure

Users must respect the security of the Platform.

Users must not:

attempt unauthorized access;

bypass security controls;

exploit vulnerabilities;

interfere with servers;

perform denial-of-service attacks;

distribute malicious software;

interfere with Platform infrastructure.

Security researchers who discover genuine vulnerabilities are encouraged to report them privately to COPIC.

Users must not publicly disclose security vulnerabilities before providing COPIC with a reasonable opportunity to investigate and address the issue.

COPIC appreciates responsible disclosure but does not guarantee financial rewards unless expressly stated through an official program.

20. Automated Access, Bots and Scraping

Users may not use automated systems to access the Platform unless expressly authorized by COPIC.

Prohibited automated activities include:

web scraping;

unauthorized data harvesting;

automated account creation;

automated job applications;

automated messaging;

data mining without authorization;

excessive API requests;

attempts to copy Platform databases;

automated monitoring intended to disrupt Platform operations.

Reasonable search engine indexing by recognized search engines is permitted unless otherwise restricted.

COPIC reserves the right to block IP addresses, devices, accounts, or automated systems engaged in unauthorized automated access or data collection.

21. Privacy and Personal Data

COPIC respects the privacy of all users and processes personal information in accordance with its Privacy Policy and applicable data protection laws.

Users must:

provide only accurate personal information;

respect the privacy of other users;

avoid collecting another user's personal information without permission;

use personal information obtained through the Platform only for legitimate purposes related to Platform activities.

Users must not:

sell or share another user's personal information without authorization;

harvest email addresses, phone numbers, or identification details;

publish another person's confidential information;

misuse identity documents submitted during verification.

COPIC reserves the right to remove content or suspend accounts involved in the misuse of personal information.

22. Reporting Violations

Users are encouraged to report suspected violations of this Policy.

Reports may include:

fraudulent activity;

fake accounts;

fake job postings;

harassment;

abusive conduct;

copyright infringement;

suspicious payments;

identity theft;

security concerns;

illegal content.

Reports should be truthful and made in good faith.

Knowingly submitting false or malicious reports may itself constitute a violation of this Policy.

23. Investigations

COPIC may investigate suspected violations of this Policy.

During an investigation, COPIC may:

review account information;

review messages exchanged through the Platform where permitted by law;

examine uploaded documents;

request additional information;

temporarily restrict Platform features;

suspend accounts while evidence is reviewed.

Users agree to cooperate with reasonable requests made during investigations.

Failure to cooperate may result in restrictions on Platform access.

24. Enforcement

Where COPIC determines that a user has violated this Policy, COPIC may take one or more enforcement actions, including:

issuing a warning;

removing content;

restricting certain Platform features;

rejecting identity verification;

cancelling job listings;

cancelling applications;

suspending an account;

permanently terminating an account;

restricting future registrations;

reporting unlawful conduct to appropriate authorities where legally required.

COPIC will determine the appropriate enforcement action based on the seriousness and frequency of the violation.

25. Account Suspension

COPIC may temporarily suspend an account if it reasonably believes that:

fraudulent activity has occurred;

account security has been compromised;

identity verification is incomplete;

payment irregularities require investigation;

Platform security is at risk;

this Policy has been violated.

During suspension, users may lose access to some or all Platform features.

Suspension does not prevent COPIC from taking further action if additional violations are identified.

26. Permanent Termination

COPIC may permanently terminate accounts for serious or repeated violations of this Policy.

Examples include:

identity fraud;

document forgery;

repeated scams;

impersonation;

hacking attempts;

repeated payment abuse;

severe harassment;

repeated posting of illegal content;

repeated intellectual property infringement.

Permanent termination may also result in the removal of associated content where appropriate.

Users whose accounts have been permanently terminated may not create new accounts without COPIC's prior written permission.

27. Appeals

Users who believe enforcement action has been taken in error may submit an appeal.

Appeals should include:

the user's account information;

a description of the decision being appealed;

any supporting evidence;

any relevant explanations.

Submitting an appeal does not guarantee reinstatement.

COPIC will review appeals within a reasonable period and may uphold, modify, or reverse its decision.

The outcome of an appeal will generally be considered final unless new evidence becomes available.

28. Cooperation with Law Enforcement

COPIC may cooperate with law enforcement agencies, courts, regulators, or other competent authorities where required by applicable law.

This may include:

preserving evidence;

responding to lawful requests;

providing information where legally required;

assisting investigations involving suspected criminal activity.

Nothing in this Policy requires COPIC to disclose information except where permitted or required by law.

29. Disclaimer

COPIC is an online marketplace that connects clients and workers.

Unless expressly stated otherwise:

COPIC is not the employer of workers;

COPIC is not a recruitment agency;

COPIC does not supervise work performed between users;

COPIC does not guarantee that any job will be completed successfully;

COPIC does not guarantee the quality, legality, or suitability of services offered by users;

COPIC does not guarantee that users will obtain employment or income through the Platform.

Users interact and enter agreements with one another at their own discretion and risk.

30. Limitation of Liability

To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, COPIC shall not be liable for:

indirect losses;

consequential damages;

loss of profits;

business interruption;

loss of business opportunities;

data loss;

delays caused by third-party services;

user misconduct;

unauthorized access beyond COPIC's reasonable control;

temporary Platform outages.

Where liability cannot legally be excluded, COPIC's liability shall be limited to the maximum extent permitted under applicable law.

Nothing in this Policy excludes liability that cannot legally be excluded.

31. Indemnification

Users agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless COPIC, its owners, employees, directors, contractors, affiliates, and representatives from any claims, damages, liabilities, losses, costs, expenses, or legal fees arising from:

violation of this Policy;

unlawful conduct;

misuse of the Platform;

infringement of another person's rights;

fraud or deceptive conduct;

content uploaded by the user.

This obligation survives the termination of the user's account where permitted by applicable law.

32. Changes to this Policy

COPIC may update this Acceptable Use Policy from time to time.

Where material changes are made, COPIC may notify users through:

the Platform;

email;

account notifications; or

other reasonable communication methods.

Continued use of the Platform after changes become effective constitutes acceptance of the revised Policy.

Users are encouraged to review this Policy regularly.

33. Governing Law

This Acceptable Use Policy shall be governed by and interpreted in accordance with the laws of the Republic of Kenya.

Where disputes arise in connection with this Policy, the parties agree that such disputes shall be subject to the jurisdiction of the competent courts of Kenya unless otherwise required by applicable law.

Where appropriate, COPIC may encourage informal resolution before formal legal proceedings.

34. Contact Information

Questions regarding this Acceptable Use Policy, reports of suspected violations, or requests for clarification may be submitted through COPIC's official support channels.

Users may contact COPIC by:

using the official support page on the Platform;

submitting a support ticket through their account;

emailing the official COPIC support email address once published.

COPIC will make reasonable efforts to respond to legitimate inquiries within a reasonable timeframe.

Effective Date

This Acceptable Use Policy is effective as of July 1, 2026, and remains in force until amended or replaced by COPIC.

By creating an account, accessing, or using the COPIC Platform, users acknowledge that they have read, understood, and agree to comply with this Acceptable Use Policy.