Legal and privacy
Terms of Service for Archiwalia.com
Rules for using the Archiwalia.com service.
Version 2026-10-01 · effective from 1 October 2026
§ 1. General provisions
1. The online service operating at archiwalia.com, hereinafter referred to as the “Service” or “Archiwalia”, is operated by the business Olgierd Witkowski, with its registered office in Józefosław at ul. Sekwojowa 4, Tax Identification Number (NIP): 5211325026, email address: kontakt@archiwalia.com, hereinafter referred to as the “Service Provider” or the “Owner”. 2. These Terms specify: a. the types and scope of services supplied electronically through the Service; b. the rules for using the Service; c. the rights and obligations of Users and the Service Provider; d. the rules for storing and sharing Materials; e. the rules for reporting content that may be illegal; f. the rules for restricting access to Materials or Accounts; g. the complaints procedure. 3. The Service is a platform for digitally archiving, storing, describing, and sharing family memorabilia within defined groups of Users, including photographs, letters, documents, drawings, diaries, scans, descriptions, and other materials relating to family history. 4. The Service is not intended for publishing Materials to the general public. Access to Materials stored in the Service is limited to Users with the appropriate access permissions. 5. The Service's point of contact for Users and for matters relating to digital services legislation is: kontakt@archiwalia.com 6. These Terms are made available to the User free of charge before the electronic services contract is entered into and remain available in the Service in a form that allows them to be saved and reproduced. 7. Use of an Account in the Service requires acceptance of these Terms.
§ 2. Definitions
1. User – a person using services supplied through the Service. 2. Account – a separate part of the Service assigned to a User that enables the use of functions requiring authentication. 3. Material – any information and content uploaded to the Service by a User, including photographs, scans, documents, PDF files, graphics, descriptions, dates, information about people, keywords, and other data relating to memorabilia. 4. Memorabilia – an item, document, photograph, or other part of a family archive described in the Service, together with the related information and Materials. 5. Family Space – a separate space in the Service intended for a defined group of Users and accessible to people with appropriate permissions. 6. Family Member – a User with access to a given Family Space, regardless of their actual degree of kinship with other Users. 7. Manager – a User with additional permissions to manage a given Family Space, including inviting other Users, within the functionality made available by the Service. 8. Illegal content – information or Material that, in itself or by reference to an activity, does not comply with applicable law.
§ 3. Types of services and technical requirements
1. Through the Service, the Service Provider supplies electronic services that include: a. maintaining User Accounts; b. creating and operating Family Spaces; c. enabling other Users to be invited to Family Spaces; d. storing Materials; e. creating and editing descriptions of Memorabilia; f. allowing authorised Users to view Materials; g. downloading or exporting data to the extent supported by the functionality currently available in the Service. 2. The scope of the Service's functionality may be developed and changed provided this does not result in a violation of the law, including Users' acquired rights. 3. The following are required to use the Service correctly: a. a device with Internet access; b. an up-to-date web browser supporting standard web technologies; c. support for cookies necessary for the operation of the Service; d. an active email address for functions that require email communication. 4. Use of the Service may involve typical risks associated with using the Internet, including attempts to gain unauthorised access to an Account, malware, or the compromise of authentication credentials. 5. The User must protect the credentials used to access their Account and must not disclose them to unauthorised persons.
§ 4. Entering into and terminating the contract
1. The electronic services contract for maintaining an Account is entered into when the User successfully creates an Account after accepting these Terms. 2. An Account is created after the User receives a valid invitation to a Family Space and accepts it in the Service. 3. The User must provide accurate information to the extent required to create and maintain the Account. 4. The User may stop using the Service and terminate the contract at any time by: a. deleting the Account using the relevant function in the Service, if such a function is available; or b. sending an Account deletion request to kontakt@archiwalia.com. 5. Deletion of an Account may result in the deletion of Materials associated exclusively with that Account, except for Materials whose continued storage is necessary because of other Users' rights, the Service Provider's legal obligations, the establishment, exercise, or defence of claims, or technical backups. 6. Detailed rules for processing personal data after termination of the contract are set out in the Privacy Policy.
§ 5. Access to Materials and the nature of Family Spaces
1. Materials uploaded to the Service are not published or made available by the Service to the general public. 2. Access to Materials is limited to Users who have permission to access the relevant Family Space. 3. A User obtaining access to Material in the Service does not mean that the User has been granted permission to: a. publish the Material outside the Service; b. distribute the Material to third parties; c. use the Material for purposes other than those arising from the functions of the Service; d. use the Material in violation of copyright, personal rights, image rights, privacy, or other third-party rights. 4. Marking Memorabilia as “Family only” informs other Users that the person who uploaded the Memorabilia wishes information about it not to be passed on or recounted to people outside the family circle. 5. The “Family only” option is an additional indication of the uploader's wishes and is not a technical or legal definition of the people who have access to the Material. 6. The absence of the “Family only” marking does not constitute consent to publicly distribute the Memorabilia or make it available outside the Service or to unauthorised persons, but it allows information about its existence to be shared publicly with any third party. 7. Users must respect the “Family only” marking and the wishes of the person who applied it.
§ 6. Materials and User responsibility
1. The User is responsible for Materials they upload to the Service. 2. The User must have the rights, consents, or other legal grounds required to use the Materials in the manner in which they use them in the Service. 3. Users may not upload Materials: a. whose storage or sharing is illegal; b. that infringe third-party copyright or other intellectual property rights; c. that infringe third-party personal rights, privacy, or image rights; d. whose storage or sharing constitutes a criminal offence or another violation of law; e. that contain malware or are intended to compromise the security of the Service. 4. The fact that Material is historical, controversial, graphic, or documents views, conduct, or events that may now be viewed negatively does not automatically prohibit its storage in the Service. 5. Historical Materials, including old letters, diaries, photographs, documents, or other records of family history, may present content, views, or events characteristic of the time in which they were created. Whether they are permitted is assessed primarily under applicable law and in light of the Service's nature as a family archive. 6. The User is liable for violations of law or third-party rights arising from Materials uploaded by the User or from the User's use of the Service. 7. If, as a result of an act or omission by the User, including the uploading of illegal Material, infringement of third-party rights, or provision of inaccurate information, claims, demands, proceedings, or sanctions are brought against the Service Provider, the User must – to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law – indemnify the Service Provider against the resulting liability and compensate the Service Provider for the damage suffered. 8. The obligation referred to in paragraph 7 includes, to the extent permitted by law: a. damages; b. compensation for non-material harm; c. court and administrative proceeding costs; d. reasonable legal assistance costs; e. the costs of complying with final judgments or decisions; f. administrative fines and other financial sanctions imposed on the Service Provider as a result of an act or omission by the User; g. other documented costs or losses causally linked to the User's infringement. 9. Paragraphs 7–8 do not exclude the Service Provider's liability to the extent that such liability cannot be excluded or transferred under mandatory provisions of law.
§ 7. Moderation, security, backups, and Service Provider liability
1. The Service Provider is not under a general obligation to monitor Materials stored by Users or to review or moderate them in advance. 2. Before being saved in the Service, Materials are not approved by the Service Provider as regards their legality, authenticity, reliability, or whether the User holds the relevant rights. 3. The Service Provider may nevertheless take action concerning Material or an Account if: a. it receives a report of a possible violation of law; b. it otherwise obtains credible information about a possible violation of law; c. it identifies a violation of these Terms; d. action is necessary to protect the security of the Service or other Users; e. action is required by a competent authority or applicable law. 4. The Service Provider's actions may include: a. restricting access to Material; b. removing Material; c. temporarily restricting the ability to use an Account; d. suspending an Account; e. deleting an Account. 5. When making a decision referred to in paragraph 4, the Service Provider acts with due diligence, objectively, and proportionately to the nature and consequences of the identified infringement. 6. The Service does not use automated systems or algorithms to independently decide to remove Materials or suspend User Accounts. 7. If the Service Provider restricts access to Material, removes Material, suspends the supply of services, or suspends or deletes an Account because of the illegality of Material or a violation of these Terms, the affected User will be informed of the decision and – where required by law – of its principal grounds, unless providing that information is legally prohibited. 8. The Service Provider takes reasonable technical and organisational measures intended to ensure the security and continuity of the Service and may create data backups. 9. Backups are intended to reduce the risk of data loss resulting from typical technical failures and do not constitute a guaranteed, independent archiving system for User data. 10. Backups may be stored in the same infrastructure or data-centre location as the Service's primary data. In particular, a physical disaster, fire, destruction of a data centre, force majeure, or another event affecting all the infrastructure used may cause the simultaneous loss of primary data and backups. 11. A User for whom particular Materials have significant or irreplaceable value should retain an independent copy outside the Service. 12. The Service Provider does not guarantee uninterrupted, error-free, or completely failure-resistant operation of the Service. 13. To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, the Service Provider is not liable for loss of data or lack of access to it caused by: a. a technical failure; b. failure of the infrastructure of a hosting provider or data centre; c. interruption of power or communications; d. force majeure; e. fire, disaster, flooding, or physical destruction of infrastructure; f. third-party actions, including hacking attacks or other unlawful acts; g. an act or omission by the User. 14. Paragraphs 12–13 do not exclude the Service Provider's liability where its exclusion is prohibited by mandatory provisions of law. 15. The Service Provider is not liable for the content, authenticity, completeness, or reliability of Materials uploaded by Users or for disputes between Users or third parties concerning rights to Memorabilia or Materials, subject to obligations arising under mandatory provisions of law. 16. The Service Provider may temporarily restrict the availability of the Service for maintenance, upgrades, failure recovery, security, or other justified technical reasons.
§ 8. Reporting illegal content – Notice and Action procedure
1. Any person or entity that believes specific Material in the Service constitutes Illegal content may submit a report: a. using the “Report content” form made available in the Service; or b. by email to kontakt@archiwalia.com. 2. A report should contain information that allows it to be properly assessed, including: a. a sufficiently substantiated explanation of why the reporting party considers the Material to be illegal; b. a precise indication of the Material concerned, including its URL, identifier, or other information enabling it to be unambiguously located; c. the reporting party's first and last name or entity name and email address, unless applicable law permits a report to be made without that information; d. a statement confirming the reporting party's good-faith belief that the information and allegations contained in the report are accurate and complete. 3. If the report includes the reporting party's electronic contact details, the Service will confirm receipt without undue delay. 4. Reports are processed in a timely, diligent, objective, and non-arbitrary manner. 5. The Service Provider may ask the reporting party to supplement the information if this is necessary to identify the Material or assess the report. 6. After assessing the report, the Service Provider may: a. leave the Material unchanged; b. temporarily restrict access to the Material; c. remove the Material; d. take other actions required by law. 7. If the reporting party provided electronic contact details, they will be informed without undue delay of the decision concerning the reported Material and, where required by law, of the available means of contesting it. 8. If a decision results in restricting access to a User's Material, removing it, suspending the service, or restricting an Account, the User will be informed of the decision and – to the extent required by applicable law – will receive a clear and specific statement of reasons. 9. Receipt of a sufficiently precise and adequately substantiated report may give the Service Provider knowledge of the illegal nature of specific Material and provide grounds for appropriate action.
§ 9. Suspending and deleting an Account
1. The Service Provider may temporarily restrict Account functionality, suspend an Account, or terminate the contract and delete an Account if the User: a. violates the law; b. materially violates these Terms; c. uses the Service in a manner that threatens the security of other Users or the Service infrastructure; d. attempts to gain unauthorised access to Accounts, Materials, or the Service infrastructure; e. uses the Service to conduct unlawful activities. 2. When selecting a measure, the Service Provider takes into account the nature, gravity, frequency, and consequences of the violation. 3. Where justified by the seriousness of the violation, a security threat, the need to protect third-party rights, or legal requirements, an Account may be suspended or deleted with immediate effect. 4. Where required by law, the User will be informed of the reasons for restricting, suspending, or deleting the Account. 5. The User may stop using the Service at any time in accordance with § 4.
§ 10. Complaints
1. Complaints concerning the operation of the Service may be submitted by email to: kontakt@archiwalia.com 2. A complaint should contain information that allows the User to be identified and a description of the issue giving rise to the complaint. 3. If the information provided in a complaint is insufficient for it to be assessed, the Service Provider may ask for it to be supplemented. 4. A complaint will be assessed within 14 days of its receipt or of receipt of the information necessary to assess it. 5. A response to the complaint will be sent electronically to the address assigned to the Account or specified in the complaint.
§ 11. Amendments to the Terms and final provisions
1. Polish law governs the use of the Service and contracts entered into under these Terms. 2. Disputes relating to the use of the Service will be resolved by the competent ordinary courts in accordance with applicable law. This provision does not restrict rights granted to consumers under mandatory provisions of law. 3. The Service Provider may amend these Terms for important reasons, including: a. changes in applicable law; b. changes in the manner in which the Service operates; c. adding, removing, or materially changing functionality; d. the need to adapt the Service to security requirements; e. the need to prevent abuse. 4. Users will be informed of amendments to these Terms at least 14 days in advance unless an earlier amendment is required by law, a decision of a competent authority, or the need to promptly remove a security threat. 5. An amendment to these Terms does not deprive the User of the option to stop using the Service and delete their Account. 6. Matters not governed by these Terms are subject to applicable Polish and European Union law. 7. Version 2026-10-01 of these Terms takes effect on 1 October 2026.