Section 1: General provisions

Article 1 (Purpose)

The purpose of these terms and conditions (henceforth referred to as ‘terms’) is to stipulate matters concerning the conditions and procedures for the use of all websites (http://www.kics.or.kr, henceforth referred to as ‘services’) provided by The Korean Institute of Communications and Information Science corporation (henceforth referred to as the ‘institute’) and its patrons (henceforth referred to as ‘members’).

Article 2 (Definitions of Terms)

The terms used in this agreement are defined as follows:

  1. A ‘member’ refers to a person who consents to these terms, signs a service use contract with the institute, and is granted a user ID.
  2. The term ‘user agreement’ refers to all contracts signed between the institute and its members regarding the use of its services, which includes this agreement.
  3. The ‘user ID’ refers to the combination of letters and numbers chosen by the member and approved by the institute for member identification and use of service.
  4. The term ‘password’ refers to the combination of letters and numbers chosen by the member for identity verification of the associated user ID.
  5. The term ‘administrator’ refers to a person selected by the institute who supervises general management and smooth operation of the service.
  6. The term ‘cancel’ refers to the cancellation of the contract between the institute and its member

Article 3 (Validity and changes to these terms and conditions)

  1. The content of these terms and conditions are effective by their posting on the service screen or member notification by any other means and are subject to due process.
  2. The institute may change these terms and conditions if reasonable reasons arise, and shall notify the members of the changed terms and conditions without delay.

Article 4 (Rules not included in terms)

For items not explicitly stated in these terms and conditions, the related acts and terms of each service should be applied.

Section 2: Service User Agreement

Article 5 (Establishment of service user agreement)

  1. The user agreement is established by the members’ consent to the details of the contract and the institute’s approval of its application for use.
  2. Members consent to this agreement when they click the “I agree” button on the terms and conditions below.

Article 6 (Applying for use)

The application can be completed by accessing the service online and filling out the institute’s application form. All members must provide their own information to use the service. A member who has not registered their exact information, such as in the event of stealing another’s information or registering with false information, shall not claim any rights in connection with the use of the service and may be punished in accordance with the relevant laws.

Article 7 (Consent and restrictions on applying for use)

  1. In accordance with the provisions of Articles 5 and 6, the institute consents to the use of its service when applying for the service.
  2. The institute may withhold its consent in any of the following cases:
    • You do not provide accurate personal information
    • Statute violation or application to undermine the peace, order, and customs of society
    • The service is intended to be used for fraudulent purposes
    • Requirements for the application are deemed to be insufficient by the institute
  3. In any of the following cases, the institute may withhold its consent until the reasons for restricting acceptance are resolved.
    • In the event the institute cannot afford its facilities
    • In the event of the institute experiencing technical difficulties
    • In the case that it is difficult to accept due to other academic circumstances
  4. The institute may withdraw a member’s acceptance if any of the reasons referred to in the subparagraphs of Article 2 are found after the completion of the membership registration process.

Article 8 (Changes to items in agreement)

Members shall modify the information entered at the time of application online, and the member shall be responsible for any problems caused by their failure to modify.

Section 3: Obligations of the contracting parties

Article 9 (Institute’s obligations)

The institute shall not divulge or distribute personal data of its members to third parties without their consent. However, this does not apply to cases where there is a request from a state agency pursuant to the provisions of the Framework Act on Telecommunications, etc., where a crime is being investigated, where there is a request from the Information and Communication Ethics Committee, or a request in accordance with the procedures prescribed by other relevant statutes.
The institute may prepare and use statistical data and personal information of all members related to its work within the scope of paragraph 1.
In order to provide continuous and stable service, the institute shall repair and restore damages to the facility without delay unless there is an unavoidable circumstance.

Article 10 (Member’s obligations)

  1. When a member applies for membership or changes their membership information, they shall provide accurate information based on facts. A member cannot claim the rights to content associated with falsely registered information. The member shall not perform any of the following acts while using the service:
    • Illicit use of another member’s ID
    • Duplicating for purposes other than personal or member use, publishing, broadcasting, or providing to third parties information obtained from the service without the prior consent of the institute
    • Infringing on other rights, such as copyrights of the institute or third parties, etc.
    • Disseminating information, writings, figures, etc. in violation of public order and customs
    • Acts objectively linked to a crime
    • Other acts in violation of relevant laws and regulations
  2. Members shall be governed by the terms and conditions of this agreement and other matters stipulated by the institute, such as the various regulations prescribed by the institute.
  3. Members shall not engage in business activities using the service without prior consent from the institute, nor shall the institute be responsible for the results of such business activities.
  4. Members shall not transfer the rights to use the service or other contractual uses to another person without explicit consent from the institute. Members cannot provide this as collateral.

Article 11 (Member user ID and Password Obligations)

The member shall be responsible for the management of their user ID and password. The member shall be responsible for all consequences of negligence, and the institute shall not be held liable for any negligence on their part.

Section 4: Using the service

Article 12 (Service availability)

In principle, the service shall operate 24 hours a day throughout the year unless there is a special disruption of the institute’s business or technology. However, the institute may suspend the service on a day or time set by the association for regular system inspection, extension, or replacement. The members will be notified in advance of suspensions of the service due to scheduled maintenance.

The institute may temporarily suspend all or part of the service without prior notice in the case of unavoidable circumstances such as urgent system inspection, extension, or replacement, equipment failure, power outage, etc.

Article 13 (Member posts, etc.)

  1. Posts refer to the text posts, photos, and various files and links posted by members while using the service.
    The institute reserves the right to take measures such as suspending, modifying, deleting, moving, or refusing to register posts, etc. without the prior consent of the member for the following reasons:
    • It causes serious insult or damage to another member or third party
    • It disseminates or links content that violates public order and customs
    • It is advertising for the purposes of profit
    • It is objectively related to a crime
    • It infringes on other’s rights, such as copyrights of other users or third parties
    • The institute determines that it does not conform to the nature of the service as a matter of personal political judgment or religious opinion
    • It violates the principles of posting prescribed by the institute or does not conform to the format of the bulletin board
    • It is deemed to violate other relevant statutes

Article 14 (Post copyrights)

Copyrights and other intellectual property rights to posts or works created by the institute belong to the institute.
The copyright of a member’s post on the service belongs to the member who posted it, and the association cannot use its content without the consent of the author. However, in non-profit cases, posts by registered members may be used free of charge, without permission of the author to a reasonable extent in accordance with the fair practices prescribed in the Copyright Act.
Members shall not use information obtained using the service for commercial reasons, such as manufacturing or selling it.

Article 15 (Providing information)

The institute may provide members with various information deemed necessary for the use of the service by e-mail, mail, SMS, telephone, etc. If the member does not wish to receive information, they can apply for refusal to receive information when applying for membership or in the member information modification menu.

Section 5: Contract cancellation and restrictions on use

Article 16 (Contract cancellation and restrictions on use)

  1. If a member intends to terminate their service contract, they must apply for termination of their membership status online (via e-mail).
    In the event that a member commits any of the following acts, their access to the service may be suspended for a period of time or terminated without prior notice:
    • Stealing another person’s service ID or password
    • Intentionally obstructing service operation
    • Joining under a false name
    • The same user double registering using a different ID
    • Intentional dissemination of content that is detrimental to public order and customs
    • Planning or implementing the use of the service to undermine national or social interests
    • Committing an act to disadvantage or dishonor another
    • Transmission of a large amount of information or sending advertising information to disrupt or the stable operation of the service
    • Infringement of intellectual property rights of the institute, its members, or third parties
    • There is a request for correction by external agencies, such as the Information Communication Ethics Committee, or we receive an authoritative interpretation from the election commission in connection with illegal electioneering
    • Information obtained using the institute’s service is duplicated, distributed, or used for commercial purposes without the prior consent of the institute
    • A member who has been dormant for a long time has not expressed their intention to use the service within the period of notification
    • Violation of other terms of use set forth by the institute

Section 6: Damage compensation and other matters

Article 17 (Damage compensation)

As it concerns the use of services provided free of charge, the institute shall not be liable for any damage to its members unless it was done intentionally or by the negligence of the institute.

Article 18 (Indemnity clause)

If the institute is unable to provide services due to natural disaster, war, or other force majeure equivalent thereto, it is waived from the responsibility of providing services.
The institute is waived from responsibility for damages caused by unavoidable circumstances such as repair, replacement, regular inspection, construction, etc. of service facilities.
The institute is waived from responsibility for the member’s failure to use the service due to reasons attributable to the member. The institute shall not be responsible for the failure or loss of a member’s expected profit from using the service, nor shall it be liable for damages caused by the data obtained while using the service.
The institute shall not be responsible for the contents of various information or data, or the reliability and accuracy of facts, etc. posted by its members, nor shall they be liable for damages caused by the data obtained while using the service.

Article 19 (Notices)

When the institute gives the member notice, the member may replace individual notices by using the email address provided by the institute or by posting it on the bulletin board for more than five days.

Article 20 (Jurisdictions and governing law)

Matters not specified in these terms shall be governed by the relevant laws and customs of the Republic of Korea, such as the Telecommunications Business Act. In the case that a lawsuit is filed as a result of the use of this service, the courts shall have jurisdiction over the institute’s office of the secretariat.

<Additional Clause>

This agreement is effective from January 1, 2008.