Terms of Service

Last Updated: May 25, 2026

Introduction

Welcome to HERDS™ (“HERDS,” “we,” “us,” or “our”), operated by AgNext at Colorado State University (“CSU”). HERDS provides a systems modeling and decision support platform for research, analysis, and related computational workflows. By accessing or using our website or related services (the “Platform”), you agree to be bound by these Terms of Service (“Terms”).

Please read these Terms carefully before using the Platform.

Eligibility and Acceptable Use

You may use the Platform only in compliance with applicable laws and these Terms. You agree not to:

• misuse, disrupt, or interfere with the Platform or its infrastructure,
• attempt to bypass security or access controls,
• reverse engineer, extract, or copy Platform source code,
• use the Platform to introduce malicious code or harmful content,
• use the Platform for unlawful, abusive, or unauthorized purposes,
• use the Platform in any way that violates applicable institutional or legal requirements.

We may suspend or terminate access if we reasonably believe you are violating these Terms or misusing the Platform.

Accounts and Security

All current features of the Platform may require an account. You are responsible for:

• maintaining the confidentiality of your login credentials,
• all activity occurring under your account,
• notifying us immediately of any unauthorized access or suspected security breach.

We are not liable for losses resulting from your failure to maintain account security.

Use of the Platform and Outputs

The Platform may generate outputs, analyses, or results based on user-provided input and computational models. You acknowledge and agree that:

• outputs are generated using automated systems and estimation methods,
• outputs may not always be accurate, complete, or reliable,
• outputs are provided for informational and research purposes only,
• outputs should not be used as sole authority for regulatory, financial, scientific, or compliance decisions unless explicitly stated by HERDS.

Users are solely responsible for independently reviewing, validating, and determining the appropriateness of any outputs before relying on them for research, operational, regulatory, financial, legal, or scientific purposes.

Privacy and Data Use

Your use of the Platform is also governed by our Privacy Policy, which explains how we collect, use, store, and protect personal data. By using the Platform, you agree that HERDS may process data in accordance with that Privacy Policy, including for:

• providing and maintaining the Platform,
• account authentication and security,
• debugging and system troubleshooting,
• system monitoring and performance improvement,
• research validation and improving output quality,
• compliance with legal obligations.

We do not sell personal data.

We may use limited technical data, logs, and user interactions internally for debugging, security monitoring, and improving Platform functionality and output quality.

We may also rely on trusted third-party service providers (including hosting, database, and infrastructure providers) to operate the Platform, as described in the Privacy Policy.

The Platform may provide users with opportunities to voluntarily contribute certain submitted data for aggregated research, benchmarking, analytics, model evaluation, or system improvement purposes.

Where users explicitly consent to such participation, HERDS may retain and process de- identified or aggregated datasets derived from those submissions, including after account deletion, consistent with the Privacy Policy.

Service Availability and Changes

We may modify, update, suspend, or discontinue the Platform or any part of it at any time. We do not guarantee that:

• the Platform will always be available or uninterrupted,
• the Platform will be error-free,
• any specific feature will remain available.

We may impose usage limits or technical restrictions at any time.

Disclaimer of Warranties

The Platform and all related services are provided on an “as is” and “as available” basis. To the maximum extent permitted by law, HERDS, AgNext, and CSU disclaims all warranties, express or implied, including:

• merchantability,
• fitness for a particular purpose,
• non-infringement,
• accuracy, reliability, or completeness of outputs.

You acknowledge that use of the Platform is at your own risk.

Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent permitted by law, HERDS, AgNext, CSU, and their affiliates, officers, employees, and partners shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages arising out of or related to:

• use of the Platform,
• reliance on Platform outputs,
• inability to access or use the Platform,
• loss of data,
• business interruption,
• or inaccuracies in generated results or analyses.

This limitation applies even if HERDS, AgNext, or CSU have been advised of the possibility of such damages.

Suspension and Termination

We may suspend or terminate your access to the Platform at any time, with or without notice, if:

• you violate these Terms,
• your use creates security, legal, or operational risk,
• required by law or institutional policy.

Upon termination:

• your right to use the Platform ends immediately,
• we may retain limited data as described in our Privacy Policy for legal, security, and operational purposes.

Termination or deletion of an account does not necessarily require deletion of previously aggregated or de-identified research datasets created pursuant to user consent.

Intellectual Property and Platform Rights

All Platform software, models, infrastructure, documentation, and related materials (excluding User Content) are owned by HERDS, AgNext, CSU, or their licensors and are protected by intellectual property laws.

You are granted a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable license to access and use the Platform solely for its intended purposes.

Changes to These Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. When we do:

• updated Terms will be posted on this page,
• changes become effective upon posting unless otherwise required by law,
• continued use of the Platform constitutes acceptance of the updated Terms.

Governing Law

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Colorado, without regard to conflict of law principles.

The Platform may also be subject to applicable CSU policies and institutional compliance requirements.

Contact Information

If you have questions about these Terms, contact us at herds@colostate.edu