Terms of service.

What Folkbase is

By using Folkbase, you agree to these terms. Folkbase (“the app,” “we,” “us”) is a free personal CRM that helps you keep track of the people you know. The app stores your data in a Google Sheet inside your own Google Drive. Folkbase does not operate a database that holds your contacts. Folkbase is currently in free early-access beta operated by Elliott Zelenak.

Your Google account and data

To use Folkbase, you sign in with Google and grant the app permission to your basic profile and to the specific files it works with: the Google Sheet it creates for you, any file you specifically allow in the app, and, if you create or join a shared workspace, that workspace’s sheet. You are responsible for your Google account and for the data you put into Folkbase. How the app accesses and uses Google data is described in our Privacy Policy, which forms part of these terms. Your use of Google’s services through Folkbase (Drive, Sheets, Calendar) is also governed by Google’s own Terms of Service and privacy policy.

Age requirement. Folkbase is intended for adults. You must be at least 16 years old to use the app. By signing in you confirm that you meet this requirement. If you are under 16, you are not permitted to use Folkbase.

Acceptable use

You agree to use Folkbase lawfully and responsibly. In particular, you agree not to:

• Use the app to store data about people in violation of applicable privacy or data-protection laws;
• Attempt to break, overload, reverse-engineer, or gain unauthorized access to the app or other users’ data;
• Use the app to send spam, harass others, or for any unlawful purpose;
• Share workspace access with people who are not entitled to see the contacts within it.

Outreach and bulk messaging. Folkbase’s lists, trackers, and similar features are organizing tools, and you remain the sender of any message you choose to send. If you use Folkbase to support outreach or bulk messaging, you are responsible for complying with anti-spam and marketing laws that apply to you, such as CAN-SPAM, CASL, and GDPR/ePrivacy rules. That includes honoring opt-outs, accurately identifying yourself, and not contacting people who haven’t agreed to hear from you where the law requires consent.

You are solely responsible for how you collect, store, and use information about other people in Folkbase, including obtaining any consent the law requires.

Beta software

Folkbase is provided as a beta (colloquially noted as “early-access beta”). That means features may change, break, or be removed, and the app may occasionally be unavailable. We may add, modify, or discontinue features, or the app as a whole, at any time. Folkbase does not back up your data automatically, so we recommend exporting or backing up your data yourself periodically (see our Privacy Policy and the in-app Data → Export and Data → Backup tools).

Billing and payments

If you upgrade to a paid plan, payment is processed by Stripe, our payment processor. Folkbase never sees or stores any card or payment details, as they are handled specifically by Stripe. Stripe handles your receipts.

Folkbase is currently a free beta, and as described in Beta software above, pricing, plans, and features may change. Where a paid plan is offered, you can manage or cancel it at any time. Canceling stops future charges but does not retroactively refund amounts already paid, except where required by law.

Folkbase keeps a minimal record linking your account to your Stripe customer ID and plan status, and not your card details. See the Privacy Policy for further information.

Ownership and your license

Your data is yours. Folkbase claims no ownership over anything you put into the app. Your contacts, notes, and records belong to you, and they are found specifically in your own Google Drive. The app itself, including but not limited to its code, design, name, and logo, belongs to its operator. While these terms are in effect, we grant you a personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable license to use Folkbase for its intended purpose. You may not resell, copy, or redistribute the app itself.

No warranty

Folkbase is provided “as is” and “as available,” without warranties of any kind, whether express or implied, including fitness for a particular purpose, accuracy, or uninterrupted availability. You use the app at your own risk.

Limitation of liability

To the fullest extent permitted by law, Folkbase and its operator are not liable for any indirect, incidental, or consequential damages, or for any loss of data, arising from your use of the app. Because your data lives in your own Google Drive, you retain control of it, as well as the sole responsibility for backing it up.

Indemnification

If your use of Folkbase (in particular, how you collect information about people or contact them) leads to a claim by someone else against Folkbase or its operator (for example, a spam or privacy complaint about messages you sent), by use of the app you explicitly agree to cover the resulting costs and damages, to the extent the claim arises from your breach of these terms or of applicable law.

Termination and suspension

You can stop using Folkbase at any time. While using your personal workspace, your data will always stay in your own Drive. The Folkbase operator may suspend or terminate your access if you materially breach these terms (for example, the acceptable-use rules above), or if we discontinue the beta. Where practical, the operator will give you notice, but during the beta we reserve the right to suspend access immediately to protect other users or the service. Because your data lives specifically in your own Google account, losing access to Folkbase never means losing your data.

Your data, your control

You can export your data at any time from inside the app, or open the underlying Google Sheet directly. To delete your data, delete that sheet from your Drive. You may stop using Folkbase at any time.

Transparency and legal requests

Folkbase is built to hold as little of your data as possible. Your contacts, notes, and other records remain in your own Google account (including Google Sheets and Drive), and not in a Folkbase database. Because of this, in the ordinary course, Folkbase has no central copy of your personal data to disclose.

In the interest of user safety and transparency, the following statements hold as of now, and any change to them will be reflected on the Updates page:

• Folkbase and/or its operator(s) have not received any government or law-enforcement demand for user data.
• Folkbase and/or its operator(s) have not received any subpoena, warrant, or court order seeking access to user accounts.
• Folkbase and/or its operator(s) have not been required to weaken, backdoor, or add surveillance capability to the app or its build.
• Folkbase and/or its operator(s) are not aware of any such request, and no gag order prevents us from making this statement.

If Folkbase and/or its operators ever receive a legal demand, it will be disclosed to the extent the law allows, and update or remove the corresponding section in the Updates section accordingly. These will be updated as required and identified in the Updates page. Should these go stale or disappear, readers may draw their own conclusions.

Governing law and severability

These terms are governed by the laws of the State of Michigan, USA, without regard to its conflict-of-law rules, and any dispute arising from them will be handled in the state or federal courts located in Michigan. If any part of these terms is found to be unenforceable, the rest remains in effect, and the unenforceable part will be read as narrowly as needed to make it valid.

Changes to these terms

We may update these terms as the product evolves. Material changes will be reflected by the “Last updated” date at the bottom of this page. Continuing to use Folkbase after a change means you accept the updated terms.

Contact

These terms are written in plain language for an early-access beta product and are not considered legal advice. The binding clauses of governing law, indemnification, termination, and the limitation of liability are enforceable, and are subject to a complete professional legal review before general availability.