Terms and Conditions

1. Introduction

Welcome to Malhi Community ("the Platform"), a private online community created to connect members of the Malhi community and its diaspora around the world.

The Platform aims to help community members build meaningful connections, discover shared backgrounds and interests, communicate with one another, and strengthen relationships within the wider community.

These Terms and Conditions ("Terms") govern your access to and use of the Platform. By creating an account or using the Platform, you agree to comply with these Terms.

If you do not agree with these Terms, please do not use the Platform.

2. Eligibility and Membership

Malhi Community is intended for individuals who belong to, identify with, or have a genuine connection to the Malhi community.

• You must provide accurate and truthful information when registering and completing your profile.
• You must be at least 18 years old to create an account, unless the Platform expressly provides otherwise.
• Membership is intended for personal and community use.
• You must not create an account using another person's identity or impersonate another member.
• We reserve the right to restrict, suspend, or terminate accounts that violate these Terms or compromise the safety of the community.

Creating an account does not guarantee permanent access to the Platform.

3. Account Registration and Security

You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality and security of your account and for activities conducted through it.

You agree to:

• Provide accurate registration and profile information.
• Keep your login credentials secure.
• Notify us if you suspect unauthorised access to your account.
• Not share your account with another person or attempt to access another member's account.

We may use third-party authentication services, including Google, to facilitate account registration and login.

4. Member Profiles and Personal Information

The Platform allows members to create profiles containing information such as their name, location, education, profession, community background, and other details relevant to connecting with the community.

You are responsible for ensuring that the information you provide is accurate and that you have the right to share it.

• Do not submit another person's personal information without appropriate permission.
• Do not upload content that is false, misleading, unlawful, abusive, or intended to harm another person.
• Do not use information obtained through the Platform for harassment, discrimination, fraud, unsolicited marketing, or other unauthorised purposes.
• You should only share information that you are comfortable making available to other members.

Certain profile information may be visible to other members once your profile is complete and you have access to the member directory. The visibility of individual contact details may depend on your privacy settings and the features available on the Platform.

Please note that information shared with other members may be copied, saved, or communicated outside the Platform. We cannot guarantee that other members will respect your privacy.

5. Community Connections and Messaging

The Platform may allow members to send connection requests, accept or decline requests, and communicate through private messages.

When using these features, you agree to:

• Communicate respectfully and honestly.
• Respect another member's decision to accept, decline, or discontinue a connection.
• Avoid sending unwanted, threatening, abusive, discriminatory, or sexually inappropriate messages.
• Not use messaging or connection features for spam, scams, harassment, or commercial solicitation without permission.
• Respect other members' personal boundaries and privacy.

We do not guarantee the identity, intentions, character, background, or conduct of any member. You are responsible for exercising reasonable care when interacting with other members, whether online or offline.

6. Acceptable Use

You must not use the Platform to:

• Engage in unlawful activities or facilitate fraud.
• Harass, threaten, intimidate, or discriminate against other members.
• Publish defamatory, hateful, obscene, or otherwise inappropriate content.
• Collect, scrape, sell, or distribute member information without authorisation.
• Attempt to bypass authentication, access controls, or other security measures.
• Introduce malicious software or interfere with the Platform's operation.
• Use the Platform for unauthorised advertising, spam, or commercial activities.
• Misrepresent your identity, qualifications, profession, family circumstances, or other material information.
• Use the Platform to exploit, manipulate, or harm another member.

We may investigate suspected violations and take appropriate action to protect members and the Platform.

7. Privacy and Data Protection

We value the privacy of our members and aim to handle personal information responsibly.

Personal information may be collected and processed to:

• Create and manage member accounts.
• Display member profiles and facilitate community connections.
• Enable connection requests and messaging.
• Maintain Platform security and prevent misuse.
• Provide support, communicate important updates, and improve the Platform.

We may rely on third-party service providers to support authentication, database hosting, application hosting, email delivery, and other operational requirements.

We will handle personal information in accordance with our Privacy Policy and applicable privacy laws.

Please read our Privacy Policy for more information about what information we collect, how we use it, how it is stored, and how you can exercise your privacy rights.

8. User Content and Responsibility

You retain ownership of the personal information and content you submit to the Platform, subject to any rights you grant us to operate the service.

By submitting content, you grant us permission to host, store, display, and process that content as reasonably necessary to operate and provide the Platform's features.

You are responsible for the content you submit and for ensuring that it does not infringe another person's rights or violate applicable laws.

We may remove content or restrict access to content that we reasonably believe violates these Terms, applicable law, or community safety requirements.

9. Reporting, Moderation, and Account Suspension

We want Malhi Community to remain a safe and respectful environment.

If you encounter inappropriate behaviour, suspicious activity, impersonation, harassment, or a violation of these Terms, please contact us using the contact details provided on the Platform.

We may, where reasonably necessary:

• Review reports of misconduct.
• Remove inappropriate content.
• Restrict messaging or other Platform features.
• Suspend or terminate accounts that breach these Terms.
• Take steps required by law or necessary to protect members and the Platform.

We are not required to monitor every interaction or message and cannot guarantee that all inappropriate behaviour will be detected.

10. Third-Party Services and Links

The Platform may rely on third-party services or contain links to external websites.

We are not responsible for the availability, content, privacy practices, or security of third-party services that we do not control. Your use of those services may be subject to their own terms and policies.

11. Availability and Changes to the Platform

We aim to keep the Platform available and functioning properly, but we do not guarantee uninterrupted or error-free access.

We may modify, suspend, discontinue, or introduce changes to features at any time, including for maintenance, security, legal compliance, or operational reasons.

We will take reasonable steps to communicate significant changes where appropriate.

12. Disclaimer and Limitation of Liability

The Platform is provided to facilitate community connections and communication. We do not guarantee that members will form successful connections or that information provided by members is accurate or complete.

To the extent permitted by law, we are not responsible for disputes, losses, or harm arising from interactions between members, including interactions occurring outside the Platform.

Nothing in these Terms excludes, restricts, or modifies any consumer guarantee, right, or remedy that cannot lawfully be excluded or restricted under applicable law, including the Australian Consumer Law where applicable.

To the extent permitted by law, we exclude liability for indirect or consequential loss arising from the use of the Platform. Any other limitation of liability will apply only to the extent permitted by applicable law.

13. Indemnity

To the extent permitted by law, you are responsible for losses, claims, and reasonable costs arising from your unlawful use of the Platform, your breach of these Terms, or your infringement of another person's rights.

Nothing in this section requires you to indemnify us for loss caused by our own unlawful conduct or liability that cannot legally be transferred to you.

14. Account Deactivation and Termination

You may stop using the Platform and request account deletion by contacting us through the contact details provided on the Platform.

We may suspend or terminate your access if you breach these Terms, misuse the Platform, create a risk to other members, or if we are required to do so by law.

When an account is deleted, we will handle associated personal information in accordance with our Privacy Policy and applicable legal requirements. Some information may need to be retained for legitimate legal, security, or record-keeping purposes.

15. Changes to These Terms

We may update these Terms as the Platform evolves.

Updated Terms will be published on the Platform with a revised "Last updated" date. Where required by law, we will notify members of material changes or obtain any necessary consent.

Your continued use of the Platform after updated Terms take effect will constitute acceptance of the changes where permitted by law.

16. Governing Law

These Terms are governed by the laws of Victoria, Australia, and the applicable laws of the Commonwealth of Australia.

Any disputes will be subject to the jurisdiction of the courts of Victoria, Australia, except where applicable law provides otherwise.

17. Contact Us

If you have questions about these Terms, membership, privacy, or community conduct, please contact us through the contact details provided on the Malhi Community website.

Thank you for being part of Malhi Community.

Our goal is to build a respectful, trustworthy, and inclusive space that brings the Malhi community and its diaspora closer together.