Acceptable Use Policy

1. Permitted use

StepZero is designed to help UK SMEs identify and implement practical sustainability actions. You may use the Service for:

• Creating and managing your business sustainability action plan
• Browsing and saving sustainability actions relevant to your business
• Using tools such as the carbon calculator and knowledge hub
• Tracking your sustainability progress
• Accessing AI-generated sustainability suggestions

2. Prohibited conduct

You must not use the Service to:

• Break the law: engage in any activity that is unlawful, fraudulent, or harmful, or that violates any applicable UK or international law or regulation.
• Harm others: harass, abuse, threaten, or intimidate any person, or upload content that is defamatory, discriminatory, obscene, or offensive.
• Misrepresent your identity: impersonate any person or entity, or falsely claim an affiliation with any person or organisation.
• Compromise security: attempt to gain unauthorised access to any part of the Service, other users' accounts, or any systems or networks connected to the Service.
• Disrupt the Service: introduce viruses, malware, or any other harmful code, or take any action that could disable, overburden, or impair the Service.
• Scrape or harvest data: use automated tools, bots, crawlers, or scrapers to extract data from the Service without our prior written consent.
• Misuse AI features: attempt to manipulate, exploit, or reverse-engineer our AI systems, or use AI-generated content in a way that misleads others about its source.
• Infringe intellectual property: copy, reproduce, distribute, or create derivative works from our content without permission.
• Spam or advertise: use the Service to send unsolicited messages or advertise products or services.

3. Content standards

Any information you submit to the Service (such as business profile details or feedback) must be:

• Accurate and not misleading
• Lawful and not in breach of any third party's rights
• Relevant to the purpose of the Service

4. Reporting violations

If you become aware of any misuse of the Service or violation of this policy, please report it to us at hello@stepzero.eco. We take all reports seriously and will investigate promptly.

5. Enforcement

If we determine that you have violated this Acceptable Use Policy, we may take any action we consider appropriate, including:

• Issuing a warning
• Temporarily or permanently suspending your account
• Removing content that violates this policy
• Taking legal proceedings against you
• Reporting the matter to law enforcement authorities

Where an account is suspended or terminated, your personal data will be retained and handled in accordance with our Privacy Policy, which sets out the applicable retention periods. Data may be retained for a reasonable period after suspension where necessary for investigation, legal proceedings, or compliance with applicable law.

6. Changes to this policy

We may update this Acceptable Use Policy from time to time. Material changes will be communicated through the Service or by email. The "Last updated" date at the top indicates when the policy was last revised.

7. Contact us

If you have questions about this policy:

• Email: hello@stepzero.eco
• See also our Terms of Service