Terms & Conditions

1. Introduction & Acceptance

By accessing, browsing, or using GUINEX ("Platform," "we," "us," "our"), available at guinex.in, you ("User," "you," "your") agree to be bound by these Terms and Conditions ("Terms"). If you do not agree with any part of these Terms, you must discontinue use of the Platform immediately.

GUINEX operates as a peer-to-peer academic and technical project marketplace where creators upload engineering source codes, documentation, circuit designs, research reports, and hardware schematics for learners to access using Guinea Points (GP), a virtual platform currency.

2. Definitions

3. Eligibility & Account Registration

• You must be at least 16 years of age to register and use the Platform. Users under 18 should have parental or guardian consent.
• You must provide accurate, current, and complete registration information (full name, valid email address).
• You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your account credentials. Any activity under your account is your responsibility.
• Each person may maintain only one account. Multiple accounts by the same individual are prohibited.
• GUINEX reserves the right to refuse registration, suspend, or terminate any account at its discretion.

4. GUINEX ID System

• During registration, you will create a unique GUINEX ID (3-30 characters, lowercase alphanumeric with underscores and periods).
• GUINEX IDs are permanent and immutable once set. Choose carefully.
• Reserved words including admin, root, guinex, support, and founder are blocked from registration.
• Your GUINEX ID is used for your public profile URL, project authorship attribution, and community interactions.

5. Marketplace Conduct

All users agree to:

• Use the Platform lawfully and in accordance with these Terms.
• Provide honest, accurate descriptions for uploaded projects.
• Respect other users' intellectual property and personal boundaries.
• Not engage in harassment, spam, fraud, impersonation, or abusive behavior.
• Not attempt to manipulate ratings, reviews, or follower counts through artificial means.
• Not use the Platform to distribute malware, viruses, or harmful software.
• Not scrape, data-mine, or automatically extract Platform content without written permission.

6. Creator Responsibilities

As a creator uploading projects to GUINEX, you agree to:

• Upload only original work that you have the right to distribute. Plagiarism is strictly prohibited.
• Provide accurate project titles, descriptions, and abstracts that truthfully represent the content.
• Include sufficient documentation for buyers to understand and use the project (setup instructions, dependency lists, execution guides).
• Respond to buyer queries via the built-in Support Chat in a timely manner, especially during the 72-hour buyer protection window.
• Not upload malware, malicious scripts, tracking code, or any content that could harm buyers' systems.
• Accept that editing a live (approved) project returns it to "Pending" status for re-review.
• Comply with applicable copyright laws and academic integrity standards.

7. Buyer Responsibilities

• Verify project descriptions, abstracts, and previews before unlocking with GP.
• Test unlocked projects within the 72-hour buyer protection window and contact the creator via Support Chat for any setup issues.
• File disputes in good faith only — do not file fraudulent or bad-faith disputes for projects that function as described.
• Use purchased projects for personal educational reference and learning only. Do not redistribute, resell, or submit purchased projects as your own academic work.
• Provide honest, constructive reviews that reflect your genuine experience.

8. Intellectual Property & Project Ownership

• Creators retain full intellectual property ownership of their uploaded projects.
• By uploading to GUINEX, creators grant the Platform a non-exclusive, worldwide license to display, distribute, and facilitate the sale of access to their projects.
• Buyers receive a personal, non-transferable, educational license to access and study purchased project content. This license does not transfer ownership or grant redistribution rights.
• The GUINEX brand, logo, design elements, and platform code are proprietary to GUINEX and may not be used without written permission.

9. Copyright & DMCA

GUINEX respects intellectual property rights and responds to copyright infringement notices.

• If you believe a project on GUINEX infringes your copyright, send a written notice to guinexadmin@gmail.com containing: (a) identification of the copyrighted work, (b) the URL of the infringing project, (c) your contact information, and (d) a statement of good faith belief.
• Upon receiving a valid copyright notice, GUINEX will investigate and may remove the infringing content, issue warnings, or suspend the uploading account.
• Repeat copyright violators will have their accounts permanently terminated.

10. License Grant

When a buyer unlocks a project, they receive:

• A personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable license to access, read, study, and learn from the project content.
• The right to use project content as educational reference material for learning and inspiration.
• NOT the right to resell, redistribute, sublicense, or publicly display the project as their own work.
• NOT the right to submit the project as their own academic work for institutional evaluation (this would constitute academic dishonesty).

11. GP Wallet & Virtual Currency

• GP is the sole medium of exchange on the GUINEX marketplace. It is used to unlock digital projects, place physical orders, and receive creator earnings.
• GP is non-transferable between user accounts except through legitimate platform transactions (unlocks, earnings, commissions).
• GP has no cash value outside the Platform and cannot be exchanged for real currency except through the creator withdrawal process.
• GUINEX reserves the right to adjust GP exchange rates, although the current fixed rate is 1 GP = ₹1 INR.
• Wallet deposits (recharges) are generally non-refundable once GP has been credited to your account.

12. Payments & UPI Processing

• Wallet recharges are processed via UPI (Unified Payments Interface). Users pay to GUINEX's official UPI ID or QR code and submit the UTR reference number for admin verification.
• Admin verifies each UTR against actual bank deposits before crediting GP. This process prevents double-claim fraud.
• GUINEX does not store UPI credentials or banking passwords. Only UTR reference numbers and transaction amounts are recorded.
• Processing times for recharges are typically within 12-24 hours during working hours (Mon-Sat, 9 AM - 6 PM IST).
• Recharges with invalid, duplicate, or unverifiable UTRs will be rejected with a reason provided.

13. Creator Royalties & Platform Commission

• When a buyer unlocks a project, the GP price is split: 93% to the creator and 7% to the Platform.
• For admin-uploaded projects, 100% of the GP price goes to the Platform wallet.
• The commission split is enforced atomically by Firestore server-side security rules — it cannot be altered by client code.
• GUINEX reserves the right to adjust commission rates with prior notice to creators.

14. 72-Hour Buyer Protection (Escrow)

• Upon unlocking a project, the creator's share (93%) enters Pending Earnings — not their Available Balance.
• During the 72-hour window, buyers can: test the code, verify documentation accuracy, and communicate with the creator via Real-Time Support Chat.
• If the project has critical issues (missing files, broken code, malware), the buyer can file a dispute from the Orders page before funds are released.
• After 72 hours with no active disputes, Pending Earnings automatically transfer to the creator's Available Balance.
• The escrow mechanism protects both buyers (from non-functional projects) and creators (from bad-faith refund requests after the window closes).

15. Dispute Resolution

• Disputes should be filed from the Orders page within the 72-hour buyer protection window.
• Buyers must first attempt to resolve issues with the creator via Support Chat before escalating.
• Dispute submissions should include: a clear description of the issue, evidence (screenshots, error logs), and the expected resolution.
• GUINEX admin reviews all evidence, including project content, Support Chat history, and both parties' claims.
• Admin decisions are final for the specific transaction. Either party may appeal by contacting guinexadmin@gmail.com with additional evidence.
• Fraudulent or bad-faith disputes may result in account warnings, restrictions, or suspension.

16. Refund Policy

Refunds are processed through the dispute system during the 72-hour buyer protection window.

Refunds may be approved for:

• Missing core files that prevent the project from functioning
• Code that fundamentally doesn't work as described in the listing
• Malware or malicious content discovered in the project
• Significantly misleading project descriptions

Refunds are generally NOT issued for:

• Styling preferences or subjective quality opinions
• Minor bugs or edge-case issues in otherwise functional code
• Projects that work as described but don't meet personal expectations
• Disputes filed after the 72-hour protection window has closed
• GP wallet deposits (recharges)

For detailed refund information, see our Refund & Buyer Protection page.

17. Withdrawals & Pending Earnings

• Creators can withdraw GP from their Available Balance (not Pending Earnings) to their UPI account.
• Minimum withdrawal amount: 100 GP (₹100 INR).
• Withdrawal requests are verified by admin and processed via UPI within 24-48 hours.
• Withdrawal uses a Firestore transaction to atomically verify balance minus pending withdrawals before deduction.
• GUINEX reserves the right to hold or delay withdrawals for accounts under investigation for fraud, plagiarism, or Terms violations.

18. Content Policy & Prohibited Content

The following content is strictly prohibited on GUINEX:

• Plagiarized or copied projects (content you do not own or have rights to distribute)
• Malware, viruses, trojans, spyware, or any malicious code
• Projects containing illegal content under Indian law
• Adult, obscene, or sexually explicit content
• Content promoting violence, hate speech, or discrimination
• Fake or non-functional code intentionally sold as working projects
• Copyrighted material used without proper authorization
• Promotional spam or content unrelated to engineering/academic projects
• Content that violates the privacy or personal data of third parties

For full guidelines, see our Creator Guidelines and Community Guidelines.

19. Fraud, Plagiarism & Malware

• Plagiarism: Uploading others' work as your own results in immediate project removal and account suspension.
• Fraud: Submitting fake UTRs, manipulating wallet balances, or exploiting the transaction system results in permanent account termination and potential legal action.
• Malware: Uploading projects containing malicious code results in immediate removal, account termination, and may be reported to appropriate authorities.
• Fake Projects: Uploading intentionally non-functional code sold as working projects constitutes fraud and is treated accordingly.
• GUINEX uses Firestore server-side security rules, atomic transactions, and admin verification to prevent double-spending, balance manipulation, and payment fraud.

20. Platform Moderation & Enforcement

• All project uploads require admin approval before becoming publicly visible.
• All user reviews are moderated by admin before appearing publicly.
• GUINEX employs a tiered role-based access control (RBAC) system: User, Moderator, Admin, and Super Admin.
• Moderators and admins may review, approve, reject, or remove any content that violates these Terms.
• Enforcement actions include: content removal, account warnings, temporary suspension, and permanent termination.

21. Suspension & Termination

• GUINEX may suspend or terminate accounts that violate these Terms, engage in fraud, upload prohibited content, or abuse platform features.
• Users may request voluntary account deletion by contacting guinexadmin@gmail.com.
• Upon termination: uploaded projects may be removed, pending withdrawals may be forfeited (in cases of fraud), and access to the Platform is revoked.
• Buyers who have unlocked content from a terminated creator retain access to previously purchased projects.
• Transaction records are retained for legal and financial compliance purposes even after account deletion.

22. Limitation of Liability

• GUINEX operates as a marketplace intermediary, facilitating connections between creators and buyers. GUINEX does not guarantee the quality, accuracy, functionality, or fitness of any project for a particular purpose.
• To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, GUINEX shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages arising from your use of the Platform.
• GUINEX's total liability for any claim shall not exceed the GP amount involved in the specific transaction at issue.
• GUINEX is not responsible for the actions of individual creators or buyers, including project quality, support responsiveness, or academic integrity violations by users.

23. Disclaimers

• The Platform and all content are provided "AS IS" and "AS AVAILABLE" without warranties of any kind, express or implied.
• GUINEX does not warrant that the Platform will be uninterrupted, error-free, or free from security vulnerabilities.
• Projects uploaded by creators represent the views and work of the individual creators, not of GUINEX.
• Verification badges (Community Published, GUINEX Reviewed, GUINEX Certified) represent the level of review performed — not a guarantee of flawless execution in every environment.

24. Governing Law & Jurisdiction

• These Terms are governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of India.
• Any disputes arising from these Terms or your use of the Platform shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts in Odisha, India.
• GUINEX complies with applicable Indian regulations including the Information Technology Act, 2000, IT (Intermediary Guidelines) Rules, 2021, and the Digital Personal Data Protection Act (DPDP Act).

25. Changes to Terms

• GUINEX reserves the right to update these Terms at any time. Material changes will be communicated via platform announcements or email notification.
• Continued use of the Platform after changes constitutes acceptance of the revised Terms.
• Users are encouraged to review this page periodically. The "Last Updated" date at the top of this page indicates when these Terms were most recently revised.

26. Contact Information

For questions about these Terms, contact us:

• Email: guinexadmin@gmail.com
• Contact Page: guinex.in/contact.html
• Organization: GUINEX
• Location: Odisha, India