Technical Education Academy is designed to create and publish a variety of themed courses accessible to anyone interested, regardless of their geographical location. One of the key features of the platform is the absence of legal control and legislative framework over the published programs—this is not within the responsibilities of our specialists. On the other hand, the protection of intellectual property is crucial—anyone who places information blocks on Technical Education Academy must respect it. Every instructor who shares their content on our platform guarantees their authority and rights to all the information contained in their courses.

No illegal activities on the portal or using it are possible.

This policy describes the possible consequences arising from complaints received from content authors regarding copyright violations or appeals concerning the illegal use of trademarks related to educational courses on Technical Education Academy. Additionally, the sections detail the consequences of illegal copying or use of course content without the owners' permission on third-party portals.

Complaints about third-party copyright violations

Upon receiving a complaint from the owner of certain information posted on our platform about third-party copyright violations, the published course is completely removed. Our specialists have the right to remove all programs of an instructor if it is found that third-party copyright violations occur regularly (receiving two or more complaints that are substantiated and justified by facts). We have the authority to block and delete the instructor's account at any time if there are confirmed instances of third-party copyright violations in the offered training programs.

Complaint Submission Algorithm

If you decide to file a complaint about a course on the Technical Education Academy platform, as you are the copyright holder or its direct representative and believe that there has been a violation of third-party rights, the best approach is to submit a complaint through the specially provided form on the platform, available in English or Russian.

What you need to know before filing a complaint:

1. Participation of third parties is not possible. Complaints not submitted by the copyright holder or their agent will not be considered. This is because it is impossible to verify whether the content owner has granted permission to the instructor. After composing the complaint, you need to provide an electronic signature to prove your rights to the published material or that you are a direct representative of the copyright holder, which also applies to organizations.

2. The complaint must have substantial evidence for the decision to block the materials. To do this, you should consider and fulfill the following:

• Providing complete information - when filling out the form, it is important to provide sufficient contact information: full name as per personal documents (passport, ID), phone number, email, and physical address.
• Company name - when filing a complaint on behalf of a company or other legal entity, be sure to provide the full name of the organization and your authority within it.
• Content accuracy - it is important to provide an exact block of informational data on the copyrighted content. If mentioning multiple materials, a complete list is required, for example, providing a link (URL) to the location of the copyrighted texts or information.
• Exact location on the platform - when filling out the complaint, be sure to provide the link to the exact location of the material(s) in question with the link (URL) on our portal and the exact title of the instructor’s course.
• Statement of notification - the following phrase must be added to the completed form: “I am aware of the responsibility for providing knowingly false information and declare that the information in this complaint is accurate, and I am the copyright holder or authorized to act on their behalf, and I have reason to believe that the use of the material for which the complaint is being filed is not authorized by the copyright owner, their agent, or the law.”

3. If the complaint was intentionally, specifically, and incorrectly, falsely, or without evidence filed, the person submitting the complaint may be held liable and required to compensate for damages. Technical Education Academy reserves the right to seek damages from individuals who unlawfully file copyright infringement complaints.

4. Some types of information are not protected by copyright. According to legal norms, there are virtually no restrictions on short phrases such as the names of organizations/companies, various slogans, book and newspaper titles, and this category also includes intangible definitions—from processes to ideas, as well as known facts. Therefore, before filing a complaint, it is important to ensure the actual copyright ownership and protection of the information. In case of trademark and brand violations, it is sufficient to follow the first point of the section "How to Properly File a Trademark Infringement Complaint".

5. Sometimes fair use of copyrighted materials is possible, which is allowed in cases involving public interest. Fair use includes various news items, research work, critical articles and phrases, and the presence of comments. Fair use is determined by the following parameters:

• Purpose - What are the characteristics of the educational program: is it a commercial option or completely free, does it include criticism or is it a parody of your material, has the overall format changed or not;
• Basis of the informational block - Is the protected material a creative work or scientifically proven facts;
• Evaluation of the applied content - Does the course use only small portions of your work or its main body;
• Market analysis - It is necessary to understand if this course will be in demand instead of yours and whether it will be more popular with buyers compared to yours.

It is important to understand that before filing a complaint, the chosen body of information does not fall under the concept of fair use.

Counterclaim Filing

When a copyright infringement complaint is received, our specialists send a copy of the complaint to the instructor responsible for the respective course, along with a notification stating the following:

• The course has received a copyright infringement claim.
• Technical Education Academy is removing the program from the platform.

Additionally, a sample counterclaim document is attached, meaning the instructor can submit a counterclaim if they believe the copyright has not been infringed or they have authorization from the author to use the materials. In this case, a counterclaim is filed by the instructor.

The best approach is to complete the provided sample and send the document to the copyright department of the Technical Education Academy at the address from which the complaint information was received. Several conditions must be met to consider the counterclaim. The complaint must be in writing and must include the following information:

• Your physical and electronic signatures.
• Your personal details: full name, phone number, email address, or physical address.
• Information about the removed materials: the URL of the course before its removal (this data is included in the copyright infringement complaint sent to you, a copy of which will be attached to the infringement notification).
• A statement of responsibility: ensure the accuracy of your claim; you must be fully confident in the erroneous blocking and removal, thus completing the sample statement of responsibility for providing false information.
• Agreement document for other types of information:

a) You transfer your personal data to Tecedu Academy, which will then be sent to the complainant.

b) You agree to receive a summons concerning any proceedings related to the illegally used information.

c) Jurisdiction of the courts according to your address or registration data.

If the counterclaim was filed deliberately or is inaccurate, it constitutes a violation of legal norms, leading to compensation for damages and various forms of liability. The Tecedu Academy platform reserves the right to seek compensation from any parties filing a counterclaim.

Complaints from instructors about the presence of content on other platforms

The Technical Education Academy fully understands that when you publish your own materials with us, you do not want this information to appear on third-party resources without your permission. We strive to provide maximum protection and prevent the illegal distribution and copying of courses. We are continuously improving our anti-piracy protection system, monitoring violations, and quickly removing any information that infringes the copyright of the course instructor-developer.

If you discover illegal copying and use of your copyrighted material on third-party resources, simply inform us. Our anti-piracy team will send a complaint, adhering to the legal aspects and facilitating the removal of your program as quickly as possible. However, it is important to know that the Technical Education Academy and our anti-piracy team do not monitor third-party resources, so our efforts may not always be successful. Issues can arise if the websites are located outside the territories of America, Australia, the United Kingdom, and the European Union. Unfortunately, other countries may have different copyright laws, so we cannot guarantee the complete removal of your materials.

Complaints about third-party trademark infringements

If the Technical Education Academy receives a complaint about a trademark infringement in one of the courses, the program will be removed. We reserve the right to block and delete accounts in connection with such violations

How to File a Trademark Infringement Complaint

Quick and easy to do, you can send a notification with the information provided below. You should know that a copy of your request will be sent to the person responsible for the published materials, i.e., the accused party. Before filing a complaint about trademark infringement, you need to consider the following nuances:

1. Real evidence - To obtain a final decision on the complaint, you must competently and clearly prove the violations found by attaching the following information to the application:

• Detailed contact information - Full name, phone numbers, physical address, and email availability;
• Clear information about the word or sign for which you have claimed rights;
• Registration presence - The trademark must have certain registration data, such as a number or patent;
• Exact location - Indication of the country or jurisdiction where you are asserting the legal claim;
• Type or category of the mark (goods or services) to which you hold rights;
• Links to the content - You need to provide exact links to the materials where you believe the trademark right is violated, specifying the web address or URL;
• Your opinion - It is essential to include a text with your views and position on the stated issue, clearly and distinctly explaining how the rights are being violated;
• Rights holder - If you are not the direct owner of the trademark right, you must specify your position in relation to the rights holder;
• Important addition - The complaint is accompanied by two types of statements:

a). "I have a good faith belief that the use of the trademark as described above in the complaint is not authorized by the trademark owner, its agent, or the law."

b). "The information contained in this notification is accurate, and I acknowledge the liability for perjury and assert that I am the owner or an authorized agent acting on behalf of the owner of the allegedly infringed trademark rights."

• Signature - it is possible to use an electronic signature or sign the document with a regular physical signature.

2. If the information received is inaccurate, the Technical Education Academy may impose liability on the applicant and seek damages.

3. "Nominative fair use" may also be a reason for the complaint to be dismissed. Before submitting claims, you need to ensure the correctness of the legal demands. In many legislative acts, the use of a trademark is protected in the field of sales and intended services to avoid misleading consumers. Many countries allow fair use of trademarks, which permits their use directly referring to the actual product or service, or conducting an analysis, criticizing it, creating discussions, or comments. Therefore, assess the validity of the claims to avoid falling under the concept of fair use.

The data and contacts of relevant representatives

Уполномоченное лицо Technical Education Academy, ответственное за жалобы по авторскому праву, доступно по электронному адресу support@tecedu.org и рассматривает претензии, заполненные по образцам, представленным на площадке (это касается только исковых требования по нарушению авторского права).