TRACER Terms & Conditions

1. About These Terms

These Terms and Conditions (“Terms”) govern access to and use of TRACER, a research information management and institutional research platform provided by BytesWrite Solution Private Limited (“BytesWrite”, “we”, “us”, or “our”).

TRACER is primarily provided to universities, colleges, research organizations and other institutional customers (“Institution”) and to individuals authorized by those Institutions to use the Service.

By accessing or using TRACER, users agree to comply with these Terms.

Where an Institution has entered into a separate written agreement with BytesWrite, including an institutional agreement, Order Form, Data Processing Addendum, Service Level Agreement or other executed document, that agreement will govern the relevant commercial and contractual relationship and will prevail over these Terms to the extent of any conflict.

An update to these Terms does not by itself modify an executed agreement between BytesWrite and an Institution.

2. About TRACER

TRACER provides technology for managing, organizing, reviewing, analysing and presenting institutional research information.

Depending on the modules and functionality enabled for an Institution, TRACER may support areas such as:

• faculty and researcher profiles;
• institutional research records;
• publications and scholarly outputs;
• intellectual property;
• funded research;
• consultancies;
• awards and academic activities;
• research metrics;
• verification and approval workflows;
• institutional reports and analytics;
• supporting documents;
• public research profiles; and
• automated or AI-assisted research-information workflows.

3. Authorized Users

Access to TRACER may be provided to faculty members, researchers, coordinators, administrators, employees or other individuals authorized by an Institution.

Users must:

• provide accurate information when required;
• keep their credentials confidential;
• not allow unauthorized persons to use their accounts;
• use TRACER only for authorized institutional purposes;
• follow applicable institutional policies; and
• promptly report suspected unauthorized access.

4. Right to Use TRACER

Subject to the applicable institutional arrangement, BytesWrite grants authorized users a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and use TRACER for legitimate institutional, academic, research-administration and related purposes.

This right does not transfer ownership of TRACER or any BytesWrite technology or intellectual property.

TRACER may not be resold, sublicensed, commercially redistributed or made available to unauthorized third parties except where expressly agreed by BytesWrite.

5. Institution Responsibilities

The Institution is responsible for institutional decisions concerning its use of TRACER, including:

• determining what information is provided to the platform;
• deciding who receives access;
• assigning appropriate roles and permissions;
• determining internal verification and approval processes;
• ensuring that information submitted by or on behalf of the Institution is authorized for the intended institutional purpose;
• determining which eligible information may be made public; and
• ensuring that its use of TRACER complies with laws and obligations applicable to the Institution.

6. User-Submitted Information

Authorized Users may create, submit, import, associate, correct or update research and institutional information through TRACER.

Users should take reasonable care to ensure that information they knowingly provide is accurate, appropriately associated with the relevant person or research record, relevant to the applicable institutional purpose, and authorized for submission.

TRACER may provide automated matching, validation, duplicate-detection, enrichment, verification or related workflows. These tools assist institutional processes but do not constitute a guarantee that every record is independently verified, complete or error-free.

7. Customer and Institutional Data

As between BytesWrite and the Institution, the Institution retains its rights in information submitted or provided to TRACER by or on its behalf (“Customer Data”).

BytesWrite does not acquire ownership of the Institution’s underlying research records or documents merely because they are processed through TRACER.

The Institution grants BytesWrite a limited right to process Customer Data only as reasonably necessary to provide the subscribed Services, operate and support TRACER, secure the platform, follow documented institutional instructions, perform obligations under the applicable institutional agreement, and comply with applicable law.

This does not give BytesWrite an unrestricted right to commercially exploit Customer Data for unrelated purposes.

8. Public Research Information

TRACER may provide public-facing functionality that allows Institutions to present selected professional and research information.

Where public functionality is enabled, BytesWrite makes eligible information publicly accessible pursuant to the Institution’s configuration, authorization or documented instruction. The Institution is responsible for determining which categories of its information are authorized for public display.

Information authorized for public presentation may include professional and scholarly information such as researcher profiles, institutional affiliations, research outputs, research metrics, intellectual-property information, funded research, academic achievements, and related professional research information.

Internal administrative information and supporting documents are not intended to become public merely because they are maintained within TRACER.

Information made publicly available may subsequently be indexed, cached or independently retained by search engines or other third parties outside BytesWrite’s control.

9. External Research Information

TRACER may retrieve, receive, compare, associate or enrich research information using authorized scholarly databases, institutional research sources, bibliographic services, research-information services, public scholarly sources, and other permitted external sources.

Availability of external information may depend upon licensing, provider availability, institutional access rights, technical limitations and applicable provider terms.

BytesWrite does not guarantee that any particular external research source or integration will remain available indefinitely.

External sources may be changed, restricted, temporarily unavailable or discontinued where reasonably necessary because of technical, contractual, commercial, legal or provider-related circumstances.

10. Accuracy of External Information

Research information obtained from independent external sources may contain omissions, delayed updates, duplicate records, incorrect associations, inconsistent publication information, outdated metrics, or other inaccuracies.

Research metrics may also change over time as external databases update their records. BytesWrite therefore does not guarantee that externally sourced publication information, citation information, indexing information, or journal metrics will always be complete, current or error-free.

Where information is being used for a material academic, accreditation, regulatory, employment or institutional decision, the Institution should verify the relevant information against appropriate authoritative sources.

11. AI-Assisted and Automated Features

TRACER may use automated systems and third-party artificial-intelligence services to assist with selected research-information workflows (such as structuring research metadata, completing selected fields, assisting record association, and improving workflow efficiency).

Automated or AI-assisted results may be incomplete or inaccurate. Such results should not be treated as authoritative solely because they were generated automatically.

Where authoritative information is required, appropriate institutional verification or authoritative external sources should be used.

BytesWrite may modify, replace or discontinue the technology used to provide automated or AI-assisted functionality.

12. Restricted and Sensitive Information

Users should not upload information that is unnecessary for the relevant TRACER workflow.

Unless a particular category of information is specifically supported by an Institution’s configured workflow or expressly agreed with BytesWrite, users should not upload information such as account passwords, authentication secrets, payment-card credentials, unnecessary government-identity documents, medical records, unrelated financial credentials, highly sensitive personal documents, or information that the user is not authorized to provide.

Where a supported institutional workflow legitimately requires sensitive supporting information, access and use should remain limited to the relevant institutional purpose.

13. Acceptable Use

Users must not use TRACER to:

• violate applicable law;
• infringe another person’s intellectual-property, privacy or confidentiality rights;
• impersonate another person;
• intentionally submit fraudulent or materially false records;
• introduce malicious software;
• attempt unauthorized access;
• circumvent permissions, authentication or security controls;
• interfere with the normal operation of TRACER;
• conduct unauthorized vulnerability testing;
• systematically scrape or extract TRACER content through unauthorized automated methods;
• reverse engineer protected parts of the Service except where such restriction is prohibited by applicable law;
• share credentials with unauthorized persons; or
• use external research information in violation of applicable rights or licences.

14. Third-Party Services

TRACER may rely upon third-party technology and information services to provide certain functionality, including services supporting infrastructure, storage, authentication, communications, analytics, security, research information, artificial intelligence, and other operational functions.

Third-party services operate independently and may be subject to their own terms, availability and technical limitations.

BytesWrite is not responsible for changes, interruptions or restrictions imposed independently by a third-party service where those matters are outside BytesWrite’s reasonable control.

15. Intellectual Property

TRACER and the technology used to provide it remain the property of BytesWrite or its licensors. This includes software, source code, platform architecture, interfaces, workflows, proprietary logic, algorithms, designs, templates, documentation, branding, and other technology developed by BytesWrite.

The Institution retains its rights in Customer Data and customer-specific content. BytesWrite’s ownership of software, templates, layouts or platform technology does not give BytesWrite ownership of the Institution’s underlying research information.

Similarly, third-party research information remains subject to the applicable rights and licences governing its source.

Nothing in these Terms grants users a right to obtain or reproduce BytesWrite’s source code, proprietary algorithms, internal architecture or confidential implementation methods.

16. Confidentiality

Non-public information disclosed between BytesWrite and an Institution may be subject to confidentiality obligations contained in their applicable institutional agreement.

Users must not improperly disclose confidential information accessed through TRACER.

Public information intentionally authorized for public display is not confidential merely because it is also maintained within TRACER.

More detailed confidentiality obligations applicable to an institutional customer may be established in the applicable written agreement.

17. Privacy and Data Protection

Processing of personal information through TRACER is described in the TRACER Privacy Policy.

Where required or agreed, BytesWrite and an Institution may also enter into a separate data-processing arrangement governing institutional personal data.

The Privacy Policy explains general data-processing practices. It does not replace institution-specific contractual arrangements where separate obligations have been agreed.

18. Security

BytesWrite applies technical and organizational measures designed to protect the Service and information processed through TRACER.

Institutions and users also have responsibilities relating to account security, appropriate assignment of permissions, protection of credentials, authorized use, and prompt reporting of suspected unauthorized access.

No internet-based service can guarantee absolute security.

19. Service Availability

BytesWrite seeks to maintain reliable availability of TRACER.

However, unless a separate written Service Level Agreement expressly provides otherwise, these Terms do not create a guarantee of a particular uptime percentage, uninterrupted operation, a specific response or processing speed, real-time synchronization with external systems, a particular release frequency, or a specific technical-support response time.

Temporary interruptions may occur because of maintenance, upgrades, infrastructure events, security work, third-party outages or circumstances outside BytesWrite’s reasonable control.

Any guaranteed service level or service-credit arrangement must be expressly stated in an applicable institutional agreement or SLA.

20. Support

Implementation, support, training and related services may vary depending upon the Institution’s subscription and applicable agreement.

Specific support hours, response targets, escalation procedures or service commitments apply only where expressly agreed.

General product descriptions, demonstrations or marketing material do not create a separate support SLA unless expressly incorporated into a written agreement.

21. Fees and Commercial Terms

Subscription fees, implementation charges, taxes, payment schedules, renewal arrangements and other commercial matters are governed by the applicable Order Form, proposal, purchase order, institutional agreement, or other agreed commercial document.

Agreed institutional pricing may be modified only in accordance with the applicable commercial or institutional agreement.

22. Suspension

BytesWrite may temporarily restrict or suspend access where reasonably necessary because of a material security threat, unauthorized use, unlawful activity, a material violation of these Terms, activity that threatens the Service or another user, a legal or regulatory requirement, or payment-related circumstances where suspension is permitted under the applicable agreement.

Where reasonably practical, BytesWrite will seek to provide notice before suspension except where immediate action is appropriate for security, legal or emergency reasons.

23. Term and Termination

The subscription term applicable to an Institution is determined by its applicable commercial or institutional agreement.

Upon expiry or termination, user access may cease, applicable outstanding obligations remain due, institutional information will be handled according to the applicable contractual and legal requirements, and provisions that are intended by their nature to survive termination will continue to apply.

Termination of an institutional subscription may also result in the discontinuation of public-facing services associated with that deployment.

24. Data Export and Deletion

TRACER may provide data-export functionality for supported information.

Specific arrangements concerning export format, transition assistance, availability after termination, deletion from active systems, retention required by law, and backup lifecycle may be governed by the Institution’s applicable agreement or data-processing arrangement.

Retention and deletion periods may vary by data category, institutional instructions, contractual requirements and applicable law.

25. Service Changes

BytesWrite may update TRACER over time to improve functionality, improve security, respond to technical requirements, support legal or regulatory changes, update external integrations, replace obsolete functionality, or introduce new functionality.

Individual technical components, external providers and implementation methods may change as the platform develops.

Where an Institution has specifically contracted for defined functionality, the applicable institutional agreement will govern BytesWrite’s obligations concerning that functionality.

Requests for changes beyond the contracted scope do not automatically become part of the subscribed Service. BytesWrite may decide to incorporate a requested change into the general product where it corrects, improves or meaningfully develops TRACER. Institution-specific customization or development may be separately scoped and may be subject to additional charges, timelines and written agreement.

26. No Accreditation or Institutional Outcome Guarantee

TRACER is designed to support research management, institutional reporting and related workflows.

Use of TRACER does not guarantee accreditation, regulatory approval, institutional ranking, research ranking, funding, publication acceptance, academic assessment outcomes, or any particular decision by an accreditation, ranking, regulatory or governmental authority.

TRACER may help Institutions organize information relevant to such processes, but final requirements and decisions remain with the Institution and the relevant authority.

27. Disclaimer

TRACER is intended to assist institutional research-management activities.

Except where an executed institutional agreement expressly provides otherwise, BytesWrite does not guarantee that TRACER will always operate without interruption, that every software defect will be eliminated, that all external research information will be accurate, that automated or AI-assisted results will always be correct, that every third-party service will remain available, or that use of TRACER will produce any particular institutional or academic result.

Nothing in this section excludes rights or obligations that cannot legally be excluded.

28. Liability and Indemnification

29. Force Majeure

Neither BytesWrite nor an Institution will be responsible for delay or failure to perform an obligation to the extent caused by events reasonably outside that party’s control.

Such events may include natural disasters, governmental action, widespread telecommunications failures, major infrastructure disruptions, war, civil disturbance, labour disruption or other comparable circumstances.

This provision does not excuse payment obligations that became due before the relevant event. It also does not excuse a party from obligations that applicable law does not permit it to exclude.

30. Governing Law

Unless an executed institutional agreement expressly provides otherwise, these Terms are governed by the laws of India, and disputes subject to court proceedings will be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the competent courts in Delhi, India.

An applicable institutional agreement may specify arbitration or another agreed dispute-resolution mechanism. Where that agreement does not expressly provide an alternative forum or mechanism, the competent courts in Delhi, India will have exclusive jurisdiction.

31. Electronic Acceptance and Communications

TRACER may use electronic methods for notices, account actions, acknowledgments and other communications where legally permitted.

Indian law recognizes contracts formed using electronic records and provides that a contract cannot be treated as unenforceable solely because electronic means were used in its formation.

For institutional customers, the applicable written agreement determines which documents require formal execution or authorized acceptance.

32. Changes to These Terms

BytesWrite may update these Terms to reflect changes to TRACER, legal or regulatory developments, security requirements, service changes, or operational requirements.

The current version will display its effective date, last-updated date and version. Where required by applicable law or contract, additional notice of material changes will be provided.

Updates to these Terms do not modify an executed agreement with an Institution unless agreed in accordance with that agreement.

33. General

If any provision of these Terms is found unenforceable, the remaining provisions will continue to apply to the extent permitted by law.

A failure to immediately enforce a right does not automatically waive that right.

Nothing in these Terms creates a partnership, joint venture, employment relationship or agency between BytesWrite and an Institution unless expressly agreed in writing.

No person other than the relevant parties receives contractual rights under these Terms merely because they may benefit from the Service.

34. Contact

Questions regarding these Terms or TRACER may be directed to:

BytesWrite Solution Private Limited
Delhi, India

Contact: admin@byteswrite.com