The following terms of use apply to each user of the AI chatbot JESS ("you" or "User"), hosted by the Craig Newmark School of Journalism at the City University of New York ("CUNY").
By accessing JESS and clicking "I accept," you acknowledge and agree that you have read, understood, and accepted these terms of use and the JESS privacy policy.
Disclaimer
JESS is intended solely as a resource for journalism safety for Users who are professionals – journalists, editors, professors, and students in higher education training to be journalists and editors. Do not use JESS if you are under the age of 18.
While JESS strives to provide accurate and helpful responses, information provided by JESS may imprecise or incomplete and contain unintended inaccuracies. As a User, you are responsible for your own decisions and actions based on the information provided by JESS. You acknowledge and agree that you will use JESS at your own risk.
Do not share Confidential Data during your conversations with JESS. Confidential Data may include personally identifiable information (PII) (e.g. immigration status), New York State private information (e.g. Social Security number, driver's license number, financial details), and protected health information (PHI) (e.g. health status) of yourself or others, and research data containing any of the foregoing regarding human subjects. For a full description of what constitutes Sensitive/Internal Data and what constitutes Confidential Data, please refer to the CUNY Data Classification Standard.
Ideas are currency in the world of journalism, so take every precaution to protect yours. Do not share your own intellectual property with JESS.
CUNY is not responsible or liable for any errors, omissions, inaccuracies, legal non-compliance, or other consequences arising out of or in connection with your access to or use of JESS. JESS' responses do not constitute legal, medical, financial, or professional advice. Furthermore, responses should not be used as a substitute for professional advice or used as the sole basis for automated decisions. For legal matters, consult a qualified attorney. Users are expected to apply appropriate human oversight, accuracy checks, and contextual judgment.
JESS is not intended for use as an "AI companion" under Article 47 of New York General Business Law and should not be used to seek advice on mental health, emotional struggles, or thoughts of self-harm. Use of JESS that puts yourself or others at risk is a violation of these terms of use. For medical concerns, seek advice or counseling from a licensed health care provider.
JESS provides a language translation feature which may not always be accurate or contextually precise. CUNY is not responsible for errors, misunderstandings, or misinterpretations. For critical or official translations, consult a professional.
No Liability
CUNY and its affiliates, partners, and employees shall not be held liable for any direct, indirect, incidental, consequential, or any other damages arising out of or in connection with your use of JESS or reliance on any information provided by JESS. This includes, but is not limited to, any errors or omissions in the content, loss of data, or business interruption. You are solely and strictly liable for all information you input and the consequences of sharing it with JESS.
You are solely responsible for obtaining all authorizations, licenses and consents necessary to share the information you input into JESS. When you provide any input into JESS, you represent and warrant that you have full authority to provide JESS with this information and that doing so will not violate any applicable law, third-party intellectual property or privacy rights, or any other contractual terms governing the information.
Users must use JESS in accordance with all applicable laws, regulations, and government orders, including export-control laws. Use of JESS for any activity that is illegal, harmful, deceptive, unsolicited, or poses a threat to the privacy or security of JESS violates these terms of use and is strictly prohibited. Users must not attempt to reverse-engineer or hack JESS or its underlying code.
Individual Use
JESS can be accessed solely by logging in with your unique username and password after using your name and email to set up an account. JESS should be used on a single-session-per-User basis, meaning, an individual User should only maintain one active sessions at a time, and your login credentials should only be used by you, not passed on or used by others.
Ownership
CUNY owns and retains all rights, title, and interest, including all intellectual property rights, to JESS and its data. CUNY may update, modify, or discontinue JESS at any time, in its sole discretion.
Changes to Terms of Use
We may change these terms of use and the JESS privacy policy from time to time and reserve the right to do so without notice. The information provided in these terms of use and the JESS privacy policy should not be construed as giving business, legal or other advice, or warranting as fail proof, the security of information provided through JESS.
Beta Testing
JESS is currently in its beta phase, which means that it is still under development and may contain errors and inaccuracies. By using JESS, you acknowledge and accept that the information provided may not be complete or fully reliable.
Contact Information
For questions regarding this privacy policy, please contact: privacy@cuny.edu