Canary Terms of Use

1. About Canary and access to the application

Canary is a private analytics application used to support content analysis, research, reporting and consulting work.

Canary is not publicly accessible. Access is restricted to authorised users and may be provided temporarily to platform providers, auditors or reviewers where required for compliance, technical review or API-access purposes.

Consulting clients, members of the public and other third parties do not receive access to Canary as part of Canary’s current operating model. Consulting clients may receive reports, analysis, findings and strategic insights prepared using Canary, but they do not receive access to the underlying application.

Canary is not offered to consulting clients as a software service.

These Terms are made publicly available for transparency and compliance purposes. Their publication does not make Canary publicly accessible.

2. YouTube API Services

Canary uses YouTube API Services, including the YouTube Data API v3, to obtain publicly available information relating to selected public YouTube channels and videos.

By accessing or using Canary, you also agree to be bound by the YouTube Terms of Service:

https://www.youtube.com/t/terms

Canary’s use of YouTube API Services is also subject to the applicable YouTube API Services Terms of Service, Developer Policies and other applicable requirements.

Canary currently accesses public, non-authorised YouTube data. It does not require the owners of public YouTube channels being analysed to provide login credentials, authenticate with Canary using a Google Account, or grant Canary access to private or authorised YouTube account information.

Canary does not currently use YouTube API Services to take actions on behalf of YouTube users, such as uploading or editing content, managing playlists, posting comments or subscribing to channels.

3. TikTok public information

Canary also processes publicly available information relating to selected TikTok accounts and publications.

This information is currently collected from publicly accessible TikTok pages and interfaces rather than through an official TikTok API integration.

Canary does not require the owners of the TikTok accounts being analysed to provide login credentials or authorise Canary to access their accounts.

Canary preserves the provenance of this information and does not represent manually collected public TikTok information as information obtained through an official TikTok API.

Canary’s collection and use of TikTok information is subject to applicable TikTok terms and policies.

TikTok is not affiliated with Canary and does not sponsor, approve or endorse Canary or Canary-generated analysis.

4. Platform data and provenance

Canary distinguishes between information obtained from third-party platforms and information independently created by Canary.

Where information is obtained through YouTube API Services, its YouTube API provenance is preserved. Where TikTok information is collected manually from publicly accessible sources, that collection method is preserved.

Canary does not knowingly misrepresent the source, provenance or collection method of platform information, or represent Canary-generated information as information supplied by a third-party platform.

5. Canary-generated classifications and analytics

Canary applies independently developed analytical methods and proprietary classification frameworks to analysed social-media content.

Canary may create classifications, derived metrics, benchmarks, comparisons and other analytical outputs from available source-platform information.

These outputs are independently created by Canary. They are not classifications, metrics, calculations or conclusions supplied, approved or endorsed by YouTube, TikTok, Google or their respective operators.

Raw platform information retains its original meaning and provenance.

Where a calculation requires source information that is unavailable, Canary does not knowingly represent an invented or assumed value as though it had been supplied by the source platform.

6. Permitted use

Canary may be used for legitimate analytical, research, reporting and consulting purposes, including:

• analysing publicly available account and content-performance information;
• conducting historical and comparative analysis;
• benchmarking defined groups of content;
• applying Canary’s proprietary analytical and classification methods;
• identifying content-performance patterns;
• preparing research and internal analysis; and
• preparing consulting reports, findings and strategic insights.

Use of third-party platform information must remain consistent with the terms, policies and permissions applicable to the relevant source.

7. Prohibited use

Canary must not be used to:

• obtain or attempt to obtain passwords or login credentials belonging to third-party Google, YouTube or TikTok users;
• circumvent platform authentication, authorisation or access controls;
• access private platform information without appropriate authorisation;
• falsely represent the source, provenance or collection method of information;
• represent Canary-generated analytics or classifications as official platform metrics or classifications;
• disclose protected API credentials or system secrets to unauthorised persons;
• obtain YouTube information through methods prohibited by the applicable YouTube terms and policies;
• use YouTube API Services in a manner prohibited by the applicable YouTube API Services Terms of Service, Developer Policies or other applicable requirements;
• sell, sublicense or provide unauthorised access to YouTube API Services; or
• falsely imply that Canary is sponsored, approved or endorsed by YouTube, Google, TikTok or another third-party platform.

8. Data storage and retention

Canary stores, refreshes and deletes information in accordance with the Canary Privacy Policy and the requirements applicable to the relevant data source.

YouTube API data is refreshed, retained or deleted in accordance with applicable YouTube API Services policies and any additional permissions granted to Canary.

Where an applicable permission allows eligible statistical data or derived metrics to be retained for an extended period, Canary may retain that information only to the extent and for the period permitted by that approval.

Other YouTube API data remains subject to the applicable standard refresh and deletion requirements.

Manually collected public TikTok observations may be retained where required for legitimate historical analysis, benchmarking, reporting and consulting purposes, subject to the Canary Privacy Policy and applicable requirements.

9. Consulting outputs

Canary may be used to prepare reports, analysis, findings and strategic recommendations for consulting clients.

Those outputs may combine publicly available platform information with Canary’s independent classifications, calculations and analysis.

Providing a consulting output to a client does not provide that client with access to Canary’s application, credentials, databases, infrastructure, source code or underlying platform integrations.

10. Privacy

Use of Canary is subject to the Canary Privacy Policy.

The Canary Privacy Policy explains how Canary collects, processes, stores, uses, shares, refreshes and deletes information.

Canary’s use of YouTube API Services is also subject to Google’s privacy practices:

https://policies.google.com/privacy

11. Third-party platforms

Canary depends in part on information and services made available by third-party platforms.

Those platforms operate independently of Canary and may change their services, APIs, interfaces, data availability, policies or terms without notice to Canary.

Nothing in these Terms creates a partnership, agency, sponsorship or endorsement relationship between Canary and YouTube, Google, TikTok or any other third-party platform.

Use of or reference to third-party platform names, information or services remains subject to the rights and terms applicable to those third parties.

12. Intellectual property

Canary’s software, application interface, analytical methodologies, taxonomies, classifications, reports and other independently created materials are proprietary to Canary or its operator, except where third-party rights apply.

Third-party content, platform information, trademarks and other third-party materials remain subject to the rights of their respective owners.

Nothing in these Terms transfers ownership of third-party content or platform information to Canary.

Access to Canary does not grant any right to obtain, copy, reproduce, reverse engineer, distribute or otherwise access Canary’s source code, databases, infrastructure, credentials, proprietary methodologies or other non-public technical resources except where expressly authorised or required by applicable law.

13. Accuracy and analytical interpretation

Canary relies in part on information made available through third-party platforms.

Canary does not control the accuracy, completeness, availability or continued accessibility of information supplied or displayed by those platforms.

Platform information may change over time and may be unavailable, delayed, corrected or modified by the relevant platform.

Canary-generated classifications and analytics represent independent analytical outputs based on the information and methodology available at the relevant time. They should not be interpreted as official findings, metrics or conclusions of the underlying social-media platform.

14. Availability of Canary

Canary may be updated, modified, restricted, suspended or discontinued.

Changes made by third-party platforms may affect the information or functionality available through Canary.

15. Changes to Canary’s data practices

Any material change to the way Canary accesses, collects, processes, stores or shares platform information must be reviewed against the applicable platform requirements before the changed functionality is used.

Where such a change materially affects the practices described in the Canary Privacy Policy, that policy will also be updated as appropriate.

16. Limitation of liability

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, Canary and its operator will not be liable for indirect, incidental, consequential, special or similar loss arising solely from:

• use of Canary;
• temporary or permanent unavailability of Canary;
• changes to or unavailability of third-party platforms;
• inaccuracies or omissions in information supplied by third-party platforms; or
• reliance on Canary-generated analysis.

Nothing in these Terms excludes, restricts or limits any liability that cannot lawfully be excluded, restricted or limited.

17. Changes to these Terms

These Terms may be updated when Canary’s functionality, operating model, data practices, third-party integrations or applicable legal or platform requirements change.

The effective date shown at the top identifies the current version.

Where continued acceptance is required, continued authorised use of Canary after updated Terms take effect constitutes acceptance of the updated Terms to the extent permitted by applicable law.

18. Contact

Questions about Canary’s privacy or data-processing practices may be directed to:

CANARY INSIGHTS (PTY) LTD (2026/197523/07)
NATASHA@CANARYINSIGHTS.CO.ZA
1 CENTURY BOULEVARD, CENTURY CITY, CAPE TOWN, 7441