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Terms of Service

This English version is a translation for reference. If it differs from the Japanese version, the Japanese version prevails. 日本語版

These Terms of Service (the "Terms") set out the conditions for using the Avalanche Database operated by the Alpine Avalanche Research Institute, a general incorporated association (hereinafter "AARI") (this includes the website at https://avalanche-data-base.online/ and the screens that you add to your home screen; hereinafter the "Service").

Article 1 (Scope, and documents that form part of these Terms)

  1. These Terms apply to the relationship between AARI and everyone who uses the Service (hereinafter "users") in connection with the use of the Service.
  2. The "Disclaimer" posted on the Service forms part of these Terms. For those who use the External API described in Article 9, the "API Terms of Use" also form part of these Terms.
  3. How AARI handles information about users is set out in the "Privacy Policy".

Article 2 (Definitions)

  1. "Members" means those who have registered as members under Article 4.
  2. "Post" means sending an avalanche record to the Service, or the record that was sent (the date and time of occurrence, the location and lines marked on the map, the avalanche type, size and dimensions, snow properties, snow and weather items, text, photos, and so on).
  3. "Poster" means a person who has made a post. This includes people who are not members.
  4. "External API" means the mechanism (https://avalanche-data-base.online/api/v1/) through which AARI provides part of the avalanche records as data to those to whom AARI has issued a key after receiving an application.

Article 3 (Agreement to these Terms)

  1. Those who register as members must tick the box agreeing to these Terms and the Privacy Policy on the registration screen when registering. Registration is not possible without ticking the box.
  2. Those who make a post agree to these Terms and the Privacy Policy by pressing the "Agree to the terms and post" button on the posting screen.
  3. When AARI revises these Terms, AARI will ask members to agree to the revised Terms the next time they log in. If a member presses "Do not agree", the member is logged out. Those who do not agree may contact info@alpsnadare.com, and AARI will delete their accounts.
  4. Those who view the Service without registering or posting must also read these Terms and the Disclaimer before using the Service.

Article 4 (Member registration)

  1. Registration is done by entering an email address, a password, a nickname and, if you have one, an avalanche-related qualification on the registration screen. Once registered, you can use the Service as a member right away.
  2. Those under 16 must obtain the consent of a parent or guardian before registering as a member or making a post.
  3. AARI may cancel a member's registration or suspend use of an account if any of the following applies to the member.
    1. The information given at registration was false.
    2. The member violated these Terms.
    3. There is a reason equivalent to the preceding two items, and it interferes with the operation of the Service.

Article 5 (Managing and deleting an account)

  1. Members must manage their own registered email address and password and must not let others use them.
  2. An operation performed by logging in with a member's email address and password is treated as an operation by that member. However, this does not apply if it was used by another person through the intent or negligence of AARI.
  3. Members may delete their accounts at any time from "Delete account" on My page. The information that remains after deletion is set out in the Privacy Policy.

Article 6 (Posts)

  1. Posters must observe the following.
    1. Write as accurately as they can about an avalanche they saw or know for certain about.
    2. Use photos that they took themselves or that the photographer has permitted them to use.
    3. Do not include in photos or text information by which a person can be identified, such as another person's name, face or vehicle license plate (if such information is included, the consent of that person must be obtained).
    4. Do not write about matters concerning a person's health, such as the condition of injuries or transport to a hospital.
  2. AARI may check the format of a post and obvious errors. AARI may mark a record it has checked to show that it has been checked. This check does not guarantee that everything in a post is correct.
  3. If a post violates paragraph 1, contains information by which a person can be identified, falls under a prohibited act in Article 11, or is clearly very different from the facts, AARI may remove all or part of the post from public view, blur part of a photo, or contact the poster and ask the poster to correct it.
  4. Members can edit and delete their own posts from "My posts" on My page. Those who are not members and wish to edit or delete a post should contact info@alpsnadare.com (how AARI confirms the person's identity is set out in the Privacy Policy).

Article 7 (Rights in posts, and use by AARI)

  1. The copyright in a post remains with the poster (or the original rights holder of the photo or text).
  2. Posters grant AARI permission to use their posts (including photos and text) for the following purposes. The permission is free of charge, is not limited in period or territory, and is non-exclusive (posters may also grant permission to others). Use includes reproduction and public transmission, as well as resizing and cropping photos to fit the display and the blurring in paragraph 3 of the preceding Article.
    1. Publishing them on the Service (the items that are published are set out in the Privacy Policy)
    2. Using them for avalanche investigation and research, and publishing the results (statistics, figures, papers, and so on)
    3. Using them to introduce the Service, and in courses and reports on avalanche safety
  3. Of the items in a post, posters permit AARI to provide the following to third parties who have agreed to the API Terms of Use through the External API, and permit those third parties to use them within the scope of the API Terms of Use: the date and time of occurrence; the location and lines (crown, runout path, extent); the place name and mountain area; the prefecture and municipality; the elevation; the aspect and angle of the slope; the avalanche type, size, dimensions (width, length, crown depth) and trigger; the snow properties (moisture, sliding surface); the snow and weather items; and the record number and the date and time of posting and update. The reporter name, avalanche qualification, text, photos, injury items, email address and contact details are not provided through the External API.
  4. Posters will not exercise moral rights of authors with regard to the resizing, cropping and blurring of photos in paragraph 2.
  5. When a post is deleted, AARI stops publishing it on the Service and providing it through the External API. AARI continues to use it as an operational record for avalanche investigation and research (paragraph 2, item 2). Data provided through the External API before deletion, and research results already published, cannot be taken back. However, where necessary to protect an individual's rights, AARI will ask API users to delete that record (Article 8 of the API Terms of Use).

Article 8 (Member benefits)

AARI may provide benefits to members according to, for example, the number of records among a member's posts that AARI has checked. The content and conditions of the benefits will be shown on the Service. AARI may change the benefits or discontinue them. In that case, AARI will give advance notice on the Service.

Article 9 (External API)

The External API can be used only by those who have applied and to whom AARI has issued a key. How to apply, and the scope and conditions of use, are set out in the API Terms of Use.

Article 10 (Data sources)

The Service uses data from sources such as the Geospatial Information Authority of Japan (GSI), the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA), Copernicus (European Union), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and OpenStreetMap. Each source, its conditions of use, and what AARI has processed are shown under "Data sources" in the Disclaimer.

Article 11 (Prohibited acts)

In using the Service, users must not do any of the following.

  1. Act in violation of laws and regulations or public order and morals
  2. Deliberately post a record that differs from the facts, or a record of an avalanche they did not see
  3. Infringe the copyright, portrait rights, privacy, reputation or other rights of AARI or a third party
  4. Try to identify a poster or any other individual from information recorded on the Service
  5. Place an excessive load on the servers of the Service, or interfere with the operation of the Service
  6. Access, or attempt to access, the Service without authorization
  7. Register as a member with another person's email address, or impersonate another person
  8. Collect the records of the Service in bulk by any method other than the External API (such as automated reading of screens)
  9. Based on the records or displays of the Service, issue avalanche, snow cover or weather forecasts or warnings to others without a permit under the Meteorological Service Act
  10. Provide benefits to antisocial forces

Article 12 (Measures in case of violation)

If a user violates these Terms, AARI may remove the user's posts from public view, suspend use of the account, cancel the member registration, or suspend the External API key.

Article 13 (Suspension of the Service)

  1. In the following cases, AARI may suspend all or part of the Service without prior notice.
    1. When inspecting or updating servers or programs, or responding to a failure
    2. When the Service cannot be provided because of an earthquake, lightning, fire, power outage, natural disaster or other disaster
    3. When JMA, GSI or another data provider stops or changes the delivery of data
    4. In addition to the preceding items, when there are unavoidable circumstances that prevent the Service from being provided
  2. Damages caused to users by suspending the Service are governed by Article 15.

Article 14 (Changes to and termination of the Service)

  1. AARI may change the content of the Service or terminate the Service.
  2. When terminating the Service, AARI will give notice on the Service at least 1 month before the termination date. If a member so requests, AARI will give the member a record of that member's posts by the termination date.
  3. Damages caused to users by changes to or termination of the Service are governed by Article 15.

Article 15 (Responsibility of AARI)

  1. The information in the Service (avalanche records, snow depth and snowfall values, weather maps, maps, slope angles and so on) is one input for decisions in the mountains. Users must decide for themselves whether to go into the mountains and which slopes to enter, based on their own observations on site, the warnings and advisories of JMA (such as avalanche advisories) and local avalanche information.
  2. AARI does not guarantee that the information in the Service is accurate, complete or up to date.
  3. If a user suffers damage from using the Service or from being unable to use the Service, AARI is responsible as follows.
    1. If AARI acted with intent or gross negligence, AARI will compensate in accordance with laws and regulations.
    2. If AARI acted with slight negligence (negligence other than gross negligence), AARI will compensate only for damages that would ordinarily arise, and will not compensate for damages arising from special circumstances (including lost profits). However, this limitation does not apply to damage to a person's life or body, for which AARI will compensate in accordance with laws and regulations.
    3. If AARI acted with neither intent nor negligence, AARI will not compensate.
  4. The preceding paragraph also applies to those who use the Service for business.
  5. If a dispute arises between users, or between a user and a third party, in connection with the Service, the parties must resolve it between themselves. However, if a user suffers damage through the intent or negligence of AARI, paragraph 3 applies.

Article 16 (Information about users)

AARI handles the information about users that it obtains through the Service in accordance with the Privacy Policy.

Article 17 (Changes to these Terms)

  1. AARI will change these Terms only if either of the following applies.
    1. The change conforms to the general interests of users.
    2. The change does not run counter to the purpose of these Terms and is reasonable in light of the necessity of the change, the appropriateness of the revised content and other circumstances.
  2. When changing these Terms, AARI will set the date on which the change takes effect, and will give notice, by posting on the Service at least 2 weeks before that date, that the Terms will be changed, of the revised content, and of the effective date. However, a change under item 1 of the preceding paragraph may take effect in a period shorter than 2 weeks.
  3. A change that widens the permission to use posts (Article 7) applies only to posts made after the date on which the change takes effect. To apply it to earlier posts, AARI will obtain the posters' consent.
  4. As stated in Article 3, paragraph 3, AARI will ask members to agree to the revised Terms the next time they log in.

Article 18 (Language)

These Terms are made in Japanese. The English and Chinese versions are translations for reference. If they differ from the Japanese version, the Japanese version prevails.

Article 19 (Governing law and court)

  1. These Terms are interpreted in accordance with the laws of Japan.
  2. If litigation becomes necessary between AARI and a user in connection with the Service, the district court having jurisdiction over the location of AARI's principal office is the exclusive agreed court of first instance.

Supplementary provisions

  1. These Terms apply from October 19, 2026.
  2. AARI will ask members who registered before October 19, 2026 to agree to these Terms the next time they log in.
  3. Posts made before October 19, 2026 continue to be published on the Service in accordance with the terms of service in effect when they were posted. They are not provided through the External API (unless AARI obtains the poster's consent again). Those who wish to stop the publication should contact AARI by the method in Article 6, paragraph 4.

Enacted: July 21, 2025
Revised: October 19, 2026
Alpine Avalanche Research Institute (General Incorporated Association)

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