Terms of Service

1. Introduction and Acceptance

These Terms of Service (“Terms”) are a legally binding agreement between you (“User,” “you,” or “your”) and the ChefItUp team (“ChefItUp,” “we,” “us,” or “our”), based in New York, United States.

By accessing or using ChefItUp's website, application, or related services (collectively, the “Service”), you confirm that you are at least 13 years of age, have read and understood these Terms, and agree to be bound by them. If you are using the Service on behalf of an organization, you represent that you have authority to bind that organization.

2. Eligibility and Account Registration

To use ChefItUp you must:

• Be at least 13 years of age (16 in the European Union).
• Provide accurate, current, and complete registration information and keep it updated.
• Maintain the confidentiality of your password. You are solely responsible for all activity that occurs under your account.
• Notify us immediately at legal@chefitup.app if you suspect unauthorized access to your account.
• Not create an account if you have been previously banned from the Service.

ChefItUp reserves the right to refuse registration, suspend, or terminate accounts at our sole discretion for violations of these Terms.

3. Description of Service

ChefItUp is a recipe discovery and kitchen management platform. It allows you to:

• Track pantry and fridge inventory, including ingredient expiration dates.
• Receive recipe suggestions based on available ingredients and dietary preferences.
• Save, organize, and share favorite recipes.
• Participate in a community feed by posting, liking, commenting, and following other users.
• Set dietary preferences, allergies, and food dislikes to personalize recommendations.

We reserve the right to modify, suspend, or discontinue any part of the Service at any time without notice or liability.

4. Acceptable Use Policy

You may not use ChefItUp to:

• Post content that is unlawful, harmful, threatening, abusive, harassing, defamatory, obscene, or hateful.
• Impersonate any person or entity or falsely state your affiliation.
• Engage in spam, unsolicited advertising, phishing, or any fraudulent activity.
• Scrape, crawl, or collect data from the Service through automated means without our written consent.
• Attempt to gain unauthorized access to any part of the Service, its servers, or databases.
• Upload or transmit viruses, malware, or any other malicious code.
• Violate any applicable local, state, national, or international law or regulation.
• Infringe the intellectual property rights of others.

We reserve the right to investigate violations and take appropriate action, including removing content, suspending accounts, and reporting to law enforcement.

5. User-Generated Content

You retain ownership of content you submit to ChefItUp (“User Content”). By submitting User Content, you grant ChefItUp a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free, sublicensable license to use, reproduce, modify, publish, and distribute that content in connection with operating and promoting the Service.

You represent and warrant that:

• You own or have the necessary rights to submit the User Content.
• Your User Content does not infringe any third-party intellectual property, privacy, or other rights.
• Your User Content is accurate and does not contain false or misleading information.

ChefItUp does not endorse User Content and reserves the right to remove any content that violates these Terms.

6. Intellectual Property

The Service and its original content, features, functionality, logos, and trademarks (excluding User Content) are the exclusive property of ChefItUp, Inc. and its licensors. You may not copy, modify, distribute, sell, or lease any part of our Service without express written permission. Recipe data sourced from TheMealDB and other third-party providers is subject to their respective terms.

7. DMCA Copyright Policy

If you believe content on ChefItUp infringes your copyright, send a DMCA takedown notice to legal@chefitup.app. Your notice must include: (1) identification of the copyrighted work; (2) identification of the infringing material and its location; (3) your contact information; (4) a good faith belief statement; (5) a statement under penalty of perjury that your notice is accurate; and (6) your signature.

8. Privacy

Your use of the Service is subject to our Privacy Policy, incorporated into these Terms by reference. We do not sell your personal information to third parties.

9. Third-Party Services

The Service may link to third-party sites including TheMealDB, YouTube, and social media platforms. ChefItUp does not endorse and is not responsible for the content or practices of any third-party sites. Accessing them is at your own risk and subject to their respective terms.

10. Disclaimers and Limitation of Liability

THE SERVICE IS PROVIDED “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE” WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND. CHEFITUP DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES, INCLUDING IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT.

ChefItUp does not warrant that the Service will be error-free, uninterrupted, or secure. Recipe suggestions and nutritional information are for informational purposes only — not medical or dietary advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making significant dietary changes.

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, CHEFITUP IS NOT LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES. SINCE CHEFITUP IS FREE TO USE, OUR TOTAL LIABILITY TO YOU FOR ANY CLAIM SHALL NOT EXCEED $100 USD.

11. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless ChefItUp, Inc., its officers, directors, employees, and agents from any claims, liabilities, damages, and expenses (including legal fees) arising from your use of the Service, your User Content, or your violation of these Terms.

12. Termination

You may delete your account at any time by contacting legal@chefitup.app. ChefItUp may suspend or terminate your account at any time, with or without notice, for conduct that violates these Terms or is harmful to other users.

Upon deletion, your personal data will be removed in accordance with our Privacy Policy. Some data may be retained for legal and compliance purposes.

13. Changes to These Terms

We may modify these Terms at any time. We will notify you of material changes by posting the updated Terms here and updating the “Last updated” date. For significant changes, we may also email you. Continued use of the Service after changes constitutes acceptance of the new Terms.

14. Governing Law and Dispute Resolution

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of New York, United States. Any dispute arising out of or relating to these Terms or the Service shall first be attempted to be resolved through good-faith negotiation between the parties. ChefItUp is a student capstone project — we will always try to resolve any issue directly and fairly before any formal process is considered.

15. Miscellaneous

• Entire Agreement: These Terms, together with our Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy, are the entire agreement between you and ChefItUp.
• Severability: If any provision is unenforceable, the remaining provisions remain in full force.
• Waiver: Failure to enforce any right is not a waiver of that right.
• Assignment: You may not assign your rights without our consent. We may assign ours without restriction.
• Force Majeure: We are not liable for delays caused by circumstances beyond our reasonable control.

16. Contact