1. Purpose

These Terms of Use (“Terms”) govern access to and use of the adap.pt website, a non-commercial community platform open to anyone living in Portugal or planning to settle there, whatever their language, and first and foremost to French speakers. They apply to any person visiting the site (visitor) or holding an account (member).

The identification of the site’s publisher appears in the Legal Notice. The processing of personal data is detailed in the Privacy Policy.

2. Acceptance of the Terms

Creating an account on adap.pt implies full and unconditional acceptance of these Terms. Certain areas or groups on the site (see Article 9) may be subject to additional conditions, accepted separately when joining those areas.

3. Access to the site

3.1 Public area

Part of the content (blog, practical guides, general information pages) is freely accessible to any visitor, without registration.

3.2 Area reserved for registered members

Other features (community social network, certain groups, member-to-member exchanges) require creating an account. Some groups may also require a specific joining process (see Article 9).

4. Creating and managing an account

• Registration is free and requires providing a valid email address and accurate information.
• Each member is responsible for the confidentiality of their login credentials and for any activity carried out from their account.
• A member may request deletion of their account at any time by writing to dpo@adap.pt.
• ADAP reserves the right to suspend or delete an account in the event of a breach of these Terms (see Article 8).

5. Member identity

5.1 A real identity, declared at registration

ADAP is built on trust between its members: behind every account is a real person whose registration request has been reviewed. This is why registering under a real identity (first and last name) is a condition for accessing the platform. Any false statement results in immediate exclusion of the account.

This identity is not displayed on the site. It is known only to the site’s publisher, who uses it to review registration requests, keep the platform secure and respond to the authorities when required by law. The pseudonym described below therefore does not make a member anonymous to ADAP.

5.2 A pseudonym, displayed on the site

When first logging in, each member chooses a pseudonym. This is the name under which they appear everywhere on the site, and it is also their login username.

A pseudonym must comply with the following rules:

• be between 3 and 30 characters long;
• contain only letters, numbers, spaces, hyphens or underscores, and begin and end with a letter or a number;
• not already be used by another member;
• contain neither an email address nor a website address;
• not be exactly a term reserved for the operation of the site (for example “admin”, “ADAP”, “moderator” or “support”).

A pseudonym must not be used to pass oneself off as someone else: using the name of an existing real person in order to impersonate them constitutes identity theft, punishable by law.

A pseudonym that breaches these Terms, or that is likely to cause confusion, may be changed by ADAP after informing the member. A member who wishes to change their pseudonym may request it by writing to dpo@adap.pt.

6. Rules of conduct

By using adap.pt, each member undertakes not to post content that is:

• illegal, defamatory, abusive, discriminatory, or that incites hatred;
• infringing on the privacy or image of a third party;
• misleading or clearly inaccurate, presented as established fact;
• of an unauthorised commercial nature (solicitation, spam);
• infringing on a third party’s intellectual property rights.

This rule applies to the entire site, including specific groups and modules (AdapSorties, AdapRetex, community forums, etc.).

7. Content posted by members

7.1 Author’s responsibility

Each member is solely responsible for the content they post on adap.pt. The site acts as a host of this content, not as a publisher, in accordance with the liability regime applicable to providers of information society services.

7.2 Licence granted to the site

By posting content on adap.pt, the member retains their rights to that content and grants the site a non-exclusive, free-of-charge licence, limited to the duration of the publication, allowing the content to be displayed on the site as part of its normal operation.

7.3 Photos posted by members

By posting a photo, whether on an outing, a forum, their profile or any other area of the site, the member guarantees that they took it themselves or have the permission of its author, and that any recognisable people in the photo have given their consent. ADAP may remove any image, in particular at the request of a person who appears in it.

7.4 Moderation and reporting

Content posted by members in the site’s shared areas (activity feed, groups, comments on outings) is moderated after the fact: it is not systematically validated in advance, and may be removed at any time if it breaches these Terms. Two exceptions: every outing is validated by ADAP before it is published (see Article 9.1); and a member’s first comment on the site is manually validated before publication, their subsequent comments being published directly. This approach may evolve as the community grows; these Terms will then be updated accordingly.

Private messaging between members is an exception: as a matter of principle, it is neither moderated nor monitored. A member who receives an abusive message, or who has a problem with another member, may report it by writing to dpo@adap.pt, attaching a copy of the message concerned if possible.

Any content may be reported by a member or visitor to dpo@adap.pt, specifying the content concerned and the reason for the report. Receipt of the report is acknowledged within a reasonable time, followed by a decision on the appropriate follow-up (keeping the content, requesting the author to amend it, or removing it), in accordance with the rules of conduct set out in Article 6.

7.5 Right of reply for third parties

Any person or entity mentioned in content posted on adap.pt, even if not a member of the site, may request the correction or removal of content concerning them by writing to dpo@adap.pt.

8. Penalties for non-compliance

In the event of a breach of these Terms, ADAP may, depending on the severity:

• remove the content concerned;
• refuse or remove an outing;
• change a pseudonym that breaches Article 5.2;
• issue a warning to the member;
• temporarily suspend the account;
• permanently delete the account.

These measures are taken without prejudice to any legal action by aggrieved parties.

9. Outings, groups and specific areas

9.1 Outings (AdapSorties)

• Any member may propose an outing. Each outing is reviewed by ADAP before it is published.
• An outing must be neither contrary to the law nor contrary to the spirit of the network: mutual help, conviviality and respect for everyone. ADAP may refuse an outing, remove it at any time, and suspend its organiser’s account in the event of a breach (see Article 8).
• The organiser is solely responsible for the outing they propose: its organisation, how it unfolds, and compliance with the rules specific to the venue or activity. ADAP puts members in touch with one another; it does not organise outings and is not a co-organiser of them.
• The intended audience of an outing (open to all, reserved for members or for a group) is set when it is published and cannot be changed afterwards. An outing reserved for a group is neither visible nor accessible to other members.
• Any logged-in member who can see an outing may report it to ADAP using the short form on its page.

9.2 Specific groups and areas

Certain groups or modules of the site may be subject to rules in addition to these Terms, in particular:

• a specific joining procedure (membership request, acceptance of group-specific conditions);
• content rules adapted to the purpose of the group.

This is notably the case for the service-provider feedback module, reserved for members who have explicitly joined the dedicated group and accepted its specific terms.

10. Intellectual property of the site

The name “ADAP”, the logo, the graphic identity and the content written by the site’s publisher are protected under the terms set out in the Legal Notice.

11. Protection of personal data

The processing of personal data collected via adap.pt (account, forms, content, etc.) is detailed in the site’s Privacy Policy, in accordance with the GDPR. The competent supervisory authority is the CNPD (Comissão Nacional de Proteção de Dados — www.cnpd.pt).

12. Availability and liability

• adap.pt is a community site run on a non-commercial basis. No guarantee of continuous availability is provided.
• Practical information (guides, responses from the AdapGuide assistant, AdapVeille content) is provided for informational purposes only and does not replace professional advice (legal, tax, administrative). Each member remains responsible for verifying this information with the relevant authorities or professionals before making any decision.
• ADAP cannot be held liable for damages resulting from the use of, or the inability to use, the site.

13. Amendment of the Terms

These Terms may be amended at any time, in particular to accompany the evolution of the site’s features. Members will be informed of any substantial change. Continued use of the site after an amendment constitutes acceptance of the new Terms.

14. Applicable law and disputes

The site is published from Portugal by a private individual established there. Unless mandatory legal provisions state otherwise (in particular consumer-protection rules that may apply depending on the user’s country of residence), Portuguese law applies and the Portuguese courts have sole jurisdiction over any dispute relating to the use of the site.

15. Contact

For any question regarding these Terms: francois.wilman@adap.pt
For any question regarding your personal data or to report content: dpo@adap.pt