Introduction
These terms of use relate to the Alison platform and processes to deliver Alison Services. If you use Alison Services (a “User”) this policy applies to you and you are bound by it. If you disagree you must stop using Alison Services and close your User account.
Our commitment to each other
Capernaum Limited delivers online learning trading as “Alison”, and is located in Galway, Ireland. Alison provides free learning on a global scale for all Users, commercially made possible through online advertising and other optional paid services such as the purchase of certificates of completion (together hereinafter “Certificates”) for diploma and certificate courses. To operate successfully Alison Services as defined below are subject to the “Terms of Use” outlined herein. You, the User, hereby consent to these terms by continuing to use the Alison Services or by clicking on the content tickbox on registration. You should stop using the services if you do not agree with these terms. Alison reserves the right without notice to block or deactivate any User account that breaches these terms of use.
The detailed terms of use follow:
1. The User is granted a temporary, non-exclusive, non-transferable licence to access and view learning-related content on the “Alison platform” (including but not limited to the online APIs, internet websites, android/iOS mobile apps, and electronic content related to learning, careers, personal profiles and jobs) solely for non-commercial educational purposes for your own personal use (the “Alison Services”). All other uses are expressly prohibited without the express written agreement of Alison. The User is not allowed:
1.1. To copy, transfer, rebrand, sub-licence, reverse engineer, modify, repackage, sell or deliver Alison course material and content via any other third party Learning Management Systems or alternative online platforms.
1.2. To create and offer competing or derivative products and services to other third parties based on the Alison courses and content.
1.3. To transmit any data with embedded viruses, trojan horses, worms, time-bombs, keystroke loggers, spyware, adware or any other harmful programs or similar computer code designed to adversely affect the operation of any computer software or hardware.
2. The Alison Services include course content that is provided as is without further warranty or guarantee as to its completeness or accuracy.
2.1. The learning material is not a substitute for professional advice and should not be relied upon. The User acknowledges that they use this learning content at their own risk.
2.2. The User acknowledges that Alison and affiliates including publishers of the learning material expressly exclude, to the extent permitted by law, any and all:
2.2.1. warranties or assurances implied by statute, common law or law of equity on the delivery of the Alison Services;
2.2.2. liability for loss or damage, whether direct, indirect, consequential, or otherwise that results from the use of and reliance upon the Alison Services, or failure to use the Alison Services due to software bugs or loss of service.
3. In order to provide free Services Alison collects data to uniquely identify each registered user and provide online advertising through globally recognised third parties in keeping with different global data privacy regulations.
3.1. Alison’s Privacy and Data Protection Policy is publicly available on the Alison website and gives complete details on how Alison meets its obligations to registered learners.
3.1.1. You as the User agree to be bound by the Privacy and Data Protection Policy.
3.1.2. Individual User learner records will remain on the Alison platform unless the User explicitly closes their Alison account and requests your personal account data to be deleted.
3.2. Alison has a duty of care to its Users and learners to protect their personal information and learner records. This duty of care extends to the User to safeguard access credentials for the Alison platform.
3.2.1. Access to the Alison platform is strictly controlled and Alison shall ensure that security measures shall be no less rigorous than accepted industry practices with respect to Data Security.
3.2.2. If the User discovers a suspected security breach on their account the User must change their password immediately and contact Alison customer support immediately to facilitate investigation and minimise the impact of any breach.
4. Alison offers optional paid-for services including non-transferable Certificates as individual proof of study (both for certificate courses and diploma courses), other merchandise as well as a monthly renewable premium service that excludes advertising.
4.1. The Premium ad-free subscription will be enabled for a specific term as defined in the shopping basket depending on the option chosen by the User, typically for one month, one year, or a perpetual term that doesn’t end. The ad-free experience will be made available on the User account immediately upon payment validation of the relevant fee.
4.1.1. The monthly and yearly subscription shall renew automatically at the end of each term unless cancelled.
4.1.2. The subscription disables all advertising from the Alison platform and may include additional bonus features from time to time, including a discount voucher on purchases (currently equal to 10% discount) of Certificates or merchandise. Discount vouchers do not expire and will last beyond the termination of the Premium subscription at Alison’s discretion. One discount voucher code will be issued to the User account each month. Unspent monthly discount vouchers can be accumulated over time. No more than 5 vouchers representing a 50% reduction can be applied to a single product purchase. Users can also spread accumulated monthly discounts across multiple products (e.g. 10% off each of 5 different products) on the same purchase event. Bonus features are subject to change without notice.
4.1.3. The User can cancel at any time through their User Account.
4.1.4. The recurring fees will be subject to foreign exchange rate variation over time. Alison reserves the right to change the amount of subscription fee from time to time and to vary fees across different jurisdictions. Any changes to a User’s subscription fee will be communicated at least 30 days in advance of a renewal.
4.2. Purchased Certificates can be in multiple formats including digital pdf sent electronically, physical paper parchment that is sent by post (with an option to have the parchment set in a black wooden picture frame). Each Certificate purchase includes an Academic Transcript. This is a more detailed summary of the course you have completed on Alison and contains your personal details, the final score you achieved, a course description and the Module names that you have completed within the course. It also contains an authentication link you can share to validate your achievement.
4.2.1. Digital Certificates can be downloaded directly from the User account dashboard after payment is finalised.
4.2.2. Parchment is printed on special paper containing security features such as embossed fibers, a 'genuine' metallic strip, the User’s details, and an Alison stamp.
4.2.3. The design, look and feel of the Certificates is subject to change from time to time, and is available to preview in the Alison Shop prior to and during the purchase process. Once a User makes a purchase you accept the Certificate as is.
4.3. Only Standard shipping is available in the shopping cart for your physical purchases and the delivery time will depend on where in the world the User’s delivery address is. Please allow up to 28 days for Standard shipping as this goes via national postal services.
4.4. User product returns and refund requests should be made to the Alison Customer Service team via email. The team will respond by email and will confirm any successful requests. Alison reserves the right to refuse a refund if not satisfied with the circumstances of the request.
4.4.1. Any digital Certificates that have not been downloaded from the Alison platform can be cancelled and a refund will be provided. If the platform shows that the digital Certificate has been downloaded then no refund will be possible. If you have problems downloading digital Certificates please get in touch with the Customer Support team.
4.4.2. If a physical product has not yet been printed and shipped it will be cancelled and Alison will make a full refund. If a physical product has already shipped then the User must return the product(s) and then Alison will make a partial refund minus the original shipping fee incurred. If the User produces evidence to show that a product has been lost and undelivered within the expected maximum timeframe, Alison reserves the right to either resend the product(s) or make a full refund at its discretion.
4.4.3. If a User has pre-ordered Certificates prior to completing a course, the User can cancel unredeemed Certificates and a refund will be provided. Any redeemed Certificates will not be refunded.
4.4.4. If a User cancels their Premium subscription prior to the end of their term, any unspent ad-free subscription time will remain in place in the case of a monthly subscription. No refunds will be available for unspent time on a monthly subscription. For annual terms, unspent time will be refunded with an adjustment of the fee on the basis of a conversion of the fee from an annual to a monthly subscription. Alison will immediately notify the User of unspent time that will remain on the account and the refund amount when the Premium subscription is cancelled.
5. Alison offers a “Referral Reward” as an incentive to existing registered Users to refer friends to register on the Alison platform. Users and their referrals agree to the following additional terms:
5.1. Alison will provide the User with a unique referral link which should be used to invite a friend (a “Referee”). The User is free to share this link among friends or through social media as long as they do not exhibit harrassing behaviour.
5.2. For a Referring User to qualify for a reward, both the referrer and the referee must be registered Alison Users. The Referee must not already have been a registered Alison User. At least three (3) Referees from the unique referral link must register AND complete an Alison course within 30 days of their respective registrations.
5.3. The Referring User can monitor the progress of their referral(s) and any Referral Award through their own User account dashboard.
5.4. More than one Referral Award may be granted to Referring User. The Referral Award is a 50% discount voucher on the cost of a Certificate purchase for a triplicate of referrals that purchase. If 25 referrals make a purchase, the Referral Award is a 50% discount voucher on the cost of a diploma purchase. The Referral Award cannot be substituted for cash and cannot be combined with any other Alison offer.
5.5. Any suspected self-referrals or other fraudulent activity identified by Alison’s automated analytics will automatically disqualify the identified Users from participating in the Referral Rewards. Alison has absolute discretion in determining if a User that exhibits questionable behaviour should be removed from the Referral Reward programme.
5.6. Alison reserves the right to change, suspend or cancel the Referral Reward programme at any time without notice.
6. Alison operates an Affiliate Programme which is subject to a separate set of terms to be agreed between Alison and a qualifying User that Alison accepts onto the programme. A qualifying User must be a registered Alison User subject to these Terms of Use.
7. Any product name, brand or logo trademarks belonging to third parties are not affiliated with Alison and are not endorsed, sponsored or connected in any way unless explicitly stated otherwise.
8. Opinions and views expressed by Publishers or Users on the Alison platform and social media are those of the authors, and do not necessarily represent the views of Alison.
8.1. When making comments, posts, shares and other contributions to the platform Users shall be respectful and treat other Users with politeness and courtesy, and refrain from abusive or inappropriate conduct, spamming or in any other way undermine the good reputation of other Users or Alison.
8.2. Any User that has comments or queries about Alison Services should direct these to the Customer Support channel where they will be dealt with speedily and confidentially. Users should not use open communication channels on the platform for dealing with their support requests or venting their anger at any unresolved issues.
8.3. The User shall not express any views or post material which may be defamatory, sexually explicit, obscene, offensive, inflammatory, or hateful. The User will not impersonate others, be deceitful, promote illegal activity, harass other Users, incent violence or otherwise engage in unlawful activity on the platform.
8.4. Alison reserves the right at its absolute discretion to remove any User generated content at any time that Alison deems inappropriate.
9. Both Alison and you the User are expected to abide by these terms of use and comply with applicable laws and government regulations.
9.1. Any deliberate violation of our Terms of Use, or unauthorised use of Alison Services by the User will, at Alison’s absolute discretion, result in immediate and automatic suspension or blocking of User account access to Alison Services without notice, penalty or claim against Alison.
9.2. The User will indemnify and hold Alison (including its Affiliates, officers, directors, and employees) harmless against any claims, damages, losses or expenses (including reasonable legal fees) arising out of User breach of these Terms of Use or in relation to the User’s negligence, wilful misconduct, improper or abusive usage of the platform.
10. Either Alison or the User can deactivate a User account at any time without reason, notice or further obligation. Where a User deactivates their account, Alison will retain course tracking history data.
11. These Terms of Use constitute a binding agreement between Alison and the User and are subject to the laws of Ireland. Any dispute arising out of this agreement shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of the Republic of Ireland.
12. Payments & Certificates
Shipping Information:
Our standard shipping for parchment certificates does not include a tracking number. This is a standard practice and does not indicate a lack of service transparency.
Fraudulent Payment Consequences:
If a user’s payment is reported as fraudulent by a financial organisation (e.g., bank or PayPal), their account may be permanently suspended, and the associated certificate(s) may be marked as fraudulent.
Users can only restore access and the validity of their certificate(s) by providing proof that the payment method (card or PayPal account) belongs to them.
Additionally, the user must cover all costs associated with the dispute claim before access can be reinstated.
Certificate Customisation:
Our certificates are issued in a standardised format and cannot be customized or modified with personalised details.
Prohibited Use of Sample Certificates:
The use of certificates marked with "Sample" for any official or personal purposes is strictly prohibited.
Certificate Alteration Prohibition:
Altering, modifying, or tampering with our certificates in any way is strictly forbidden. We reserve the right to permanently suspend user accounts involved in such fraudulent activities.
Certificate Sharing Policy
Sharing altered, edited, sample, preview, or any unofficial versions of Alison Certificates, especially if they have not been officially purchased or earned, is strictly prohibited. This behaviour undermines the efforts of learners who have legitimately obtained their Certificates. Alison reserves the right to suspend or terminate the accounts of users who engage in such activity.
13. Gamification
1. Purpose of Gamification Features
Gamification features, such as XP, streaks, badges, and leaderboards, are designed to enhance user engagement and motivation. These features hold no monetary or redeemable value and do not imply guarantees of success.
2. Eligibility and Fair Use
Participation in gamification features is subject to compliance with the platform's acceptable use policies. Attempts to manipulate or exploit these features are prohibited and may result in account suspension.
3. Leaderboard and Ranking Accuracy
Leaderboards and rankings are updated regularly; however, occasional delays or inaccuracies may occur due to technical constraints. The platform reserves the right to amend rankings as necessary.
4. Modifications to Gamification Features
The platform reserves the right to modify, suspend, or terminate gamification features, including XP systems, badges, and leaderboards, at its sole discretion and without prior notice.
5. Privacy and Data Usage
Data associated with gamification features, such as XP totals and leaderboard rankings, may be visible to other users or shared publicly as part of the platform's social features. By participating, you consent to such sharing in accordance with our Privacy Policy.
6. No Warranties or Guarantees
Gamification rewards, such as badges and XP, are virtual and provided on an 'as-is' basis. They confer no legal rights or obligations and cannot be exchanged for goods, services, or monetary compensation.
7. Dispute Resolution
Any disputes related to gamification features, such as leaderboard rankings or XP allocation, must be reported to the platform within 3 days. The platform's decision regarding such disputes is final.
14. Offline Learning
These Terms and Conditions ("Terms") govern the use of the Offline Learning feature offered by Alison. By purchasing or subscribing to the Offline Learning feature, you agree to these Terms. Please read them carefully before making a purchase.
1. Overview of Offline Learning
Offline Learning is an optional, paid feature of the Alison app that allows users to download and access courses offline. Users can choose from two payment options:
- Lite Plan: A one-time payment to download and access a single course.
- Unlimited Plan: A subscription-based service that provides unlimited access to download courses for offline use.
*Note that users need to be online to access and complete the final assessment.
2. Payment and Subscription Terms
2.1 Lite Plan
- The Lite Plan provides access to a single course for offline use with a one-time payment.
- Once downloaded, the course will remain accessible offline until the user chooses to remove it from their device.
2.2 Unlimited Plan
- The Unlimited Plan is a monthly subscription service that renews automatically on a recurring basis.
- The monthly subscription provides users with the ability to download an unlimited number of courses for offline access.
- By subscribing, users authorise Alison to charge their payment method automatically each month until the subscription is cancelled.
- If we are unable to process payment through the payment method we have on file for you, or if you file a chargeback disputing charges made to your payment method and the chargeback is granted, we may suspend or terminate your subscription.
3. Cancellation and Access
3.1 Cancelling the Unlimited Plan
- Users can cancel their Unlimited Plan subscription at any time through their account settings.
- After cancellation, users will retain access to previously downloaded courses until the end of the current billing period.
- Once the billing period ends, access to courses downloaded under the Unlimited Plan will be revoked.
3.2 Retention of Lite Plan Course
- Courses downloaded through the Lite Plan are not affected by the cancellation of the Unlimited Plan.
- Lite Plan courses will remain available for offline access indefinitely.
- If Lite Plan users remove modules or the entire course from their phone, they can redownload it.
4. Access and Usage
- You agree that you will create, access, and/or use only one user account, and you will not share with any third party, access to or access information for your account. Using our Services does not give you ownership of any intellectual property rights in our Services or the content you access.
- Offline courses are intended for personal, non-commercial use only.
- Access to offline courses is contingent on compliance with Alison's Terms of Use and Copyright policies.
- We reserve the right to revoke any license to use the content in our Subscription Plans for legal or policy reasons at any time and at our sole discretion, such as if we no longer have the right to offer the content through a Subscription Plan.
- Users are responsible for ensuring sufficient storage space on their devices to download and store courses.
5. Refund Policy
- Payments for the Lite Plan are non-refundable.
- Subscription fees for the Unlimited Plan are non-refundable once the billing cycle has started.
- Users will retain access to courses for the remainder of the billing period even after cancelling the Unlimited Plan.
6. Changes to Pricing and Terms
Alison reserves the right to modify the pricing, features, or Terms of the Offline Learning feature at any time. Users will be notified of significant changes, and continued use of the service after such changes will indicate acceptance of the updated Terms.
7. Termination of Service
Alison reserves the right to terminate or suspend access to the Offline Learning feature for users who violate these Terms or engage in misuse of the service.
8. Contact Information
For questions or concerns regarding the Offline Learning feature or these Terms, please contact Alison customer support.
By purchasing or subscribing to the Offline Learning feature, you acknowledge that you have read, understood, and agreed to these Terms and Conditions.
15. Affiliates
- Alison provides a range of online learning services with free access to over four thousand courses published on the Alison platform.
Alison provides B2B learning services to corporates and institutions, and the Affiliate may promote the services and solicit new B2B customers to join the Alison platform.
The Affiliate will be granted its own unique tracker (“UTM”) that the Affiliate must use to invite prospective users in its audience and network to become registered users and active learners on the Alison platform.
Any Affiliate-introduced users that register for the first time on the Alison platform through the unique Affiliate UTM will qualify as “Affiliate Learners”.
Affiliate Learners who complete courses or diplomas may, entirely at their own discretion (or as a result of ongoing Affiliate promotion), purchase and pay for one or more certificates and diplomas for the publicly published fee upon completion, thereby generating Learning Revenue for Alison.
5.1 All fully paid and undisputed Learning Revenues received by Alison from Affiliate Learners, net of any other applied discounts and taxes, will qualify for a Revenue Share Commission equal to [20% (twenty percent)] (hereinafter “RSC”).
5.2 The RSC will only be earned and paid on Alison revenue generated within 12 months of a new unregistered user completing their registration on the Alison platform.
5.3 Alison will monitor, catch, report and prosecute to the maximum extent permitted by law any affiliate that it suspects of abusing this affiliate programme purely for their own financial gain, for the purpose of fraud or for criminal intent. Alison reserves the right to suspend any affiliate account at any time, temporarily or indefinitely and without warning or notice and without any reason whatsoever, until Alison satisfies itself that the affiliate is a bona fide operator. Alison reserves the right to demand any further information that it deems necessary to determine the bona fide existence and performance of any affiliate operation at any time. Any claim by Alison against an abusing affiliate will not be limited to any amounts paid or calculated under the RSC.
Alison will pay a one-off B2B Introduction Fee (“BIF”) to the Affiliate for any successfully onboarded and paid-up B2B customer that is directly introduced by the Affiliate to Alison, and accepted by Alison as a B2B Affiliate introduction. Terms of the affiliate B2B programme are as follows:
6.1 FreeLMS subscription with no advance payment bundled with agreed certification discount vouchers for their learners: [zero fee share];
6.2 FreeLMS subscription with no advance payment and without certification discount vouchers: [20% (twenty percent) of any net payment received from B2B learners].
6.3 Advanced, paid Annual Fee: [20% (twenty percent) of net payment received].
6.3.0 Any further payments or upgrades to the B2B subscription: [20%] on the pro rata share of the net revenue from date of upgrade to the 12 month anniversary of the first date of B2B registration.
6.3.1 Payment for any sales and further upgrades are subject to net payments after applicable taxes and deductions.
6.3.2 Payments will be processed within 30 days of receiving the final payment from the B2B customer.
6.3.3 Payment for B2B sales will be made via bank transfer, with bank details provided by the Affiliate to Alison.
RSC and BIF will accumulate on the Affiliate’s online account until such time as a minimum balance is reached to qualify for payment release (“Minimum Payment Amount”). Payments will be made from time to time as and when the Affiliate’s online account balance reaches the required threshold. The accumulated balance will be shown on the Alison platform under the Affiliate Dashboard, and a history of previous payments will also be recorded and available for examination through the Affiliate Dashboard.
7.1 Alison reserves the right to modify the Minimum Payment Amount from time to time in order to minimise payment transaction fees. Alison will be responsible for sender fees and the Affiliate will be responsible for the recipient fees on the chosen payment provider. The Affiliate shall fill out its own payment Recipient details on the Affiliate online account accessible through the Dashboard page in order to qualify for payments. Alison will increase the available payment providers over time, and the currently available payment providers are: Paypal; Bank transfer via Swift international payment system.
7.2 RSC and BIF are gross amounts that exclude all applicable local sales taxes, if any. Alison reserves the right to make payments net of tax deductions where these become payable to local regulators from time to time. In order to eliminate unnecessary withholding and deduction of regulatory taxes the Affiliate must furnish any information that may be required from time to time by Alison to satisfy regulators that no such deduction is necessary. Alison reserves the right to collect and store Affiliate information to legally satisfy “Know Your Customer” and “Anti-Money Laundering” requirements in your local legal jurisdiction and/or the Alison legal jurisdiction and may withhold or delay payments until the required information is supplied by the Affiliate. All necessary information can be provided through the Affiliate online account.
7.3 Any RSC or BIF that accrue from users and businesses in any legal jurisdiction where it is illegal to make affiliate commissions will be exempt from payment and Alison reserves the right to block payment for any sales made in such jurisdictions.
Alison is governed by the EU General Data Protection Regulation and has a duty of care to protect your privacy and manage your data responsibly. Alison will not sell or share your data with third parties and will only collect data that is necessary for the implementation of this agreement. You will have access to manage your personal data through the Alison online Affiliate account. Alison’s Privacy Policy is publicly available on the Alison website and gives further details on how Alison meets its obligations to registered learners. As an Affiliate you already are a registered Alison user on the Alison platform and are subject to the ‘General Terms & Conditions’ for usage of the Alison site.
The term of this Agreement will be for an initial period of twelve (12) months, and will automatically renew on a rolling annual basis on its first and each subsequent anniversary. In case the Affiliate has failed to attract any user that pays for an Alison service during any annual period the Agreement will not renew for the next annual period. The Affiliate may terminate this agreement at any time by cancelling the Affiliate account UTM through the Alison Affiliate Account.
The Alison Affiliate programme is a promotion strategy, and such strategy is subject to change or to be discontinued. Alison reserves the right to terminate this Affiliate Agreement without notice and without cause at any time.
10.1 In the event of a without cause termination Alison will pay the outstanding balance as shown on the Affiliate Dashboard upon termination.
10.2 For termination with cause, Alison reserves the right to cancel the outstanding balance and no further payments will accrue to the Affiliate.
Termination for cause may include any industry-standard conditions that may apply including, but not limited to:
11.1 Winding up of business activity or insolvency, international sanctions, or the criminal conviction or declaration of bankruptcy of any officer of any of the Parties;
11.2 Breach of the other's confidentiality;
11.3 Failure to abide by Alison’s fair use policy;
11.4 Bringing the good name of Alison into disrepute;
11.5 Unauthorised security breach or data disclosure;
11.6 Material breach of contract.
The Affiliate is responsible for its own business, online presence and website, and for keeping itself up to date with any affiliate marketing material and information that may be made available by Alison from time to time. Furthermore, the Affiliate is further limited and obliged as follows:
12.1 This Agreement will not be assignable by either party without the written approval of the other. The Affiliate is not authorised to create sub-affiliates without the prior disclosure and written agreement of Alison.
12.2 This Agreement is mutually non-exclusive and does not entitle any one party to act as the authorised agent or contractor of the other party and neither party will make any representation otherwise to third parties.
12.3 The Affiliate will not mimic, imitate, copy or replicate any of Alison’s services or courses. Any affiliate marketing material provided by Alison to the Affiliate does not confer any rights thereto by Alison to the Affiliate. Title and rights to all trademarks, material, content, logos, courses and services shall remain exclusively with Alison.
12.4 The Affiliate will actively not engage with, induce or solicit Alison’s business partners, publishers or users other than as provided for herein. In particular the Affiliate will not compete with the Alison service in the online learning space and will not try to promote, engage or represent Alison publishers on any other online platform.
12.5 Each party will have the right to monitor the other’s online website to ensure that the terms of this agreement are complied with. The Affiliate undertakes to be fair and honest and not to use cookie stuffing or click generators to artificially create traffic leads by robot software.
12.6 Alison is free to update and modify its user, learner and Affiliate terms and conditions from time to time as it may deem necessary.
The Parties agree to keep confidential the terms of this agreement. Failure to do so by one Party without the written agreement of the other Party will constitute a breach of this agreement and may be cause for termination of this agreement.
13.1 The Parties acknowledge that it is a legal requirement in many jurisdictions to disclose any promotion to the public that will involve an affiliate marketing fee. Therefore the Affiliate agrees to disclose the existence of an affiliate agreement with Alison to its audience when it is promoting and introducing new users and learners.
Any dispute or difference between the Parties (“Dispute”) arising out of or in connection with this Agreement including but not limited to performance, termination or breach thereof, which cannot be amicably settled first through mutual negotiations during the Rectification Period, shall entitle the offended Party to refer such Dispute for resolution in accordance with the rules of the London Court of International Arbitration with a sole arbitrator mutually appointed by the respective counsel of each of the Parties.
14.1 The proceedings shall be conducted in the English language.
14.2 The place of arbitration shall be London (but a virtual hearing venue will be permitted).
14.3 This agreement shall be subject to the laws of Ireland.
14.4 The arbitration tribunal award shall be binding on both Parties.
This Agreement shall be governed by and construed by the laws of Ireland and the forum for any legal claims or disputes shall be the courts of Ireland.
16. Gift Cards
Alison Gift Card Terms and Conditions
Successful Course Completion: Users must successfully complete the respective course and pass the associated assessment to be eligible to use their voucher to claim the digital certificate or diploma.
Voucher Validity: Gift cards are valid for 5 years from the date of purchase for users based in Ireland. For users in all other countries, gift cards are valid for 1 year from the date of purchase. Users must redeem their gift card within the applicable period after completing a course and passing the assessment.
Email Delivery: Vouchers will be emailed to the recipient's email address provided by the purchaser at the time of purchase. It is the purchaser's responsibility to ensure the accuracy of the recipient's email address.
Pricing: The price of Alison gift cards is determined by the account details and location of the purchaser at the time of purchase.
Non-refundable Vouchers: Alison cannot refund vouchers if they are sent to an incorrect email address provided by the purchaser. It is the responsibility of the purchaser to ensure the recipient’s email address is correct before completing the purchase.
Lost or Deleted Vouchers: If the recipient deletes the voucher email, Alison is unable to replace or refund the voucher. It is recommended to save the voucher email securely.
Multiple Accounts: While some users may have multiple Alison accounts, the voucher will be added to the Alison account that is logged into when the recipient clicks the CTA (Call to Action) in the voucher email.
Purchase Limit: Each user is limited to a total of 10 gift card purchases.
Recipient Awareness: It is the purchaser's responsibility to ensure that the recipient of the Alison Gift Card is aware of the Terms and Conditions that apply to the Alison Gift Card.
Fraud and Improper Use: In the event of suspected or proven fraud and/or improper use of Alison Gift Cards, Alison reserves the right to suspend (pending investigation) or cancel any Gift Card without notice.
Terms and Conditions Changes: Alison reserves the right to alter, change, and/or add to the terms and conditions of Alison Gift Cards at any time without notifying the holder.
Governing Law and Jurisdiction: Except as otherwise provided by applicable law, these Terms and Conditions shall be governed by and interpreted in accordance with the laws of Ireland. Any dispute arising out of or in connection with this contract and these Terms and Conditions shall be subject to the jurisdiction of the Irish Courts.
By purchasing and using an Alison gift card, you agree to these terms and conditions.
Privacy Policy
This Privacy Policy was last updated in May 2025.
The policy relates to the Alison platform and all user data collected and managed through the platform to deliver Alison Services. If you use Alison Services (a “User”) this policy applies to you and you are bound by it. If you disagree you must stop using Alison Services and close your account.
- Our commitment
- Collection, processing and storage of data
- Personally Identifying Information (PII)
- Course information
- Third party information processors and service providers
- Technical data collection
- User consent and self-service control
- Retention of data
- Security and disclosure of data
- Data Protection Officers
- Access requests
- Right to object
- International transmission of data
- Policy review and modification
1. Our Commitment
Capernaum Limited trades as “Alison”, and is located in Galway, Ireland. Alison respects User’s rights regarding their privacy and information, taking great care with any personally identifying information. As an Irish domiciled entity, the Alison platform is subject to the laws of Ireland and regulations of the E.U. The General Data Protection Regulation (effective from May 2018) and Data Protection Acts 1988-2018 in Ireland apply to the safeguarding and processing of personal data that could be used to identify any citizens of the E.U.. Alison is committed to complying with its legal obligations in this regard, not just to data subjects (Users) in the E.U. but to extend the same courtesy to all Alison Users worldwide.
This policy is based on obligations created through General Data Protection Regulation in the E.U. and other equivalent legislation worldwide such as the California Consumer Privacy Act in the US.
2. Collection, processing and storage of data
The Alison platform may collect and process personal data relating to past and present users and learners in the course of business. Alison collects data directly from the User input but also in automated ways such as through system logs, cookies, web beacons and integration with third party service providers. Processing of data includes: collecting; recording; storing; altering; disclosing; destroying; and blocking. This policy governs Alison’s approach to data and does not apply to any third party organisations which may have integrated their systems to the Alison platform.
3. Personally Identifying Information (PII)
Personally Identifying Information (PII) may be required to uniquely identify a User upon Registration (e.g. a personal email address) and other information may be required to complete purchases and receive certification if requested. You may also be invited to create a personal profile and resumé (including date of birth, existing education, work experience and career ambitions) and to generate or supply other personal information (such as completing personality, psychometric and workplace assessments) to build out your profile to determine your suitability for different careers, job opportunities and to establish your own tailored learning pathway. You will have the option to share or unshared some or all of this information in your own public profile.
Personal data is stored within your User account on the platform and access is completely restricted via encrypted networks and access permissions in order to ensure the highest levels of confidentiality and protection. No personal data is available to download or remove from the platform by employees or third parties, and Alison ensures that only authorised personnel have online access to a User’s account data.
Users may decide to post comments on the Alison Blog or interact with other Users in a way which is public or widely available to Alison Users through postings, sharing, course reviews, direct communications, giving testimonials, uploading photos or commenting on different parts of the Alison platform (“Shared Content” or “Public Posting”). Alison will collect and store Public Postings and Shared Content which will become publicly available or viewable by others. When you share content or make a public posting you are consenting to granting Alison a non-exclusive right and license to reproduce, distribute, publicly perform, offer, market and otherwise use and exploit the Public Postings and Shared Content. However Alison is not responsible for how other Users may use such publicly available information or otherwise accessible to others who have access to the Services. Users are expected to use their discretion when making such posts. In the event that a User is selected as "Learner of the Day" or "Learner of the Month", the User agrees to allow Alison to publish their Registration Information (except for your email address), Profile Information, and Course Information as well as your response to the accolade for marketing purposes and/or via Alison Services.
4. Course information
After registration, a User can enroll in a course offered by Alison or its affiliated Publishers. Aggregated data on age, gender (where available) and country of origin is shared with affiliated Publishers relating to the Users enrolled on the courses they teach, and is subject to a legal agreement between Alison and each individual Publisher. There is no way for a Publisher to access or derive User level information from this aggregated information.
Alison processes certain data relevant to the publication and playback of course content by publishers and learners. Certain data is collected to ensure Users, publishers and learner progress are uniquely identified and accurate records are maintained in order to deliver the Alison learning service and to comply with relevant legal obligations. This will include regular emails to keep Users informed of their progress and make various suggestions and recommendations. Patterns of usage behaviour and course content evaluation is also collected and stored as metadata to help Alison and Publishers improve the services and offer the most appropriate content and courses to registered Users.
5. Third party information processors and service providers
All User personal data is stored securely on third party cloud-based electronic storage and safeguarded. User purchases of physical goods require a home delivery address to process orders. Alison uses payment processing and fulfilment partners who will receive sensitive PII to enable payment collection and when necessary, physical fulfilment. Highly sensitive data, such as credit card information and passwords are never received by Alison (e.g. when you allow third party authentication via your social media sign-on, or by choosing third party payment providers such as Paypal or Stripe, that isolate Alison from your payment details). Recurring payment details are stored by a third party payment provider that you choose and not by Alison. Although Alison allows Users to register with their social media single sign-on (such as Facebook, Google, Linked-in etc.) the information available on these third party platforms is governed by their terms and information sharing practices. Alison only takes necessary information from these social platforms (i.e. your name, email address, and country for legitimate purposes) and does NOT take any other personal or social information on your friends and contacts from these platforms.
Alison tests and operates a number of analytical tags, scripts and tracking pixels (also known as web beacons) from third party providers such as Google, Facebook, Bing, and Hotjar) to enable browser and mobile analytics that measure page views and sessions. This helps Alison understand User behaviours as the visit, navigate and leave the Alison platform.
Alison provides free learning supported through advertising services managed by third parties. Alison both buys online ads and sells online ads through third party providers (e.g. Google AdWords, Bing, Facebook Ads and Google AdSense). Cookies and tracking pixels are used by advertising service providers as independent third party data controllers to enable personalised advertising to the User based on intent, search history and demographics built up by advertising service providers over time. Alison has no access to these third party cookies or tracking technology nor any control over how third party advertising service providers use the data they collect.
6. Technical data collection
As an internet based service, web server log files are also collected and monitored for usage and behaviour patterns over time. User device information and IP addresses are also collected to understand platform traffic flows how each User interacts with Alison Services and to ensure the right balance of technical support, customer service resources and device expertise is available to Users.
Alison also stores and uses cookie information (a piece of text saved on each User’s device) to help track unique user sessions, to personalise Alison Services for the User. Alison stores Preference, Security, Functional and Session cookies to tailor the usage experience, securely automate User login and enable purchase transactions. Alison uses web beacons to help monitor email communications with our registered Users to understand which messages are successfully delivered and read.
7. User consent and self-service control
By using Alison Services and directly inputting your information on the platform, you the User are consenting to the collection and use of your data by Alison. You have full access to your information through your user account, and are responsible for ensuring that you keep your personal details up-to-date through the platform. You have the power to modify your personal data and the power to deactivate your account and request the removal of your personally identifiable information when you delete your account. You may modify your email client, browser settings or use browser add-ons to control how cookies, beacons and other third party services work. Privacy settings are also provided on your mobile device operating system to give you more control over your data. Reducing the level of data shared and advertising options may reduce the quality of, or disable, some or all Alison services.
To understand and control how the digital advertising industry uses your data please visit the Network Advertising Initiative’s Consumer Opt-Out link or the Digital Advertising Alliance’s Consumer Opt-Out link. These help you to opt-out of receiving tailored advertising from companies that participate in those programs. To opt out of Google Analytics for display advertising or customize Google display network ads, You can visit the Google Ads Settings page. Opting out means that your personal data is not used to personalise ads. Opting out does not mean you will not receive ads. Alison has no affiliation nor control over these industry initiatives and how you use these tools is your own responsibility.
Alison recognises the privacy interests of children. Parents and guardians need to take an active role in their children's online activities and interests. Digital consent is generally not legally recognised for children under the age of 13, or under the age of 16 where such children reside in the European Economic Area. Parents and legal guardians should not allow their children defined as such to register, enrol and learn on the Alison platform without full time supervision. Alison reserves the right to delete any User account that we discover was created by a child unable to give digital consent. If a parent or guardian discovers that Alison has unlawfully collected the personal information from a child please contact our data protection officers who will take all reasonable steps to delete such information promptly.
8. Retention of data
Alison is under a legal obligation to keep certain data for a specified period of time. Furthermore Alison aggregates data and anonymises User accounts that are deleted so that it is no longer reasonably associated with an identified or identifiable natural person. Such Other Information is used by Alison for other relevant business purposes for as long as necessary. This may include keeping Other Information after the User has deleted their account for whatever period of time needed for Alison to pursue its legitimate business interests, conduct audits, comply with (and demonstrate compliance with) legal obligations, resolve disputes and enforce commercial agreements.
9. Security and disclosure of data
The organisation will take all reasonable steps to ensure that appropriate security measures are in place to protect the confidentiality of electronically stored data. The platform is large and public and subject to regular attack by hackers. The platform has been hardened extensively over time however no online system is perfect or immune from breach. Alison has appropriate security measures in place to protect against unauthorised access. Safeguards are applied to the processing and retention of data. These include:
- Limitations on access to prevent unauthorised consultation, alteration, disclosure or erasure of personal data.
- Strict time limits for erasure of personal data in line with our retention policy.
- Logging mechanisms to permit verification of whether and by whom personal data has been consulted, altered, disclosed or erased.
- Pseudonymisation, anonymisation and encryption.
- The platform databases are not accessible directly by employees or software developers other than authorised DevOps administrators. Multi factor authentication is required for all authorised DevOps administrators to ensure access to sensitive data is restricted to the maximum possible.
- Security measures will be reviewed from time to time, having regard to the technology available, the cost and the risk of unauthorised access.
Security measures will be reviewed from time to time, having regard to the technology available, the cost and the risk of unauthorised access.
Customer Support employees will have access to a certain amount of personal data relating to users and other third parties. Employees must not disclose User’s personal data, except where necessary in the course of their employment or in accordance with law. They must not remove or destroy personal data except for lawful reasons and with the permission of the organisation. Any breach of the data protection principles is a serious matter and may lead to disciplinary action up to and including dismissal. All Alison employees must adhere to the following data protection principles:
- Process data fairly, lawfully and transparently.
- Keep data only for specified, explicit and legitimate purposes.
- Process data only in ways which are compatible with the purposes for which it was given.
- Ensure data is accurate and up-to-date.
- Ensure data is adequate, relevant and limited to what is necessary for the purpose for which it was given.
- Keep data safely and securely.
- Retain personal data for no longer than is necessary for the purpose for which it is processed and in line with the company’s data retention policy.
Users have an obligation to keep their User account credential sufficiently strong, protected for safe-keeping and private to themselves to prevent unauthorised access. Users must monitor and control all activity on their account. If you suspect a breach of your account please change your password immediately and contact Alison customer support so that the impact can be minimised.
Were a data breach to occur and if such a breach puts individuals’ personal rights and freedoms at risk and Alison is unable to contain those risks, all affected individuals will be notified expeditiously. Furthermore Alison’s data protection officers will inform the Data Protection Commissioner in Ireland so that they are aware and can monitor the response.
10. Data Protection Officers
The directors of the company are ultimately responsible for your data, and have nominated a named Data Protection Officer for Alison (“DPO”). The DPO is are responsible for assisting the organisation in monitoring and maintaining compliance with data protection legislation.
Please email your data protection and privacy queries or concerns to dpo@alison.com
11. Access requests
Users across the world may have certain statutory rights in relation to their personal data. Subject to any exemptions provided by law, you may have the right to request access to Information, as well as to seek to update, delete or correct this Information. Your Alison User Account provides the settings and self-service tools needed for these requests. Please contact Alison Customer Services if you wish to get a complete copy of all your electronic data held about you as a User. If a User opts to delete their User account, Alison will delete all PII, Profile and Resumé data, and will irreversibly anonymise their learner record.
There is no charge to use Alison’s User account self-service tools. However the company reserves the right to charge a fee to process any further Subject Access Request. The organisation will, in most circumstances, provide this data within one month. In some cases, due to the complexity of the request or the number of requests being handled by the organisation, the organisation may require a further two months to provide this data.
Users are only entitled to access data about themselves and will not be provided with data relating to other users or third parties. However some user data may have been disclosed publicly on Alison forums for example. It may be possible to block out User data relating to a third party or conceal the User’s identity, and where this is possible the organisation will endeavour to do so. A user who is dissatisfied with the outcome of an access request has the option of referring a complaint to the office of the Data Protection Commissioner in Ireland.
Office of the Data Protection Commissioner
Canal House, Station Road, Portarlington, Co. Laois, R32 AP23, Ireland
Phone: +353 57 868 4757
Email: info@dataprotection.ie
12. Right to object
Users may have the right to object to data processing that is causing them distress and/or to make corrections to personal data which is inaccurate. Where such objection is justified, the organisation will cease processing the data unless it has a legitimate interest that prevents this. Alison will make every effort to alleviate the distress caused to the individual. An objection should be made in writing to the Data Protection Officer, outlining the data in question and the harm being caused.
13. International transmission of data
Based in the Republic of Ireland, Alison operates on a global basis and it may be necessary in the course of business to collect or transfer User personal data across state boundaries, to share data with other group companies in countries outside the European Economic Area, and to share information with third party service providers. The transfer of such data is deemed necessary for the management and administration of your User Account and delivery of Alison Services. Some states do not have comparable data protection laws to Ireland or the EU. When data transfer is necessary, Alison will take steps to ensure that the data has an equal level of protection as it would in Ireland or as expected within other leading international jurisdictions. Furthermore Alison will only transmit data to companies that agree to guarantee the same level of protection. For more information, please contact Alison’s Data Protection Officers.
14. Policy review and modification
Alison has completed a Data Protection Impact Assessment and put the necessary policy and procedures in place to minimise risks to users data privacy and maximise data protection. This policy will be reviewed from time to time to take into account changes in the law and the experience of the policy in practice. Updates will be posted to the website when available. Material updates will be circulated to each User via the registered User email on the User Account. Continued usage of the Alison Service is deemed to be User acceptance of this policy as permitted by applicable law.
Alison Cookies Policy
Effective Date: May 09, 2025
What are cookies?
Cookies are small text files placed onto your computer or device as you browse the Internet. Cookies can be used to collect, store and share bits of information about your activities across websites and services, including on Alison. They also allow us to remember things about your visit to Alison, such as your preferred language and other choices/settings and generally make the site easier for you to use.
Alison uses both session cookies and persistent cookies. A session cookie is used to identify a particular visit to Alison. These cookies expire after a short time, or when you close your web browser after using Alison. We use these cookies to identify you during a single browsing session, such as when you log into Alison. A persistent cookie will remain on your devices for a set period of time specified in the cookie. We use these cookies where we need to identify you over a longer period of time. For example, we would use a persistent cookie if you asked that we keep you signed in.
Why does Alison use cookies and similar technologies?
Alison uses cookies and similar technologies, such as web beacons, browser cookies, pixel tags, or local shared objects (“flash cookies”), to deliver, measure, and improve our services in various ways. We use cookies both when you access our site and services on a browser, as well as through our native mobile app. As we adopt additional technologies, we may also gather additional information through other methods.
We use cookies for the following purposes:
Authentication and security:
- To log you into Alison;
- To protect your security;
and
- To help us detect and fight spam, abuse, and other activities that violate Alison’s agreements and terms.
For example, these technologies help authenticate your access to Alison and prevent unauthorized parties from accessing your accounts.
Preferences:
- To remember information about your browser and your preferences;
and
- To remember your settings and other choices you have made.
For example, cookies help us remember your preferred language or the country that you are in. We can then provide you with content in your preferred language without having to ask you each time you visit Alison.
Analytics and research:
- To help us improve and understand how people use Alison.
For example, cookies help us test different versions of Alison to see which particular features or content users prefer. We may include web beacons in e-mail messages or newsletters to determine whether the message has been opened and for other analytics. We might also optimize and improve your experience on Alison by using cookies to see how you interact with Alison, such as when and how often you use them and what links you click on.
To help us better understand how people use Alison, we work with a number of analytics partners, including Google Analytics. These providers use cookies and similar technologies to help us analyze how users use the Services, including by noting the third-party Services from which you arrive. The information collected will be disclosed to or collected directly by these service providers, who use the information to evaluate your use of Alison. To prevent Google Analytics from using your information for analytics, you may install the Google Analytics Opt-Out plugin by clicking here.
We don’t release the information collected from our own cookies to any third parties, other than to our service providers who assist us in these activities.
Personalized content:
- To customize Alison with more relevant content.
Advertising:
- To provide you with more relevant advertising.
As explained further in our Privacy Policy, third-parties whose products or services are accessible or advertised via Alison may use cookies to collect information about your activities on the Services, other sites, and/or the ads you have clicked on. This information may be used by them to serve ads that they believe are most likely to be of interest to you and measure the effectiveness of their ads. Targeting and advertising cookies we use may include Google Analytics, Google Adsense and Doubleclick for Publishers as well as other advertising networks and services we use from time to time.
For more information about targeting and advertising cookies and how you can opt out, you can visit youronlinechoices.eu or allaboutcookies.org/manage-cookies/index.html. Please note that to the extent advertising technology is integrated into Alison, you may still receive advertising content even if you opt-out of tailored advertising. In that case, the advertising content will just not be tailored to your interests. Also, we do not control any of the above opt-out links and are not responsible for any choices you make using these mechanisms or the continued availability or accuracy of these mechanisms.
When accessing Alison from a mobile application, you may also receive tailored in-application advertisements. Each operating system, such as iOS and Android, provides its own instructions on how to prevent the delivery of tailored in-application advertisements. You may review the support materials and/or the privacy settings for the respective operating systems in order to opt-out of tailored in-application advertisements. For any other devices and/or operating systems, please visit the privacy settings for the applicable device or operating system or contact the applicable platform operator.
What are my privacy options?
You have a number of options to control or limit how we and our partners use cookies.
- This cookie policy is available at our site.– By continuing to use or access Alison, you are consenting to our use of cookies and related technologies as described in this Cookies Policy.
- Most browsers automatically accept cookies, but you can modify your browser setting to decline cookies by visiting the Help portion of your browser’s toolbar. If you choose to decline cookies, please note that you may not be able to sign in, customize, or use some of the interactive features of Alison.
- Flash cookies operate differently than browser cookies, and cookie management tools available in a web browser will not remove flash cookies. To learn more about how to manage flash cookies, you can visit the Adobe website and make changes at the Global Privacy Settings Panel.
- For general information about cookies and how to disable them, please visit www.allaboutcookies.org.
Changes to this Policy
We will notify you of any changes by posting the new Policy on Alison with a new effective date. If we make a material change to this Policy, we will take reasonable steps to notify you in advance of the planned change.
Questions
If you have any questions about our use of cookies, please email us at privacy@alison.com.
