General terms and conditions

IS-FOX training platform for employees (SaaS)
HvS-Consulting GmbH · Valid as of: May the 5th, 2026 · Version 1.1

Note on the Structure of these Terms and Conditions

These terms and conditions apply exclusively to entrepreneurs (b2b). Licensing terms and general terms and conditions are consolidated in this document. Separate data privacy policies are available here and apply additionally.

§ 1 Scope of application and contracting parties

(1) These general terms and conditions (hereinafter referred to as the “t&cs”) shall apply to all contracts concluded between HvS-Consulting GmbH (hereinafter “hvs”) and business customers within the meaning of section 14 of the German civil code (bürgerliches gesetzbuch – bgb) (hereinafter the “customer”) concerning the use of the web-based training platform.

(2) Any conflicting or deviating general terms and conditions of the customer shall not apply unless hvs has expressly agreed to their applicability in writing.

(3) These t&cs apply exclusively to business transactions between entrepreneurs (b2b). Consumers within the meaning of section 13 bgb are excluded from being contracting parties.

§ 2 Subject matter of the contract and description of services

(1) HvS operates the web-based IS-FOX training platform for employees (hereinafter the “platform”) for the purpose of:

– managing users and user accounts

– inviting, reminding, and organizing employees

– conducting, managing, and documenting training sessions

– providing access to a digital training library with employee training content (including, inter alia, ai act, data protection, compliance, occupational health and safety, cybersecurity)

– issuing certificates of participation upon successful completion of training sessions

(2) The platform is provided as software-as-a-service (hereinafter “saas”). The source code shall not be transferred or disclosed.

(3) The specific scope of services shall be determined by the package selected in the booking. HvS shall be entitled to offer service components that were previously included in a package in a higher-tier package in the future, provided that the customer is granted the rights set out in § 10 (special right of termination).

§ 3 Right of use (license)

(1) Upon payment of the agreed license fee, the customer shall be granted a non-exclusive, non-transferable, and non-sublicensable right to use the platform, including the media and training content contained therein, for the duration of the contract.

(2) The right of use shall be limited to the contractually agreed number of licensed users and to the customer’s internal business purposes.

(3) The licenses acquired may be assigned to individual users. The maximum number of users active at the same time shall correspond to the number of licenses purchased. The sharing of a user account by multiple natural persons (account sharing) is not permitted.

(4) The right of use shall expire upon termination of the contract term.

§ 4 Restrictions of use and intellectual property

(1) The platform, the training content, and all other materials are protected by copyright. The copyright shall remain with HvS or the respective rights holders.

(2) The customer is in particular prohibited from:

– making the content or the platform available to third parties or publicly accessible

– reselling or sublicensing rights of use

– modifying, editing, or creating derivative works from the content

– analyzing, decompiling, or reverse engineering the platform

– using the platform to develop competing products

– performing automated data retrieval (scraping, crawling)

(3) Any breach of these restrictions of use shall entitle HvS to terminate the contract for cause and to assert claims for damages.

§ 5 Training content and certificates of participation

5.1 Purpose of the training

(1) The training provided on the platform serves the general transfer of knowledge and awareness-raising of the customer’s employees. It does not replace individual legal, security, compliance, or professional advice and does not claim to be complete or applicable to specific individual cases.

(2) For didactic reasons, the training content is in part presented in a simplified and abstracted manner.

5.2 Customer’s responsibility

(3) The responsibility for implementing the training content and for any measures derived therefrom shall lie solely with the customer. This applies in particular to compliance with statutory, regulatory, or industry-specific requirements.

(4) Training cannot replace technical and organizational measures, internal control systems, or individual advice.

5.3 Certificates for participants

(5) Upon successful completion of a training session, a certificate of participation shall be issued. HvS does not warrant that:

– certificates of participation will be recognized by public authorities, courts, supervisory authorities, employers’ liability insurance associations, insurance companies, or any other third parties as evidence of compliance with statutory or regulatory requirements

– the trainings meet specific statutory or industry-specific mandatory training requirements

– the training content fully reflects the applicable legal situation of the customer or its industry

(6) Compliance with specific training obligations as well as the assessment of legal requirements for evidence shall be the sole responsibility of the customer. HvS recommends obtaining legal or professional advice in case of uncertainty.

5.4 Currency of content

(7) HvS shall endeavour to update the training content on a regular basis. In the event of changes in the legal framework, there shall be no entitlement to immediate updates.

(8) HvS shall be entitled to update, replace, supplement, or remove content within the training library at any time, provided that the overall contractual purpose is not materially impaired. In the event of a significant reduction of the scope of services, the provisions set out in § 10(3) shall apply.

§ 6 Customer cooperation obligations

(1) The customer shall be obliged to cooperate to the extent necessary for the provision of the services. Proper performance of the contract by HvS is dependent on such cooperation.

(2) The customer’s cooperation obligations include in particular:

– designation of a responsible contact person (administrator) on the customer’s side (this is carried out automatically through registration on the platform)

– provision of accurate and complete information during registration and in ongoing operations

– ensuring that access credentials are treated confidentially and not disclosed to third parties

– immediate notification to HvS of any security incidents, unauthorized access, or misuse

– compliance with the technical system requirements (up-to-date browser version, stable internet connection)

– correct assignment of licenses to natural persons (no account sharing)

– compliance with statutory requirements when using the platform, in particular labour law, data protection law, and works constitution law (e.g. co-determination rights of the works council in the introduction of monitoring systems)

(3) If the customer fails to fulfil its cooperation obligations, or fails to do so in due time, HvS shall be released from any resulting delays or disruptions in performance. Any further rights of HvS shall remain unaffected.

§ 7 Term of contract, termination and account deletion

7.1 Term and termination

(1) The contract shall commence upon conclusion of the contract and shall run for the term specified in the offer. Unless terminated with a notice period of two (2) months prior to the renewal date, the contract shall be automatically extended by a further twelve (12) months.

(2) The contract may be terminated by either the customer or HvS with a notice period of two (2) months prior to the renewal date. The right to terminate for cause without notice shall remain unaffected. Termination must be made in text form (email is sufficient). The right of use shall end upon termination of the contract.

(3) Good cause for extraordinary termination by HvS shall exist in particular if the customer misuses the platform, is in payment arrears of more than thirty (30) days, or breaches material obligations under these terms and conditions.

7.2 Data export prior to termination

(4) The customer shall have the possibility to export its data (training progress, certificates of participation) prior to termination of the contract. HvS recommends carrying out such export no later than thirty (30) days before the end of the contract.

7.3 Account deletion after contract termination

(5) After termination of the contract, user accounts and data shall be deleted in accordance with the following timeframes:

– End of contract: access to the platform shall be deactivated. This shall be the final deadline for data export by the customer.

– Six (6) months after termination of the contract: final deletion of all user accounts and training data, unless statutory retention obligations apply.

– Data subject to retention obligations: invoicing data shall be retained in accordance with Sections 147 of the German Fiscal Code (Abgabenordnung – AO) and 257 of the German Commercial Code (Handelsgesetzbuch – HGB) for a period of ten (10) years

§ 8 Trial period

(1) Where agreed, the contract shall commence with a free trial period of fourteen (14) days. Upon expiry of the trial period, access shall automatically end unless a paid subscription is concluded. No costs shall be incurred during the trial period.

(2) During the trial period, HvS may send product-related emails to the customer. The customer may object to the receipt of such emails at any time.

(3) Data collected during the trial period shall be deleted six (6) months after its expiry if no paid subscription has been concluded.

§ 9 Remuneration, payment terms and price adjustment

9.1 Remuneration

(1) The remuneration shall be determined by the respective offer or booking. All prices are exclusive of statutory value-added tax.

(2) Invoices shall be due for payment within fourteen (14) days without deduction. In the event of default in payment, HvS shall be entitled to temporarily suspend access to the platform without this constituting termination of the contract. Statutory default interest shall remain unaffected.

9.2 Inflation-based price adjustment

(3) HvS shall be entitled to adjust the agreed license fees once per year with effect from the beginning of a new contract period. The basis for the adjustment shall be the percentage change in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) for Germany, published by the Federal Statistical Office (Statistisches Bundesamt – Destatis), compared to the same month of the previous year (reference month: October of the previous year).

(4) The adjustment shall be notified to the customer in text form at least thirty (30) days prior to its effective date and shall be limited to a maximum of five (5) % per year.

(5) If the price adjustment exceeds five (5) % of the last applicable price, the customer shall be entitled to a special right of termination. Such termination must be exercised in text form within thirty (30) days of receipt of the notification and shall become effective at the time the price adjustment takes effect.

9.3 Performance-based price adjustment

(6) In the event of significant further development of the platform (in particular new functional areas and features, or a substantial expansion of the training library), HvS shall be entitled to adjust prices beyond the inflation-based adjustment. Such adjustment shall be notified to the customer in text form at least thirty (30) days prior to its effective date, and the customer shall be entitled to a special right of termination. Such termination must be exercised in text form within thirty (30) days of receipt of the notification and shall become effective at the time the price adjustment takes effect.

§ 10 Adjustment of scope of services and licenses

(1) Increase: Any increase in the number of licenses or extension of the scope of services shall become effective upon ordering. The term of the contract shall remain unaffected. Newly added licenses shall apply for the remaining duration of the current contract term and shall continue accordingly upon renewal of the contract.

(2) Reduction: Any reduction in the number of licenses or in the scope of services shall only become effective at the beginning of the next contract period and must be requested in text form at least fourteen (14) days prior to the end of the contract term.

(3) Package change: If there is a change in the platform package (e.g. a previously included feature becomes a premium function), the customer shall be informed at least thirty (30) days in advance. The customer shall be entitled to a special right of termination. Such termination must be exercised in text form within thirty (30) days of receipt of the notification and shall become effective at the time the adjustment takes effect.

– total outage (P1): initial response within 8 hours (Mon–Fri, excluding Bavarian public holidays, 8:00–18:00 CET)

– major functional impairment (P2): initial response within 1 business day (Mon–Fri, excluding Bavarian public holidays, 8:00–18:00 CET)

– individual errors / inquiries (P3): initial response within 3 business days (Mon–Fri, excluding Bavarian public holidays, 8:00–18:00 CET)

(3) Scheduled maintenance work shall be announced at least 48 hours in advance, provided it affects the general operation of the platform (preferably outside core business hours Mon–Fri, 08:00–18:00 CET). Unscheduled maintenance windows shall be communicated without undue delay.

(4) The availability guarantee shall not apply to outages caused by circumstances beyond HvS’s control (force majeure, failure of third-party providers such as cloud infrastructure).

11.2 Further development of the platform

(5) HvS shall be entitled to further develop the platform in the course of technical advancement, including improving, adapting, or modifying functions, provided that the overall contractual purpose is not materially impaired.

(6) Material changes that reduce the scope of services or fundamentally alter the manner of use shall be announced to the customer at least thirty (30) days prior to their effective date. The customer shall be entitled to a special right of termination. Such termination must be exercised in text form within thirty (30) days of receipt of the notification and shall become effective at the time the change takes effect.

§ 12 Liability

12.1 General principle

(1) HvS shall be liable in accordance with statutory provisions in cases of intent and gross negligence. The same shall apply to negligently caused damages resulting from injury to life, body, or health, as well as to damages caused by negligence under the German Product Liability Act.

(2) In all other cases of negligently caused property damage and financial loss, HvS shall only be liable in the event of a breach of material contractual obligations, and in such cases limited to the foreseeable and contract-typical damage at the time of contract conclusion; material contractual obligations are those obligations whose fulfilment is essential to the contract and on which the customer may reasonably rely. “Contract year” shall mean the period of one (1) year from the last day of the month in which the contract becomes effective pursuant to § 7.1(1), as well as each subsequent one-year period during the contract term.

(3) If the liability cap pursuant to paragraph (2) is not exhausted in a contract year, this shall not increase the liability cap for the following contract year.

(4) In the event of loss or unreadability of data, HvS shall be liable for damages caused by it only up to the amount of the restoration costs that would arise from proper and timely data backups that are reasonably expected from the customer.

(5) The above limitations of liability shall also apply in the event of fault by HvS’s vicarious agents and shall also apply in their favour, as well as to the personal liability of HvS’s employees, representatives, and corporate bodies.

12.2 No liability for incidents despite training

(6) The use of the platform and the completion of training by the customer’s employees shall not give rise to any liability of HvS for the following incidents at the customer’s organization, provided that HvS has not acted with intent or gross negligence:

– data protection incidents, data breaches, or violations of the GDPR or the German Federal Data Protection Act (BDSG)

– cybersecurity incidents, ransomware attacks, phishing-related damage, or other IT security incidents

– occupational accidents, injuries, or occupational diseases

– compliance violations, administrative fines, or sanctions imposed by regulatory authorities

– incidents related to the use of artificial intelligence, even where AI Act training has been completed

– negative audit outcomes, certification processes, or regulatory inspections

– damages resulting from non-performance or delayed completion of training measures due to failures of third-party infrastructure (e.g. Microsoft, Azure), provided such events are outside HvS’s control and no intent or gross negligence is present

(7) Training increases the level of protection but does not replace technical protective measures, organizational security systems, internal control processes, or individual professional advice. The ultimate responsibility for the security of the customer’s environment shall always remain with the customer.

12.3 Liability for content

(8) HvS prepares the training content with due care. Any liability for the legal accuracy, completeness, or timeliness of the training content with respect to the customer’s specific situation shall be excluded, unless HvS has acted with intent or gross negligence. The training does not replace individual legal or professional advice.

(9) Any liability of the provider for damages resulting from improper use or misinterpretation of the training content shall be excluded, unless HvS has acted with intent or gross negligence.

(10) Liability for intent and gross negligence as well as under mandatory statutory provisions shall remain unaffected.

§ 13 data protection and data security

(1) Each party shall process personal data in connection with this contract under its own responsibility and in compliance with applicable data protection laws, in particular the GDPR and the German Federal Data Protection Act (BDSG).

(2) Detailed information regarding HvS’s data processing is set out in the privacy notice, which is available here. The privacy notice forms an integral part of the contractual relationship.

(3) To the extent that HvS processes personal data of the customer’s employees as a processor within the meaning of Article 28 GDPR in the course of providing the services, the parties shall conclude a data processing agreement (DPA) upon the customer’s request. This may be concluded independently by the customer via the platform.

(4) HvS shall implement appropriate technical and organizational measures to protect the processed data in accordance with Article 32 GDPR.

§ 14 Amendments to these terms and conditions

(1) HvS shall be entitled to amend or supplement the provisions governing the provision of services under these terms and conditions at any time with effect for the future, provided that such changes are necessary due to changes in the law or due to functional or technical developments of the agreed services.

(2) Any amendment or supplement to the contractual terms governing the provision of services shall be notified to the customer in advance by email at least six (6) weeks before it takes effect.

(3) Unless the customer objects to the amendment or supplement within thirty (30) days of receipt of the notification from HvS, the amendment or supplement shall be deemed accepted (“deemed consent”). HvS shall explicitly draw attention to this consequence in the notification. The deemed consent mechanism shall not apply to any change affecting a main performance obligation of the framework agreement if such change would result in an unreasonable imbalance between performance and consideration to the detriment of the customer.

(4) In the event of an objection, the contractual relationship shall continue under the previous terms. HvS reserves the right to terminate the contractual relationship in accordance with § 7.1(2) in the event of an objection.

(5) Editorial changes to these terms and conditions, i.e. changes that do not affect the contractual relationship, such as the correction of typographical errors, may be made without prior notification to the customer.

§ 15 Confidentiality

(1) Both parties undertake not to disclose confidential information of the respective other party to third parties and to use such information solely for the purpose of performing the contract.

(2) Confidential information shall include in particular: access credentials, usage data, prices and conditions, trade secrets, as well as information explicitly marked as confidential.

(3) This obligation shall not apply to information that is publicly known or lawfully obtained from other sources, nor to cases where disclosure is required by law.

§ 16 Final provisions

(1) This agreement shall be governed by the laws of Germany, excluding the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods (CISG).

(2) To the extent legally permissible, the place of jurisdiction shall be the registered office of HvS.

(3) Should any provision of these terms and conditions be or become invalid or unenforceable, the validity of the remaining provisions shall remain unaffected. The parties undertake to replace the invalid provision with a valid provision that comes closest to the economic purpose of the invalid provision (severability clause).

(4) Amendments and supplements to the contract must be made in text form. This shall also apply to any waiver of the text form requirement itself.

Valid as of: May the 5th, 2026 · Version 1.1

Previous versions of the terms and conditions shall remain accessible under their respective version numbers and shall apply exclusively to contracts concluded during their respective period of validity:

- Version 1.0, valid until May 4th, 2026, available here