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high severityBroad waiver of implied warrantiesDuckDuckGo disclaims all warranties, statutory, express, or implied, including merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement of proprietary rights "TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED UNDER APPLICABLE LAW".high severityLimited liability for indirect, consequential, special, incidental, punitive, or exemplary damagesDuckDuckGo, its subsidiaries, or their respective shareholders, directors, officers, employees, advertisers, suppliers, content providers, and licensors will not be liable for indirect, consequential, special, incidental, punitive, or exemplary damages.

Score30.0

Reviewed—

Policy typeTerms of service

Concern findings10

Protections0

Source supportStrong

Source provenance

Verified official source

Retrieved—

Published—

Source URLhttps://duckduckgo.com/terms

Snapshot hash 039369c1fb17965a59a889f247ed70f3a3bbbf4b08e8e3c3928901c8cc197818

Revision history

Snapshot of the source text at fetch time — not a live mirror of the policy page.

Plain-English summary

The DuckDuckGo Terms of Service contain several significant risks for users. The company disclaims all warranties, statutory, express, or implied, meaning services are provided "as is" without guarantees of meeting user needs, being error-free, or secure (risk_flags-1). Additionally, the company is not liable for indirect, consequential, special, incidental, punitive, or exemplary damages, including lost profits or goodwill (risk_flags-2). Their maximum liability is capped at the amount paid in the preceding 12 months or $100 if no payments were made (risk_flags-3). DuckDuckGo can suspend or terminate user access at any time for violations of the terms (cancellation_renewal-1). Users grant a perpetual license for any feedback provided, without payment or credit (data_use-1). Furthermore, the company is not responsible for the accuracy or safety of third-party content (gotchas-1), and continued use of services after changes constitutes agreement to new terms (gotchas-5).

90% confidence

Risk Flags

Critical terms that can significantly harm users, often due to an imbalance of power or waiver of rights. These are often complex to reverse or have lasting impact.

high95% confidence confidence

Broad waiver of implied warranties

DuckDuckGo disclaims all warranties, statutory, express, or implied, including merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement of proprietary rights "TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED UNDER APPLICABLE LAW".

Disclaimer of warranties

Why it matters: This means that the services are provided "as is" and "as available," with no assurances that they will meet user requirements, be uninterrupted, secure, or error-free, or that defects will be corrected. This leaves users with little recourse if the service does not perform as expected.

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED UNDER APPLICABLE LAW, DuckDuckGo and its subsidiaries disclaim all warranties, statutory, express, or implied, including, but not limited to, implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement of proprietary rights. You expressly agree that the use of our Services is at your sole risk.

Title: DuckDuckGo Terms of Service, paragraph 24 · Citation strength: strong

high95% confidence confidence

Limited liability for indirect, consequential, special, incidental, punitive, or exemplary damages

DuckDuckGo, its subsidiaries, or their respective shareholders, directors, officers, employees, advertisers, suppliers, content providers, and licensors will not be liable for indirect, consequential, special, incidental, punitive, or exemplary damages.

Why it matters: This clause significantly limits the company's financial responsibility for certain types of losses users might incur, such as lost profits, lost savings, lost revenues, or lost goodwill, even if the company was advised of the possibility of such damages. This could leave users bearing the full cost of these damages.

IN NO EVENT WILL DUCKDUCKGO, ITS SUBSIDIARIES, OR THEIR RESPECTIVE SHAREHOLDERS, DIRECTORS, OFFICERS, EMPLOYEES, ADVERTISERS, SUPPLIERS, CONTENT PROVIDERS AND LICENSORS (AND ALL SUCCESORS AND ASSIGNS OF ANY OF THE FOREGOING) (“DUCKDUCKGO PARTIES”) BE LIABLE (JOINTLY OR SEVERALLY) TO YOU OR ANY OTHER PERSON AS A RESULT OF YOUR ACCESS OR USE OF THE SERVICES FOR INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, PUNITIVE, OR EXEMPLARY DAMAGES, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, LOST PROFITS, LOST SAVINGS, LOST REVENUES, OR LOST GOODWILL (COLLECTIVELY, THE “EXCLUDED DAMAGES”), REGARDLESS OF THE FORM OF THE ACTION, WHETHER THE ALLEGED LIABILITY IS BASED ON NEGLIGENCE, TORT, CONTRACT, OR OTHER THEORY OF

Title: DuckDuckGo Terms of Service, paragraph 27 · Citation strength: strong

high95% confidence confidence

Liability cap at last 12 months' payment or $100

The maximum aggregate liability of DuckDuckGo Parties to the user for any cause is limited to the amount paid by the user for the relevant services during the prior 12 months or one hundred dollars ($100) if no payment obligations were had.

Liability cap

Why it matters: This caps the total amount a user can recover from the company, potentially leaving users responsible for significant damages beyond this limit, particularly if the user has not paid for the services.

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, THE DUCKDUCKGO PARTIES' MAXIMUM AGGREGATE LIABILITY TO YOU FOR ANY CAUSE AND REGARDLESS OF THE FORM OF THE ACTION, WILL AT ALL TIMES BE LIMITED TO THE AMOUNT PAID BY YOU FOR USE OF THE RELEVANT SERVICES DURING THE PRIOR 12 MONTHS OR ONE HUNDRED DOLLARS ($100) IF YOU HAVE NOT HAD ANY PAYMENT OBLIGATIONS TO US.

Title: DuckDuckGo Terms of Service, paragraph 28 · Citation strength: strong

Data Use

How the company collects, processes, and shares user information, including privacy practices and data control.

medium90% confidence confidence

Grant of perpetual license for user feedback

If users provide feedback about the services, they grant DuckDuckGo a "forever license to use [their] input to improve our Services without any payment or credit to you."

Broad content license

Why it matters: Once feedback is provided, the user loses control over its use by DuckDuckGo and will not receive any compensation or attribution, even if the feedback leads to significant improvements or new features.

If you choose to provide us with feedback about our Services (for example, by completing a survey or sending us an email), you grant us a forever license to use your input to improve our Services without any payment or credit to you.

Title: DuckDuckGo Terms of Service, paragraph 12 · Citation strength: strong

Cancellation and Renewal

Terms related to service termination, account cancellation, and automatic renewals.

high90% confidence confidence

Suspension or termination of access for terms violation

DuckDuckGo "may suspend or terminate your access to our Services at any time if you violate these Terms."

Account termination without notice

Why it matters: Your access to the services can be immediately revoked if the company determines you have violated any part of their terms, potentially without prior warning or chance to rectify the issue.

We may suspend or terminate your access to our Services at any time if you violate these Terms.

Title: DuckDuckGo Terms of Service, paragraph 10 · Citation strength: strong

Gotchas

Potentially overlooked clauses that could lead to unexpected outcomes, inconvenience, or additional costs for users.

medium90% confidence confidence

No responsibility for third-party content accuracy or safety

DuckDuckGo states it has "no control over the content on third-party websites," and "cannot guarantee that the content you access through our Services is accurate or complete or that the sites you visit are unharmful."

Why it matters: Users face a risk of encountering inaccurate, incomplete, or harmful content when accessing third-party websites or Instant Answers through DuckDuckGo's services, with no recourse through DuckDuckGo itself.

We have no control over the content on third-party websites, and we cannot guarantee that the content you access through our Services is accurate or complete or that the sites you visit are unharmful.

Title: DuckDuckGo Terms of Service, paragraph 18 · Citation strength: strong

medium90% confidence confidence

No rights granted to use company trademarks

By using our Services, "you are not granted any right to use our trademarks."

Why it matters: Users are prohibited from using DuckDuckGo's trademarks, such as DUCKDUCKGO or Dax the Duck, which could limit their ability to promote or refer to the service in certain contexts without explicit permission.

By using our Services, you are not granted any right to use our trademarks.

Title: DuckDuckGo Terms of Service, paragraph 16 · Citation strength: strong

medium90% confidence confidence

Not liable for events outside of control (force majeure)

DuckDuckGo states it "will not be liable for delays caused by the event" if its ability to provide services is interrupted by an event outside its control, also known as "force majeure."

Why it matters: Users may experience service interruptions or delays due to external events that DuckDuckGo has no control over, and the company will not be held responsible for these disruptions.

If our ability to make our Services available is interrupted by an event outside of our control, also known as an event of ”force majeure,” we will take steps to minimize the effect of the interruption. We will not be liable for delays caused by the event.

Title: DuckDuckGo Terms of Service, paragraph 30 · Citation strength: strong

medium90% confidence confidence

New York law governs disputes and claims must be filed in New York courts

Any claim associated with our Services or arising out of these Terms "must be filed in the state or federal courts in New York, New York, USA, and New York law will govern, regardless of conflict of laws rules."

Why it matters: Users will be required to pursue any legal claims in New York courts and under New York law, which may be inconvenient and costly if they reside elsewhere.

Any claim associated with our Services or arising out of these Terms must be filed in the state or federal courts in New York, New York, USA, and New York law will govern, regardless of conflict of laws rules.

Title: DuckDuckGo Terms of Service, paragraph 32 · Citation strength: strong

medium90% confidence confidence

Continued use signifies agreement to new terms

Continuing to access or use our Services after any changes constitutes your consent and agreement to any new terms.

Why it matters: Users automatically agree to new terms simply by continuing to use the service after changes are posted, without requiring explicit acceptance. This means users must regularly check for updates to avoid unknowingly agreeing to unfavorable terms.

Continuing to access or use our Services after any changes constitutes your consent and agreement to any new terms.

Title: DuckDuckGo Terms of Service, paragraph 36 · Citation strength: strong

Protections

User-friendly clauses, privacy enhancements, or beneficial practices. No severity is assigned to protections.

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