Effective March 2026
Content Licence Agreement
This agreement explains the Inkline Licence — our content provenance system that records and verifies your writing activity on the platform.
1. What the Inkline Licence Is
The Inkline Licence is a digital certificate of platform activity. It is issued per submission and contains a cryptographic record of when content was created, modified, and by which account. It is not a copyright registration, trademark, or legal filing. It is a tool that helps you demonstrate when you wrote something on this platform.
2. What the Licence Proves
The Inkline Licence verifies: • That content was created and edited on the Inkline platform • The account that authored or modified the content • The exact dates and times of each version • That the version history has not been tampered with (via cryptographic hash chain) Anyone with the licence verification link can independently confirm these facts.
3. What the Licence Does NOT Prove
The Inkline Licence does not prove: • Original authorship beyond the platform (the content may have existed elsewhere before being submitted) • Copyright ownership in any legal jurisdiction • That the content was not derived from or inspired by other works The licence is a record of platform activity, not a substitute for formal copyright registration or legal advice.
4. How the Audit Trail Works
Every time you create or edit a submission, Inkline records a content version with: • A SHA-256 hash of your content (a unique digital fingerprint) • A chain hash that links this version to all previous versions (like links in a chain) • A timestamp and account identifier • IP address and device information (for security) Each version is mathematically linked to the previous one. If any version in the chain is altered, all subsequent chain hashes become invalid — making tampering detectable. This chain cannot prove when content was first written anywhere, but it proves when it appeared and changed on Inkline.
5. Limited Platform Licence Grant
By submitting content, you grant Inkline a limited, non-exclusive, revocable licence to host, display, cache, and distribute your content as necessary to operate the platform. You retain 100% copyright at all times. This licence exists solely to allow us to show your work to reviewers, display it in the public library, and provide the service. The licence terminates when you delete your content.
6. Verification
Each Inkline Licence has a unique verification link that anyone can use to check the authenticity and integrity of the content record. Verification checks the cryptographic chain and displays the authorship timeline. Verification is a public, read-only operation that does not expose private content or personal information beyond the author handle and submission metadata.