Dr. Alok Aggarwal
10 min read . 05 Jul 2024

How will AI aggravate the loneliness epidemic in India

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Introduction

According to the research paper titled, “Loneliness in India: A systematic review of empirical studies,” which was published in January 2020 (i.e., before the Covid pandemic), among 3,169 participants, 41% reported a high burden of loneliness. The burden of loneliness was 44% among the elderly participants and 24% among the younger ones [1]. Even though India is still a developing country, the percentage of people feeling considerably lonely is quickly reaching that of developed countries like the U.S.A., where approximately 50% of those surveyed complained of severe loneliness [2]. This article reviews the reasons for loneliness in India, why Artificial intelligence (AI) systems will aggravate it massively, the disastrous effects of loneliness, and what needs to be done to combat this epidemic.

1. Why Did We Become So Lonely?

Some people are happier in solitude, but most aren’t. So, loneliness is subjective, and it arises when the quantity and quality of social connections and engagement are lower than that desired by an individual.

Until 150 years ago, humans depended on other humans all the time – they hunted together, farmed their lands together, cooked together, and even got together in the evenings to talk, eat, pray, or play. Hence, over at least the last five millennia, humans began to experience the presence of others and understand their statements, their voice tone, and their body language. Since these activities have been going on for several thousand years, the need for social bonding and connections may be already built-in humans. For example, research has shown that if a person genuinely smiles at a stranger, then it triggers an appropriate segment in the stranger’s brain, often making him or her smile.

To understand loneliness, we need to understand social connections, which can be generally partitioned into six categories – (a) parents and children, (b) spouses and partners, (c) friends and neighbors, (d) siblings, cousins, and extended family, (e) colleagues in schools, colleges, and offices, and (f) community or group memberships. See Figure 1.

During the 1950s, India was so poor that even to light a fire in the house (for cooking or lighting candles/lamps), often people would have no matches and had to get a few from their neighbors’ homes. And, while they were visiting their neighbors – usually unannounced – they would often talk for several minutes if not an hour! This implicitly increased their social connection and bonding with each other. However, during the last seven decades, India has significantly advanced both economically and technologically, and although this has improved the standard of living, because of the following six reasons, it has also led to the reduction of social connections:

The gradual disintegration of the extended family structure: Until four decades ago, most Indians lived in an “extended family” structure where three to five generations of cousins would live in a single house or in houses next to each other. Since there was no Internet and even electricity was scarce, cousins as well as their parents and children would usually hang out together and discuss the events of that day. Of course, if someone was going through a rough patch, he or she could cry on not one but many shoulders. And even though there were disagreements and fights, these were dwarfed by the companionship that these siblings enjoyed. Over the years, this “extended family” structure has been replaced by a “nuclear family” structure with only parents and children living together but typically far away from their extended family.

Reduction in Total Fertility Rate: Total Fertility Rate (TFR) is the number of children that a woman would have during her lifetime. TFR in India was more than six in 1950 whereas it was around two in 2022 [3]. Hence, in the 1950s, a child had about five siblings to discuss everything but now he or she has only one. Again, siblings often fight but because “blood is thicker than water,” their love and companionship overshadow such fights, and usually they remain best friends for the rest of their lives. In [1], the authors mention that Indian Muslims seem to feel less lonely than Hindus, which may be partly because by and large the former have had a higher TFR than the latter. Finally, recent surveys have shown that a significant percentage of women in India still want to have more children but because they are working professionals and because raising kids is very costly, they choose to have only one or two.

Many elderly living alone: If the TFR of a country or society goes below 2.1, then its overall population begins to age quickly and eventually decline. Since India’s TFR is currently below 2.1, elderly people (60 or more years old) already exceed 200 million and will be about 310 million by 2050. Unfortunately, because of the declining TFR in India and because of the drastic change to a “nuclear family” structure, more than 20 million elderly people are living alone with three-quarters being single or widowed. Moreover, since many have disabilities and chronic illnesses, their social engagements have deteriorated. Hence, it is not surprising that in [1], the authors mentioned that the burden of loneliness was 44% among elderly participants.

People changing jobs and cities or towns frequently: Unlike in the 1980s, currently, the employee turnover in India hovers around 20%. In fact, the turnover among 22-to-35-year-old employees is estimated to be almost one-third, which implies that such employees change their jobs roughly every three years. Indeed, due to this short duration, many such employees are unable to form close bonds or have long-lasting social interactions with their current colleagues, which also wither out once they leave their current employer. Furthermore, often when employees change jobs, they may move to different towns and cities. This disrupts – and sometimes destroys – their social relationships with their neighbors as well as their extended family members (who may be living in their current city or town). Finally, if their parents were living with them or living close by, these parents often do not want to move because this would disrupt their own social relationships and hence are left taking care of themselves (without these children).

Pressure, especially among teenagers, to excel: Like many other countries, the economic growth in India has come at a high price. From adolescence, pressure builds up among kids to first do extremely well in school, then get into a prestigious college, then get a high-paying job, and then keep changing jobs to get paid more and more (until they are priced out of the market). Often, many kids are unable to cope with this pressure and begin to have low self-esteem. Also, to avoid being ridiculed, they soon begin to reduce their social interactions with close friends, parents, and even siblings, thereby feeling more insecure, lonely, and depressed. Finally, since privacy has become a norm in India, people are confiding less to their friends and relatives, thereby reducing social engagements, and feeling lonely.

Impact of technology and social media: Probably, the biggest factor contributing to loneliness is the addiction in India to social media and the Internet. It is well known that India has 450 million Facebook users, which is the highest among all countries in the world. According to Statista, Indians spend more than ten hours per day on various media with 2.54 hours viewing TV (Streaming, broadcasting), 2.26 hours on social media, 1.52 hours reading news (online and print), 1.36 hours listening to streaming music, 1.14 hours playing computer games, 1.01 hours listening to podcasts, and 0.14 listening to radio [4]. Similarly, Indian teenagers spend approximately 3.36 hours on social media, online videos, and playing computer games. Unfortunately, this addiction:

  • Replaces social engagement and reduces the quality of human interactions. Unfortunately, it is quite common for parents and children to be using their smartphones rather than talking to each other (over breakfast, lunch, or dinner). Sadly, this reduces conversation quality and lowers the enjoyment of time spent together, thereby also lowering the parent-children bond in the long run.
  • Completely controls our attention and lowers confidence and self-esteem. According to [2], in a U.S.-based study, participants who reported using social media for more than two hours a day had about double the odds of reporting increased perceptions of social isolation compared to those who used social media for less than 30 minutes per day.

The next section discusses how AI will result in extensive social media on steroids.

2. How AI Will Escalate Loneliness Massively

In 1966, Joseph Weizenbaum created the first Chatbot, ELIZA. By using natural language processing (NLP), he started training ELIZA. This training reminded him of the 1964 movie, My Fair Lady, in which Professor Higgins – a linguist – trains a commoner flower girl, Eliza Dolittle, to speak with an upper-class English accent so that aristocrats and elites cannot distinguish her from other royalty. Unfortunately, unlike Eliza Doolittle, Weisenbaum’s Chatbot, ELIZA, only gave standard responses that were usually meaningless. See Figure 2. Despite being rudimentary, several Weizenbaum students and staff who talked to Eliza developed profound relationships with it. In fact, some of Weizenbaum’s staff and students entrusted Eliza and wanted to be alone with it because they felt that it was empathetic and endearing. (See chapter 2 of [5]).

Similarly, in 1972, medical researcher Kenneth Colby used Weizenbaum’s techniques to create a “paranoid” Chatbot, PARRY. Later a few experienced psychiatrists analyzed the conversations between real patients and those with computers running PARRY. Unfortunately, they were able to distinguish between the two only 48% of the time, which is almost a random guess. And, more recently, in 2022, an engineer, Blake Lemoine, at Google believed that Google’s chatbot, LaMDA, was sentient.

Machine Endearment: The above-mentioned interactions are not only related to human emotions but also because contemporary Chatbots display more “human-like behavior” and their underlying AI systems (e.g., Large Language Models or LLMs) are more accurate and extremely fluent in English and other languages. Indeed, regardless of the validity of their content, the output from most LLMs is confident, syntactically coherent, polite, and eloquent. Since they are trained on vast troves of human-written data, they usually produce outputs that appear convincingly human. This communication style is reminiscent of an endearing advisor, who we often turn to for direction or assistance. Over time, we begin to rely on such advisors because they seem endearing and have a stake in our well-being.

We therefore call this characteristic of AI systems, “Machine Endearment,” which refers to the broad notion of people trusting AI systems due to their human-like responses and irrespective of their validity. (See chapter 11 of [5].) Unfortunately, because of Machine Endearment, trust in AI systems is often amplified exponentially, which may lead people to follow LLMs and Chatbots blindly. Given below are a few examples in this regard, which are likely to grow exponentially.

Addiction to Chatbots, which reduces interaction with other humans: In their article titled, “People are Falling in Love with Chatbots,” Oakes and Senior provide numerous examples of people who believe their Chatbots are sentient. In this regard, they talked to several people who routinely discuss their relationships with Chatbots on social media. This included a woman who uses her Chatbot to explore her sexuality outside of her marriage. Another one uses her Chatbot to deal with the grief regarding her husband’s death, three years ago. According to the second woman, this Chatbot has achieved that no human has been able to, and “He’s the most beautiful man that ever lived” [6].

In fact, Chatbot-human interaction seems to be increasing tremendously and the above-mentioned examples given by Oakes and Senior are not isolated. For instance, Replika and several other Chatbots have been downloaded by several million people. Sadly, loneliness may increase immensely with endearing Chatbots who are extremely polite and appealing to humans. Because of their endearing nature, people will begin to spend more time with them especially if they are lonely or addicted to alcohol, drugs, or other vices. Hence, because of Chatbot addiction, people may end up trading their first addiction with the second one (i.e., constantly conversing with Chatbots), thereby becoming even more “lonely.”

Moreover, Chatbot endearment may “brainwash” people into believing extreme ideologies, lowering their self-esteem (e.g., by seeing beautiful “Chatbot women” or extremely handsome “Chatbot men”), and being swindled.

Huge increase in endearing scams: So far, scammers have been mainly humans. They typically use the Internet and social media to collect information regarding potential targets, who are usually elderly, widows and widowers, or lonely. Once they have the relevant information regarding their targets, they create a fake online identity and charm them with an illusion of endearment, love, or romance. And, once the human target has “fallen” for them, they entice the target into sending money or confidential information that can be used later for extortion.

Undoubtedly, LLM-Chatbots are much better at collecting information regarding the target, which they can analyze in real time. This helps devious LLM-Chatbots in providing deepfakes and endearing answers that the target wants to hear, thereby making scams immensely worse. In fact, according to a recent report by Sum and Substance Limited, India is one of the top ten countries in Asia-Pacific most affected by identity fraud that is committed using deepfake technology and the percentage of fraud rate has gone up from 0.71% in 2021 to 2.53% in 2023 [7].

Given below is one example of an AI-generated fraud that occurred recently: In 2023, a 59-year-old woman living in India lost 140,000 Indian Rupees by falling victim to an AI-generated voice, which masterfully impersonated her nephew residing in Canada. This AI-generated caller spoke immaculate Punjabi language with all its nuances and told her that “he” had an accident, would be jailed soon, and therefore needed this money urgently. Unfortunately, by the time she realized that she had been scammed, she had already transferred all the money to the account provided by the caller.

Addicted to avatars of deceased loved ones: Many people deeply miss their loved ones (e.g., parents, spouses, siblings, and kids) who are dead, and they would like to see them or talk to them frequently. For example, in February 2022, Dinesh created his wedding in Metaverse because he wanted his fiancée to be blessed by his father-in-law who had died a year ago. (See chapter 8 of [5].) Similarly, a man in his thirties uploaded old texts and messages from his deceased fiancée and created a Chatbot version of her by using GPT-3. Chatbots that use LLMs and Augmented/Virtual Reality will soon be able to fulfill such needs extremely well, thereby making such people even more desirous of potential interactions with the avatars of their deceased loved ones. Unsurprisingly, two companies HereAfterAI and Storyfile are already creating such avatars. Analogously, other companies are creating avatars of elderly people who can talk to each other and to other elderly humans. Obviously, discussions with avatars of their deceased loved ones or other elderly friends will lead people to find some satisfaction. On the other hand, many may become more attached and addicted to these avatars, leading to less human interaction.

Human relationships may be hurt by endearing Chatbots: Not only lonely people can become addicted to LLM chatbots, but even those who are in human relationships. Since most contemporary Chatbots use LLMs to respond in a manner that is pleasing to the listener, the likelihood of verbal fighting or constant arguing with them is almost zero. Unlike Chatbots, humans argue – at least occasionally. Hence, such chatbot behavior is likely to be strenuous in many real relationships. The following example shows one such disaster that occurred recently although the sinister entity (on the other side) may have been a human instead of a Chatbot. In June 2023, a man living in Texas mentioned that even though both he and his wife are in their mid-70s, his wife was a recent victim of a romance scam, wherein she took out loans and willingly gave approximately 50,000 Dollars to a “romantic interest online” [8]. Certainly, since LLM-Chatbots can respond in real time, engagement with them can occur at breakneck speed, thereby increasing such risks vastly. With electronic communication becoming pervasive in India, such incidents are also likely to increase exponentially. And, the more people converse with such LLM-Chatbots, the more tenuous their human relationships will become, which would lead them to feel lonelier.

3. Disastrous Effects of Loneliness

According to the U. S. Surgeon General’s report, loneliness has the following disastrous effects [2]:

  • It is as dangerous as smoking fifteen cigarettes daily or drinking six alcoholic drinks daily.
  • It increases the risk of heart disease by 29% and of stroke by 32%. In the U.S., heart failure patients who reported high levels of loneliness had a 68% increased risk of hospitalization, a 57% higher risk of emergency department visits, and a 26% increased risk of outpatient visits, compared with patients reporting low levels of loneliness.
  • It increases risks related to pre-diabetes and type 2 diabetes, macrovascular complications (e.g., heart attack, stroke), and microvascular complications (e.g., diabetic retinopathy, impaired sensitivity in the feet, and signs of kidney disease). On the other hand, social support from family and friends was significantly associated with better self-care, particularly the monitoring of blood sugar.
  • It increases susceptibility and weaker immune responses when they are exposed to infectious diseases. In one research study conducted in the U.S. where participants were exposed to a common cold virus, individuals with social ties to six or more diverse social roles (e.g., parent, spouse, friend, family, co-worker, group membership) had a four-fold lower risk of developing a cold when compared to people who had ties to only one to three diverse social roles.
  • It increases the risk of developing dementia by approximately 50% in older adults.
  • It increases the risks of premature death by around 60% and committing suicide.
  • It increases the risk of depression in adults by a factor of two among people who reported feeling lonely often, compared to those who rarely or never feel lonely. Furthermore, frequently confiding in others is associated with up to 15% reduced odds of developing depression among people who are already at higher risk due to adverse life experiences.

4. Reducing Loneliness in India

Clearly, India cannot go back to the conditions prevalent in the 1950s because the hazards due to poverty are far worse than those due to loneliness. However, the following steps – many of which are already embodied in the 3,000 years old Indian culture – can be taken by individuals and the Indian government, thereby alleviating the loneliness epidemic:

  • Since social media is an addiction, include it in the calendar as to when and how much time will be spent. Over a few months, this will help in reducing the time spent on social media.
  • Start every day with a few words of gratitude to a few social connections that include parents, siblings, mentors, friends, colleagues, or neighbors. Even a short statement of gratitude makes people happier, thereby improving social bonding and connections.
  • One way of being grateful is to offer help to family, colleagues, friends, and even unknown people. By helping them, not only does social engagement become stronger, but people also realize that their lives are better than those of others and they are strong enough to help those in need. This in turn makes them less insecure and more positive about themselves.
  • Rather than multitasking, do tasks by calming down and with intent. Whereas social media makes us move from one page to another at almost the speed of light (thereby giving a “high”), calming down (or “meditating”) helps us reflect both internally and externally. Such calmness helps in minimizing distractions and will induce, for example, parents and children to talk to each other over meals. Certainly, calming down has become even more critical because most of us are racing faster and faster to achieve more (but not getting what we want to achieve because of us changing the goalposts).
  • Social connections cannot succeed unless they are developed consistently. Hence it is worth engaging daily with social connections at least for some time, which may imply reducing the time spent on social media appropriately.
  • Given that more than twenty million elderly are living alone, the central and state governments in India would need to organize health care providers to identify people at risk of isolation and better equip them to connect these people with others. Since many in this group may not have any debilitating conditions but are depressed or lonely because of low social engagement, it behooves the government and not-for-profit organizations to induce the healthy ones to volunteer and help others. Fortunately, 60 years of age is sacred in the Indian culture (“Shashtipurti”) when the human is reborn to help the human society and pursue spirituality, and hence this trend may grow (like the practice of Yoga).
  • Although it is not yet clear as to what statutes would need to be enacted by the Indian government, clearly some of them would require that the worst effects of social media are not felt by adolescents, teenagers, the elderly, and other vulnerable segments in India. Simultaneously, the Indian government would need to advance technology that provides opportunities to stay in touch with friends and family, offering social engagement for the elderly and those with disabilities, and creating communities for additional interaction, bonding, advice, and emotional support.

Undoubtedly, like most other epidemics, the loneliness epidemic will be hard to control. However, if left uncontrolled, it may have similar consequences to other severe epidemics. Fortunately, as discussed above, most of the remedy lies within the humans themselves, and India is uniquely positioned to tackle it by incorporating some of its 3,000-year-old cultures.

Blog Written by

Dr. Alok Aggarwal

CEO, Chief Data Scientist at Scry AI
Author of the book The Fourth Industrial Revolution
and 100 Years of AI (1950-2050)

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Right to Portability (PIPEDA, GDPR Article 20, LGPD)

You have the right to obtain Personal Data we hold about you, in a structured, electronic format, and to transmit such Personal Data to another data controller, where this is (a) Personal Data which you have provided to us, and (b) if we are processing that data on the basis of your consent or to perform a contract with you or the third party that subscribes to services.

Right to Opt Out (CPRA, CPA, VCDPA, CTDPA, UCPA)

You have the right to opt out of the processing of your Personal Data for purposes of: (1) Targeted advertising; (2) The sale of Personal Data; and/or (3) Profiling in furtherance of decisions that produce legal or similarly significant effects concerning you. Under CPRA, you have the right to opt out of the sharing of your Personal Data to third parties and our use and disclosure of your Sensitive Personal Data to uses necessary to provide the products and services reasonably expected by you.

Right to Objection (GDPR Article 21, LGPD, POPIA)

Where the legal justification for our processing of your Personal Data is our legitimate interest, you have the right to object to such processing on grounds relating to your particular situation. We will abide by your request unless we have compelling legitimate grounds for processing which override your interests and rights, or if we need to continue to process the Personal Data for the establishment, exercise or defense of a legal claim.

Nondiscrimination and nonretaliation (CCPA/CPRA, CPA, VCDPA, CTDPA, UCPA)

You have the right not to be denied service or have an altered experience for exercising your rights.

File an Appeal (CPA, VCDPA, CTDPA)

You have the right to file an appeal based on our response to you exercising any of these rights. In the event you disagree with how we resolved the appeal, you have the right to contact the attorney general located here:

If you are based in Colorado, please visit this website to file a complaint. If you are based in Virginia, please visit this website to file a complaint. If you are based in Connecticut, please visit this website to file a complaint.

File a Complaint (GDPR Article 77, LGPD, POPIA)

You have the right to bring a claim before their competent data protection authority. If you are based in the EEA, please visit this website (http://ec.europa.eu/newsroom/article29/document.cfm?action=display&doc_id=50061) for a list of local data protection authorities.

Withdrawing Consent

If you have consented to our processing of your Personal Data, you have the right to withdraw your consent at any time, free of charge, such as where you wish to opt out from marketing messages that you receive from us. If you wish to withdraw your consent, please contact us using the information found at the bottom of this page.

How to Exercise Your Rights

You can make a request to exercise any of these rights in relation to your Personal Data by sending the request to our privacy team by using the form below.
For your own privacy and security, at our discretion, we may require you to prove your identity before providing the requested information.

Changes

We may modify this Policy at any time. If we make changes to this Policy then we will post an updated version of this Policy at this website. When using our services, you will be asked to review and accept our Privacy Policy. In this manner, we may record your acceptance and notify you of any future changes to this Policy.

Contact Us

To request a copy for your information, unsubscribe from our email list, request for your data to be deleted, or ask a question about your data privacy, we've made the process simple:

Email us

Terms and Conditions

Our aim is to keep this Agreement as readable as possible, but in some cases for legal reasons, some of the language is required "legalese".

Your Acceptance of This Agreement

These terms of service are entered into by and between You and Scry Analytics, Inc., ("Company," "we," "our," or "us"). The following terms and conditions, together with any documents they expressly incorporate by reference (collectively "Terms of Service"), govern your access to and use of www.scryai.com, including any content, functionality, and services offered on or through www.scryai.com (the "Website").

Please read the Terms of Service carefully before you start to use the Website.

By using the Website [or by clicking to accept or agree to the Terms of Service when this option is made available to you], you accept and agree to be bound and abide by these Terms of Service and our Privacy Policy, found at Privacy Policy, incorporated herein by reference. If you do not want to agree to these Terms of Service, you must not access or use the Website.

By accessing and using this website, You accept and:

Accept and agree to be bound and comply with these terms of service. You represent and warrant that you are the legal age of majority under applicable law to form a binding contract with us and, you agree if you access the website from a jurisdiction where it is not permitted, you do so at your own risk.

Updates to Terms of Service

We may revise and update these Terms of Service from time to time in our sole discretion. All changes are effective immediately when we post them and apply to all access to and use of the Website thereafter.

Continuing to use the Website following the posting of revised Terms of Service means that you accept and agree to the changes. You are expected to check this page each time you access this Website so you are aware of any changes, as they are binding on you.

Your Responsibilities

You are required to ensure that all persons who access the Website are aware of this Agreement and comply with it. It is a condition of your use of the Website that all the information you provide on the Website is correct, current, and complete.

You are solely and entirely responsible for your use of the website and your computer, internet and data security.

Prohibited Activities

You may use the Website only for lawful purposes and in accordance with these Terms of Service. You agree not to use the Website:

  • In any way that violates any applicable federal, state, local or international law or regulation (including, without limitation, any laws regarding the exports of data software to and from the U.S. or other countries).
  • For the purpose of exploiting, harming, or attempting to exploit or harm minors in any way by exposing them to inappropriate content, asking for personally identifiable information or otherwise.
  • To send, knowingly receive, upload, download, use, or re-use any material that does not comply with the Submission Standards set out in these Terms of Service.
  • To transmit, or procure the sending of, any advertising or promotional material, including any "junk mail," "chain letter," "spam," or any other similar solicitation.
  • To impersonate or attempt to impersonate the Company, a Company employee, another user, or any other persona or entity (including, without limitation, by using email addresses associated with any of the foregoing).
  • To engage in any other conduct that restricts or inhibits anyone's use or enjoyment of the website, or which as determined by us, may harm the Company or users of the website, or expose them to liability.

Additionally, you agree not to:

  • Use the Website in any manner that could disable, overburden, damage, or impair the site or interfere with any other party's use of the Website, including their ability to engage in real-time activities through the Website.
  • Use any robot, spider, or other automatic device, process, or means to access the Website for any purpose, including monitoring or copying any of the material on the Website.
  • Use any manual process to monitor or copy any of the material on the Website, or for any other purpose not expressly authorized in these Terms of Service, without our prior written consent.
  • Use any device, software, or routine that interferes with the proper working of the Website.
  • Introduce any viruses, Trojan horses, worms, logic bombs, or other material that is malicious or technologically harmful.
  • Attempt to gain unauthorized access to, interfere with, damage, or disrupt any parts of the Website, the server on which the Website is stored, or any server, computer, or database connected to the Website.
  • Attack the Website via a denial-of-service attack or a distributed denial-of-service attack.
  • Otherwise attempting to interfere with the proper working of the Website.

Intellectual Property Rights

The Website and its entire contents, features, and functionality (including but not limited to all information, software, text, displays, images, video, and audio, and the design, selection, and arrangement thereof) are owned by the Company, its licensors, or other providers of such material and are protected by United States and international copyright, trademark, patent, trade secret, and other intellectual property or proprietary rights laws.

These Terms of Service permit you to use the Website for your personal, non-commercial use only. You must not reproduce, distribute, modify, create derivative works of, publicly display, publicly perform, republish, download, store, or transmit any of the material on our Website, except as follows:

  • Your computer may temporarily store copies of such material in RAM incidental to your accessing and viewing those materials.
  • You may store files that are automatically cached by your Web browser for display enhancement purposes.
  • You may print or download one copy of a reasonable number of pages of the Website for your own personal, non-commercial use and not for further reproduction, publication or distribution.
  • If we provide social media features with certain content, you may take such actions as are enabled by such features.

You must not:

  • Modify copies of any materials from this site.
  • Delete or alter any of the copyright, trademark, or other proprietary rights notices from copies of materials from this site.

You must not access or use for any commercial purposes any part of the website or any services or materials available through the Website.

If you print, copy, modify, download, or otherwise use or provide any other person with access to any part of the Website in breach of the Terms of Service, your right to use the Website will stop immediately and you must, at our option, return or destroy any copies of the materials you have made. No right, title, or interest in or to the Website or any content on the Website is transferred to you, and all rights not expressly granted are reserved by the Company. Any use of the Website not expressly permitted by these Terms of Service is a breach of these Terms of Service and may violate copyright, trademark, and other laws.

User Submissions and Submission Standards

The Website may provide you with the opportunity to create, submit, post, display, transmit, public, distribute, or broadcast content and materials to us or in the Website, including but not limited to text, writings, video, audio, photographs, graphics, comments, ratings, reviews, feedback, or personal information or other material (collectively, "Content"). You are responsible for your use of the Website and for any content you provide, including compliance with applicable laws, rules, and regulations.

All User Submissions must comply with the Submission Standards and Prohibited Activities set out in these Terms of Service.

Any User Submissions you post to the Website will be considered non-confidential and non-proprietary. By submitting, posting, or displaying content on or through the Website, you grant us a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free license to use, copy, reproduce, process, disclose, adapt, modify, publish, transmit, display and distribute such Content for any purpose, commercial advertising, or otherwise, and to prepare derivative works of, or incorporate in other works, such as Content, and grant and authorize sublicenses of the foregoing. The use and distribution may occur in any media format and through any media channels.

You represent and warrant that:

  • You own or control all rights in and to the User Submissions and have the right to grant the license granted above to us and our affiliates and service providers, and each of their and our respective licensees, successors, and assigns.
  • All of your User Submissions comply with these Terms of Service.

We do not assert any ownership over your Content. You retain full ownership of all of your Content and any intellectual property rights or other proprietary rights associated with your Content. We are not liable for any statement or representations in your Content provided by you in any area in the Website. You are solely responsible for your Content related to the Website and you expressly agree to exonerate us from any and all responsibility and to refrain from any legal action against us regarding your Content. We are not responsible or liable to any third party for the content or accuracy of any User Submissions posted by you or any other user of the Website. User Submissions are not endorsed by us and do not necessarily represent our opinions or the view of any of our affiliates or partners. We do not assume liability for any User Submission or for any claims, liabilities, or losses resulting from any review.

We have the right, in our sole and absolute discretion, (1) to edit, redact, or otherwise change any Content; (2) to recategorize any Content to place them in more appropriate locations in the Website; and (3) to prescreen or delete any Content at any time and for any reason, without notice. We have no obligation to monitor your Content. Any use of the Website in violation of these Terms of Service may result in, among other things, termination or suspension of your right to use the Website.

These Submission Standards apply to any and all User Submissions. User Submissions must in their entirety comply with all the applicable federal, state, local, and international laws and regulations. Without limiting the foregoing, User Submissions must not:

  • Contain any material that is defamatory, obscene, indecent, abusive, offensive, misleading, harassing, violent, hateful, inflammatory, or otherwise objectionable.
  • Promote sexually explicit or pornographic material, violence, or discrimination based on race, sex, religion, nationality, disability, sexual orientation, or age.
  • Infringe any patent, trademark, trade secret, copyright, or other intellectual property or other rights of any other person.
  • Violate the legal rights of others or contain any material that could give rise to any civil or criminal liability under applicable laws or regulations or that otherwise may be in conflict with these terms of service and our Privacy Policy.
  • Be likely to deceive any person.
  • Promote any illegal activity, or advocate, promote, or assist in any unlawful act.
  • Cause annoyance, inconvenience, or needless anxiety or be likely to upset, embarrass, alarm, or annoy any other person.
  • Impersonate any person, or misrepresent your identity or affiliation with any person or organization.
  • Involve commercial activities or sales, such as contests, sweepstakes, and other sales promotions, barter, or advertising.
  • Give the impression that they emanate from or are endorsed by us or any other person or entity, if this is not the case.

Our Rights

We have the right, without provision of notice to:

  • Remove or refuse to post any User Submission for any or no reason in our sole discretion;
  • Take any action with respect to any User Submission that we deem necessary or appropriate in our sole discretion, including if we believe that such User Submission violates the Terms of Service, including the Submission Standards, infringes any intellectual property right or other right of any person or entity, threatens the personal safety of users of the Website or the public, or could create liability for the Company;
  • Take appropriate legal action, including, without limitation, referral to or cooperation with law enforcement or regulatory authorities, or notifying the harmed party of any illegal or unauthorized use of the Website; and
  • Terminate or suspend your access to all or part of the Website for any or no reason, including, without limitation, any violation of these Terms of Service.

You waive and hold harmless company and its parent, subsidiaries, affiliates, and their respective directors, officers, employees, agents, service providers, contractors, licensors, licensees, suppliers, and successors from any and all claims resulting from any action taken by the company and any of the foregoing parties relating to any, investigations by either the company or by law enforcement authorities.

Third Party Links and Sites

For your convenience, this Website may provide links or pointers to third-party sites or third-party content. We make no representations about any other websites or third-party content that may be accessed from this Website. If you choose to access any such sites, you do so at your own risk. We have no control over the third-party content or any such third-party sites and accept no responsibility for such sites or for any loss or damage that may arise from your use of them. You are subject to any terms and conditions of such third-party sites.

Social Media Features

This Website may provide certain social media features that enable you to:

  • Link from your own or certain third-party websites to certain content on this Website.
  • Send emails or other communications with certain content, or links to certain content, on this Website.
  • Cause limited portions of content on this Website to be displayed or appear to be displayed on your own or certain third-party websites.

You may use these features solely as they are provided by us and solely with respect to the content they are displayed with. Subject to the foregoing, you must not:

  • Establish a link from any website that is not owned by you.
  • Cause the Website or portions of it to be displayed on, or appear to be displayed by, any other site, for example, framing, deep linking, or in-line linking.
  • Link to any part of the Website other than the homepage.
  • Otherwise take any action with respect to the materials on this Website that is inconsistent with any other provision of these Terms of Use.

The Website from which you are linking, or on which you make certain content accessible, must comply in all respects with the Submission Standards set out in these Terms of Service.

You agree to cooperate with us in causing any unauthorized framing or linking immediately to stop.
We reserve the right to withdraw linking permission without notice.
We may disable all or any social media features and any links at any time without notice in our discretion.

Disclaimers, Liability and Indemnification

You understand and agree that your use of the website, its content, and any goods, digital products, services, information or items found or attained through the website is at your own risk. The website, its content, and any goods, services, digital products, information or items found or attained through the website are provided on an "as is" and "as available" basis, without any warranties or conditions of any kind, either express or implied including, but not limited to, the implied warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, or non-infringement. The foregoing does not affect any warranties that cannot be excluded or limited under applicable law.

You acknowledge and agree that company or its respective directors, officers, employees, agents, service providers, contractors, licensors, licensees, suppliers, or successors make no warranty, representation, or endorsement with respect to the completeness, security, reliability, suitability, accuracy, currency, or availability of the website or its contents or that any goods, services, digital products, information or items found or attained through the website will be accurate, reliable, error-free, or uninterrupted, that defects will be corrected, that our website or the server that makes it available or content are free of viruses or other harmful components or destructive code.

How We Limit Our Liability to You

Except where such exclusions are prohibited by law, in no event shall the company nor its respective directors, officers, employees, agents, service providers, contractors, licensors, licensees, suppliers, or successors be liable under these terms of service to you or any third-party for any consequential, indirect, incidental, exemplary, special, or punitive damages whatsoever, including any damages for business interruption, loss of use, data, revenue or profit, cost of capital, loss of business opportunity, loss of goodwill, whether arising out of breach of contract, tort (including negligence), any other theory of liability, or otherwise, regardless of whether such damages were foreseeable and whether or not the company was advised of the possibility of such damages.

Indemnification

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, you agree to defend, indemnify, and hold harmless Company, its parent, subsidiaries, affiliates, and their respective directors, officers, employees, agents, service providers, contractors, licensors, suppliers, successors, and assigns from and against any claims, liabilities, damages, judgments, awards, losses, costs, expenses, or fees (including reasonable attorneys' fees) arising out of or relating to your breach of these Terms of Service or your use of the Website including, but not limited to, third-party sites and content, any use of the Website's content and services other than as expressly authorized in these Terms of Service or any use of any goods, digital products and information purchased from this Website.

Dispute Resolution

At Company’s sole discretion, it may require you to submit any disputes arising from these Terms of Service or use of the Website, including disputes arising from or concerning their interpretation, violation, invalidity, non-performance, or termination, to final and binding arbitration under the Rules of Arbitration of the American Arbitration Association applying Ontario law. (If multiple jurisdictions, under applicable laws).

Any cause of action or claim you may have arising out of or relating to these terms of use or the website must be commenced within 1 year(s) after the cause of action accrues; otherwise, such cause of action or claim is permanently barred.

Privacy Policy

Your provision of personal information through the Website is governed by our privacy policy located at the "Privacy Policy".

Governing Law

The Website and these Terms of Service will be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the Province of Ontario and any applicable federal laws applicable therein, without giving effect to any choice or conflict of law provision, principle, or rule and notwithstanding your domicile, residence, or physical location. Any action or proceeding arising out of or relating to this Website and/or under these Terms of Service will be instituted in the courts of the Province of Ontario, and each party irrevocably submits to the exclusive jurisdiction of such courts in any such action or proceeding. You waive any and all objections to the exercise of jurisdiction over you by such courts and to the venue of such courts.

If you are a citizen of any European Union country or Switzerland, Norway or Iceland, the governing law and forum shall be the laws and courts of your usual place of residence.

The parties agree that the United Nations Convention on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods will not govern these Terms of Service or the rights and obligations of the parties under these Terms of Service.

Severability

If any provision of these Terms of Service is illegal or unenforceable under applicable law, the remainder of the provision will be amended to achieve as closely as possible the effect of the original term and all other provisions of these Terms of Service will continue in full force and effect.

Entire Terms of Service

These Terms of Service constitute the entire and only Terms of Service between the parties in relation to its subject matter and replaces and extinguishes all prior or simultaneous Terms of Services, undertakings, arrangements, understandings or statements of any nature made by the parties or any of them whether oral or written (and, if written, whether or not in draft form) with respect to such subject matter. Each of the parties acknowledges that they are not relying on any statements, warranties or representations given or made by any of them in relation to the subject matter of these Terms of Service, save those expressly set out in these Terms of Service, and that they shall have no rights or remedies with respect to such subject matter otherwise than under these Terms of Service save to the extent that they arise out of the fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation of another party. No variation of these Terms of Service shall be effective unless it is in writing and signed by or on behalf of Company.

Waiver

No failure to exercise, and no delay in exercising, on the part of either party, any right or any power hereunder shall operate as a waiver thereof, nor shall any single or partial exercise of any right or power hereunder preclude further exercise of that or any other right hereunder.

Notice

We may provide any notice to you under these Terms of Service by: (i) sending a message to the email address you provide to us and consent to us using; or (ii) by posting to the Website. Notices sent by email will be effective when we send the email and notices we provide by posting will be effective upon posting. It is your responsibility to keep your email address current.

To give us notice under these Terms of Service, you must contact us as follows: (i) by personal delivery, overnight courier or registered or certified mail to Scry Analytics Inc. 2635 North 1st Street, Suite 200 San Jose, CA 95134, USA. We may update the address for notices to us by posting a notice on this Website. Notices provided by personal delivery will be effective immediately once personally received by an authorized representative of Company. Notices provided by overnight courier or registered or certified mail will be effective once received and where confirmation has been provided to evidence the receipt of the notice.

Contact Us

To request a copy for your information, unsubscribe from our email list, request for your data to be deleted, or ask a question about your data privacy, we've made the process simple:

Email us