Terms of Use

Last updated: 27 June 2026

These Terms of Use ("Terms") govern your access to and use of the Veri5 Notary document-notarization service (the "Service"), operated by Hefes LLC ("Hefes", "we", "us", or "our"). By creating an account, signing in, or using the Service, you agree to be bound by these Terms. If you do not agree, do not use the Service.

1. What the Service Does

The Service lets you submit documents so that we can record a digital fingerprint (a SHA-256 hash) of each document, together with a tamper-proof timestamp, in a secure verification registry. The document file itself is stored, encrypted, in encrypted storage; only its fingerprint is written to the registry.

The fingerprint and timestamp prove that a specific file existed in a specific form at a specific moment and has not been altered since. The Service does not, and cannot, certify the authorship of a document, the identity of its signatories, or the truth, legality, or validity of its contents. A notarization record is evidence of integrity and existence in time — nothing more.

Liability & Accountability

Who is responsible when a record is disputed.

The issuer bears liability for content. The party who seals or issues a record is solely responsible for the truth, accuracy, legality, and validity of what it records, and for its authority to do so. If a record is later disputed, liability for its content rests with the issuer — not with Hefes, and not with a verifier.
Verifiers rely at their own risk. Confirming a record is genuine proves only that it is unaltered and (where signed) who attested to it — not that the underlying claim is true. Rely with your own due diligence.
Hefes proves what was recorded, by whom, and when — nothing more. Hefes is not a certification authority, notary public, or guarantor, is not a party to any record, and accepts no liability for the content, truth, legal effect, or any dispute concerning a record.
Fraudulent records and errors are the responsibility of the issuer. A proof of a fraudulent record proves only that the record was made; it never validates the claim. Credentials can be revoked (status is publicly checkable) and errors corrected by re-issuing and revoking the superseded record. Report suspected fraud or abuse to [email protected]; we may void or flag records and refer matters to the authorities.
Node operators are shielded for content. Organizations operating verification infrastructure are liable only for their own operation, not for the content of any record or the acts of any issuer, under the Veri5 Operating Charter (Article 12).

2. Eligibility and Accounts

You sign in to the Service through Veri5 Passport (single sign-on). You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your sign-in credentials and for all activity under your account. You must be of legal age and capacity to enter into a binding contract in your jurisdiction. Organisations that wish to issue credentials or notarizations to third parties must first complete a business verification (KYB) process; we may decline or revoke issuer status at our discretion.

3. Share Links

The owner of a notarized document may create time-limited, revocable share links that disclose a document to a chosen recipient. You are solely responsible for whom you share with and for the consequences of sharing. Share links can be revoked by the owner at any time and expire automatically after their set period. Do not share documents you are not authorised to disclose.

4. Fees, Credits, and Refunds

The Service is pay-per-notarization, using prepaid credits.
New accounts receive 3 free trial credits.
Payments are processed by Stripe. On Veri5 Notary, credits may be purchased by card. We do not store full card numbers.
Credits are non-refundable once a notarization has been performed, because the registry record and timestamp are created and cannot be undone. Unused credits may be subject to our refund policy at our discretion.

5. Document Retention & Renewal

The Service separates the permanent proof of a document from the time-limited hosting of the document file itself:

The proof is permanent. When a document is notarized, its digital fingerprint (SHA-256 hash) and timestamp are recorded permanently and never expire. This record — that the exact document existed, unaltered, at a given time — is retained indefinitely.
Hosted storage lasts 10 years. The actual encrypted copy of your document is hosted (stored, retrievable, and shareable) for 10 years from the date of notarization, included in the one-time notarization fee.
Renewal. Before the 10-year period ends, the owner may renew or extend hosted storage for a further period. A renewal fee, payable in credits, applies.
After expiry (if not renewed). The encrypted copy is permanently deleted from our storage, but the fingerprint, timestamp, and notarization record are kept permanently. Integrity can still be proven afterwards by re-submitting the original document — its fingerprint will match the retained registry record. In short: you never lose the proof; you only lose our hosted copy of the file, which you still hold yourself.

You are advised to keep your own copy of every document you notarize. The notarization record proves a file's integrity and existence in time, but it is not a substitute for retaining the file itself.

6. Your Content and Responsibilities

You retain all rights you hold in the documents you submit ("User Content"). By using the Service you represent and warrant that you own or are authorised to submit each document, and that doing so does not infringe any third party's rights or violate any law. Hefes is not the author, owner, or originator of User Content and takes no position on its meaning, accuracy, or legal effect.

7. Prohibited Use

You must not submit, store, share, or use the Service in connection with any of the following:

content that is illegal under any applicable law, or that infringes the rights of others;
pornographic, obscene, or sexually exploitative material, including any material involving minors;
malware, viruses, or any code or file intended to disrupt, damage, or gain unauthorised access to systems;
any use to commit or facilitate extortion, blackmail, fraud, deception, harassment, threats, stalking, or spam;
any attempt to use a notarization record to misrepresent authorship, identity, or the truth of contents.

Violations of this section will be reported to the relevant law-enforcement and regulatory authorities without prior notice to you. In addition, Hefes may, at its sole discretion and without prior notice, remove or void any content, invalidate any notarization record, withhold or terminate share links, suspend or terminate your account, and preserve and disclose relevant data to authorities as required or permitted by law.

8. Reporting Abuse

A recipient of a shared document, or any other party, may report content they believe violates these Terms or the law. We review reports and may act on them — including by restricting access, voiding records, suspending accounts, and referring matters to the authorities. Reports may be submitted through the in-app reporting tools or by contacting [email protected].

9. Availability and Changes to the Service

We may modify, suspend, or discontinue any part of the Service at any time. We will use reasonable efforts to preserve the integrity of existing registry records, but we do not guarantee uninterrupted availability of the Service or of any document held in encrypted storage.

10. Disclaimer of Warranties

The Service is provided "as is" and "as available." The only warranty we make is that the recorded SHA-256 fingerprint and timestamp accurately reflect the document submitted at the time of submission, allowing the integrity of that file to be verified. We make no warranty as to the truthfulness, accuracy, authorship, legality, fitness for any purpose, or validity of any User Content. To the maximum extent permitted by law, we disclaim all other warranties, express or implied, including merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose.

11. Limitation of Liability

To the maximum extent permitted by law, Hefes and its affiliates, officers, employees, and suppliers will not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages, or for any loss of profits, data, goodwill, or other intangible losses, arising from or relating to your use of the Service. Our aggregate liability for any claim relating to the Service will not exceed the amount you paid to us for the Service in the twelve months preceding the claim.

12. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless Hefes from any claims, losses, liabilities, and expenses (including reasonable legal fees) arising out of your User Content, your use of the Service, or your breach of these Terms or of any law or third-party right.

13. Governing Law and Disputes

These Terms are governed by the laws applicable to Hefes LLC's place of operation, without regard to conflict-of-law principles. You agree to resolve any dispute relating to the Service in accordance with that law and in the competent courts of that jurisdiction, except where mandatory consumer-protection law provides otherwise.

14. Changes to These Terms

We may update these Terms from time to time. When we do, we will revise the "Last updated" date above and, where appropriate, provide additional notice. Your continued use of the Service after changes take effect constitutes acceptance of the revised Terms.

15. Contact

Questions about these Terms may be sent to [email protected]. Abuse reports may be sent to [email protected].