Can i offer a service that allows users to break a websites terms and conditions?

[dusum]

There is a website that offers a jobs board with a RSS feed of the jobs. An application i built reads the RSS feed and then goes to each jobs page and reads the email address (not found in the RSS) that is used to reply to the job. The app then sends an email to the address.

At this point i am breaking two of the sites terms and conditions. (1) the RSS feed cannot be used in the manner i am. (2) i cannot use a bot to read the email address of page.

Here I assume i am breaking the T&C. But then i question it because all interactions with the jobs website are done by the user on their computer and not my server. Am I still liable? I do charge for my service, is that legal? Also, before downloading my app the user has to agree to my sites T&C which states in it that what they are doing with the app is against the jobs website's T&C and they cant come after me... yada yada.

Doesn't the law say that you can't sue the maker of a gun, if someone else pulled the trigger. Thanks for the advice.

 

[Michael Wechsler]

Anyone with a half competent lawyer will have crafted a terms of use deal with your usage of the site and not split hairs. It typically states, e.g. you may not harvest email addresses. It doesn't differentiate whether you pulled the trigger with your hand or used some mechanism to cause someone else to pull the trigger for you.

 

[dusum]

thanks for your response. Do be clear, i only built the application. All use of it is done by the user on their computer. The only interaction they have with my website is to pay a fee. All interaction with the jobs site is done from their computer and on their internet connection. All data collected form the jobs site is stored on the user computer. All my website is is a location to download the application and pay a fee.

Can i still be held liable for anything?

 

[army judge]

Yes, if you initiate what you have built, it will bring you big trouble.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[jharris352]

If you build a tool whose purpose it is to violate the TOS then you are guilty of the violation too. Its not like your tool is being misused, it's being used to do what you want it to do.