Please read these terms of use carefully.

By downloading this COVIDCert NI App you agree to these terms. IF YOU DO NOT AGREE TO THESE TERMS DO NOT DOWNLOAD THIS APP.

Introduction

These are the terms of use for the COVID Status Certification Mobile Application also referred to as COVIDCert NI App. This is being made available by the Department of Health (DoH) in Northern Ireland (under powers available through the ‘Health and Social Care (Reform) Act (Northern Ireland) 2009’).

The Department of Health, The Regional Health and Social Care Board (HSCB) and The Regional Agency for Public Health and Social Well-being Agency (PHA), through the Digital Health and Care NI (DHCNI), have worked jointly on the development and delivery of a COVIDCert NI app that, by virtue of vaccination and/or COVID testing, facilitates international travel (meeting EU and WHO requirements) and domestic use cases.

NI Direct and key suppliers have been employed to help deliver the COVIDCert NI app. The App has been designed to assist citizens of Northern Ireland to travel internationally and demonstrate proof of their COVID vaccination status for the purposes of cross border travel.  Along with international travel, as the use of Covid Certification opens for Domestic use cases, the COVIDCert NI app may also facilitate access to closed/indoor venues with large gatherings, such as concerts and sporting events.

The COVIDCert NI App, which is a mobile extension of the COVID Certification Status Service (CCS), has been developed on behalf of the DoH for the benefit of citizens in Northern Ireland.

Please read these terms of use in conjunction with the Privacy Information Notice for the App, available to view below.

References to “DoH”, “we” and “us” in these terms of use are to the Department of Health NI which is the owner and licensor of the COVIDCert NI App. References to “the user” and “you” refer to the person who has downloaded the COVIDCert NI App onto their device for their own personal use and who uses the service.

Who we are and what these Terms do

We license you to use:

• The COVIDCert NI mobile application software and the data supplied with the software (App) and any authorised updates or supplements to it;
• The related online or electronic documentation related to the App (Documentation); and
• The Service you connect to via the App and the content we provide to you through it, as outlined above (Service)

subject to and as permitted in these terms.

The above licence is a personal, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable, limited licence to use the App and the Documentation, and through the App to use the Service, for your own personal use. All other licence rights not expressly permitted are fully reserved to us.

If you want to report back to us about your experience of using the App, or want to report any problems with the use of the App or the Service, please contact us by emailing us at the following email address:

covidcertni@hscni.net

You will also find more information at https://covid-19.hscni.net/

What the CCS App does

The App provides COVID vaccinations status function; for international travel – to show travel, airline and government border officials the status of your COVID vaccination; for domestic use cases – to show validators at the domestic venue the status of your COVID vaccination. The COVIDCert NI App allows the user to:

• apply for new certificate;
• register with NIDA if they don’t have an account;
• login using the Identity authentication via the NIDA;
• download the digital certificate from the CCS Backend API(s) and store it on the Mobile App;
• view their certificate details.

A subsequent release may provide the ability for the user to prove their COVID test status based on information provided by approved test providers. Further functions may be added to this App in the future.

Metrics Data

Metric data does not identify you and is only used to create aggregate views of how the App is being used and performing.

Use of the COVIDCert NI App.

As the App will need to use the most current version of the phone’s operating system, users may be asked to upgrade the first time they use it. None of the information in this App is ever shared with Apple or Google. The App cannot be used on older on which it is not possible to upgrade the operating system. It is not available on phones which use a different operating system, other than the Android or iOS systems deployed by Google / Apple.

The App is free to download and use to anyone who is resident in Northern Ireland. The Service is intended only for people resident in Northern Ireland and the Service may not be otherwise used. Users downloading the App who are not resident in Northern Ireland will not be able to receive Vaccination Certificate QR codes as the app is linked to the NI Vaccine Management System (VMS), which only records COVID-19 vaccinations given to people resident in Northern Ireland. On downloading and activating the App, users are asked to confirm that they are resident in Northern Ireland and, if not, are discouraged from using the App with an explanation that it will not work for them. They are encouraged to use an COVID related app intended to cover their own area.

Use of the App requires an Android or iPhone mobile telephone device which supports Android 6.0 or higher (in the case of Android phones) or iOS 12.5.4 or later (in the case of Apple iPhones).

Your Privacy

We only use any data we collect through your use of the App and the Service in the ways set out in our Privacy Information Notice. The Privacy Information Notice confirms the terms upon which your data is collected and used in respect of your use of the App and the Service.

App Store’s terms also apply

When you download the App, or when you access or use the App or the Service, you may also be subject to the terms of use and policies of the relevant App Store (Google Play Store or Apple Store) from which you download the App. Please review these terms of use and policies very carefully. Your access to, and use of, the Service will be governed by these (the DoH’s) terms of use, unless the terms of use and policies of the relevant App Store say otherwise.

How you may use the App, including how many devices you may use it on

In return for your agreeing to comply with these terms you may:

• download a copy of the App onto one mobile device and view, use and display the App and the Service on this device for your personal purposes only,
• use any Documentation to support your permitted use of the App and the Service,
• provided you comply with the licence restrictions above, make one copy of the App and the Documentation for back-up purposes, and
• receive and use any free supplementary software code or update of the App incorporating “patches” and corrections of errors as we may provide to you.

You must be 18 to accept these terms and to download and use the App

You must be at least 18 years of age in order to accept these terms and to download and use the App.

The right to use the App and Service is personal and you may not transfer the App to someone else

We are giving you personally the right to use the App and the Service as set out above. If you permit someone else to access your device and to use the App or Service, then you do so at your own risk, and you are responsible for that person’s use and you must ensure that the person knows about and complies with these terms. You must also not use any other person’s App.

You may not otherwise transfer the App or the Service to someone else, whether for money, for anything else or for free. If you sell any device on which the App is installed, you must first remove the App from the device.

Changes to these terms

We may need to change these terms to reflect changes in law or best practice or to deal with additional features which we introduce.

We will give you at least 7 days’ notice of any change by sending you an in-App notification and providing you with details of the change, on this publication, and notifying you of a change when you next start the App.

Changes driven

Northern Ireland Public health policy may not be subject to the 7 days’ notice, as the timing of implementation may not allow it. We will publicly notify changes in the App in advance on:

COVIDCert NI Mobile App

If you do not accept the notified changes, we will advise you what specifically this will mean at the date of the notification. It may mean that you will not be permitted to continue to use the App and the Service. This will be your informed choice.

Updates to the COVIDCert NI App and changes to the Service

From time to time we may automatically update the App and change the Service settings to improve performance, enhance functionality, reflect changes to the operating system or address security issues. Alternatively, we may ask you to update the App for these reasons. If you choose not to install such updates or if you opt out of automatic updates you may not be able to continue using the App and the Service, and you may compromise the security of your data or device.

If someone else owns the phone or device you are using

If you download or stream the App onto any phone or other device not owned by you, you must have the owner’s permission to do so. You will be responsible for complying with these terms, whether or not you own the phone or other device.

We are not responsible for other websites you link to

The App or any Service may contain links to other independent websites which are not provided by us, such as websites for purposes of booking a vaccination or test. Such independent sites are not under our control, and we are not responsible for and have not checked and approved their content or their privacy policies (if any). You will need to make your own independent judgement about whether to use any such independent sites.

Licence restrictions

You agree that you will:

• except in the course of permitted sharing, (see “How you may use the App, including how many devices you may use it on” above), not rent, lease, sub-license, loan, provide, or otherwise make available, the App or the Service in any form, in whole or in part to any person without prior written consent from us, nor will you infringe our rights (including our intellectual property rights) in relation to your use of the App or Service;
• not copy the App, Documentation or Service, except as part of the normal use of the App or where it is necessary for the purpose of back-up or operational security.
• not translate, merge, adapt, vary, alter or modify, the whole or any part of the App, Documentation or Service nor permit the App or the Service or any part of them to be combined with, or become incorporated in, any other programs, except as necessary to use the App and the Service on devices as permitted in these terms.
• not disassemble, de-compile, reverse engineer or create derivative works based on the whole or any part of the App or the Service nor attempt to do any such things, except to the extent that (by virtue of the Copyright (Computer Programs) Regulations 1992) such actions cannot be prohibited because they are necessary to decompile the App to obtain the information necessary to create an independent program that can be operated with the App or with another program (Permitted Objective), and provided that the information obtained by you during such activities:

(a)         is not disclosed or communicated without our prior written consent to any third party to whom it is not necessary to disclose or communicate it in order to achieve the Permitted Objective; and

(b)        is not used to create any software that is substantially similar in its expression to the App; and

(c)         is kept secure; and

(d)        is used only for the Permitted Objective.

• comply with all applicable technology control or export laws and regulations that apply to the technology used or supported by the App or any Service.

You must:

• ensure that all information that you provide to us via the App is accurate, complete, honest and not misleading, to the best of your knowledge, information and belief.
• comply with all applicable laws and regulations in using the App and the Service.
• not use the App or any Service in any unlawful manner, for any unlawful purpose, or in any manner inconsistent with these terms, or act fraudulently or maliciously, for example, by hacking into or inserting malicious code, such as viruses, or harmful data, into the App, any Service or any operating system.
• not infringe our intellectual property rights or those of any third party in relation to your use of the App or any Service, including by the submission of any material (to the extent that such use is not licensed by these terms);
• not transmit any material that is defamatory, offensive or otherwise objectionable in relation to your use of the App or any Service.
• not use the App or any Service in a way that could damage, disable, overburden, impair or compromise our systems or security or interfere with other users; and
• not collect or harvest any information or data from any Service or our systems or attempt to decipher any transmissions to or from the servers running any Service.

Intellectual property rights

All intellectual property rights in the App, the Documentation and the Service throughout the world belong to us and the rights in the App and the Service are licensed (not sold) to you. You have no intellectual property rights in, or to, the App, the Documentation or the Service other than the right to use them in accordance with these terms.

Our responsibility to you

No warranty. While we take every care to ensure the correctness of the information, content and communications published in the App, we make no representation, warranty or guarantee as to the correctness, accuracy, completeness, currency or reliability thereof. We assume no responsibility and make no warranty that the functions and use of the App will be permanently and continuously available and free of errors or faults, that errors will be rectified, or that the App will be free of viruses or other harmful elements.

Exclusion of liability. Nothing in these terms of use excludes or limits our liability for death or personal injury arising from our negligence, or our fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or any other liability that cannot be excluded or limited by Northern Irish law.

To the extent permitted by law, we exclude all conditions, warranties, representations, or other terms which may apply to our site or any content on it, whether express or implied.

We will not be liable to any user for any loss or damage, whether in contract, tort (including negligence), breach of statutory duty, or otherwise, even if foreseeable, arising under or in connection with:

• use of, or inability to use, our site; or
• use of or reliance on any content displayed on our site.

If you are travelling internationally, please note that, we will not be liable for:

• loss of profits, sales, business, or revenue.
• travel interruption or disruption.
• loss of anticipated savings.
• loss of business opportunity, goodwill, or reputation; or
• any indirect or consequential loss or damage.
• any delays in receipt of your certificate or in travel arrangements
• We assume no responsibility for the content of websites linked on our site. Such links should not be interpreted as endorsement by us of those linked websites. We will not be liable for any loss or damage that may arise from your use of them.

We do not exclude or limit in any way our liability to you where it would be unlawful to do so. This includes liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence or the negligence of our employees, agents or subcontractors or for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or in respect of any of your legal rights as a consumer (to the extent that these cannot be excluded).

Limitations to the COVIDCert NI App and the Service. While the App provides proof of the citizen’s COVID-19 vaccination status, this version of the App provides no additional functions.

Automated processing. The CCS and app do not undertake any automated decision making.  However, if there are any issues with verification of your identity on NIDA can call the Northern Ireland’ Helpline ‘0300 200 7814, Monday-Friday (excluding bank holidays) between the hours of 8:00am – 8:00 pm.

Withdrawal of or changes to the COVIDCert NI App or Service. The App and Service is intended to be made available for a limited period only while the Covid-19 crisis is ongoing. Without prejudice to this, we expressly reserve the right, at any time, without prior notice, to withdraw the App and Service. We also expressly reserve the right, at any time, and without prior notice, to make changes and/or improvements to the App and Service.

Please back-up content and data used with the COVIDCert NI App. We recommend that you back up any content and data used in connection with the App, to protect yourself in case of problems with the App or the Service.

Check that the COVIDCert NI App and the Service are suitable for you. The App and the Service have not been developed to meet your individual requirements. Please check that the facilities and functions of the App and the Service (as described on the App Store site and in the Documentation) meet your requirements.

We are not responsible for events outside our control. If our provision of the Service or support for the App or the Service is delayed by an event outside our control, then we will contact you as soon as possible to let you know and we will take steps to minimise the effect of the delay. We will not be liable for delays caused by the event, but if there is a risk of substantial delay you may contact us to end your use of the App at any time.

Referencing for the purposes of Identity. We may undertake a search with Experian for the purposes of verifying your identity. To do so Experian may check the details you supply against any particulars on any database (public or otherwise) to which they have access. They may also use your details in the future to assist other companies for verification purposes. A record of the search will be retained and will have no bearing on your credit history.

You can end your use of the COVIDCert NI App and what happens if you do

You can stop using the App at any time, and you can delete it at any time from your device.

If you delete the App, you will not be able to access the Service, and all rights granted to you by these terms will cease. We will not be holding any personal data in relation to you, since we will not be collecting any; however, any data held on your phone can be removed as indicated in the App instructions. Details are provided in relation to data processed by the App in the Privacy Information Notice.

We may end your rights to use the COVIDCert NI App and the Service if you break these terms

We may end your rights to use the App and Service at any time by contacting you if you have broken these terms in a serious way. If what you have done can be remedied, we will give you a reasonable opportunity to do so.

If we end your rights to use the App and Service:

• You must stop all activities authorised by these terms, including your use of the App and any Service.
• You must delete or remove the App from your device(s) and immediately destroy all copies of the App which you have and confirm to us that you have done this.
• We may end support and linkage to the App, from the App backend, rendering the App redundant.

We may transfer our rights and obligations to someone else

We may transfer our rights and obligations under these terms to another organisation. We will always tell you in writing if this happens and we will ensure that the transfer will not affect your rights under the terms of the licence.

You need our consent to transfer your rights to someone else

You may only transfer your rights or your obligations under these terms to another person if we agree in writing.

No rights for third parties

In respect of any individual not resident in Northern Ireland downloading and using the App: it is clearly our stated intent, that this app should not be used by individuals who are not resident in Northern Ireland. In order to avail of the App’s functionality in terms of vaccine certification, it is essential that users are resident in Norther Ireland, in order for us to be able to deliver authorisation and/or QR codes in relation to their COVID-19 vaccine status. During the on-boarding process, App users are given clear instruction not to use the App if they are not resident in Northern Ireland, and that the App functionality will not be available to them. As a result, we can accept no liability for anyone ignoring the instruction and using the App improperly.

These terms do not give rise to any rights under the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 to enforce any term of these terms.

If a court finds part of these terms illegal, the rest will continue in force

Each of the paragraphs of these terms operates separately. If any court or relevant authority decides that any of them are unlawful, the remaining paragraphs will remain in full force and effect.

Even if we delay in enforcing these terms, we can still enforce them later

Even if we delay in enforcing these terms, we can still enforce them later. If we do not insist immediately that you do anything you are required to do under these terms, or if we delay in taking steps against you in respect of your breaching these terms, that will not mean that you do not have to do those things and it will not prevent us taking steps against you at a later date.

Terms survive

Any of these terms of use that are intended to come into or continue in force on or after termination or expiry of these terms (which includes for the avoidance of doubt the provisions dealing with *Our responsibility to you*) will remain in full force and effect following termination or expiry. Termination or expiry of these terms of use shall not affect any rights, remedies, obligations or liabilities of you or us that have accrued up to the date of termination or expiry, including the right to claim damages in respect of any breach of the terms of use which existed at or before the date of termination or expiry.

Which laws apply to these terms and where you can bring legal proceedings

These terms are governed by the law of Northern Ireland and you can bring legal proceedings in respect of these terms (or anything to do with the App or the Service) in the courts in Northern Ireland only.