Is webmail's Terms of Service safe?

Top concerning points

1. 1.

   You cannot opt out from tracking

   blocker

   High

   Users can’t fully opt out of tracking technologies used for non essential purposes such as advertising, marketing or analytics. The user may be asked for consent for installing some tracking technologies on the device, and even if all are rejected the service will still track its visitors and ignore the choice.This case doesn’t apply to functional cookies that are necessary to provide the services.

   Source quote / document
2. 2.

   This service holds onto content that you've deleted

   blocker

   High

   Content may remain in backup servers and be retained after deletion, and thus never be completely deleted. This case doesn't apply to contributions that can't be removed due to the nature of the service.

   Source quote / document
3. 3.

   The policy refers to documents that are missing or unfindable

   blocker

   High

   For instance, when the privacy policy refers to the cookie policy, but there is no link to a cookie policy, anywhere. It only applies to services that are impossible to contact to raise the issue, either because they don’t offer any contact method or they do not respond in a reasonable time.

   Source quote / document
4. 4.

   Third-party cookies are used for statistics

   bad

   High

   For instance, Google Analytics, rather than self-hosted (first-party) statistics software.

   Source quote / document
5. 5.

   You must provide your legal name, pseudonyms are not allowed

   bad

   High

   You must provide your legal name and pseudonyms aren't allowed. This case doesn't apply to Services for which transparency regarding users identities is relevant for their purposes.

   Source quote / document
6. 6.

   Many different types of personal data are collected

   bad

   High

   The service collects different kinds of personal data, such as name, demographic information, postal address, biometric data, device information, IDs, contacts, call logs...

   Source quote / document
7. 7.

   Your personal data may be used for marketing purposes

   bad

   High

   The service may use your personal data for marketing, such as sending you personalised offerings.

   Source quote / document
8. 8.

   A license is kept on user-generated content even after you close your account

   bad

   High

   The service may still use your content and display it after you stopped using it by closing your account. The case applies to terms requiring users to grant them a perpetual license over that content.

   Source quote / document

Frequently asked questions

What is webmail's ToS;DR privacy grade?

ToS;DR rates webmail as Grade E. Grades range from A (best) to E (worst). See the full breakdown on ToS;DR.

Is webmail's Terms of Service safe?

ToS;DR's Grade E means the terms raise serious concerns. Read the blocker and bad points carefully before accepting.

What is a top concern in webmail's terms?

You cannot opt out from tracking — Users can’t fully opt out of tracking technologies used for non essential purposes such as advertising, marketing or analytics. The user may be asked for consent for installing some tracking technologies on the device, and even if all are rejected the service will still track its visitors and ignore the choice.This case doesn’t apply to functional cookies that are necessary to provide the services. (Source: ToS;DR approved point).

Where can I read webmail's official terms?

ToS;DR tracks "Terms of Use" at https://www.webmail.co.za/help/terms.php. Always prefer the official document over summaries.