Terms of Service

Last updated: December 4, 2025

These Terms of Service ("Terms") are a legal agreement between you and MathLinks ("we," "our," or "us"). They govern your use of our online math competition platform (the "Service").

BY CREATING AN ACCOUNT OR USING MATHLINKS, YOU AGREE TO THESE TERMS. IF YOU DO NOT AGREE, DO NOT USE THE SERVICE.

1. Who Can Use MathLinks

1.1 Age Requirements

MathLinks is open to users of all ages. If you are under 13, a parent or guardian must agree to these Terms for you. If you are 13-17, your parent or guardian should review these Terms with you.

1.2 Schools and Organizations

If you use MathLinks on behalf of a school, club, or organization, you confirm that you have authority to agree to these Terms for that organization.

1.3 Your Agreement

By creating an account or participating in a competition, you confirm you have read and agree to these Terms and our Privacy Policy.

2. What MathLinks Provides

MathLinks offers:

  • Online math competitions in multiple divisions (Competitive, General, Elementary)
  • Individual and team competitions
  • Practice problems and mock tests
  • Proctored testing with automatic grading
  • Leaderboards and score tracking
  • Tools for coaches and teachers to manage students

We may change, pause, or stop any part of the Service at any time. We are not responsible for any inconvenience this may cause.

3. Your Account

3.1 Creating an Account

  • You must provide accurate information when signing up.
  • You must verify your email address.
  • One account per person. No duplicate accounts.
  • Do not share your account with others.

3.2 Keeping Your Account Secure

  • Keep your password secret.
  • Tell us immediately if you think someone else accessed your account (email support@mathlinks.org).
  • You are responsible for everything that happens on your account.

3.3 Account Suspension or Deletion

We can suspend or delete your account if you break these rules, cheat, or do anything harmful. You can also delete your own account by contacting us.

4. Competition Rules and Fair Play

4.1 Basic Rules

  • All work must be your own.
  • Finish within the time limit.
  • Follow competition-specific instructions.
  • In team competitions, only work with your registered teammates.

4.2 Cheating is Prohibited

The following are not allowed:

  • Copying answers or submitting work that is not yours.
  • Sharing problems or answers with anyone during or after the test.
  • Using calculators, websites, AI tools, or other help unless allowed.
  • Working with others on individual rounds.
  • Using multiple accounts.
  • Trying to cheat the proctoring system.
  • Accessing test content before or after your testing window.

4.3 Proctoring

Some competitions monitor your activity to prevent cheating. This may include tracking if you switch tabs, leave fullscreen, or take other actions. By joining a proctored competition, you agree to this monitoring.

4.4 What Happens If You Cheat

If we believe you cheated, we may: invalidate your score, ban you from future competitions, suspend your account, and/or tell your school or coach. Our decisions are final.

5. Prohibited Behavior

Do not:

  • Break any laws while using MathLinks.
  • Try to hack or break into our systems or other users' accounts.
  • Disrupt the Service or overload our servers.
  • Upload viruses or malicious code.
  • Collect other users' information without permission.
  • Use bots or automated tools.
  • Pretend to be someone else.
  • Harass, bully, or threaten other users.
  • Copy or redistribute our content without permission.

6. Content Ownership

6.1 Our Content

All competition problems, solutions, website design, and MathLinks branding belong to us. Do not copy, share, or sell them without our written permission.

6.2 Your Submissions

Your answers and uploaded files remain yours. By submitting them, you give us permission to use them to run the Service (grading, displaying results, etc.).

7. Fees and Payments

  • Some competitions have registration fees. The fee is shown before you register.
  • Fees are in US dollars unless stated otherwise.
  • Payments are processed by a third-party service. We do not see your full card number.
  • Refunds depend on competition rules. Contact us if you need help.

8. No Guarantees (Disclaimer)

MATHLINKS IS PROVIDED "AS IS." WE DO NOT GUARANTEE IT WILL WORK PERFECTLY, BE ERROR-FREE, OR BE AVAILABLE AT ALL TIMES.

Technical problems happen. Internet issues, server errors, and browser bugs may affect your experience, including during timed tests. We will do our best, but we cannot promise perfection.

9. Limit on Our Responsibility

TO THE EXTENT ALLOWED BY LAW, MATHLINKS IS NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES FROM YOUR USE OF THE SERVICE.

This includes but is not limited to:

  • Technical problems during a test.
  • Lost scores or data.
  • Mistakes in grading.
  • Actions of other users.

IF WE OWE YOU ANYTHING, IT WILL NOT EXCEED WHAT YOU PAID US IN THE PAST 12 MONTHS, OR $100, WHICHEVER IS MORE.

Some places do not allow these limits. If that applies to you, some limits may not apply.

10. You Protect Us (Indemnification)

If someone sues us or makes a claim against us because of something you did (breaking these rules, cheating, harming others, etc.), you agree to pay for our defense and any costs that result.

11. Things Outside Our Control

We are not responsible for failures caused by things beyond our control: natural disasters, power outages, internet failures, government actions, pandemics, etc.

12. Governing Law

These Terms are governed by the laws of the State of Tennessee, United States. If there is a legal dispute, it will be handled in the courts of Tennessee.

Before going to court, please contact us first. Most problems can be solved through direct communication.

13. Changes to These Terms

We may update these Terms. When we do, we will change the "Last Updated" date and may email you about important changes.

If you keep using MathLinks after changes, you accept the new Terms. If you disagree, stop using the Service.

14. Other Legal Details

14.1 Entire Agreement

These Terms and our Privacy Policy are the complete agreement between you and us.

14.2 Severability

If a court finds part of these Terms invalid, the rest still applies.

14.3 No Waiver

If we do not enforce a rule once, that does not mean we give up that rule.

14.4 Assignment

You cannot transfer your account or these Terms to someone else. We can transfer ours.

15. Contact Us

Questions about these Terms? Contact us:

  • Email: support@mathlinks.org