Copyright Notice & Takedown Policy (DMCA)

Last updated: 15 April 2026

1. Introduction and Our Position

The Shkiper service (shkiper.app, the "Service"), operated by Individual Entrepreneur Valentin V. Morev (Russian Federation, "we," the "Operator"), respects the intellectual property rights of third parties and expects its users to do the same. This Policy describes how to send us a notice concerning alleged infringement of copyright or related rights in materials accessible through the Service, how we process such notices, and what remedies users have.

This Policy is drafted to address multiple legal regimes because the Service is available globally: Section 512 of the US Digital Millennium Copyright Act (17 U.S.C. §512, the "DMCA"); Article 1253.1 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation on the liability of information intermediaries; Articles 6 and 16 of Regulation (EU) 2022/2065 on a single market for digital services (the "DSA"); and the e-Commerce Directive 2000/31/EC for users located in the European Union and the United Kingdom.

We apply a single notice-and-action procedure: we promptly review properly substantiated notices, take necessary and sufficient measures (removal or disabling of access), and notify the affected user of their right to submit a counter-notice or to object.

2. DMCA: Elements of a Notice of Infringement (United States, 17 U.S.C. §512(c)(3))

If you are the copyright owner or an agent authorized to act on the owner's behalf and you believe that material available through the Service infringes your copyright, please send us a written notice containing all six elements required by DMCA §512(c)(3):

Signature. A physical or electronic signature of a person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of the exclusive right that is allegedly infringed (the "complainant"). For electronic notices, a typed full name with title is acceptable.
Identification of the copyrighted work. Identification of the copyrighted work claimed to have been infringed (book, textbook, lecture, article, or image title; author; publisher; ISBN or other identifier). If multiple works are covered by a single notification, a representative list of such works is acceptable.
Identification of the infringing material and its location on the Service. Identification of the material claimed to be infringing and information reasonably sufficient to permit us to locate it: specific URLs on shkiper.app or within the application, topic identifiers, page references, or AI response identifiers. A generic reference to the site or the app as a whole is not sufficient.
Complainant contact information. A mailing address, telephone number, and valid email address of the complainant; if an agent is acting, also the name and details of the rights holder represented.
Good-faith-belief statement. A statement that the complainant has a good-faith belief that the use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law (including that it is not covered by fair use or another exception).
Statement under penalty of perjury. A statement that the information in the notice is accurate and that, under penalty of perjury, the complainant is authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed.

Notices that do not contain the elements above may be set aside as non-compliant with §512(c)(3); we reserve the right to contact the complainant for clarification, but our response timelines begin to run from the date we receive a properly formed notice.

3. DMCA Designated Agent and Address for Notices

In accordance with DMCA §512(c)(2), a designated agent for receiving notices of alleged infringement is being registered with the U.S. Copyright Office directory (copyright.gov/dmca-directory). Until that registration is complete, please send DMCA notices to: abuse@shkiper.app. Notices received at this address are reviewed and processed in the same manner as notices delivered to a designated agent.

Postal address for paper notices: Individual Entrepreneur Valentin V. Morev, Russian Federation; the full street address will be provided on written request sent via the email address above. Notices are accepted in Russian and English; notices in other languages may be returned with a request for translation.

For speed and traceability, we strongly prefer notices sent by email. Please include the following in the subject line: "DMCA Notice — [title of work]."

4. Counter-Notice (DMCA §512(g)(3))

If your content has been removed or access to it disabled pursuant to a DMCA notice and you believe in good faith that the material was removed or disabled as a result of mistake or misidentification, you may submit a counter-notice. A counter-notice must contain:

your physical or electronic signature;
identification of the material that has been removed or to which access has been disabled and the location at which the material appeared before it was removed or disabled (URL, identifier);
a statement under penalty of perjury that you have a good-faith belief that the material was removed or disabled as a result of mistake or misidentification;
your full name, mailing address, and telephone number, together with a statement that you consent to the jurisdiction of the US federal district court for the judicial district in which your address is located (or, if your address is outside the United States, for any judicial district in which the provider may be found) and that you will accept service of process from the person who provided the original notice or an agent of such person;
a valid email address for correspondence.

Upon receipt of a properly formed counter-notice, we will provide a copy to the complainant who filed the original notice. If the complainant does not notify us within 10 to 14 business days that an action has been filed seeking a court order to restrain further use of the material, we may restore access to the removed material.

5. Procedure Under Article 1253.1 of the Russian Civil Code (Russian Federation)

For the purposes of Russian law, the Operator acts as an information intermediary with respect to user-submitted material (for example, chat messages and user artifacts). A rights holder who believes that their exclusive rights in an intellectual property object or a means of individualization are being infringed through the Service may send the Operator a written statement containing:

information about the rights holder (full name or corporate name; place of residence or location; contact details, including an email address);
information about the intellectual property object allegedly posted in infringement of rights, sufficient to identify it unambiguously;
the domain name and/or network address (URL) at which the infringing material is located within the Service;
an indication that the rights holder owns exclusive rights in the object and confirmation that the infringer does not have authorization to use it;
consent of the rights holder to the processing of their personal data to the extent necessary to review the statement, together with a signature (for electronic statements, an electronic or scanned signature).

Upon receipt of a properly formed statement, the Operator will, within no more than 24 hours of receipt, take the necessary and sufficient measures to stop the infringement — that is, remove the material or disable access to it where technically feasible. If additional information is needed to decide the matter, the Operator may request it from the rights holder; in that case the 24-hour period runs from the date we receive the necessary clarifications.

6. Notice-and-Action Under the DSA (European Union)

In accordance with Articles 6 and 16 of Regulation (EU) 2022/2065 on digital services, the Operator maintains an accessible, user-friendly, and electronic mechanism for submitting notices of illegal content, including copyright infringements. Notices may be sent to abuse@shkiper.app and must contain a reasoned explanation of why the complainant believes the content is illegal, the precise electronic location of the material, the complainant's name and contact details (save in cases involving alleged offences against minors), and a statement of good faith and accuracy of the information provided.

Properly formed notices containing these elements are deemed to give rise to "actual knowledge" within the meaning of Article 6 DSA. We review notices in a timely, diligent, objective, and non-discriminatory manner and inform the complainant of our decision, together with the reasons and the redress mechanisms available.

7. What Happens After a Valid Notice

Upon receipt of a notice that meets the requirements of the applicable procedure, we will generally take the following actions:

promptly remove the material or disable access to it (expeditious removal); our target response time is 24 hours (for the Russian Federation procedure) and 3–5 business days in other cases;
notify the user who posted the material that the material has been removed or access disabled, the reasons for our action, and the substance of the notice received (to the extent it does not disclose the complainant's personal data beyond what is necessary);
inform the user of their right to submit a counter-notice (DMCA) or a reasoned objection (DSA);
maintain an internal log of notices received and actions taken for compliance and reporting purposes.

We are under no general obligation to monitor content but reserve the right, on our own initiative, to remove or disable access to material that violates applicable law or our rules for use of the Service.

8. Repeat-Infringer Policy (DMCA §512(i))

In accordance with DMCA §512(i), we have adopted, published, and reasonably implemented a policy that provides for the termination, in appropriate circumstances, of the accounts of users who are repeat infringers of copyright. A user is treated as a repeat infringer where multiple properly formed notices of infringement have been received concerning material posted by that user over a reasonable period and have not been rebutted by counter-notice, or have been rebutted in good faith but followed by further infringements.

Responses may include: a warning, temporary suspension, termination of an active subscription without refund (to the extent relating to access disabled because of infringement), and permanent deletion of the account. We evaluate each case individually, taking into account the nature and seriousness of the infringement.

9. Bad-Faith Notices and Liability for Misrepresentation

Under DMCA §512(f), any person who knowingly materially misrepresents that material is infringing, or that it was removed or disabled by mistake or misidentification, is liable for any damages — including costs and reasonable attorneys' fees — incurred by the alleged infringer, by any copyright owner or authorized licensee, or by our Service as a result of our reliance on such misrepresentation. Comparable consequences are provided by Article 10 of the Russian Civil Code (prohibition of abuse of rights) and Article 306 of the Russian Criminal Code (knowingly false denunciation), where applicable.

We reserve the right to reject notices that are manifestly abusive, directed at the suppression of legitimate criticism or competition, aimed at lawful uses (fair use / statutory free-use exceptions), or otherwise constitute misuse of the procedure. Information about bad-faith complainants may be disclosed to affected users and to competent authorities to the extent permitted by applicable data protection law.

10. First-Party Content Library and Scope

Part of the Service (the structured yacht-education knowledge base) is prepared by us on the basis of printed sources and lectures and is not user-submitted content. The §512(c) DMCA and Article 1253.1 Russian Civil Code safe harbors apply to user-submitted content (chat messages, user artifacts, uploaded files). We nevertheless consider notices concerning first-party content under the general rules of civil-law intellectual property dispute handling; please send such notices, with the same package of information, to abuse@shkiper.app.

11. Not Legal Advice

This Policy is not legal advice. If you are unsure of your rights or obligations or of how to draft a notice or counter-notice, we recommend that you consult a qualified attorney. The procedures, references to statutes, and time limits set out above are provided for information only and may change over time.

12. Contact and Related Documents

Address for copyright infringement notices, counter-notices, and other communications under this Policy: abuse@shkiper.app. Notices are accepted in Russian and English.