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legal and data use
OpenTrade Registry helps with public records. It is not legal advice, and it does not grant permission to reuse data.
- Prefer official bulk downloads and APIs.
- Respect posted terms, privacy notices, and robots guidance where applicable.
- Do not bypass CAPTCHAs, login walls, or technical controls.
- Keep normal tests offline.
- Treat
--allow-networkas an explicit operational choice. Do not add live agency downloads to default test runs.
Do not publish generated datasets unless the source clearly allows redistribution. When in doubt, publish the adapter code, source metadata, and instructions instead of republishing the records.
If you export records, keep the source URL, fetched time, caveats, raw record, and fingerprint with the data. Those fields help users understand where the record came from and when it was checked.
Downloaded files should stay local unless redistribution is clearly allowed. For examples and tests, prefer tiny hand-authored fixtures over copied public bulk rows.
Absence from one source is not proof that a license does not exist. It is also not proof that a person or business has no discipline, complaint history, or other records somewhere else.
Use careful wording:
No matching record was found in this source as of the checked time.
Avoid public accusations. Every agency publishes different data, and some records may be missing, stale, or available only from another official source.
Some public sources expose individual names, phone numbers, or home addresses. Preserve what is needed for provenance and accurate records, but think carefully before displaying or redistributing personal data. Consider redaction options when a source exposes individual home addresses.