Registration Terms & Conditions

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The following Terms and Conditions (the “Terms and Conditions”) apply to all events hosted by the Forum of Incident Response and Security Teams, Inc. (“FIRST”). Prior to registration submission, each person (the “Attendee”) must acknowledge and accept the Registration Terms and Conditions. Should the Attendee not wish to accept the Registration Terms and Conditions, the Attendee should not register.

The submission of an Attendee’s registration is regarded as acceptance of the Registration Terms and Conditions.

General

FIRST reserves the right to render, in its sole absolute discretion, all interpretations and decisions in connection with the Registration Terms and Conditions and to establish further regulations binding upon the Attendee as may be deemed necessary to the general success and wellbeing of the event and/or any person(s) affiliated therewith. FIRST’s decisions and interpretations shall be final in all cases. The views and opinions expressed by any Attendee at a FIRST hosted event may not necessarily reflect the views of FIRST employees, members, agents, and representatives.

COVID-19 Health & Safety Guidelines

FIRST is committed to hosting safe and enjoyable events and will comply with all safety protocols consistent with the local government of the event host location. Specific recommendations and procedures in place can be found on each event webpage.

Liability Waiver & Release

Attendee assumes all risks and accepts sole responsibility for any injury (including, but not limited to personal injury, disability, and death), illness, damage, loss, claim, liability, or expense of any kind that Attendee may experience or incur in connection with attending the event. Attendee hereby releases, covenants not to sue, discharges, and holds harmless the event, its employees, agents, and representatives, of and from any such claims, including all liabilities, claims, actions, damages, costs, or expenses of any kind arising out of or relating thereto.

Specifically relating to the global COVID-19 pandemic, Attendee acknowledges the highly contagious nature of COVID-19 and voluntarily assumes the risk of exposure or infection by attending the event, and that such exposure or infection may result in personal injury, illness, disability, and/or death to Attendee. Attendee understands the risk of becoming exposed to or infected by COVID-19 at the event may result from the actions, omissions, or negligence of others who may attend the event or their families, colleagues, or others with whom they may have contact. Accordingly, Attendee understands and agrees that this release includes any claims based on the actions, omissions or negligence of FIRST, its employees, agents, and representatives, whether a COVID-19 infection occurs before, during, or after participation in the Event.

In addition to all other rules and regulations relating to the Attendee’s attendance at the event, Attendee agrees to comply with all COVID-related procedures that may be implemented by FIRST and the event facilities, including, but not limited to, mask-wearing and social distancing requirements and restrictions on certain activities that carry higher COVID-related risk, in order to protect as much as possible the health and safety of all event attendees.

Code of Conduct & Nondiscrimination

FIRST is committed to providing a safe, productive, and welcome environment for attendees of the event. Attendees are expected to behave professionally and in accordance with the FIRST Code of Conduct. If you are subject to or witness unacceptable behavior, or have any other concerns, please notify a community organizer as soon as possible by visiting the registration desk or emailing conduct@first.org.

Personal Property

FIRST accepts no responsibility for loss or damage to personal property.

Digital and Other Recordings

Professional photographs, audio, and video will be captured during the event. Event Attendees grant FIRST and its representatives permission to photograph and/or record them during event activities and to use such recordings in support of FIRST’s mission. Uses of recordings may include, but are not limited to, electronic broadcasting on FIRST’s YouTube Channel, educational and membership recruitment promotions, post-event reporting, and FIRST’s social media activities.

Speakers provide consent for FIRST to record their presentations in audio and/or visual form and grant FIRST a royalty-free license to use, reproduce, and distribute the recordings and accompanying materials. Speakers also understand that while they retain the rights to their presentation materials (handouts, slides, etc.) and the content of the presentation, FIRST is the sole copyright owner of any recording and can distribute it, along with any supporting materials in any way, with the appropriate attribution of the speakers.

Photography or Recording Usage by Attendees

FIRST welcomes coverage of the event. Photography, screenshots, audio recordings, and video recordings are permitted in sessions indicated as TLP:WHITE and TLP:GREEN. TLP levels will be clearly indicated orally or in writing on program materials. TLP definitions can be found at https://www.first.org/tlp. Attendees found violating TLP rules are subject to immediate dismissal from the event and will forfeit their event registration. Due to the prevalence of mobile recording devices in today’s world, FIRST disclaims all liability for the capture of your image in any multimedia format by other Attendees at the event.

Press

Requests for press passes must be made in advance of the event to first-sec@first.org. Press credentials are required for the issuance of a press pass, and FIRST requires that a copy of all published material be submitted to first-sec@first.org.

Personal Information

Event registrations with payment are processed on a third-party platform hosted by Certain, Inc (“Certain”). Certain’s Privacy Policy may be reviewed at https://www.certain.com/privacy-policy.

For more information on how FIRST processes event registration data, please visit https://www.first.org/about/policies/privacy.

Email addresses collected from the event registration form will be used to circulate important event details and future announcement updates on FIRST event activities. If you would like your record to be deleted from the event mailing list after the event, please notify first-sec@first.org with your unsubscribe request.

FIRST-provided Internet Access (AUP)

The following uses of FIRST-provided Internet access are not permitted: to violate any local, state, or federal statute; to vandalize, damage, or disable the property of another individual or organization; to access another individual's materials, information, or files without permission; to use scanning or hacking exploit tools on public networks; and, to violate copyright or otherwise use the intellectual property of another individual or organization without permission.

Modification of the Event Program

FIRST reserves the right to modify the event program, which is published as an indication only.

Registration Fees, Hotel Lodging, and Travel Accommodations

Standard event registration fees include admission to open sessions, social activities, coffee breaks, and lunches—unless indicated otherwise. Hotel, travel insurance, and travel accommodations are not included and are the responsibility of the Attendee.

Event Cancellation

In the event of fire, flood or without limit other causes that FIRST reasonably believes to be substantial or that are beyond FIRST's control, FIRST reserves the right to change the times, dates, and the venue of the event, without incurring any liability to the Attendees.

Force Majeure

Attendance at the event is subject to acts of God, war, government authority, disaster, fire, recommendations by the World Health Organization (WHO) or similar organization against non-essential travel to or from the event location, or other emergencies, any of which make it illegal or impossible for FIRST, the event hotel(s), or convention centers to provide the facilities and/or services for the event, or make it illegal or impossible for the Attendee to utilize the hotels or convention centers for the event. A registration may be cancelled for any one or more of such reasons by written notice from FIRST to the Attendee without liability on the part of FIRST.

Indemnity

To the extent permitted by law, the Attendee agrees to protect, indemnify, defend, and hold harmless FIRST, the hotel(s) and convention centers where the Event is being held, and their respective employees, officers, directors, and agents against all claims, losses, or damages to persons or property, governmental charges or fines, and costs (including reasonable attorney's fees) arising out of or connected to the actions or failure to act in accordance with the Registration Terms and Conditions by the Attendee, its employees, officers, directors, or agents, except those claims arising out of the other party's gross negligence or willful misconduct.

Registration Cancellation and Refund Policy

Due to the status of the COVID-19 pandemic, Attendees may cancel their registration up to 7 days before the first day of the Event and receive a full (100%) refund. Event registrations cancelled within 7 days of the first day of the event will incur a cancellation fee equaling 50% of the total ticket price purchased. No cancellations will be permitted after the event begins.

Substitutions may be made at any time. If you wish to substitute an Attendee, please contact events@first.org at the earliest opportunity for instructions. Please allow 7-10 business days for refunds to process after a request has been received and confirmed.