Data Usage Policy
Last Updated: January 24, 2026
Purpose of This Policy
This Data Usage Policy outlines the permitted and prohibited uses of financial data obtained through Synapse Discovery's Services. It supplements our Terms of Service and is designed to ensure fair, legal, and responsible use of our platform. By using our Services, you agree to comply with this policy.
1. Data Sources and Provenance
1.1 Source of Our Data
Synapse Discovery aggregates, standardizes, and delivers financial data from publicly available sources, including:
- SEC EDGAR: Company filings (10-K, 10-Q, 8-K, 13F, DEF 14A, and other forms)
- Stock Exchanges: Historical price and volume data
- Federal Reserve (FRED): Economic indicators and macro data
- Other Public Sources: Corporate actions, fund disclosures
1.2 Data Processing
We process, standardize, and structure raw data to make it accessible and usable. Our value-add includes parsing complex filings, normalizing data formats, calculating derived metrics, and maintaining point-in-time data integrity. The underlying factual data remains publicly available; our processing and delivery mechanisms are proprietary.
2. Permitted Uses
You may use data obtained from our Services for the following purposes, subject to your subscription tier:
Research and Analysis
Quantitative research, fundamental analysis, backtesting investment strategies, academic research
Internal Business Use
Portfolio management, risk analysis, compliance monitoring, internal reporting
Application Development
Building applications, tools, or services that consume our data (subject to redistribution limits)
Personal Projects
Learning, experimentation, personal trading research, hobby projects
AI/ML Training (Limited)
Training machine learning models for internal use (not for creating competing data products)
3. Prohibited Uses
The following uses are strictly prohibited and may result in immediate termination of your account:
Unauthorized Redistribution
Reselling, sublicensing, or redistributing raw data to third parties without a redistribution license
Creating Competing Products
Using our data to create or enhance a competing financial data product or service
Bulk Data Sharing
Sharing bulk downloads, database dumps, or systematic data exports with non-licensed parties
Market Manipulation
Using data for any form of market manipulation, fraud, or illegal trading activity
Circumventing Controls
Bypassing rate limits, using multiple accounts, or circumventing access controls
Credential Sharing
Sharing API keys, account credentials, or login access with unauthorized users
4. Redistribution Rights
4.1 Display vs. Redistribution
There is an important distinction between displaying data and redistributing data:
- Display: Showing data to end-users in your application's interface (permitted for all tiers)
- Redistribution: Providing raw data feeds, downloads, or API access to third parties (requires Enterprise license)
4.2 Application Developers
If you build applications using our data, you may display data to your users but may not:
- Provide bulk data exports or downloads to your users
- Allow systematic scraping or extraction of data from your application
- Create a pass-through API that mirrors our data
4.3 Enterprise Redistribution
Enterprise customers may negotiate redistribution rights as part of their contract. Contact enterprise@synapsediscovery.io to discuss redistribution licensing.
5. API Usage and Rate Limits
5.1 Fair Use
API access is subject to rate limits based on your subscription tier. Limits are designed to ensure fair access for all users and maintain system stability.
5.2 Rate Limit Tiers
| Tier | Daily Limit | Burst Rate |
|---|---|---|
| Free | 100 calls/day | 10/min |
| Developer | 10,000 calls/day | 100/min |
| Quant | 100,000 calls/day | 500/min |
| Enterprise | Unlimited | Custom |
5.3 Consequences of Abuse
Exceeding rate limits will result in temporary throttling. Repeated or intentional abuse may result in account suspension or termination.
6. Data Quality and Limitations
6.1 Best Efforts
We make reasonable efforts to ensure data accuracy and timeliness. However, you acknowledge that:
- Financial data inherently contains errors, revisions, and restatements
- Data may be delayed compared to original source publication
- Coverage may not include all securities or all time periods
- Derived metrics and calculations involve assumptions that may not suit all use cases
6.2 Your Responsibility
You are responsible for validating data fitness for your specific use case. Critical applications should implement appropriate data validation and error handling.
7. Attribution
While not legally required for all use cases, we appreciate attribution when displaying our data publicly. Suggested attribution:
Attribution may be required for certain promotional or commercial displays; contact us for guidance.
8. Compliance and Monitoring
We reserve the right to monitor usage patterns to ensure compliance with this policy. Monitoring may include:
- API call volume and patterns
- Endpoint access frequency
- Unusual or suspicious activity detection
If we identify potential violations, we may contact you for clarification before taking action. Confirmed violations will result in enforcement actions as described in our Terms of Service.
9. Changes to This Policy
We may update this Data Usage Policy periodically. Material changes will be communicated via email or notice on our website. Continued use of our Services after changes take effect constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.
10. Questions and Clarifications
If you have questions about permitted uses or need clarification on whether a specific use case is allowed, please contact us before proceeding: