For most studies with the Electronic Data Service (EDS) collection, access is restricted to Columbia University users and terms of use apply. Terms of use are specific to the source of a data study and users have the responsibility to make themselves aware of these terms. The terms can usually be found in the documentation that accompanies a study. Depending on the source, the terms can cover such issues as:

• type of use (instructional and research versus commercial use),
• acknowledgment of the principal investigator, data producers, and data distributors,
• a prohibition against attempting to identify the participants in study,
• a prohibition against redistributing or selling the data,
• a prohibiton against re-engineering software that accompanies data.

Specific examples of such policies include:

• ICPSR Responsible Use Statement,
• Roper Center's Responsible Use Statement,
• Sociometrics License Agreement (applies to SSEDL data studies).