Snowflake's terms put you on the hook, give them the keys

Snowflake is a cloud data platform. We read their contract so you don't have to. Here's what you're signing.

🔴 You can't sue them. U.S. customers must arbitrate disputes instead of going to court. You waive your right to a lawsuit.

🔴 They can change the rules anytime. Snowflake can modify the terms whenever they want. Keeping your account open means you accept the new version.

🔴 You own all the risk. You're responsible for everything your users do on the platform. You're also responsible for HIPAA compliance if you handle protected health information—Snowflake isn't.

🟡 Your data gets processed for business and legal reasons. Snowflake processes your customer data to run the service and to comply with law. Standard for cloud providers, but worth knowing.

🟢 Your intellectual property stays yours. Snowflake doesn't own your data or any work product you create. This one's clean.

You get enterprise cloud infrastructure. You also get liability that travels with you, an arbitration clause that limits your recourse, and a contract that changes at their discretion. Grade C reflects the high-friction dispute mechanics and broad customer liability.

This breakdown is based on Snowflake's publicly available Terms of Service and/or Privacy Policy. It may contain mistakes. Spot one? Let us know.