AI Use and Disclosure Policy

Purpose of This Policy

PressPortal is a Southern African press release submission, publishing and distribution platform. We publish content submitted by businesses, PR agencies, marketing agencies, organisations and individual contributors.

This policy explains how artificial intelligence tools may be used by PressPortal, how we approach AI-assisted submissions, and the responsibilities of anyone submitting content to the platform.

This policy should be read together with our Terms and Conditions, Privacy Policy, submission guidelines and any other applicable PressPortal policies.

How PressPortal Uses AI

PressPortal may use artificial intelligence and automated tools to support certain publishing, distribution and administrative functions.

These tools may assist with:

  • Suggested press release titles
  • Grammar and language improvements
  • Content formatting or restructuring
  • Summaries and excerpts
  • Metadata and SEO descriptions
  • Category or topic suggestions
  • Hashtag suggestions
  • Social media post preparation
  • Newsletter summaries
  • Image generation or editing
  • Duplicate, spam or content-quality detection
  • Internal support and administrative workflows

AI tools are used to assist these processes. They do not replace the responsibility of submitting parties to check their content before publication.

AI-generated suggestions may contain mistakes, omissions or misleading information. Users must review any suggested titles, summaries, social posts, metadata or other AI-assisted content before accepting or publishing it.

Responsibility for Submitted Content

The person or organisation submitting a press release remains responsible for the accuracy, legality and authorisation of the submitted content, regardless of whether artificial intelligence was used to write, edit or improve it.

Submitting parties are responsible for checking:

  • Facts, statistics and dates
  • Names, job titles and company information
  • Quotes and attributed statements
  • Product, service and event details
  • Legal, medical, financial and technical claims
  • Links and referenced sources
  • Copyright, trademarks and other intellectual property
  • Images, videos and supporting media
  • Personal information and privacy permissions
  • Commercial, sponsored or promotional disclosures
  • Their authority to represent the named person or organisation

By submitting content to PressPortal, the submitting party confirms that the content has been reviewed and that they hold the necessary rights, permissions and authority to publish it.

AI assistance does not remove or reduce these responsibilities.

Review and Moderation

PressPortal may use a combination of automated checks and human moderation to assess submitted content.

PressPortal reserves the right to review, edit, label, reject, suspend or remove content that does not meet our publishing standards or that may expose readers, affected parties or the platform to harm.

Publication on PressPortal does not mean that PressPortal has independently verified, endorsed or approved every statement or claim contained in a submission.

PressPortal does not guarantee that every submitted press release will be manually fact-checked or independently investigated before publication.

Standards for AI-Assisted Submissions

PressPortal may accept content that has been drafted, edited, translated or otherwise assisted by AI, provided that it meets our publishing standards.

All submitted content must be:

  • Accurate and not materially misleading
  • Relevant to the selected category and intended audience
  • Lawful and properly authorised
  • Clear about its commercial or promotional purpose
  • Free from fabricated quotes, interviews or sources
  • Respectful of privacy, dignity and intellectual property rights
  • Supported by credible information where material claims are made
  • Reviewed by the submitting party before publication

AI-generated content must not be presented as independently researched or verified where no such research or verification has taken place.

Prohibited Uses of AI

PressPortal does not knowingly allow AI to be used for:

  • Fabricated quotes or attributed statements
  • Fake interviews, sources or references
  • Fake reviews, testimonials or endorsements
  • False awards, qualifications or affiliations
  • Impersonation or identity misrepresentation
  • Defamatory, malicious or deliberately harmful claims
  • Plagiarism or copyright infringement
  • False or misleading commercial claims
  • Misleading medical, financial, legal or technical claims
  • Manipulated media presented as genuine evidence
  • False descriptions of people, organisations, products or events
  • Undisclosed sponsored or paid content
  • Mass-generated spam or substantially duplicated submissions
  • Content intended to deceive readers, publishers or search engines
  • Misrepresentation of a business, organisation or individual

Content that uses AI deceptively or irresponsibly may be rejected, labelled, corrected, suspended or removed.

Repeated or serious misuse may result in restrictions being placed on the relevant PressPortal account.

AI-Generated and AI-Altered Images

PressPortal may allow AI-generated or AI-altered images where they are appropriate and do not mislead readers.

Submitting parties must disclose when an image has been substantially generated or materially altered using AI, particularly where the image could reasonably be mistaken for a genuine photograph or record of an actual person, place, product, property or event.

AI-generated images must not:

  • Impersonate or misrepresent a real person
  • Create a false impression of an actual event
  • Misrepresent a product, service, property or business
  • Falsely depict an endorsement, award or achievement
  • Infringe copyright, trademarks or personality rights
  • Be presented as documentary evidence when they are illustrative

PressPortal may label an image as AI-generated, AI-assisted or illustrative where this is material to a reader’s understanding.

Routine technical changes such as resizing, cropping, background removal, sharpening or colour correction will not normally require an AI disclosure unless those changes materially alter the meaning of the image.

Disclosure on Individual Press Releases

PressPortal maintains this general policy to explain how AI may be used across the platform.

A separate AI disclosure will not necessarily be added to every press release where AI was used only for minor support, such as spelling corrections, grammar improvements, formatting, metadata or headline suggestions.

PressPortal may add a disclosure where AI has materially created or altered:

  • The central content of a press release
  • Research, statistics or factual analysis
  • Quotes or interview-style content
  • The meaning of the original submission
  • A realistic image associated with a factual story
  • Content that could otherwise create a misleading impression

PressPortal may request further information from the submitting party where the extent or nature of AI use is unclear.

Accuracy, Corrections and Removal

Artificial intelligence tools can generate inaccurate, incomplete or fabricated information.

If AI-assisted content is found to contain materially inaccurate, unlawful or misleading information, PressPortal may:

  • Correct or update the published content
  • Add a clarification or disclosure
  • Temporarily suspend the content
  • Remove the press release or associated media
  • Contact the submitting party for supporting information
  • Restrict the account responsible for the submission

Submitting parties must respond promptly when PressPortal requests evidence, clarification or proof of authority relating to published content.

Privacy and Confidential Information

Users must not enter private, confidential, sensitive or unpublished third-party information into PressPortal’s AI-assisted features unless they have the authority and lawful basis to do so.

Personal information should only be included in a submission where it is relevant, lawful and authorised for publication.

Some AI-assisted features may use third-party technology providers to process submitted instructions or content. Where this occurs, information will be handled in accordance with PressPortal’s Privacy Policy and applicable data-protection requirements.

Users should not enter passwords, financial account information, identity documents, private correspondence, confidential business information or other sensitive information into optional AI tools.

Reporting Concerns

Concerns about inaccurate, misleading, unauthorised or improperly disclosed AI-assisted content can be reported through the Contact page on the PressPortal website.

A report should include:

  • The URL of the affected press release
  • A clear description of the concern
  • The specific statement, image or claim being disputed
  • Supporting information or evidence, where available
  • The reporter’s name and contact details

PressPortal may request additional information before deciding whether to correct, label, suspend or remove content.

Submitting a complaint does not guarantee that content will be removed. Each matter will be assessed according to the available information, the nature of the concern and PressPortal’s applicable policies.

Changes to This Policy

PressPortal may update this policy as its services, technology, publishing processes or legal obligations change.

The latest version will be published on the PressPortal website with the applicable revision date.

Last updated: September 2026