Frequently Asked Questions

A defensive publication makes your idea, invention or innovation publicly accessible and thereby documents that it already existed before the priority date of possible later patent applications. It may thus stand against the novelty of a later application by a third party covering the same subject matter. This supports your commercial freedom to operate, because the prior art created via Proofbox lets you demonstrate an earlier date for your invention, even if you have not filed a patent yourself.

Publishing an invention carries certain risks. The most important point: a published invention can no longer be patented in identical form, neither by you nor by anyone else. Beyond that, what matters is that the publication is permanently findable, verifiably dated and sufficiently complete in substance. If that is not the case, it may be disregarded in a dispute and then has no effect against patent applications by third parties. Proofbox is designed to meet and document these criteria systematically.

Technically, yes – but it's complex. For a disclosure to be considered valid, it must meet strict requirements: (1) permanent discoverability via search engines (SEO), (2) a certified timestamp with Long-Term Validation (LTV), and (3) verifiable proof that it has remained accessible since publication. Without a robust process to meet and prove these conditions, your disclosure might not hold up in court. That's why using a specialized platform like Proofbox is strongly recommended.

Yes – but only if it meets specific standards. These include: (1) permanent discoverability through search engines (SEO), (2) a certified timestamp with Long-Term Validation (LTV) issued by an accredited provider, and (3) continuous proof that the publication has remained accessible since its release. These are the minimum requirements for an online disclosure to be valid and to qualify as prior art from the date of publication.

No, publishing an invention does not protect it in the sense of a patent, since you do not obtain an exclusive right. This means you cannot prevent others from using or reproducing your idea. However, from the date of publication the invention forms part of the prior art and may therefore stand against the novelty of later applications by third parties covering the same subject matter. In this way you can support your freedom to operate. This does not create automatic protection against third parties prohibiting your use: pre-existing third-party rights remain unaffected. Publication is therefore a strategic tool against patent monopolies of others, but not an exclusive right in the sense of a patent.

Several terms are used for the same approach: defensive publication, defensive disclosure, research disclosure and technical disclosure. Each refers to deliberately making technical content publicly accessible so that it can be taken into account as prior art. The terms describe the approach, not a particular format or a particular provider.

Each disclosure published on Proofbox remains publicly accessible, searchable, and downloadable in the archive for seven years from the date of upload. Before the seven-year period ends, you'll receive an email notification informing you of the upcoming removal. You will then have the opportunity to download the digitally signed document, ensuring that you retain certified proof of the publication date even after it is no longer listed in the archive. Alternatively, an extension for public accessibility in the archive can be set up. This does not apply to documents whose access has been blocked following a report, or which have been permanently removed, under section 3.3.2 of the Terms and Conditions. In that case the archive record remains and the DOI keeps resolving, but leads to a notice page; the content and the download are then no longer available.

Every disclosure on Proofbox receives a certified timestamp with Long-Term Validation (LTV) from an accredited trust service provider. In addition, every publication is continuously indexed for findability via search engines and remains publicly accessible for seven years. With these measures your disclosure is prepared according to the criteria that matter for it to be taken into account as prior art. The reservation in section 3.3.2 of the Terms and Conditions applies here as well: where access to a document is blocked following a report, or the document is permanently removed, public accessibility ends early.

In contrast to conventional websites or public repositories, Proofbox is specifically designed to meet the criteria of a defensive publication systematically. In addition to providing a qualified timestamp with long-term validation (LTV) and public availability, Proofbox continuously verifies and documents the findability of your disclosure. This recurring verification can be of considerable significance in legal disputes — it creates the basis for demonstrating that your idea was publicly accessible and findable without interruption from the publication date onwards.

It means that defensive publications on Proofbox are made available exclusively as internet disclosures and thereby become part of the prior art. Proofbox and its archive are not directly connected to external databases such as WIPO or to public libraries, where disclosures are made fully accessible. Our technology prepares every disclosure in the archive so that it is findable worldwide and meets the criteria for being taken into account as prior art – entirely without external links. The additional paywall in the Proofbox archive prevents automated competitor monitoring of the full content. This makes a discreet publication possible.

Proofbox accepts all common payment methods, such as credit cards and PayPal. For direct payment processing on our website, we use a third-party provider. If you prefer to pay by invoice, please contact us and we will arrange individual payment terms with you. After purchasing an upload or download with the available payment methods, an invoice will be provided for each transaction in the user dashboard and can be downloaded repeatedly.

Yes, you can delete your account at any time. After deletion, your published disclosures will remain publicly available in the archive until their scheduled expiration date. However, you will no longer have access to your dashboard, which means you will lose access to both your own disclosures and any third-party publications you previously purchased. Deleted accounts cannot be restored, so any purchased content will be lost unless you have saved it offline beforehand. Please contact us if you wish to delete your account.

Yes, transferring your account to another person is possible. You can update your billing information, saved payment methods, and account settings directly during checkout. You can also change the email address used for login. This allows you to transfer your account manually. Proofbox does not offer a separate service to handle account transfers.

No, your disclosures cannot be transferred to another account. However, you may transfer the entire account to another person, or create an additional account using a different email address. Please note that only one account can be created per email address.