Review data rights at the dataset and output level

Define the proposed use concretely

List whether the integration will store raw responses, calculate internal features, publish charts, distribute downloads or offer a downstream API. These are different uses. Record the users and commercial context because a permission for personal analysis may not cover a public product or redistribution to clients.

Use a rights ledger keyed to dataset and source, not only the hostname. Include the terms URL, review date, applicable licence, attribution requirement, exceptions and evidence status. A successful HTTP request or absence of an API key belongs in the access column; it should not automatically fill the redistribution column.

FRED access does not override series ownership

FRED’s API terms state that third-party series can carry their own restrictions and that access through the API does not override those rights. Its terms also address notices and non-endorsement. For an actual integration, inspect the chosen series notes and obtain any required permission from the relevant owner.

A synthetic example makes the distinction clear: an adapter can transform an invented value of 123.4 without using a licensed observation. Replacing that fixture with a real third-party series creates a new rights question even if the code is unchanged. Labeling the resulting chart educational does not by itself resolve that question.

World Bank evidence needs scoped interpretation

The WDI catalog reviewed on 16 October 2026 identifies Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 for that dataset. World Bank’s summary terms describe attribution and metadata-specific exceptions. The CC BY 4.0 deed explains the licence’s attribution and change-indication conditions, but it does not eliminate additional rights that the licence does not cover.

The legacy full dataset-terms URL redirected during review to general World Bank Terms and Conditions, amended 25 July 2025. The general page linked back to the same destination. This publication therefore records a full dataset-agreement retrieval gap rather than claiming that following the link completed review. The summary and catalog remain separate evidence, with their own scope.

A synthetic rights decision

Imagine a proposed download combining three inputs: an invented fixture, a dataset explicitly licensed for the intended reuse, and a third-party series whose redistribution permission is unresolved. The first two do not cure the third. The release can omit the unresolved observations, publish a method using synthetic substitutes, or wait for permission.

Keep substitutions visible. A synthetic replacement must not retain a caption implying it is observed market or economic data. Likewise, a derived statistic can remain subject to relevant source terms; aggregation is not an automatic permission mechanism. The appropriate review depends on the exact source terms and proposed output.

Keep claims and evidence aligned

Preserve attribution with exports and derivative artifacts where required, including source names and transformation notes. Do not use provider logos or language that implies endorsement merely because their documentation informed an adapter. Distinguish this publication’s software and examples from the providers’ actual services.

All sample observations in the fixture lab are invented, so the publication does not rely on redistributing a live provider dataset to demonstrate its code. That bounded choice does not settle rights for a reader’s future integration. Before changing inputs or outputs, update the ledger and resolve material gaps rather than inheriting a broad permission claim from an earlier technical demonstration.

Keep in the decision record

• Separate access, storage, transformation and redistribution permissions.
• Record dataset-specific exceptions and required attribution.
• Keep the World Bank full-terms retrieval gap explicit.

Source notes

1. FRED — API Terms of Use, reviewed 16 October 2026
2. World Bank — Summary Terms of Use
3. World Bank — WDI dataset licence listing
4. World Bank — General Terms and Conditions, amended 25 July 2025
5. Creative Commons — Attribution 4.0 International deed

Primary specifications support the interface descriptions. All downloadable response fixtures are synthetic. Access and rights checks are dated in the source inventory.

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