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Below is our Terms of Service for our clients hosting their websites
with us.
All questions will be directed to our trouble ticket system located
on our help page. You can find the link to the help page on any of
our main menus.
Users are not allowed to send bulk email out FROM their accounts on
a shared server, (of course spam of any kind is never allowed but we
are now referring to legitimate email lists containing willing
recipients). Bulk email will be described as any user sending more
than 1000 emails per day. If the user wants to send legitimate bulk
email put in a request in the trouble ticket system on our help page
to arrange a dedicated server.
Users are not allowed to host legal pornography on a shared server,
(of course illegal pornography of any kind is never allowed but we
are now referring to pornography that is legal in all forms). If the
user wants to host legitimate pornography put in a request in the
trouble ticket in our help section to arrange a dedicated server.
User understands that the bandwidth monitor on shared servers inside
the control panel provided is only a guideline and is typically only
about 10% to 20% of the actual bandwidth being used. The technology
of the web based monitor is not accurate enough to measure the
actual bandwidth transfer of the server. True bandwidth will be
monitored FROM the root server bandwidth monitor, (which can be
provided to the user upon request). Example: If the root bandwidth
monitor shows 10 gigs used and the control panel monitor shows 2
gigs used, billing for that month will be times 5 of the control
panel monitor.
We hope this TOS is helpful in clarifying the obligations of
Internet users, including our company and its users, as responsible
members of the Internet. Any complaints about a user's violation of
this TOS should be sent in a trouble ticket on our help page.
As a provider of Internet access, web site hosting, and other
Internet-related services, our company offers its customers (also
known as users), and their customers and users, the means to acquire
and disseminate a wealth of public, private, commercial, and
non-commercial information. Our company respects that the Internet
provides a forum for free and open discussion and dissemination of
information, however, when there are competing interests at issue,
our company reserves the right to take certain preventative or
corrective actions. In ORDER to protect these competing interests,
our company has developed an Terms of Service ("TOS"), which
supplements and explains certain terms of each customer's respective
service agreement and is intended as a guide to the customer's
rights and obligations when utilizing our company's services. This
TOS will be revised FROM time to time. A customer's use of our
company's services after changes to the TOS are posted on our
company's web site will constitute the customer's acceptance of any
new or additional terms of the TOS that result FROM those changes.
One important aspect of the Internet is that no one party owns or
controls it. This fact accounts for much of the Internet's openness
and value, but it also places a high premium on the judgment and
responsibility of those who use the Internet, both in the
information they acquire and in the information they disseminate to
others. When users obtain information through the Internet, they
must keep in mind that our company cannot monitor, verify, warrant,
or vouch for the accuracy and quality of the information that users
may acquire. For this reason, the user must exercise his or her best
judgment in relying on information obtained FROM the Internet, and
also should be aware that some material posted to the Internet is
sexually explicit or otherwise offensive. Because our company cannot
monitor or censor the Internet, and will not attempt to do so, our
company cannot accept any responsibility for injury to its users
that results FROM inaccurate, unsuitable, offensive, or illegal
Internet communications.
When users disseminate information through the Internet, they also
must keep in mind that our company does not review, edit, censor, or
take responsibility for any information its users may create. When
users place information on the Internet, they have the same
liability as other authors for copyright infringement, defamation,
and other harmful speech. Also, because the information they create
is carried over our company's network and may reach a large number
of people, including both users and nonusers of our company, users'
postings to the Internet may affect other users and may harm our
company's goodwill, business reputation, and operations. For these
reasons, users violate our company policy and the service agreement
when they, their customers, affiliates, or subsidiaries engage in
the following prohibited activities:
Spamming -- Sending unsolicited bulk and/or commercial messages over
the Internet (known as "spamming"). It is not only harmful because
of its negative impact on consumer attitudes toward our company, but
also because it can overload our company's network and disrupt
service to our company users. Also, maintaining an open SMTP relay
is prohibited. When a complaint is received, our company has the
discretion to determine FROM all of the evidence whether the email
recipients were FROM an "opt-in" email list.
Intellectual Property Violations -- Engaging in any activity that
infringes or misappropriates the intellectual property rights of
others, including copyrights, trademarks, service marks, trade
secrets, software piracy, and patents held by individuals,
corporations, or other entities. Also, engaging in activity that
violates privacy, publicity, or other personal rights of others. Our
company is required by law to remove or block access to customer
content upon receipt of a proper notice of copyright infringement.
It is also our company's policy to terminate the privileges of
customers who commit repeat violations of copyright laws.
Obscene Speech or Materials -- Using our company's network to
advertise, transmit, store, post, display, or otherwise make
available child pornography or obscene speech or material. Our
company is required by law to notify law enforcement agencies when
it becomes aware of the presence of child pornography on or being
transmitted through our company's network.
Defamatory or Abusive Language -- Using our company's network as a
means to transmit or post defamatory, harassing, abusive, or
threatening language.
Forging of Headers -- Forging or misrepresenting message headers,
whether in whole or in part, to mask the originator of the message.
Illegal or Unauthorized Access to Other Computers or Networks --
Accessing illegally or without authorization computers, accounts, or
networks belonging to another party, or attempting to penetrate
security measures of another individual's system (often known as
"hacking"). Also, any activity that might be used as a precursor to
an attempted system penetration (i.e. port scan, stealth scan, or
other information gathering activity).
Distribution of Internet Viruses, Worms, Trojan Horses, or Other
Destructive Activities -- Distributing information regarding the
creation of and sending Internet viruses, worms, Trojan horses,
pinging, flooding, mailbombing, or denial of service attacks. Also,
activities that disrupt the use of or interfere with the ability of
others to effectively use the network or any connected network,
system, service, or equipment.
Facilitating a Violation of this TOS -- Advertising, transmitting,
or otherwise making available any software, program, product, or
service that is designed to violate this TOS, which includes the
facilitation of the means to spam, initiation of pinging, flooding,
mailbombing, denial of service attacks, and piracy of software.
Export Control Violations -- Exporting encryption software over the
Internet or otherwise, to points outside the United States.
Usenet Groups -- Our company reserves the right not to accept
postings FROM newsgroups where we have actual knowledge that the
content of the newsgroup violates the TOS.
Other Illegal Activities -- Engaging in activities that are
determined to be illegal, including advertising, transmitting, or
otherwise making available ponzi schemes, pyramid schemes,
fraudulently charging credit cards, and pirating software.
Other Activities -- Engaging in activities, whether lawful or
unlawful, that our company determines to be harmful to its users,
operations, reputation, goodwill, or customer relations.
As we have pointed out, the responsibility for avoiding the harmful
activities just described rests primarily with the user. Our company
will not, as an ordinary practice, monitor the communications of its
users to ensure that they comply with our company policy or
applicable law. When our company becomes aware of harmful
activities, however, it may take any action to stop the harmful
activity, including but not limited to, removing information,
shutting down a web site, implementing screening software designed
to block offending transmissions, denying access to the Internet, or
take any other action it deems appropriate.
Our company also is aware that many of its users are, themselves,
providers of Internet services, and that information reaching our
company's facilities FROM those users may have originated FROM a
customer of the user or FROM another third-party. Our company does
not require its users who offer Internet services to monitor or
censor transmissions or web sites created by customers of its users.
Our company has the right to directly take action against a customer
of a user. Also, our company may take action against the our company
user because of activities of a customer of the user, even though
the action may effect other customers of the user. Similarly, our
company anticipates that users who offer Internet services will
cooperate with our company in any corrective or preventive action
that our company deems necessary. Failure to cooperate with such
corrective or preventive measures is a violation of our company
policy.
Our company also is concerned with the privacy of on-line
communications and web sites. In general, the Internet is neither
more nor less secure than other means of communication, including
mail, facsimile, and voice telephone service, all of which can be
intercepted and otherwise compromised. As a matter of prudence,
however, our company urges its users to assume that all of their
on-line communications are insecure. Our company cannot take any
responsibility for the security of information transmitted over our
company's facilities.
Our company will not intentionally monitor private electronic mail
messages sent or received by its users unless required to do so by
law, governmental authority, or when public safety is at stake. Our
company may, however, monitor its service electronically to
determine that its facilities are operating satisfactorily. Also,
our company may disclose information, including but not limited to,
information concerning a user, a transmission made using our
network, or a web site, in ORDER to comply with a court order,
subpoena, summons, discovery request, warrant, statute, regulation,
or governmental request. Our company assumes no obligation to inform
the user that user information has been provided and in some cases
may be prohibited by law FROM giving such notice. Finally, our
company may disclose user information or information transmitted
over its network where necessary to protect our company and others
FROM harm, or where such disclosure is necessary to the proper
operation of the system.
Our company expects that its users who provide Internet services to
others will comply fully with all applicable laws concerning the
privacy of on-line communications. A user's failure to comply with
those laws will violate our company policy. Finally, our company
wishes to emphasize that in signing the service agreement, users
indemnify our company for any violation of the service agreement,
law, or our company policy, that results in loss to our company or
the bringing of any claim against our company by any third-party.
This means that if our company is sued because of a user's or
customer of a user's activity, the user will pay any damages awarded
against our company, plus costs and reasonable attorneys' fees.
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