Acceptable Use Policy

We have developed this Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) as a guide to our clients' rights and obligations when utilizing our equipment and network. This AUP will be revised from time to time. A client's use of our equipment and network after changes to the AUP are posted here constitutes acceptance of any new or additional terms of the AUP that result from those changes.  We reserve the right to terminate a client's access to our equipment and network and to remove their information at any time, with no notice, and no refund.

We do not give out names and passwords to anyone, not even site owners who lost their password. If you lost your password, create a new one.

Site owners may choose to give access to others, for example employees or developers. Each individual person with access should use their own password. Frontpage Administrators can create and maintain accounts using Frontpage.

Information contained in E-mail is neither private nor secure. E-mail coming and going from our network passes through insecure networks where it is monitored, and can be saved, read, or tracked by others. We take no responsibility for the privacy of your E-mail.

When clients place information on the Internet in any form, they have the same liability as other authors for copyright infringement, defamation, and other harmful speech. Because the information they create exists on our equipment and is carried over our network and may reach a large number of people, our clients' publications on the Internet may harm our goodwill, business reputation, and operations. We are also bound by the AUPs of our up-line providers and may have to take action regarding a client in order to comply with the up-line AUPs.

Clients violate our policy and terminate their service agreement when they, their customers, their affiliates, or their subsidiaries engage in the following prohibited activities:

• Spamming: Sending unsolicited bulk and/or commercial messages over the Internet is prohibited.  When a Terms of Service complaint is received, we determine if a violation of our Anti-Spam Policy has occurred.  It is our policy to terminate service for Clients who send Spam Email or post Spam in Newsgroups or who maintain web sites that are "Spamvertized".
• Intellectual Property Violations: Engaging in any activity that infringes on or misappropriates the intellectual property rights of others is prohibited. This includes copyrights, trademarks, service marks, trade secrets, software piracy, and patents held by individuals, corporations, or other entities. Engaging in activity that violates privacy, publicity, or other personal rights of others is likewise prohibited. We are required by law to remove or block access to client content upon receipt of a proper notice of copyright infringement. It is our policy to terminate service for clients who commit repeat violations of copyright laws.
• Obscene Speech or Materials: Using our network to advertise, transmit, store, post, display, or otherwise make available obscene speech or material is prohibited. In addition, we are required to notify law enforcement agencies if we becomes aware of the presence of child pornography.
• Defamatory or Abusive Language: Using our network as a means to transmit or post defamatory, harassing, abusive, or threatening language is prohibited.
• Forging of Headers: Forging or misrepresenting message headers, whether in whole or in part, to mask the originator of any message is prohibited.
• 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 is prohibited.
• Distribution of Internet Viruses, Worms, Trojan Horses, or Other Destructive Activities: Distributing information regarding the creation and sending of Internet viruses, worms, Trojan horses, pinging, flooding, mail bombing, or denial of service attacks is prohibited. Activities that disrupt the use of the network or any connected network, system, service, or equipment are likewise prohibited.
• Facilitating a Violation of the AUP: Advertising, transmitting, or otherwise making available any software, program, product, or service that is designed to violate the AUP is prohibited. This includes the facilitation of the means to Spam, installing Spyware or Malware from our servers, initiation of pinging, flooding, mail bombing, 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 is prohibited.
• Other Illegal Activities: Engaging in activities that are determined to be illegal is prohibited. This includes advertising, transmitting, or otherwise making available ponzi schemes, pyramid schemes, phishing schemes, fraudulently obtaining credit card numbers, identity theft, and pirating software.
• Non-compliance with 18 U.S.C. Section 2257: The client is responsible for insuring compliance with 18 U.S.C. Section 2257 regarding record keeping and notification of record location for any websites on any server whether co-located, dedicated, or shared which is hosted on our network.
• Any activities we can not personally tolerate: Engaging in activities, whether lawful or unlawful, that we determine to be harmful to clients, operations, reputations, goodwill, or the Internet at large will get you fired as a customer.

The responsibility for avoiding the harmful activities just described rests primarily with you. When we become aware of harmful activities or security vulnerabilities we may take any action we deem appropriate to mitigate the risk or damage. This includes, but is not limited to removing information, shutting down a website, implementing screening software designed to block offending transmissions, denying access, or any other action we decide to take.

The Internet is neither more nor less secure than other means of communication, including mail, fax, and voice telephone service, all of which can be intercepted and compromised. Therefore, we urge clients to assume that all of their on-line communications are insecure. Clients must understand that a community web server is only as secure as the least secure site hosted on it. Since we have no control over customer code, we can not be responsible for damages caused by vulnerabilities in customer code. Due to these and other factors beyond our control, we can not take responsibility for losses due to a website being defaced or taken off-line, compromised data, or an electronic mail message being lost in transmission. Back up your site and be prepared.

We monitor private E-mail messages only when required to do so by law or governmental authority. We may also disclose information including, but not limited to information concerning a client, a transmission made using our network, or a website in order to comply with a court order, subpoena, summons, discovery request, warrant, statute, regulation or governmental request. We have no obligation to inform the client that client information has been provided, and in some cases may be prohibited by law from giving such notice. Finally, we may disclose client information or information transmitted over our network where such disclosure is necessary to the proper operation of our equipment and network.

Clients indemnify us for any violation of the service agreement, law, or policy that results in loss or the bringing of any claim against us by any third-party. This means that if any legal action is brought against us because of a client's or customer of a client's activity the client will pay all damages awarded plus costs and reasonable attorney's fees.