Flex-Host Terms of Service

Acceptable Use Policy

Flex-Host's Acceptable Use Policy ("AUP") is provided to give our customers and users a clear understanding of what Flex-Host expects of them while using the service. All users of Flex-Host's Internet services must comply with this AUP and our TOS (Terms of Service).

Use of Flex-Host Service constitutes acceptance and agreement to Flex-Host's AUP as well as Flex-Host's TOS (Terms of Service)

IMPORTANT NOTICE: *All Payments To Flex-Host Are Non-Refundable*

We support the uncensored flow of information and ideas over the Internet and do not actively monitor subscriber activity under normal circumstances. Similarly, we do not exercise editorial control over the content of any web site, e-mail transmission, newsgroups, or other material created or accessible over or through the services, except for certain proprietary Web sites. However, in accordance with our TOS (Terms of Service), we may remove any materials that, in our sole discretion, may be illegal, may subject us to liability, or which may violate this AUP. Flex-Host may cooperate with legal authorities and/or third parties in the investigation of any suspected or alleged crime or civil wrongdoing. Your violation of this AUP may result in the suspension or immediate termination of either your Flex-Host account or other actions as detailed in Section 3 WITHOUT PRIOR NOTICE.

This document is intended to provide a basic understand of Flex-Host's Acceptable Use Policy. The following are guidelines for the establishment and enforcement of Flex-Host's AUP:

Ensure reliable service to our customers
Ensure security and privacy of our systems and network, as well as the networks and systems of others
Comply with existing laws
Maintain our reputation as a responsible service provider
Encourage responsible use of the Internet and discourage activities which reduce the usability and value of Internet services
Preserve the value of Internet resources as a conduit for free expression and exchange of information
Preserve the privacy and security of individual users

The Flex-Host intends to provide its customers access to everything the Internet has to offer. While the Flex-Host is firmly committed to the principles of free speech, certain activities that may be damaging to the resources of both the Flex-Host and the Internet and cannot be permitted under the guise of free speech. The resources of the Flex-Host and the Internet are limited, and abuse of these resources by one user has a negative impact on the entire community.

We do not routinely monitor the activity of accounts except for measurements of system utilization and the preparation of billing records. However, in our efforts to promote good citizenship within the Internet community, we will respond appropriately if we become aware of inappropriate use of our service.

You may not use your hosting account to publish material, which Flex-Host.Net determines, at its sole discretion, to be unlawful, indecent or objectionable. For purposes of this policy, "material" refers to all forms of communications including narrative descriptions, graphics (including photographs, illustrations, images, drawings, logos), executable programs, video recordings, and audio recordings.

If a Flex-Host account is used to violate the Acceptable Use Policy or our TOS, we reserve the right to terminate your service without notice. We prefer to advise customers of inappropriate behavior and any necessary corrective action, however, flagrant violations of the Acceptable Use Policy will result in immediate termination of service. Our failure to enforce this policy, for whatever reason, shall not be construed as a waiver of our right to do so at any time.

As a member of our network community, you must use your Internet access responsibly. If you have any questions regarding this policy, please contact us at abuse@Flex-Host.com.

VIOLATIONS OF THE FLEX_HOST ACCEPTABLE USE POLICY
The following constitute violations of this AUP:

Illegal use: Flex-Host's services may not be used for illegal purposes, or in support of illegal activities. Flex-Host reserves the right to cooperate with legal authorities and/or injured third parties in the investigation of any suspected crime or civil wrongdoing.
Harm to minors: Use of the Flex-Host service to harm, or attempt to harm, minors in any way, including, but not limited to child pornography.
Threats: Use of the Flex-Host service to transmit any material (by e-mail, uploading, posting or otherwise) that threatens or encourages bodily harm or destruction of property. Harassment: Use of the Flex-Host service to transmit any material (by e-mail, uploading, posting or otherwise) that harasses another.
Fraudulent activity: Use of Flex-Host service to make fraudulent offers to sell or buy products, items, or services, or to advance any type of financial scam such as "pyramid schemes," "ponzi schemes," and "chain letters."
Forgery or impersonation: Adding, removing or modifying identifying network header information in an effort to deceive or mislead is prohibited. Attempting to impersonate any person by using forged headers or other identifying infrmation is prohibited. The use of anonymous remailers or nicknames does not constitute impersonation.
Unsolicited commercial e-mail / Unsolicited bulk e-mail (SPAM) Use of the Flex-Host service to transmit any unsolicited commercial or unsolicited bulk e-mail is expressly prohibited. Violations of this type will result in the immediate termination of the offending Flex-Host account.
E-mail / News Bombing: Malicious intent to impede another person's use of electronic mail services or news will result in the immediate termination of the offending Flex-Host account.
E-mail / Message Forging: Forging any message header, in part or whole, of any electronic transmission, originating or passing through the Flex-Host service is in violation of this AUP.
Usenet SPAMing: Flex-Host has a zero tolerance policy for the use of its network for the posting of messages or commercial advertisements, which violate the rules, regulations, FAQ or charter of any newsgroups or mailing list. Commercial messages that are appropriate under the rules of a newsgroup or mailing list or that are solicited by the recipients are permitted.
Unauthorized access: Use of the Flex-Host service to access, or to attempt to access, the accounts of others, or to penetrate, or attempt to penetrate, security measures of Flex-Host's or another entity's computer software or hardware, electronic communications system, or telecommunications system, whether or not the intrusion results in the corruption or loss of data, is expressly prohibited and the offending Flex-Host account is subject to immediate termination.
Copyright or trademark infringement: Use of the Flex-Host service to transmit any material (by e-mail, uploading, posting or otherwise) that infringes any copyright, trademark, patent, trade secret or other proprietary rights of any third party, including, but not limited to, the unauthorized copying of copyrighted material, the digitization and distribution of photographs from magazines, books, or other copyrighted sources, and the unauthorized transmittal of copyrighted software.
Collection of personal data: Use of the Flex-Host service to collect, or attempt to collect, personal information about third parties without their knowledge or consent.
Network disruptions and unfriendly activity: Use of the Flex-Host service for any activity which affects the ability of other people or systems to use Flex-Host Services or the Internet. This includes "denial of service" (DOS) attacks against another network host or individual user. Interference with or disruption of other network users, services or equipment is prohibited. It is the Member's responsibility to ensure that their network is configured in a secure manner. A Subscriber may not, through action or inaction, allow others to use their network for illegal or inappropriate actions. A Subscriber may not permit their network, through action or inaction, to be configured in such a way that gives a third party the capability to use their network in an illegal or inappropriate manner. Unauthorized entry and/or use of another company and/or individual's computer system will result in immediate account termination. Flex-Host will not tolerate any subscriber attempting to access the accounts of others, or penetrate security measures of other systems, whether or not the intrusion results in corruption or loss of data.
Fraud: Involves a knowing misrepresentation or misleading statement, writing or activity made with the intent that the person receiving it will act upon it.
Infringement of Copyright, Patent, Trademark, Trade Secret, or Intellectual Property Right: Distribution and/or posting of copyrighted or the aforementioned infringements will not be tolerated.
Distribution of Viruses: Intentional distributions of software that attempts to and/or causes damage, harassment, or annoyance to persons, data, and/or computer systems are prohibited. Such an offense will result in the immediate termination of the offending account.
Inappropriate Use of Software: Use of software or any device that would facilitate a continued connection, i.e. pinging, while using Flex-Host services could result in suspension service.
Third Party Accountability: Flex-Host subscribers will be held responsible and accountable for any activity by third parties, using their account, that violates guidelines created within the Acceptable Use Policy.

Security

You are responsible for any misuse of your account, even if the inappropriate activity was committed by a friend, family member, guest or employee. Therefore, you must take steps to ensure that others do not gain unauthorized access to your account. In addition, you may not use your account to breach security of another account or attempt to gain unauthorized access to another network or server.

Your password provides access to your account. It is your responsibility to keep your password secure. Sharing your password and account access with unauthorized users is prohibited. You should take care to prevent others from using your account since you will be held responsible for such use. Attempting to obtain another user's account password is strictly prohibited, and may result in termination of service. You must adopt adequate security measures to prevent or minimize unauthorized use of your account. You may not attempt to circumvent user authentication or security of any host, network or account. This includes, but is not limited to, accessing data not intended for you, logging into or making use of a server or account you are not expressly authorized to access, or probing the security of other networks. Use or distribution of tools designed for compromising security is prohibited. Examples of these tools include, but are not limited to, password guessing programs, cracking tools or network probing tools. You may not attempt to interfere with service to any user, host or network ("denial of service attacks"). This includes, but is not limited to, "flooding" of networks, deliberate attempts to overload a service, and attempts to "crash" a host. Users who violate systems or network security may incur criminal or civil liability. Flex-Host will cooperate fully with investigations of violations of systems or network security at other sites, including cooperating with law enforcement authorities in the investigation of suspected criminal violations.

Network Performance

Flex-Host accounts operate on shared resources. Excessive use or abuse of these shared network resources by one customer may have a negative impact on all other customers. Misuse of network resources in a manner which impairs network performance is prohibited by this policy and may result in termination of your account. You are prohibited from excessive consumption of resources, including CPU time, memory, disk space and session time. You may not use resource-intensive programs which negatively impact other customers or the performances of Flex-Host systems or networks. Flex-Host reserves the right to terminate or limit such activities.

REPORTING VIOLATIONS OF Flex-Host AUP

Flex-Host requests that anyone who believes that there is a violation of this AUP direct the information to the Abuse Department at abuse@Flex-Host.com.

If available, please provide the following information:

The IP address used to commit the alleged violation
The date and time of the alleged violation, including the time zone or offset from GMT
Evidence of the alleged violation

E-mail with full header information provides all of the above, as do system log files. Other situations will require different methods of providing the above information. Flex-Host may take any one or more of the following actions in response to complaints:

Issue written or verbal warnings
Suspend the Member's newsgroup posting privileges
Suspend the Member's account
Terminate the Member's account
Bill the Member for administrative costs and/or reactivation charges
Bring legal action to enjoin violations and/or to collect damages, if any, cause by violations

REVISIONS TO THIS ACCEPTABLE USE POLICY

Flex-Host reserves the right to revise, amend, or modify this AUP, our TOS (Terms of Service) and our other policies and agreements at any time and in any manner. Notice of any revision, amendment, or modification will be posted in accordance with our TOS (Terms of Service).

SPAM and Unsolicited Commercial Email (UCE):

Flex-Host takes a zero tolerance approach to the sending of Unsolicited Commercial Email (UCE) or SPAM over our network. Very simply this means that customers of Flex-Host may not use or permit others to use our network to transact in UCE. Customers of Flex-Host may not host, or permit hosting of, sites or information that is advertised by UCE from other networks. Violations of this policy carry severe penalties, including termination of service. Violation of Flex-Host's SPAM policy will result in severe penalties. Upon notification of an alleged violation of our SPAM policy, Flex-Host will initiate an immediate investigation (within 48 hours of notification). During the investigation, Flex-Host may restrict customer access to the network to prevent further violations. If a customer is found to be in violation of our SPAM policy, Flex-Host may, at its sole discretion, restrict, suspend or terminate customer's account. Further, Flex-Host reserves the right to pursue civil remedies for any costs associated with the investigation of a substantiated policy violation. Flex-Host will notify law enforcement officials if the violation is believed to be a criminal offense. PLEASE, DO NOT SPAM from your account.

Bandwidth and Disk Usage:

Customer agrees that bandwidth and disk usage shall not exceed the number of megabytes per month for the Services ordered by the Customer. Flex-Host will monitor Customer's bandwidth and disk usage. Flex-Host shall have the right to take corrective action if Customer's bandwidth or disk usage exceeds the Agreed Usage. Such corrective action may include the assessment of additional charges, disconnection or discontinuance of any and all Services, or termination of this Agreement, which actions may be taken is in Flex-Host's sole and absolute discretion. If Flex-Host takes any corrective action under this section, Customer shall not be entitled to a refund of any fees paid in advance prior to such action. In the event that a customer exceeds the included allocation, Flex-Host may, at its sole discretion, collect a deposit, in an amount determined by Flex-Host.

System and Network Security:

Users are prohibited from violating or attempting to violate the security of the Flex-Host Network. Violations of system or network security may result in civil or criminal liability. Flex-Host will investigate occurrences, which may involve such violations and may involve, and cooperate with, law enforcement authorities in prosecuting Users who are involved in such violations. These violations include, without limitation: Accessing data not intended for such User or logging into a server or account, which such User is not authorized to access. Attempting to probe, scan or test the vulnerability of a system or network or to breach security or authentication measures without proper authorization. Attempting to interfere with service to any user, host or network, including, without limitation, via means of overloading, "flooding", "mail bombing" or "crashing". Forging any TCP/IP packet header or any part of the header information in any e-mail or newsgroup posting. Taking any action in order to obtain services to which such User is not entitled.

Notification of Violation:

Flex-Host is under no duty to look at each customer's or user's activities to determine if a violation of the AUP has occurred, nor do we assume any responsibility through our AUP to monitor or police Internet-related activities. First violation: Any User, which Flex-Host determines to have violated any element of this Acceptable Use Policy, shall receive an email, warning them of the violation. The service may be subject at Flex-Host's discretion to a temporary suspension pending a User's agreement in writing, to refrain from any further violations. Second Violation: Users that Flex-Host determines to have committed a second violation of any element of this Acceptable Use Policy shall be subject to immediate suspension or termination of service without further notice. We reserve the right, to drop the section of IP space involved in Spam or Denial-of-Service complaints if it is clear that the offending activity is causing great harm to parties on the Internet. In particular, if open relays are on your network or a customer's network, or if denial of service attacks are originating from your network. In certain rare cases, we may have to do this before attempting to contact you. If we do this, we will contact you as soon as is feasible.

Suspension of Service or Cancellation:

Flex-Host reserves the right to suspend network access to any customer if in the judgment of the Flex-Host network administrators the customer's server is the source or target of the violation of any of the other terms of the AUP or for any other reason which Flex-Host chooses. If inappropriate activity is detected, all accounts of the Customer in question will be deactivated until an investigation is complete. Prior notification to the Customer is not assured. In extreme cases, law enforcement will be contacted regarding the activity. The customer will not be credited for the time the customer's machines were suspended. Flex-Host reserves the right to amend its policies at any time. Failure to follow any term or condition will be grounds for immediate Cancellation.

Indemnification:

Flex-Host wishes to emphasize that in agreeing to the Flex-Host Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) and Terms of Service (ToS), customer indemnifies Flex-Host for any violation of the Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) and Terms of Service (ToS) that results in loss to Flex-Host or the bringing of any claim against Flex-Host by any third-party. This means that if Flex-Host is sued because of a customer's or a customer of a customer's activity, the customer will pay any damages awarded against Flex-Host, plus all costs and attorney's fees.

Miscellaneous Provisions:

You must provide us with, and keep current, good contact information for you. E-mail, fax, and telephone contacts are used, in that order of preference. A waiver by the Company of any breach of any provision of this Agreement by Subscriber shall not operate as or be construed as a continuing or subsequent waiver thereof or as a waiver of any breach of any other provision thereof. Subscriber shall not transfer or assign this Agreement without the prior written consent of the Company. Company may assign Agreement at anytime without consent from or notice to Subscriber. Company reserves right to cancel customers rights under this contract at anytime without further obligation. Flex-Host takes no responsibility for any material input by others and not posted to the Flex-Host Network by Flex-Host. Flex-Host is not responsible for the content of any other websites linked to the Flex-Host Network; links are provided as Internet navigation tools only. Flex-Host disclaims any responsibility for any such inappropriate use and any liability to any person or party for any other person or party's violation of this policy. Flex-Host is not responsible for any damages your business may suffer. Flex-Host does not make implied or written warranties for any of our services. Flex-Host denies any warranty or merchantability for a specific purpose. This includes loss of data resulting from delays, non-deliveries, wrong delivery, and any and all service interruptions caused by Flex-Host.

Responsability for Content:

You, as Flex-Host's customer, are solely responsible for the content stored on and served by your Flex-Host server.