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Terms of Service
VIRTUALWORLDHOSTING.COM TERMS OF
SERVICE AGREEMENT
This Terms of
Service Agreement (TOS) is a formal and legally binding agreement
between VirtualWorldHosting.com (we, Company) and You, the service user
(you, Subscriber). Use of our service constitutes acceptance and
agreement to the TOS in full.
Contents:
I) PURPOSE AND OVERVIEW OF THE TOS The TOS is provided to
give our Subscribers and users a clear understanding of what we expect
of them while using our services. All users of our services including
those who access our services but do not have accounts, as well as those
who pay a service fee to subscribe to the services, must comply with our
TOS. 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 website, e-mail
transmission, newsgroups, or other material created or accessible over
or through the services, except for certain proprietary websites.
However, in accordance with our TOS, we may remove any materials that,
in our sole discretion, may be illegal, may subject us to liability, or
which may violate the TOS. We may cooperate with legal authorities
and/or third parties in the investigation of any suspected or alleged
crime or civil wrongdoing. Your violation of the TOS may result in the
suspension or immediate termination of your account without prior
notice. The following are
guidelines for the establishment and enforcement of the TOS: 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 While we are committed to
the principles of free speech, certain activities that may be damaging
to the resources of both us and the Internet and cannot be permitted
under the guise of free speech. The resources of us 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. If you violate the TOS, we
reserve the right to terminate your service without notice. We prefer to
advise Subscribers of inappropriate behavior and any necessary
corrective action, however, flagrant violations of the TOS 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.
II) SPECIFIC VIOLATIONS OF THE TOS By using our services you
agree not to commit any of the following specific violation of the TOS.
The following constitute specific violations of the TOS:
Illegal use: Our services may not
be used for illegal purposes, or in support of illegal activities. We
reserve the right to cooperate with legal authorities and/or injured
third parties in the investigation of any suspected crime or civil
wrongdoing. If anything is not legal in the United States of America, it
is not permitted to reside on our servers. If illegal content or usage
is found, the account will be suspended and/or terminated. Subscriber
agrees that the Company may disclose any and all subscriber information
including assigned IP numbers, account history, account use, etc. to any
law enforcement agent who makes a written request without further
consent or notification to the Subscriber.
Harm to minors: Use of our
service to harm, or attempt to harm, minors in any way, including, but
not limited to child pornography is prohibited. Violation of this policy
will result in immediate termination of your service and a report will
be made to law enforcement authorities.
Threats: Use of our service to
transmit any material (by e-mail, uploading, posting or otherwise) that
threatens or encourages bodily harm or destruction of property is
prohibited.
Harassment: Use of our service to
transmit any material (by e-mail, uploading, posting or otherwise) that
harasses another is prohibited.
Fraudulent activity: Use of our
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" is prohibited This also
includes any knowing misrepresentation or misleading statement, writing
or activity made with the intent that the person receiving it will act
upon it.
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 information is
prohibited. Forging any message header, in part or whole, of any
electronic transmission, originating or passing through our service is
in violation of the TOS. The use of anonymous remailers or nicknames
does not constitute impersonation.
Unsolicited commercial
e-mail/Unsolicited bulk e-mail (SPAM): Use of our service to
transmit any unsolicited commercial or unsolicited bulk e-mail is
expressly prohibited. Violation of this SPAM policy will result in
severe penalties. Upon notification of an alleged violation of our SPAM
policy, we will initiate an investigation. During the investigation, we
may restrict Subscriber access to the network to prevent further
violations. If a Subscriber is found to be in violation of our SPAM
policy, we may, at our sole discretion, restrict, suspend or terminate
the Subscriber's account. Further, we reserve the right to pursue civil
remedies for any costs associated with the investigation of a
substantiated policy violation. We will notify law enforcement officials
if the violation is believed to be a criminal offense. Anyone using our
service to host websites or services that support spammers or cause any
of our IP space to be listed in any of the various Spam Databases will
have their account(s) immediately suspended. The account will not be
unsuspended until such time that you agree to remove any and all traces
of the offending material immediately upon reconnection. First
violations of this policy will result in an "Administrative Fee" of $25
and your account will be reviewed for possible immediate termination.
Severe violations may result in immediate and permanent removal of the
account(s) from our network without notice to the customer. A second
violation will result in an "Administrative Fee" of $100 and immediate
termination of your 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 account.
Usenet Abuse/Spamming: We have a
zero tolerance policy for the use of our service for the posting of
messages or commercial advertisements which violate the rules,
regulations, 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 our
service to access, or to attempt to access, the accounts of others, or
to penetrate, or attempt to penetrate, security measures of ours 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 account is subject to immediate
termination. 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. Violations of system or network
security may result in civil or criminal liability. We 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.
Copyright or trademark infringement:
Use of our 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 is prohibited. This also includes intellectual
property rights. Distribution and/or posting of copyrighted or the
aforementioned infringements will not be tolerated.
Collection of personal data: Use
of the service to collect, or attempt to collect, personal information
about third parties without their knowledge or consent is prohibited.
Network disruptions and unfriendly
activity: Use of the service for any activity which affects the
ability of other people or systems to use our services or the Internet
is prohibited. 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. This
includes, but is not limited to: "flooding" of networks, deliberate
attempts to overload a service, and attempts to "crash" a host. It is
the Subscriber's responsibility to ensure that their account(s) are
configured in a secure manner. A Subscriber may not, through action or
inaction, allow others to use their account for illegal or inappropriate
actions. A Subscriber may not permit their account, through action or
inaction, to be configured in such a way that gives a third party the
capability to use their account 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. We 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. 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 account, or if denial of service attacks are originating from your
account. 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.
Distribution of Viruses:
Intentional distributions of software or anything 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 our services could result in
suspension of service.
IRC networks: It is forbidden to
host IRC (Internet Relay Chat) that is part of or connected to another
IRC network or server. Accounts found to be connecting to or part of
these networks will be immediately suspended without notice. The account
will not be unsuspended until such time that you agree to remove any and
all traces of the offending material immediately upon reconnection.
Severe violations may result in immediate and permanent removal of the
account(s) from our network without notice to the customer. Any user who
commits a second violation will be immediately and permanently removed
from our network without notice.
Streaming Video and Audio:
Streaming Video and Audio is not permitted on our servers. You must zip
the content to prevent this if you wish to have it hosted, and like
everything else this content must be legal and in compliance with our
copyright guidelines.
Eggdrop Scripts: Eggdrop
scripts/bots and IRC bots of any type are not allowed, these are grounds
for immediate account deletion.
Adult Material: Adult Material is
not allowed, unless specified in your package deal. If a website is
found to contain adult material that is not on an adult approved
server/package, the website will be suspended.
Objectionable Material: You may
not use our service to publish material, which we determine, at our sole
discretion, to be unlawful, indecent or objectionable. For purposes of
this policy, "material" refers to all forms of communications including
but not limited to: narrative descriptions, graphics (including
photographs, illustrations, images, drawings, logos), executable
programs, video recordings, and audio recordings. If you unsure if your
content is objectionable, please contact us before posting it.
Chinese Forums: Chinese Forums
are not allowed on our network. These sites require too much CPU usage.
They typically require a dedicated server to run properly. If they are
found on any server we will suspend and/or terminate them.
ANIME: Anime websites are not
allowed on our network. If an Anime website is found we will terminate
the account. These sites are not allowed on our servers because most of
them are illegal, and almost inevitably cause server problems.
Demo Accounts: Due to the
potential of a security breach, or malicious activity aimed at our
network, control panel demo accounts are not allowed. We recommend
linking directly to the control panel maker's website for their demo
(for example www.cpanel.net).
Use of our service by minors:
Persons under the age of eighteen (18) must have permission from their
parent/guardian to use our services. By signing up for our service, you
agree that you are over the age of eighteen, OR your parent/guardian has
permitted you to do so and has read and agreed to the TOS, and has
accepted responsibility for any actions you may take as a minor under
their custody.
III) SECURITY By using our services you
agree to adopt adequate security measures to prevent or minimize
unauthorized use of your account. 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. Subscribers will be held
responsible for any activity by third parties using their accounts in a
way that violates the TOS. 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. Subscribers who are
resellers are responsible for enforcing the TOS to all of their clients.
If their clients are found to be violating the TOS, we will suspend and
or/terminate the offending site and let the reseller know. It is
advisable that you adopt similar or stricter policies than ours. Our
Subscribers may use and/or modify a copy of our TOS for use on their
website(s).
IV) NETWORK PERFORMANCE By using our service you
agree to abide by this policy. Our services 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 our
systems or networks. This may include certain scripts or forums that put
excessive use on the SQL server in a way which degrades performance for
other users. We reserve the right to terminate or limit such activities.
Additionally, if your account(s) becomes the target of denial-of-service
(DOS or DDOS) or other malicious attacks against the server, we reserve
the right to end your service.
Policy for Unlimited Accounts:
Unlimited Accounts are indeed unlimited. These accounts may not to be
used to host a collection of MP3's, Warez, or to backup your computer or
another source. They may not be used for general storage of any type.
All content stored on an unlimited account must be directly used on the
Internet by the website associated with that account. These accounts may
not be used as a download distribution point for your bundled software.
They are to be used for standard web practices only. This means that all
content stored on an unlimited account must be used for “normal” website
use. “Un-normal” usage is anything that a shared server would not be
able to provide under standard circumstances. If your account requires
resources that are not able to be provided by a shared server, we may
require you to rent a dedicated server. If you are unsure of whether
your account may violate this policy, please contact us prior to
subscribing.
V) PAYMENT POLICY By using our services you
agree to the following payment policy and instructions.
Refunds: We offer a seven-day
money-back guarantee. If during the first seven days after subscribing
you are unhappy with the service you may submit a refund request. Any
such request must be made in writing and must be made before the end of
seven days from the moment your initial payment was made. In such case
your payment will be refunded (less any set-up fees or special costs)
and your account will be deleted from our network upon refunding. The
seven-day money-back guarantee only applies to the first payment made on
a new account. After the initial seven-day period, no refunds will be
made at any time for the first payment on a new account. All subsequent
payments made to virtualworldhosting.com are absolutely non-refundable.
If you dispute a charge to your credit card issuer or take any action
that results in a payment being reversed that, in our sole discretion is
a valid charge under the provisions of the TOS, you agree to pay us an
"Administrative Fee" of $100.
Payment/Subscription:
Establishment of this service is dependent upon receipt by the Company
of payment of stated charges. We require that all Subscribers use an
automatically recurring payment subscription through one of our payment
processors (currently Paypal and 2Checkout). Your recurring subscription
must remain active at all times for your account to remain activated. If
a subscription becomes inactive and/or is cancelled, we will suspend the
account and issue a warning to the Subscriber to their email address on
file. If the subscription is not rectified within 7-days of the warning
we will delete the account from the server. If it is a reseller account
we will also delete any domains “under” the primary account. Such
termination or denial will not relieve Subscriber of responsibility for
the payment of all accrued charges, plus reasonable interest and any
collection fees. We may allow some users to purchase our services with a
one-time payment or subscription that is not automatically recurring.
Any such allowance does not forfeit our right to require any such user
to activate a recurring subscription at any time.
Cancellation: All cancellations
must be made by the subscriber by canceling their recurring
subscription. We will not comply with verbal or written requests to
cancel accounts. It must be done by canceling the subscription with the
payment processor. Upon notification that a subscription has been
cancelled we will delete the Subscriber’s account from the server. We
will not wait until the end of any advertised or perceived billing
cycle, and we will not refund any unused portions of any subscription
payment. We require that a recurring subscription be active at all times
and will therefore delete the account upon termination of the
subscription.
Service Rates: Subscriber
acknowledges that the nature of the service furnished and the initial
rates and charges have been communicated to Subscriber. Subscriber is
aware that the Company may prospectively change the specified rates and
charges from time to time. The promotional offer is contingent upon
Company achieving and maintaining its cost of service goals including
but not limited to rates charged to company by its suppliers.
VI) GENERAL OPERATIONS By using our service you
agree to the following policy and limitations pertaining to our
services.
Uptime: Subscriber acknowledges
that the service provided is of such a nature that service can be
interrupted for many reasons other than the negligence of the Company
and that damages resulting from any interruption of service are
difficult to ascertain. Therefore, Subscriber agrees that the Company
shall not be liable for any damages arising from such causes. In no
event shall the Company be liable for any special or consequential
damages, loss or injury. Although many of our own network providers
guarantee an uptime of 99% or more, we make no guarantees about uptime
performance because we realize there are influencing factors that are
outside of our control, and in most cases even outside the control of
the data centers and network providers we work with.
Support Boundaries: We provide
technical support to our Subscribers. We limit our technical support to
our areas of expertise. We provide support related to your account or
virtual site’s physical functionality. We do not offer tech support for
application specific issues such as cgi programming, html, or any other
such issue. We do not provide technical support for your customers,
unless an outsourced support subscription has been purchased. We provide
a variety of support information and options to our Subscribers. These
support options can be found on the support page of our website.
Abuse of Our Staff or Network Staff:
Abuse towards our staff or our network staff will not be tolerated. If
you use foul language, threaten us, or do anything we find offensive, we
may suspend and/or delete your account. Per our payment policy we offer
no refunds.
Internet Protocol (IP) Address
Ownership: If we assign a Subscriber an IP address for the
Subscriber's use, the right to use that IP address shall belong only to
us, and Subscriber shall have no right to use that IP address except as
permitted by us in our sole discretion in connection with the services.
We shall maintain and control ownership of all IP numbers and addresses
that may be assigned to Subscriber by us, and we reserve the right to
change or remove any and all such IP numbers and addresses, in our sole
and absolute discretion. Our allocation of IP addresses is limited by
the policies set forth by ARIN (American Registry for Internet Numbers).
These policies state that use of IP addresses for IP-based virtual hosts
will not be accepted as justification for new IP addresses. What this
means to you is that you MUST use name-based hosting where possible. We
will periodically review IP address usage, and if we find that clients
are using IP addresses where name-based hosting could be used, we will
revoke authorization to use those IP addresses that could be used with
name-based hosting.
Bandwidth and Disk Usage:
Subscriber agrees that bandwidth and disk usage shall not exceed the
quota for the services ordered by Subscriber on the order form (the
"Agreed Usage"). We will monitor Subscriber's bandwidth and disk usage.
We have the right to take corrective action if Subscriber's bandwidth or
disk usage exceeds the Agreed Usage in our sole discretion. Such
corrective action may include the assessment of additional charges, or
disconnection or discontinuance of the service. If we take any
corrective action under this section, Subscriber shall not be entitled
to a refund of any fees paid in advance prior to such action.
VII) VIOLATION REPORTING By using our service you
agree to report violations of the TOS to us. Anyone who believes that
there is a violation of our TOS should direct such information to us by
email immediately. 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. We may take any one or more of the following actions in
response to complaints:
· Issue written or verbal
warnings
· Suspend the Subscriber's
newsgroup posting privileges
· Suspend the Subscriber's
account
· Terminate the Subscriber's
account
· Bill the Subscriber for
administrative costs and/or reactivation charges
· Bring legal action to enjoin
violations and/or to collect damages, if any, cause by violations
VIII) VIOLATION PROCEDURES
· By using our services you
understand and agree with the following procedures and policies.
· We are under no duty to look
at each Subscriber's or user's activities to determine if a violation of
the TOS has occurred, nor do we assume any responsibility through our
TOS to monitor or police Internet-related activities.
· First
violation: Any Subscriber, which we determine to have violated
any element of the TOS, shall receive an email, warning them of the
violation. The service may be subject at our discretion to a temporary
suspension pending a Subscriber's agreement in writing, to refrain from
any further violations.
· Second
Violation: Subscribers that we determine 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.
· Suspension
of Service or Cancellation: We reserve the right to suspend
network access to any Subscriber if in the judgment of the network
administrators the customer's account is the source or target of the
violation of the TOS or for any other reason which we choose. If
inappropriate activity is detected, all accounts of the Subscriber in
question will be deactivated until an investigation is completed. Prior
notification to the Subscriber is not assured. In extreme cases, law
enforcement will be contacted regarding the activity.
IX) MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
· Indemnification:
In agreeing to the TOS, Subscriber indemnifies us for any violation of
the TOS that results in loss to us or the bringing of any claim against
us by any third-party. This means that if we are sued because of a
Subscriber's or a customer of a Subscriber's activity, the Subscriber
will pay any damages awarded against us, plus all costs and attorney's
fees.
· Contact
Information: You must provide us with, and keep current, good
contact information for yourself including an E-mail address and
telephone number. If we fail to communicate any information to you due
to a non-current, inoperative, or incorrect email address you are still
responsible and accountable for any such information we attempted to
communicate.
· Waiver:
A waiver by the Company of any breach of any provision of the TOS 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.
· Assignment:
Subscriber shall not transfer or assign the TOS without the prior
written consent of the Company. Company may assign the TOS at anytime
without consent from or notice to Subscriber. Company reserves the right
to cancel Subscriber’s rights under this contract at any time without
further obligation.
· 3rd
Party Disclaimer: We take no responsibility for any material
input by others and not posted to our website by us. We are not
responsible for the content of any other websites linked to us; links
are provided as Internet navigation tools only. We disclaim 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.
· Disclaimer
of warranties: We are not responsible for any damages your
business may suffer. We do not make implied or written warranties for
any of our services. We deny 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 us.
· 3rd
Party Software and Services: We may provide you access to third
party software and/or services ("Third Party Products ") through
reseller relationships we have established with certain commercial
vendors. Subscriber understands that product support for Third Party
Products is provided by us and not by the Third Party Vendor, unless
otherwise notified. Neither us nor any Third Party Vendor makes any
representations or warranties, express or implied, regarding any Third
Party Products. Subscriber expressly acknowledges and agrees that use of
third party products is at customer's sole risk and such third party
products are provided "as is" and without representation or warranty of
any kind from us or any third party vendor, including without
limitation, any implied warranty of merchantability, fitness for a
particular purpose, accuracy or completeness of responses or results,
correspondence to description, or non-infringement of third party
rights. To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, neither us
nor any third party vendor will be legally responsible for any damages,
whether direct, indirect, or consequential, arising from the use or
inability to use any third party product. Subscriber agrees to observe
the terms of any license and/or applicable end-user subscriber agreement
for third party products and that customer shall be fully liable to
third party vendors and us with respect to any improper use of such
third party products or violation of license agreements with them and/or
applicable end user subscriber agreements. Subscriber agrees not to
remove, modify or obscure any copyright, trademark or other proprietary
rights notices that appear on Third Party Products or that appear during
the use of Third Party Products. Subscriber further agrees not to
reverse engineer, decompile, or disassemble the Third Party Products.
· Revisions
to the TOS: We reserve the right to revise, amend, or modify the
TOS at any time and in any manner. In such case the amended or revised
TOS will be posted to our website. Subscriber understands that changes
to the TOS shall not be grounds for early contract termination or
non-payment. · Location and Severability: The TOS shall be construed in all respects in accordance with the laws of the State of California. If any part of the TOS is found to be invalid or unenforceable by law, the remainder of the TOS will remain enforceable and in full effect.
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