Acceptable Use Policy

01

Purpose

This Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) governs the use of Hostethics services. It exists to protect our customers, our infrastructure, and the wider internet. Violation may result in service suspension or termination.

02

Prohibited content

You may not host, transmit, or make available: (1) content that is illegal in the UK, (2) child sexual abuse material (CSAM) — reported immediately to authorities, (3) content promoting terrorism, (4) copyright- or trademark-infringing content, (5) hate speech targeting protected characteristics, (6) fraudulent or scam content.

03

Prohibited activities

You may not use our services to: send unsolicited bulk email (spam), operate open relays or open proxies, distribute malware or viruses, conduct phishing campaigns, perform DDoS attacks against any target, scan networks without authorization, engage in cryptocurrency mining without prior written approval, host command-and-control (C2) infrastructure for botnets, or host services designed to circumvent DRM or license enforcement.

04

Resource abuse

"Unlimited" bandwidth and storage on shared plans are subject to a fair-use policy. If your usage significantly exceeds typical customer patterns (>500GB storage on a Starter plan, >1TB monthly bandwidth on a Starter plan, sustained CPU use over 25% of a shared node), we will contact you to either optimize the workload or migrate to a VPS/Cloud plan.

05

Security incidents

If your site is compromised (defaced, hosting malware, sending spam), we may temporarily suspend it to protect other customers while you clean it up. We will notify you immediately and provide guidance on remediation.

06

DMCA and copyright claims

We honour valid copyright takedown requests. To submit a claim, email abuse@hostethics.com with the required information (identification of copyrighted work, location of infringing material, contact info, statement under penalty of perjury). We will notify the affected customer and act within 48 hours.

07

Reporting abuse

To report abuse originating from our network (spam, phishing, malware, etc.), email abuse@hostethics.com. Include full email headers, URLs, or IP addresses. We aim to respond within 24 hours.

08

Enforcement

We enforce this AUP proportionally: minor first-time issues typically result in a warning and cure period. Serious or repeat violations may lead to immediate suspension. Illegal content is removed immediately and reported to relevant authorities.

09

Appeals

If your account is suspended and you believe this was in error, you can appeal via appeals@hostethics.com. We aim to review within 3 business days.