1. Introduction
This Acceptable Use Policy applies to all customers of Aperisys Internet, and is intended to provide a general understanding of Aperisys's policy on the Acceptable Use of Aperisys Internet services. It is designed to help protect our service, our customers and the Internet community from irresponsible or illegal activities. Aperisys expects that common sense and good judgment will guide all of our subscriber's activities on the Internet.
Aperisys provides data transport and storage services. Information available on Aperisys's network is the property of Aperisys, its information providers or other customers. Aperisys does not accept responsibility for the content of the materials and information published by others which are accessible through the Aperisys Internet connection and does not accept responsibility for the violation of any laws resulting from such publication.
All users of Aperisys's services are expected to abide by the laws of the state and country in which they reside, including all copyright laws and regulations, tariff regulations, export controls, treaties and international law.
Use of Aperisys's services constitutes on the part of such user acceptance of and agreement to abide by all of the policies of Aperisys, including this AUP, as such policies may be modified by Aperisys at any time and from time to time, and to use such services for lawful purposes in compliance with all applicable laws. Use of Aperisys's services is at the risk of the subscriber.
Electronic Communications Privacy Act Notice (18 USC 2701-2711) Aperisys MAKES NO GUARANTEE OF CONFIDENTIALITY OR PRIVACY OF ANY COMMUNICATION OR INFORMATIONTRANSMITTED ON ITS NETWORK OR ANY NETWORK ATTACHED TO ITS NETWORK. Aperisys SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR THE PRIVACY OF E-MAIL ADDRESSES, REGISTRATION AND IDENTIFICATION, DISK SPACE, COMMUNICATIONS, CONFIDENTIAL OR TRADE-SECRET INFORMATION, OR ANY OTHER CONTENT STORED ON Aperisys'S EQUIPMENT, TRANSMITTED OVER NETWORKS ACCESSED BY Aperisys, OR OTHERWISE CONNECTED WITH USE OF THE Aperisys NETWORK.
2. Policies
2.1. Aperisys accounts may be used only by the authorized owners of the accounts, except where specifically authorized by Aperisys system administrators. Revealing your account username or password to others or allowing use of your account by others is prohibited. At no time can there be simultaneous use of the same account username and password combination.
2.2. Resale, trade of transfer any account without express written consent from Aperisys is prohibited. Attempting to obtain access beyond that for which a customer is authorized will be grounds for immediate termination of such customer's account.
2.3. Attempting to defeat identification procedures, gain passwords or encryption codes, penetrate security measures, circumvent user authentication or use of the Aperisys network to gain unlawful or unauthorized entry to another machine on the Internet; use of an Aperisys account to or attempt to alter or destroy data belonging to Aperisys Internet or another user on any computer network; and use of the Aperisys system as a staging ground to "crack" other systems will be grounds for immediate termination of such customer's account.
2.4. Transmission, redistribution, reproduction or commercial exploitation of information available on, (or provided by Aperisys), Aperisys' network without the permission of its owner or in violation of applicable copyright laws or patents will be grounds for immediate termination of such customer's account.
2.5. Abusive or inappropriate use of any Aperisys Internet service, including any behavior which disrupts the normal use of the system or Internet services of others, inhibits any user form accessing the Internet, interferes with the proper operation of Aperisys's network or impairs the availability, reliability or quality of Aperisys service for other customers will be subject to the sanctions described below.
2.6. Aperisys Internet does not censor the content of any newsgroups. We believe such choices should be left to the individual.
2.7. General It is also contrary to the specific policies of Aperisys for any user to effect or participate in any of the following activities:
2.7.1. using an account to offer any public information service, such as running a web server or FTP server, without the written consent of Aperisys;
2.7.2.exporting software or technical information in violation of U.S. export control laws;
2.7.3. making fraudulent offers of items, products, or services originating from a customer's account;
2.7.4. using non-authorized relays through any third party systems;
2.7.5. "flooding" or overburdening recipient computer systems by sending a high volume of spurious data which impedes functionality or disables the recipient system, or any other methods of denial of service of another;
2.7.6. storing or distributing on Aperisys servers illegally-acquired information, programs containing malicious code, including viruses, trojans or worms or tools to comprise the security of other sites;
2.7.7. using programs such as packet sniffers, host and/or service monitoring or other similar programs; and
2.7.8. engaging in any of the above activities using the service of another provider but channeling such activities through an Aperisys account or re-mailer or using Aperisys account as a mail drop for responses.
2.8. Non-dedicated Dial-up Connection
2.8.1. Dial-up is attended access and requires the physical presence of the account holder while the account is connected to the Internet. Pings, bots, auto-checkers to keep connections running or the use of other programs to defeat system timers limiting inactivity are prohibited, as well as the use of software to stay logged on while not actively using services. Exceeding eight (8) continuous hours on dial-up may constitute "excessive use," and accounts which remain idle for more than ten (10) minutes while connected may be disconnected without notice.
2.8.2. Non-dedicated dial-up accounts are use for individual use only and may not be used for any private or personal business or gain or for any unsolicited or commercial advertising. Account holders may not run or operate servers of any type, or provide network services, from dial-up accounts.
2.9. Email, Newsgroups and Internet Relay Chat.
2.9.1. Email is a person-to-person medium and not a broadcast medium. Harassing others by "mail-bombing" or "spamming", which constitutes sending the same or substantially similar unsolicited electronic mail messages to a large number of recipients, or more than ten (10) similar mail messages to the same email address, or 10Mb of data to a newsgroup is grounds for termination of a customer's account. Threatening bodily harm or property damage to individuals or groups, for example, making terrorist threats, is also strictly prohibited and is grounds for termination.
2.9.2. Not every "flame" message or angry exchange of email or newsgroup posting can automatically be considered harassment. Aperisys is not responsible for the content or tone of any email or other transmissions of the subscribers to its service or other parties using the Internet, and subscribers or others should not expect that Aperisys will attempt to mediate or otherwise become involved in any particular disagreement or dispute between Internet users. Only the Aperisys Internet News Administrator may create new Usenet groups. Any abuse of this policy will result in a customers account being disabled and all other previous agreements rendered null and void.
2.9.3. Certain restrictions relating to newsgroup postings have been established by Usenet and are respected by Aperisys. Customers of Aperisys unconditionally agree to abide by such restrictions, protocols and policies in using their accounts.
2.9.4. The following activities are specifically prohibited by Aperisys in connection with the use of email, newsgroup or IRC services Aperisys provides:
2.9.4.1. distributing malicious software which contributes to or assists in "mail-bombing" or "spamming";
2.9.4.2. sending unsolicited, junk or chain letter email for the purpose of advertising or soliciting, or using Aperisys Internet's email address to collect responses from unsolicited email;
2.9.4.3. attempting to impersonate any person, using forged email or Usenet headers or other identifying information;
2.9.4.4. using an email box exclusively as a storage space for data, which includes a mailbox exceeding 10MB or which has not been accessed for more than one (1) month;
2.9.4.5. using a news server for software distribution, cross-posting messages to more than 10 newsgroups and posting off-topic messages and advertising to newsgroups;
2.9.4.6. posting frivolous, excessively vulgar or repetitious messages to newsgroups;
2.9.4.7. posting binary or excessively large unrelated text files to non-binary newsgroups that have specifically requested such material not to be posted in the group's FAQ;
2.9.4.8. installing "auto-responders," "cancel-bots" or similar automated or manual routines which generate excessive amounts of net traffic, or disrupt newsgroups or email use by others;
2.9.4.9. transmitting blanket postings to all or large numbers of newsgroups simultaneously without regard to the newsgroups' topics; and
2.9.4.10. using IRC bots in violation of any accepted policies on IRC servers.
2.10. Hosting
2.10.1. Users of Aperisys's hosting services, not Aperisys under any circumstances whatsoever, are responsible for the content of their sites and obtaining all required legal permissions for the use of such content. Each such user must accept responsibility for the publication of any defamatory, pornographic, confidential, secret or proprietary material. Aperisys reserves the right to remove any material from any site without notice.
2.10.2. Free personal web sites are limited to four (4) Mb in size and to one hundred (100) Mb per month in traffic. Users will be required to reduce the size of files which exceed the maximum, and usage in excess of such amount is considered "other than for personal use" by Aperisys. Use of such an account for other than personal use may be grounds for cancellation of such account or the imposition of additional charges or both. 2.10.3. Any account barred access to a web site may be suspended.
3. Subscribers' Responsibilities
3.1. All Aperisys customers and advertisers who publish materials and information which are accessible through the Aperisys Internet connection are solely responsible for the content of such materials and information and are solely responsible for compliance with all laws applicable to the publication of such materials and information.
3.2. Each account holder is responsible for charges incurred by others to whom the account holder has given its username and/or password, and for charges incurred by a person who has obtained such account holder's username and/or password prior to such account holder's notification to Aperisys of such fact.
3.3. Each account holder is responsible for the payment of all local and long distance telephone charges. Users are also solely responsible for determining if the access telephone number being used is a local call and for keeping track of their own on-line connection time. Users are responsible for the files residing in their accounts, including the back-up of such files.
3.4. It is the account owner's responsibility, if desired, to make use of available tools to screen an account's access to newsgroups considered offensive.
3.5. Any permitted customers of Aperisys's customers are bound by same restrictions as Aperisys's customers, including this AUP.
4. Actions by Aperisys for Noncompliance or Violation
4.1. Certain of the activities set forth above cause alarms that could require Aperisys to take action. Account holders should be aware, however, that normal use and software will not set off such alarms.
4.2. Use of an Aperisys account or service in an illegal manner is grounds for immediate termination of such account. Users should be aware that Aperisys views such activities very seriously and may disclose prohibited activities to law enforcement agencies, including the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with whom Aperisys will fully cooperate. Aperisys will cooperate with appropriate law enforcement agencies involved in investigating instances that may be reported to such authorities by subscribers or other users who believe they are being subjected to potentially unlawful harassment.
4.3. Aperisys reserves the right to conduct its own investigation of suspected violations of this AUP.
4.4. In addition to the other actions described herein, Aperisys may take one or more of the following specific actions:
4.4.1. delete files if the storage fee is due and unpaid, if such files have not been accessed for more than one (1) month or if such files exceed the permitted size;
4.4.2. disable a customer's account if irresponsible newsgroup postings by such use result in large numbers of complaints to an Aperisys Internet News Administrator;
4.4.3. for each day upon which a user transmits the same or substantially similar messages to 50 or more recipients or 15 or more newsgroups, charge $10 per day for intentional violations, which may be waived if accidental, and $200 per day for willful violations;
4.4.4. charge any account holder who uses such account to transmit unsolicited, commercial email, $150 per per violation or aggregate of violations:
4.4.5. log instances of abuse;
4.4.6. where feasible, implement technical mechanisms which block multiple postings to newsgroups;
4.4.7. change an account holder's password to maintain integrity of the network; and
4.4.8. terminate the account of an offending customer If Aperisys is banned from any server.
4.5. Untimely payment of any and all amounts due may result in account cancellation and the incurrence of additional charges. In the event that an account is temporarily inactivated as a result of any prohibited activities, the account may be subject to reactivation charges and/or deposit requirements to be determined by Aperisys.
4.6. Each account holder understands and acknowledges that Aperisys has the right to terminate any account for any reason that Aperisys interprets as an abuse of the account and such account holder will be liable for any and all costs incurred by Aperisys as result of such abuse. The sole remedy for such termination is the return of the amount of any prepaid but unused services.
4.7. Aperisys will review alleged violations of this AUP on a case-by-case basis. Violations which are not promptly remedied may result in disciplinary action, including referral to appropriate authorities for civil or criminal prosecution. Aperisys's decisions in all such matters are final. Aperisys does not assume any liability to any account holders, users or others for its failure to enforce this AUP.
4.8. Nothing herein is to be construed to limit Aperisys's remedies in any way, to recover costs, identify and remove offenders, levy cancellation charges or pursue any other remedies at law or in equity.
5. Contacts
5.1. Also, each account holder must immediately notify Aperisys at any of the foregoing addresses of any unauthorized use of such account holder's account, of any breach or attempted breach of security, if it is believed that such account holder's password has been compromised or of any other violations of this AUP.
5.2. If you have any questions please contact Aperisys Internet Services.
Aperisys RESERVES THE RIGHT TO MODIFY THIS POLICY AT ANY TIME AND FROM TIME TO TIME.