Acceptable Use Policy

Read this before you buy

This is the shortest useful list we could write. We would rather you spend two minutes here than discover a restriction after a suspension.

Root access means the server is yours to configure. This policy is about what it may be used for, not how you set it up.

Never permitted

• Attacking other systems: denial-of-service traffic, port scanning without authorisation, brute-force attempts, or exploiting other networks.
• Distributing malware, ransomware, or command-and-control infrastructure for it.
• Phishing, or hosting pages that impersonate another organisation to collect credentials or payment details.
• Unsolicited bulk email, and open relays or open proxies whether deliberate or through misconfiguration.
• Child sexual abuse material. We report this to the relevant authorities and terminate immediately without notice or refund.
• Content that infringes copyright, trademark or other intellectual property rights.
• Anything unlawful in TODO or in the jurisdiction where the server is located.

Resource use

Your plan states a vCPU count, a memory allocation and a monthly transfer allowance. Sustained use materially beyond those affects other customers on the same host.

We will contact you before taking action on resource use unless the impact is severe and immediate. In practice this means an email asking you to move to a larger plan, not a surprise suspension.

• Cryptocurrency mining is not permitted on shared-CPU plans. It is a sustained full-core workload and is unfair to everyone else on the host.
• Public Tor exit nodes are not permitted, because the abuse volume they generate falls on our IP ranges and our other customers.
• Open DNS resolvers and open NTP servers are not permitted — they are used for amplification attacks whether you intend it or not.

Email sending

Outbound SMTP on port 25 is closed by default on new servers. Ask support and we will open it once you tell us what you intend to send. This is not obstruction: an IP range with a poor reputation is worthless to every customer on it, including you.

If you send bulk email, you must use confirmed opt-in, honour unsubscribes promptly, and publish accurate sender information.

How we enforce this

Where the problem is active harm — an attack in progress, malware distribution, phishing — we suspend immediately and tell you afterwards. Everything else gets a notice and a reasonable opportunity to fix it first.

In either case we tell you what we found and what evidence we relied on. You can appeal through the Complaints & Dispute Resolution process, and an appeal is reviewed by someone who was not involved in the original decision.

A server suspended under this policy is not eligible for a refund of the current period.