The following factors guide the establishment and enforcement of vCloud’s usage policies:

  • 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

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

We actively and routinely monitor the activity of accounts, for measurements of system utilisation and the preparation of billing records. However, in our efforts to promote good citizenship within our cloud community, we will respond appropriately if we become aware of inappropriate use of our service.

In general, you may not use your vCloud account:

  • In a manner which violates any law, regulation, treaty or tariff;
  • In a manner which violates the rules, regulations and policies of any network, server, web site, database, or service provider that you access through vCloud network;
  • In a manner which is defamatory, fraudulent, indecent, offensive or deceptive;
  • To threaten, harass, abuse or intimidate others;
  • To damage the name or reputation of vCloud, its parent, affiliates and subsidiaries;
  • To break security on any computer network, or to access an account which does not belong to you; or
  • In a manner which interferes with other customers’ use and enjoyment of the services provided by vCloud
  • vCloud’s services may only be used for lawful purposes.
  • Access to your network and any storage or data and/or material is owned by the customer.

vCloud reserves sole discretion to determine whether any use of the service is in violation of this policy. Guidelines for using your account follows. This information is only a guideline, and is not intended to be all-inclusive.

vCloud accounts give you the ability to send and receive electronic mail. Misuse of electronic mail may result in termination of service. The following examples are non-exclusive and are provided for your guidance.

  • You may not use your account to send unsolicited bulk or commercial messages. This includes, but is not limited to, bulk mailing of commercial advertising, informational announcements, charity requests, petitions for signatures and political or religious tracts. Such messages may be only sent to those who have explicitly requested it.
  • You may not use your account to collect responses from unsolicited bulk or commercial email sent from accounts with other providers.
  • Forging, altering or removing electronic mail headers is prohibited.
  • You may not send numerous copies of the same or substantially similar message, nor may you send very large messages or files to a recipient, with the intent to disrupt a server or account.
  • You may not use electronic mail to harass or intimidate others. Harassment, whether through language, frequency of messages, or size of messages, is prohibited. Sending a single unwelcome message may be considered harassment. If a recipient asks to stop receiving email, you must not send that person any further messages.
  • You may not forward or otherwise propagate chain letters, whether or not such messages solicit money or other items of value, and whether or not the recipient wishes to receive such mailings.

vCloud accounts may not be used to collect replies to messages sent from another internet service provider if those messages violate this acceptable use policy or the acceptable use policy of the other service provider.

Hosting:
vCloud provides storage space for your data backups and virtual networks through its web hosting services. In addition, dedicated accounts may provide for the hosting of web services.
You are solely responsible for any data, material, information contained within your storage space or your virtual network.
Unlawful content is that which violates any law, statute, treaty, regulation or lawful order. This includes, but is not limited to:

  • Obscene material
  • Defamatory, fraudulent or deceptive statements
  • Threatening, intimidating or harassing statements
  • Material which violates the privacy rights or property rights of others

Objectionable content is otherwise legal content with which vCloud concludes, in sole discretion, it does not want to be associated in order to protect its reputation and brand image, or to protect its employees, shareholders and affiliates.

Examples of prohibited web site content:

  • Materials which hold vCloud including its affiliates, employees or shareholders up to public scorn or ridicule
  • Materials which encourage the commission of a crime; or which tends to incite violence; or which tends to degrade any person or group based on sex, nationality, religion, colour, age, marital status, sexual orientation, disability or political affiliation

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 access to your account. In addition, you may not use your account to breach the security of another account or attempt to gain unauthorised access to another network or server.

You must adopt adequate security measures to prevent or minimise the risk of unauthorised 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 expressively authorised to access, or probing the security of other networks. Use of 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. 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. vCloud 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.

Illegal Activities:
Any activity on our network that is a violation of any state or federal law is a violation of this policy and will result in immediate termination of service. Prohibited activities include, but are not limited to:

  • Transmitting obscene materials or pornography
  • Intentionally spreading or threatening to spread computer viruses
  • Gaining or attempting to gain unauthorised access to any network, including vCloud’s private network infrastructure
  • Accessing or attempting to access information not intended for you
  • Transmitting pirated software
  • Conducting or participating in illegal gambling
  • Soliciting for pyramid and other illegal schemes

vCloud has a policy to respect and protect the privacy of its customers and their information that is stored within vCloud. vCloud will only access and disclose information as necessary to comply with applicable laws and government requests, to provide the vCloud services, to operate or maintain its systems or to protect itself or its customers.

vCloud reserves the right to add, delete or modify any provision of its acceptable usage policy at any time without notice.