Acceptable Use Policy

1. Purpose of the Policy

This Policy is intended to protect clients, end users, technical infrastructure, service security, IP and domain reputation, technical providers, third parties, Hostchilipepper LLC d/b/a HOST.NC (“Hostchilipepper”) and its acting partners.

The client undertakes to use the services legally, responsibly, fairly and in accordance with these rules.

Any abusive, fraudulent, dangerous, unlawful use or use likely to harm the infrastructure, third parties or other clients may result in suspension, limitation, termination or any other appropriate technical measure.

2. Scope

This Policy applies to all services offered on host.nc, including web hosting, domain names, email services, SSL certificates, databases, FTP accounts, client accounts, storage spaces, WordPress or other CMS installations, migration services, support services, associated technical services and any resource made available to the client.

It applies to the client, users, employees, providers, visitors, end clients or any person using the services through the client.

The client is responsible for the use made of the services, including when abusive use results from a compromised account, weak password, hacked website, vulnerable extension or third party having obtained unauthorized access.

3. Prohibited uses

It is strictly prohibited to use the services to host, publish, transmit, store, promote, facilitate or make accessible any content, activity or service contrary to applicable laws, third-party rights or these rules.

Prohibited items include unlawful, fraudulent, infringing, defamatory, abusive, threatening or privacy-infringing content, content inciting hatred, violence, discrimination or unlawful acts, phishing, spam, malware, viruses, trojans, ransomware, attack scripts, fraudulent collection pages for credentials or payment methods, deceptive imitation of brands or third-party services, security bypass, harm to the integrity of third-party systems, attacks, scans, saturation or compromise of servers, networks or applications.

This list is not exhaustive.

4. Spam, email and IP reputation

Use of email services must comply with applicable rules on electronic communications, consent, unsubscribe mechanisms and anti-spam obligations.

Prohibited practices include unsolicited mass messages, address lists obtained without consent, unqualified email databases, fraudulent campaigns, phishing, identity theft, malicious links, dangerous attachments, unauthorized mass-mailing scripts, compromised accounts and any activity likely to damage the reputation of servers, IP addresses or domain names.

Hostchilipepper may temporarily suspend, limit or block an email account, domain, script or service if its use presents a risk to IP reputation, deliverability, security, other clients or technical providers.

The client is responsible for proper email configuration, including SPF, DKIM, DMARC, passwords, quotas, contact forms and sending scripts.

5. Website, CMS and access security

The client is responsible for the security of websites, applications, accounts and access. The client undertakes to use strong passwords, not share credentials with unauthorized third parties, update CMS, themes, extensions, scripts and applications, remove unused or vulnerable extensions, use trusted sources, avoid pirated scripts, monitor administrator access, protect forms, keep independent backups and promptly report known compromises.

Pirated, nulled, infected or risky scripts, themes, plugins or files may be deleted, disabled, quarantined or result in suspension of the service concerned.

In case of compromise, Hostchilipepper may take any reasonable measure to protect the infrastructure, including temporary suspension, access restriction, email sending block, script disabling, permission changes or cleanup request.

6. Server resource use

The client must use allocated resources reasonably and in accordance with the subscribed offer.

Prohibited practices include excessive or abnormal resource use, scripts excessively consuming CPU, RAM, I/O, bandwidth or connections, abusive automated tasks, cryptocurrency mining, unauthorized bots, aggressive crawlers, open proxies, unauthorized tunneling, anonymous relays, public file servers not provided for by the offer, mass storage unrelated to a website, operations harming infrastructure stability and any activity likely to degrade service quality for other clients.

Hostchilipepper may limit, suspend or request optimization of a service if its use harms infrastructure stability, security or performance.

7. Domain names

The client is solely responsible for choosing, using and renewing domain names ordered or managed through host.nc.

The client undertakes not to use a domain name to infringe a trademark, impersonate someone, deceive users, conduct phishing, distribute spam, host unlawful content, facilitate fraud, infringe third-party rights or divert the reputation of a company, administration, association or person.

Technical availability of a domain name does not guarantee the absence of third-party rights over that name.

Hostchilipepper may suspend or refuse a request related to a domain name in case of suspected abusive, fraudulent or non-compliant use.

.NC domain names are subject to the rules of the .NC registry. Availability displayed during a search is indicative until effective validation.

Requests relating to .NC domains may require manual verification, additional information, supporting documents or validation by the competent registry.

HOST.NC follows up these requests with the support of a referenced .NC manager when the request requires specific assistance.

8. Client-hosted content

The client is solely responsible for content hosted, published, stored, distributed or transmitted through the services.

Hostchilipepper does not exercise general prior control over content hosted by clients.

However, Hostchilipepper may intervene when content, activity or use is reported, detected or considered to present a legal, technical, security or contractual risk.

The client must promptly remove any manifestly unlawful, fraudulent, infringing, dangerous or non-compliant content when becoming aware of it or when requested to do so.

9. Personal data and confidentiality

The client undertakes to comply with applicable personal data protection rules when collecting, processing, storing or hosting data through the services.

The client remains responsible for personal data collected through websites, forms, online stores, applications, databases or tools installed on hosting services.

The client must inform data subjects, collect required consent, secure data, limit access, keep tools updated, respect retention periods, process access, rectification or deletion requests, and declare or document incidents where necessary.

Hostchilipepper may act as technical processor for certain data hosted by the client. Applicable conditions are specified in the Privacy Policy, Terms and Conditions, the Data Processing Agreement or a specific data processing agreement.

10. Backups

The client is responsible for keeping personal backups.

Even if technical backups may be implemented, they do not constitute a guarantee of complete, permanent or systematic restoration unless a specific option is expressly subscribed.

The client must keep independent copies of websites, files, databases, emails, configurations and important content.

The absence of independent client backups may prevent complete restoration in case of error, deletion, hacking, corruption or technical incident.

11. Prohibition of unauthorized high-risk services

Unless prior written authorization is obtained, host.nc services must not be used to operate or host mass download platforms, unauthorized streaming services, public proxies, public VPNs, anonymous relays, intensive scraping services, aggressive bots, mining services, resource-intensive online games, attack or offensive testing scripts, spam platforms, link shorteners used for fraudulent purposes, mass redirection systems or services generating abnormal load or reputation risk.

Hostchilipepper may refuse or suspend any use incompatible with the shared or reasonable nature of the subscribed offer.

12. Abusive behavior toward support

Communications with support must remain respectful.

Insults, threats, harassment, discriminatory statements, abusive repeated requests, false statements, unjustified pressure attempts and intentional transmission of misleading information are prohibited.

In case of abusive behavior, Hostchilipepper may limit exchanges to written channels, suspend non-essential assistance or terminate the service under the conditions provided in the Terms and Conditions.

13. Abuse detection, reporting and handling

Any abuse may be reported through the following contacts:

Abuse reporting: Abuse reporting section
Support: open a support ticket

The report should, where possible, include the relevant URL, domain name, IP address if known, precise description of the facts, date and time observed, screenshots, full headers in case of abusive email, any useful evidence and the reporter’s contact details.

Hostchilipepper may request additional information to process the report.

Reports that are manifestly abusive, misleading or intended to obtain unjustified removal of content may be refused.

14. Possible measures in case of abuse

In case of breach of this Policy, technical risk, serious report, request from a legitimate third party or competent authority, Hostchilipepper may take any proportionate measure, including warning, correction request, temporary limitation, account or service suspension, script or email sending block, website disabling, file quarantine, access restriction, deletion of dangerous files, service termination, renewal refusal or transmission of information to competent authorities when required or permitted by law.

In case of emergency, serious risk, infrastructure threat, phishing, malware, mass spam, attack or manifestly unlawful content, these measures may be taken without prior notice.

Where possible, the client will be informed of the measures taken and the actions required for service reactivation.

15. Reactivation of a suspended service

Reactivation of a suspended service may be conditional upon removal of disputed content, correction of a vulnerability, password changes, CMS update, removal of a vulnerable plugin, cleanup of a compromised website, proper email configuration, payment of amounts due, provision of additional information or a written compliance undertaking.

Hostchilipepper reserves the right to refuse reactivation if the risk persists, if the client does not cooperate or if the breach is serious or repeated.

16. Client liability

The client is responsible for content hosted on the services, actions carried out from accounts, use of credentials, application security, data processing compliance, email communications, respect for third-party rights, backups and authorized providers or users.

The client indemnifies Hostchilipepper and its acting partners against any claim, complaint, penalty, damage, loss, cost or proceeding resulting from use contrary to this Policy, the Terms and Conditions, applicable laws or third-party rights.

Legal information

Information relating to the publisher, the administrative holder of the host.nc domain name, the HOST.NC partner and support, and the referenced .NC manager is available in the Legal Notice.

18. Changes to the Policy

Hostchilipepper reserves the right to modify this Policy at any time to adapt it to changes in services, risks, technologies, regulations, abusive practices or its organization.

The applicable version is the version published on host.nc on the date of consultation or on the date of service use.

Important changes may be brought to the client’s attention by email, client area notification or publication on the website.

19. Contact

For any question relating to this Policy, the client may contact:

Abuse reporting: Abuse reporting section

Additional legal information is available in the Legal Notice.