Acceptable Use Policy
This Acceptable Use Policy ("AUP") describes activities that are not permitted on ModHost services. It applies to all customers, account holders, and any third parties using a ModHost account, and is incorporated by reference into our Terms of Service.
We keep this policy specific rather than vague. The goal is for both customers and ModHost to know exactly where the lines are, and what happens when they're crossed.
If you have a question about whether a planned use is acceptable, contact us before you start. We would rather answer a question in advance than handle a problem afterward.
On this page
1.Prohibited content
You may not use ModHost services to host, store, transmit, link to, or distribute any of the following:
Illegal content. Any content that is illegal under the laws of Georgia, the European Union, the United States, or any jurisdiction in which the content is hosted, distributed, or accessed. This includes content that infringes intellectual property rights, child sexual abuse material, content depicting non-consensual acts, content that incites violence or terrorism, and content related to the sale of controlled substances or weapons.
Sexual or adult content. Pornography, sexually explicit material, escort services, or adult-oriented dating services, regardless of legality in the jurisdiction of origin.
Gambling. Online gambling, casinos, sports betting, lotteries, or related promotional activity.
Hateful and harassing content. Content that is defamatory, harassing, abusive, threatening, or that promotes hatred or discrimination based on race, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, disability, or national origin.
Privacy violations. Content that violates the privacy or publicity rights of any person, including non-consensual intimate imagery, doxxing, or unauthorized publication of personal information.
Fraud and deception. Phishing pages, fake login forms, fraudulent storefronts, pyramid schemes, advance-fee fraud, fake invoice schemes, or any content designed to deceive users into surrendering credentials, money, or personal information.
Malware and malicious code. Viruses, trojans, worms, ransomware, spyware, keyloggers, exploit kits, command-and-control infrastructure, or any code designed to damage, disrupt, or gain unauthorized access to computer systems.
Sanctions-related activity. Any content, transactions, or services that violate sanctions administered by OFAC, the European Union, the United Kingdom, or the United Nations Security Council.
2.Prohibited technical use
The following technical uses are not permitted, regardless of the content involved:
Mass mailing. Sending bulk email of any volume — including commercial newsletters, marketing campaigns, and transactional bulk mail — is not permitted on ModHost shared and managed plans. Standard transactional email (account confirmations, password resets, contact-form notifications, individual correspondence) is permitted within reasonable limits. Customers requiring bulk email should use a dedicated email service such as Mailgun, Postmark, SendGrid, or Amazon SES.
Spam and unsolicited communications. Sending unsolicited email, unsolicited SMS, or any form of mass unsolicited communication, regardless of where the messages originate or terminate.
Proxies, VPNs, and anonymization services. Operating open proxies, VPN exit nodes, Tor exit relays, or any service designed to anonymize the source of network traffic.
Cryptocurrency mining. Running cryptocurrency miners, mining pools, or mining proxies. Hosting wallet software, blockchain nodes for personal use, or informational websites about cryptocurrency is permitted.
File-sharing and distribution platforms. Operating public file-sharing services, torrent trackers, torrent seeding, warez sites, or services primarily used to distribute pirated software, media, or copyrighted material.
Streaming services. Operating audio or video streaming services, internet radio stations, or live-streaming platforms. Embedding individual media files on a regular website is permitted.
IRC and bot networks. Running IRC servers, IRC bots, game servers, or any persistent bot infrastructure.
Network scanning and intrusion. Port scanning, vulnerability scanning, penetration testing, brute-force attempts, credential stuffing, or unauthorized access attempts directed at systems you do not own — including activity targeting third parties from your ModHost account, and activity targeting ModHost infrastructure itself.
Denial-of-service activity. Participating in, coordinating, or sourcing denial-of-service attacks, whether against ModHost infrastructure or third parties.
Resource abuse. Sustained use of CPU, RAM, disk I/O, inodes, or bandwidth beyond the limits of your plan. Specific quotas for each plan are listed on the relevant pricing page. Brief spikes are normal and expected; sustained over-utilization is not.
Background processes and daemons. Running long-running background processes, persistent daemons, or scheduled tasks more frequent than every five minutes on shared and managed plans, except for processes that are part of standard WordPress operation.
Reselling. Sublicensing, reselling, or redistributing ModHost services to third parties is not permitted.
3.Email policy
In addition to the mass-mailing prohibition above:
You are responsible for the legitimacy of all email originating from your account, including email sent by scripts, plugins, contact forms, and compromised software.
If your account sends spam, phishing email, or generates a high volume of bounces or complaints, we may rate-limit or suspend outbound email without notice to protect the reputation of shared infrastructure and other customers.
We reserve the right to require customers to use an external SMTP relay service for outbound email if patterns of abuse, complaints, or deliverability issues are detected.
4.Customer security obligations
Customers are responsible for the security of their own accounts and applications. This includes:
Keeping WordPress core, themes, and plugins updated. ModHost provides automatic update tools, but the customer remains responsible for ensuring they are enabled and functioning.
Using strong, unique passwords for the customer area, hosting control panel, WordPress administration, and any FTP or database accounts.
Enabling two-factor authentication where available.
Removing unused themes, plugins, and applications, which are common entry points for attackers.
Reporting suspected compromises to ModHost as soon as they are discovered.
A customer account that has been compromised and is being used to host malicious content, send spam, or participate in attacks will be treated under the abuse-response procedures below, even if the customer is not directly responsible for the activity.
5.How we respond to violations
We classify violations into three tiers based on severity and ongoing harm.
Critical violations include actively serving malware or phishing pages, distributing child sexual abuse material, participating in active denial-of-service attacks, sanctions violations, and any activity creating immediate harm to third parties or to shared infrastructure. For critical violations, we will suspend the affected service immediately and notify the customer afterward. Restoration is conditional on full remediation and, in some cases, may not be offered.
Serious violations include spam, sustained resource abuse, repeated AUP violations, hosting prohibited content categories, and operating prohibited services such as proxies or mining. For serious violations, we will send written notice describing the violation and giving the customer 24 hours to remediate. If the violation is not remediated within that window, the affected service will be suspended. The customer may request restoration after demonstrating that the violation has been corrected.
Minor violations include technical AUP breaches without immediate third-party harm, such as background processes that exceed the allowed frequency, or first-time minor resource overages. For minor violations, we will send written notice describing the violation and giving the customer 72 hours to remediate before any service action is taken.
Repeated violations may result in account termination regardless of severity. We reserve the right to terminate any account for repeated violations of this AUP, even where each individual violation, viewed in isolation, would not warrant termination.
6.Copyright and DMCA
ModHost respects intellectual property rights and responds to copyright complaints under a DMCA-style notice and takedown process. Although ModHost is registered in Georgia, we apply this process to copyright complaints from any jurisdiction.
To submit a copyright complaint, send a written notice to abuse@modhost.com that includes:
- Your physical or electronic signature.
- Identification of the copyrighted work claimed to have been infringed.
- Identification of the material claimed to be infringing, with sufficient detail to permit us to locate it (a specific URL is best).
- Your contact information, including address, telephone number, and email address.
- A statement that you have a good-faith belief that the use is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law.
- A statement, made under penalty of perjury, that the information in the notice is accurate, and that you are the copyright owner or are authorized to act on the owner's behalf.
Incomplete notices may not be actionable.
Counter-notices. If material has been removed from your account in response to a copyright complaint and you believe the removal was based on mistake or misidentification, you may submit a written counter-notice to abuse@modhost.com that includes:
- Your physical or electronic signature.
- Identification of the material that has been removed and the location at which it appeared before removal.
- A statement, made under penalty of perjury, that you have a good-faith belief that the material was removed as a result of mistake or misidentification.
- Your name, address, and telephone number, and a statement that you consent to the jurisdiction of the courts of Georgia, or, if your address is outside Georgia, of any jurisdiction in which ModHost may be found.
If we receive a valid counter-notice, we will forward it to the original complainant and may restore the material after ten business days unless the complainant notifies us that legal action has been filed.
Repeat infringers. Accounts subject to repeated valid copyright complaints will be terminated.
7.Reporting abuse
If you become aware of content or activity on ModHost that violates this AUP, report it to abuse@modhost.com with as much detail as possible, including specific URLs, timestamps, and a description of the issue. We review every abuse report and respond to credible reports within one business day.
9.Changes to this policy
We may update this AUP from time to time. Material changes will be communicated to active customers by email at least 30 days before they take effect, except where a shorter notice period is required to address an immediate risk. The current version of this policy is always available at modhost.com/aup.
10.Contact
For questions about this policy: support@modhost.com
For abuse reports and DMCA notices: abuse@modhost.com