Tigerden Acceptable Use Policy

We expect you to use your account in a mature, responsible manner. While we will make no attempt to censor your legitimate 'free speech' regarding content of e-mail, or postings to USENET newsgroups, there are certain kinds of activities which are considered net abuse and are unacceptable use of your account. Some may also be illegal or constitute fraud. The following activities are some which are unacceptable:

Posting or e-mailing of scam 'make-money-fast' schemes, or 'pyramid/chain' letters. If such schemes involve the US mail in any way, they are subject to federal law. You may refer to the USPS web page on this subject at: http://www.usps.gov/websites/depart/inspect/chainlet.htm.
Harassing others by 'mail-bombing' (sending large amounts of frivolous data to a newsgroup or e-mail address)
Mass cross-posting of commercial advertising for products, items, or services to unrelated USENET newsgroups
* Note that single, infrequent posts of related offers of products, items, or services to relevant newsgroups would generally be allowed provided offers are not fraudulent
Mass 'frivolous' posting (spamming) to newsgroups with material unrelated to the subject of the newsgroup
Any other attempt to disrupt a newsgroup or online chat facility by frivolous, excessively vulgar, or repetitious postings
Postings of binary, or excessively large, unrelated text files to non-binary newsgroups which have specifically requested such material not be posted in the group's FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) or policy message
Mass e-mailing of unsolicited material of any kind to individual e-mail addresses or mailing lists
Forgery of newsgroup posting or e-mail headers which would deceptively direct followups/replies to others or otherwise hide the identity of the source (Legitimate use of anonymous re-mailer/re-posting services is permissible)
Installation of 'auto-responders', 'cancel-bots' or similar automated or manual routines which generate excessive amounts of net traffic, or disrupt net newsgroups or e-mail use by others
Using your account as the 'mail-drop' address or website location which is presented in spam newsgroup postings or e-mailings issued by you or your associates from other accounts or providers
Threats of bodily harm or property damage (see below)
Fraud (see below)
Attempts to 'hack' the into accounts of others, or attempts to penetrate beyond security measures of our or other systems whether or not the intrusion results in corruption or loss of data
Use of your account to obtain access or services from other online providers or resources by providing false or fraudulent information in applying for such access or services
Revealing your account password to others or allowing use of your account by others outside your direct supervision (YOU are responsible for any activity originating from your account unless it is proven your account was victim of outside hacking or address forgery)

Activities such as described above can consume large amounts of disk space on our system as well as systems of recipients and can cause disruption of mail or news service. Such activities also consume bandwidth on our network connections, slowing legitimate users unnecessarily. They also generate additional administrative work to investigate and respond to complaints from other net users. To cover costs of additional labor and system resources, your account will be billed $100 per occurrance for any activity determined to be unacceptable use. If the activity is not a blatent violation of the above policy, you will first be issued a warning with explaination of why your activity is considered inappropriate. Continued unacceptable activity will result in billing charges without further notice, and possible immediate account termination.

Complaints of being threatened coming from others will be taken seriously. Threats of bodily harm or of property damage directed from your account to individuals or groups by way of newsgroup postings or e-mailings will be investigated and may be referred to the appropriate legal authorities for followup. Costs for administration to handle these situations will also be billed at a minimum rate of $100 per occurrence along with possible immediate account locking until the matter is resolved.

Complaints of fraud regarding offers of products, items, or services originating from your account will be investigated and, if found to be valid, will result in a minimum billing of $100 per occurrance. Additionally, the matter may be turned over to legal authorities for followup.

We reserve the right to cancel unacceptable newsgroup postings and/or to terminate/lock your account access at any time without prior notice. If this is done, you will be provided an explaination for our doing so. Reinstatement will be at our sole discretion. You will be responsible to pay all account charges incurred up to the time of termination plus possible additional charges to cover costs of investigations or other administrative activity after termination.

In summary, we expect you to be a responsible net citizen. Likewise, we intend to fulfill our responsibilities to both the net population and to other access providers by working with them to keep the net a useful and enjoyable place for all.

Tigerden Acceptable Use Policy

Last Updated: 18 April 1996, 18 Jan 2001