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Table
of Contents
| INTRODUCTION: |
| The
main purpose of Soft-Tech Internet is
to provide access to the Internet for its
subscribers through its various service
types. It is the intention of Soft-Tech
Internet to allow its subscribers that
access with minimal or no interference |
| In
a multi-subscriber environment such as Soft-Tech
Internet, the actions of a single
subscriber may have a severe impact on other
customers' abilities to access the Internet.
It is not uncommon for an Internet Service
Provider (ISP) to be blocked from use of
another organization's systems due to
repeated misuses of that ISP's resources. As
we feel that this would be grossly unfair to
our many subscribers, Soft-Tech Internet
has adopted these Acceptable Use Policies.
They
are intended to provide guidelines on what Soft-Tech
Internet constitutes inappropriate use
of the access to the Internet and alert our
subscribers to whatever actions we may be
forced to take, with or without notice,
should we become aware of the inappropriate
use of this service.
|
| Soft-Tech
Internet recognizes
that many of the individual components of
the Internet have other specific guidelines
for use. The preservation of Soft-Tech
Internet's technical resources, the
continuation of its high quality service to
its customers, the compliance with existing
laws and regulations, and the protection of Soft-Tech
Internet's reputation as a service
provider compel us to enact the Acceptable
Use Policies detailed below.
These
guidelines will be enforced when dealing
with complaints from the Internet community
to determine when action should be taken.
All Soft-Tech Internet subscribers
and advertisers are expected to follow these
policies.
|
ACCESS TO Soft-Tech Internet's
INTERNET SERVICE IS PROVIDED SUBJECT TO THE
FOLLOWING TERMS AND CONDITIONS: |
I.
Warranties / Disclaimers: |
| The
Soft-Tech Internet Internet service is
provided on an "as is, as available"
basis. While our intention is to provide more
than adequate bandwidth to support our
subscriber base, no warranties, express or
implied, including, but not limited to, those
of merchantability or fitness for a particular
purpose, are made with respect to Soft-Tech
Internet or any information or software
therein.
Soft-Tech
Internet shall
have no liability or responsibility for any
direct, indirect, incidental, or consequential
damages suffered by you in connection with
your use of or inability to use the Soft-Tech
Internet services including, but not
limited to, damages from loss of data
resulting from delays, non-deliveries,
misdeliveries, service interruptions, or the
inadvertent release or disclosure of
information sent by you even if the same is
caused by Soft-Tech Internet's own
negligence.
Soft-Tech
Internet further
specifically disclaims to the full extent
permitted by applicable law any responsibility
for, and under no circumstances shall be
liable for any conduct, content, goods, and
services available on or through the Internet
or through Soft-Tech Internet services.
In no event shall Soft-Tech Internet's
aggregate liability exceed the amount paid by
you to Soft-Tech Internet for Soft-Tech
Internet services. Use of any information
obtained via Soft-Tech Internet's
Internet service is at the user's own risk.
Soft-Tech
Internet specifically
disclaims any responsibility for the accuracy,
safety, or quality of information obtained
through its services.
|
| II.
Security: |
| The
subscriber is responsible for all use of
subscriber's account(s), confidentiality,
safety of password(s), and ensuring file
protections are set correctly. Soft-Tech
Internet retains the right to suspend
access or change access to subscriber's
account(s) immediately upon notification by
subscriber that subscriber's password has been
lost, stolen, or otherwise compromised.
Soft-Tech
Internet is
not liable for the consequences of any usage
of compromised accounts prior to Soft-Tech
Internet making the necessary account
alteration. No computer system should be
considered safe from intrusion, although
electronic mail (e-mail) on this system is as
private as we can make it. E-mail should not
be considered a secure means of communication
even if encrypted (which is only as secure as
the encryption method utilised).
|
III.
Personal Files: |
| Soft-Tech
Internet is
not responsible for subscriber's personal
files residing on Soft-Tech Internet. Soft-Tech
Internet reserves the right to delete
subscriber's personal files after one or both
parties terminates the service agreement
between Soft-Tech Internet and
subscriber. |
IV.
Non-Transferability of Account: |
| The
right to use Soft-Tech Internet's
Internet service is not transferable, being
expressly limited to the individual or
business whose name appears on the account. |
V.
Network Address Ownership: |
| Any
network address assignments issued by Soft-Tech
Internet (i.e., IP address) are the
property of Soft-Tech Internet and
are assigned dynamically. In the event
service with Soft-Tech Internet is
discontinued for any reason, such addresses
will revert to Soft-Tech Internet.
The network addresses are assigned on a per
session basis and are designed to allow for
Web Surfing. This design/assignment of
network addresses could effect (not allow)
some games/services (IRC, CU-SeeMe, web page
hosting) which require a fully qualified
address. |
VI.
Compliance with all Laws: |
Subscriber
agrees:
- to
use the service in a manner consistent
with any and all applicable laws and
regulations. Reproduction or transmission
of any material in violation of any local,
state, Australia/National., or
international law or regulation is
prohibited;
- that
any material to be reproduced or
transmitted on Soft-Tech's service
through subscriber's account(s) does not
violate or infringe any patent, trademark,
copyright, statutory, common law, or
proprietary rights of others;
- that
such material as might be reproduced or
transmitted on Soft-Tech Internet's
service through his/her account does not
contain anything obscene, libellous, or
threatening. Subscriber agrees software
intended to facilitate any such violations
or infringements may not be stored on Soft-Tech
Internet;
- at
Soft-Tech Internet's discretion,
not to use Soft-Tech Internet
services or accounts for inappropriate
usage; and
- subscriber
shall defend, indemnify and hold harmless Soft-Tech
Internet from and against any claims,
liabilities and expenses, including
reasonable attorneys' fees, resulting from
subscriber's use of the Soft-Tech
Internet service or subscriber's
account(s) in an unlawful manner or
otherwise in violation of or contrary to
subscriber's Agreement with Soft-Tech
Internet or Soft-Tech Internet's
Acceptable Use Policies.
|
VII.
Acceptable Conduct: |
The
following usage of Soft-Tech Internet
resources is deemed acceptable under the terms
of service:
- usage
for private personal communications;
- usage
for public communications as suggested by
the charters of USENET newsgroups, and the
well-known guidelines generally accepted
by the users and news administrators of
same;
- usage
for research or educational purposes; and
- usage
for data communications in accordance with
applicable laws.
|
VIII.
Unacceptable Conduct: |
The
following types of conduct are grounds for
immediate suspension of service pending
investigation by Soft-Tech Internet
and may result in termination of the
account(s) determined to have originated
this conduct. In addition, Soft-Tech
Internet reserves the right, where
feasible, to implement technical blocks to
multiple postings by a Soft-Tech Internet
subscriber as described in (A), (B), (C),
and (F) below before such postings are
forwarded:
- violation
of any applicable local, state, federal,
or international laws;
- posting
identical or substantially similar
articles to an excessive (more than 10)
number of newsgroups or continued
posting of articles which are off topic
for a newsgroup (according to the
newsgroup charter or which provoke
complaints from the regular readers of
the newsgroup for being off topic). Soft-Tech
Internet will apply a charge of
$0.05 per copy for misposted USENET
articles;
- sending
unsolicited mass (to more than 15 users)
e-mailings which provoke complaints from
the recipients. Any subscriber who
perpetrates such unsolicited
non-commercial mass e-mailings shall be
subject to a $1,000 service charge,
payable to Soft-Tech Internet.
Unsolicited commercial advertisements
are not allowed in e-mail. Soft-Tech
Internet will apply a charge of $150
per user for unsolicited commercial
e-mail;
- engaging
in either (a) or (b) from a provider
other than Soft-Tech Internet
while using an account on Soft-Tech
Internet as a mail drop for
responses, or to draw attention to a web
site housed within Soft-Tech
Internet's networks;
- continued
harassment of other individuals on the
Internet after being asked to stop by
those individuals and by Soft-Tech
Internet;
- mail
bombing (the transmission of large
volumes of unsolicited e-mail to
individuals or to individual business
accounts);
- impersonating
another user or otherwise falsifying
one's user name in e-mail, USENET
postings, on Internet Relay Chat (IRC),
or with any other Internet service;
- privacy
violations: Any attempt to gain access
to any other system or users' private
data without express consent of the
user. Such attempts include, but are not
limited to, tricking other people into
releasing their passwords, password
cracking, and security hole scanning;
- use
of IRC 'bots or clone bots on Soft-Tech
Internet. An IRC 'bot is a program
which runs and is connected to an IRC
server 24 hours a day, automatically
performing certain actions;
- use
of programs or methods that trick our
systems from disconnecting an inactive
user after a pre-determined amount of
time (or on deactivation of the Ad Bar),
and/or a program that connects or
re-connects the user's session
automatically and without his/her manual
intervention;
- network
unfriendly activity. Any attempt to
interfere with the regular workings of Soft-Tech
Internet's systems or network
connections or which adversely affect
the ability of other people or systems
to use Soft-Tech Internet
services or the Internet, including, but
not limited to:
- any
unauthorized attempts by a user to
gain root access or access to any
account not belonging to that user
on this or any other Soft-Tech
Internet system;
- any
use of this or any other Soft-Tech
Internet system as a staging
ground to disable other systems.
|
IX.
Right to Disconnect Nondedicated Accounts: |
| Soft-Tech
Internet unlimited
access dial-up connections are not intended to
be full-time dedicated connections and will be
disconnected according to any conditions
defined in the pricing structure found in Access
Accounts under the relevant account
categories. Subscriber agrees not to use any
automatic method to avoid disconnection, to
keep the connection active only when the
subscriber is actively using it, and not to
provide public information services over the
connection.
Soft-Tech
Internet reserves
the right to impose a restriction on accounts
deemed by it to be in violation of these
conditions.
|
X.
Excess Utilization of System or Network
Resources: |
| Soft-Tech
Internet flat rate/unlimited
access services are subject to fair use to ensure an enjoyable
internet experience for all subscribers. Where Soft-Tech
Internet determines that excessive utilization
adversely affects Soft-Tech Internet's
ability to provide service for all subscribers
this may result in immediate action to relieve the
problem. In that event, the subscriber will be
notified as soon as is practicable. |
XII.
Monitoring / Privacy: |
| Soft-Tech
Internet reserves
the right to monitor any and all
communications through or with CAIS
facilities. Subscriber agrees that Soft-Tech
Internet is not considered a secure
communications medium for the purposes of the
Electronic Communications Privacy Act, and
that no expectation of privacy is afforded. It
may become necessary for Soft-Tech Internet
employees to examine system accounting logs
and other records to determine if privacy
violations or other network unfriendly
activities have occurred.
Soft-Tech
Internet also
reserves the right to access a subscriber's
mailbox or other files stored on Soft-Tech
Internet systems to resolve system
problems or mail system errors.
|
XIII.
Cooperation with Authorities: |
| Soft-Tech
Internet reserves
the right to cooperate with law enforcement
and other authorities in investigating claims
of illegal activity including, but not limited
to, illegal transfer or availability of
copyrighted material, postings, or e-mail
containing threats of violence or other
illegal activity. |
XIV.
Confidentiality of Personal Subscriber
Information: |
| Soft-Tech
Internet will
not release a subscriber's personal subscriber
information, nor a subscriber's billing
information to any third party except upon
presentation of a valid court order of a
government or entity within our jurisdiction.
Subscriber agrees that Soft-Tech Internet's
judgment as to the validity of any court order
of subpoena shall be considered proper and
final. |
XV.
Right to Suspend or Cancel Account: |
| Soft-Tech
Internet reserves
the right to suspend or cancel service to a
subscriber at any time and without notice for
any reason including, but not limited to,
refusal or failure to pay for services
provided or by sole judgment of Soft-Tech
Internet that the subscriber may be
performing activities harmful to Soft-Tech
Internet or its subscribers, employees,
vendors, business relationships, or any other
users of the Internet. |
XVI.
Right to Damages: |
| Soft-Tech
Internet reserves
the right to collect damages (software,
hardware, and man hours) if any harm is done
to Soft-Tech Internet which requires
repair or reconfiguration of any kind. |
| XVII.
Other Remedies / Non-Waiver: |
| Nothing
contained in these policies shall be construed
to limit action Soft-Tech Internet may
take or remedies available to Soft-Tech
Internet in any way with respect to any of
the described conduct.
Soft-Tech
Internet reserves
the right to take any additional actions Soft-Tech
Internet may consider appropriate with
respect to such conduct, including, without
limitation, taking action to recover the costs
and expenses of identifying offenders and
removing them from the Soft-Tech Internet
service, and levying cancellation charges to
cover Soft-Tech Internet's costs in the
event of disconnection of dedicated access for
the causes outlined above.
In
addition, Soft-Tech Internet reserves
at all times all rights and remedies available
to Soft-Tech Internet with respect to
such conduct at law or in equity.
Non-enforcement of any policy or rule herein
does not constitute consent or waiver, and Soft-Tech
Internet reserves the right to enforce
such policy or rule at its sole discretion.
|
XVIII.
Right to Change Service: |
| Soft-Tech
Internet reserves
the right to change without notice the Soft-Tech
Internet service, including, but not
limited to, access procedures, hours of
operation, menu structures, commands,
documentation, vendors, and services offered. |
XIX.
Right to Modify Acceptable Use Policies: |
| Soft-Tech
Internet may
modify its Acceptable Use Policies upon
notice published on line via Soft-Tech
Internet's web page. Subscriber's use of
Soft-Tech Internet services after
such notice shall constitute subscriber's
acceptance of the modifications to these
policies. |
XX.
Telephone Charges (POP) Local Dial-in Errors
Policy |
| It
is the responsibility of the subscriber to
verify with their local telephone company
their correct access number to insure a local
connection
Soft-Tech
Internet assumes
no liability for Telephone charges incurred by
users for incorrectly entering a local access
number in their computer. Soft-Tech Internet
does not pay for the cost of connecting to our
POPs under any circumstances. In addition, Soft-Tech
Internet will not reimburse customers for
Telephone charges under the following
conditions:
failure
to adequately install our software product;
improperly
entering the local access number;
- improperly
obtaining a local access number from the
Readme File or the Soft-Tech Internet
technical support pages;
- improperly
obtaining a local access number from
Customer Service or any other Soft-Tech
Internet employee;
- improperly
obtaining a local access number from the
technical insert provided with the
software upon receipt of the product.
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