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Policies |
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Acceptable Use & Privacy Policy As a provider of Internet access, Cloudburst9 offers its customers the means to acquire and disseminate a wealth of public, private, commercial, and noncommercial information. Cloudburst9 respects that the Internet provides a forum for free and open discussion and dissemination of information, however, when there are competing interests at issue; Cloudburst9 reserves the right to take certain preventative or corrective actions. In order to protect these competing interests, Cloudburst9 has developed an Acceptable Use Policy ("AUP"), which supplements and explains certain terms of each customer's respective service agreement and is intended as a guide to the customer's rights and obligations when utilizing Cloudburst9's services. This AUP will be revised from time to time. A customer's use of Cloudburst9's services after changes to the AUP are posted on Cloudburst9’s Web site, http://www.cloudburst9.net, will constitute the customer's acceptance of any new or additional terms of the AUP that result from those changes. One important aspect of the Internet is that no one party owns or controls it. This fact accounts for much of the Internet's openness and value, but it also places a high premium on the judgment and responsibility of those who use the Internet, both in the information they acquire and in the information they disseminate to others. When subscribers obtain information through the Internet, they must keep in mind that Cloudburst9 cannot monitor, verify, warrant, or vouch for the accuracy and quality of the information that subscribers may acquire. For this reason, the subscriber must exercise his or her best judgment in relying on information obtained from the Internet, and also should be aware that some material posted to the Internet is sexually explicit or otherwise offensive. Because Cloudburst9 cannot monitor or censor the Internet, and will not attempt to do so, Cloudburst9 cannot accept any responsibility for injury to its subscribers that results from inaccurate, unsuitable, offensive, or illegal Internet communications. When subscribers disseminate information through the Internet, they also must keep in mind that Cloudburst9 does not review, edit, censor, or take responsibility for any information its subscribers may create. When users place information on the Internet, they have the same liability as other authors for copyright infringement, defamation, and other harmful speech. Also, because the information they create is carried over Cloudburst9’s network and may reach a large number of people, including both subscribers and non-subscribers of Cloudburst9, subscribers' postings to the Internet may affect other subscribers and may harm Cloudburst9’s goodwill, business reputation, and operations. For these reasons, subscribers violate Cloudburst9 policy and the service agreement when they, their customers, affiliates, or subsidiaries engage in the following prohibited activities: Spamming Sending unsolicited bulk and/or commercial messages over the Internet (known as "spamming"). It is not only harmful because of its negative impact on consumer attitudes toward Cloudburst9, but also because it can overload Cloudburst9’s network and disrupt service to Cloudburst9 subscribers. Sending unsolicited mass mailings to more than 25 email users is prohibited if such emails provoke complaints from the recipients. Intellectual Property Violations Engaging in any activity that infringes or misappropriates the intellectual property rights of others, including copyrights, trademarks, service marks, trade secrets, software piracy, and patents held by individuals, corporations, or other entities. Also, engaging in activity that violates privacy, publicity, or other personal rights of others. Cloudburst9 is required by law to remove or block access to customer content upon receipt of a proper notice of copyright infringement. It is also Cloudburst9’s policy to terminate the privileges of customers who commit repeat violations of copyright laws Obscene Speech or Materials Using Cloudburst9’s network to advertise, transmit, store, post, display, or otherwise make available child pornography or obscene speech or material is prohibited. Cloudburst9 is required by law to notify law enforcement agencies when it becomes aware of the presence of child pornography on or being transmitted through Cloudburst9’s network. Defamatory or Abusive Language Using Cloudburst9’s network as a means to transmit or post defamatory, harassing, abusive, or threatening language is also a violation of this agreement. Forging of Headers Forging or misrepresenting message headers, whether in whole or in part, to mask the originator of the message. Illegal or Unauthorized Access to Other Computers or Networks Accessing illegally or without authorization computers, accounts, or networks belonging to another party, or attempting to penetrate security measures of another individual's system (often known as "hacking"). Also, any activity that might be used as a precursor to an attempted system penetration (i.e. port scan, stealth scan, or other information gathering activity). Distribution of Internet Viruses, Worms, Trojan Horses, or Other Destructive Activities Distributing information regarding the creation of and sending Internet viruses, worms, Trojan horses, pinging, flooding, mail bombing, or denial of service attacks. Also, activities that disrupt the use of or interfere with the ability of others to effectively use the network or any connected network, system, service, or equipment. Facilitating a Violation of this AUP Advertising, transmitting, or otherwise making available any software, program, product, or service that is designed to violate this AUP, which includes the facilitation of the means to spam, initiation of pinging, flooding, mail bombing, denial of service attacks, and piracy of software. No Excessive Use of Bandwidth If Cloudburst9 determines, in Cloudburst9’s sole discretion, that Customer is using an excessive amount of bandwidth over the Cloudburst9 network infrastructure for Internet access or other functions using public network resources, we may terminate Customer’s account at any time and without notice, or require Customer to upgrade Customer’s service level and pay additional fees in accordance with our then-current, applicable, published rates for such service. This includes peer-to peer file sharing where the Customers computer is used to serve music or video files to the Internet. The bandwidth demands of this usage can be excessive and the transfer of copyrighted material without permission is illegal. Web or Video cameras may also create excessive bandwidth use and may be limited or charged additional fees. Three gigabytes of download per calendar month may constitute excessive bandwidth use. Export Control Violations Exporting encryption software over the Internet or otherwise, to points outside the United States. Usenet Groups Cloudburst9 reserves the right not to accept postings from newsgroups where we have actual knowledge that the content of the newsgroup violates the AUP. Web Hosting Cloudburst9 will not host web sites of an offensive nature involving pornography, gambling, and extreme violence, racial or ethnic hatred. Also unacceptable, are sites that involve illegal activities such as fraudulent solicitation or the use of copyrighted materials. Cloudburst9 reserves the right to protect its system by not hosting sites that are generally offensive and would be likely to provoke Denial-of –Service attacks on our servers and system. Other Illegal Activities Engaging in activities that are determined to be illegal, including advertising, transmitting, or otherwise making available ponzi schemes, pyramid schemes, fraudulently charging credit cards, and pirating software. Other Activities Engaging in activities, whether lawful or unlawful, that Cloudburst9 determines to be harmful to its subscribers, operations, reputation, goodwill, or customer relations. Financial Reselling of
any service without express written consent from Cloudburst9 is prohibited, as
is running a web server or FTP server. Failure to provide timely payment for service
will result in a slow down of service or cancellation. In the event that the service
is canceled, a reactivation fee will be charged. When Cloudburst9 becomes aware of harmful activities, however, it may take any action to stop the harmful activity, including but not limited to, removing information, shutting down a Web site, implementing screening software designed to block offending transmissions, denying access to the Internet, or take any other action it deems appropriate. Cloudburst9 also is concerned with the privacy of on-line communications and Web sites. In general, the Internet is neither more nor less secure than other means of communication, including mail, facsimile, and voice telephone service, all of which can be intercepted and otherwise compromised. Users of Cloudburst9 network are authenticated through MAC address only to insure the integrity of the network. But as a matter of prudence, Cloudburst9 urges its subscribers to assume that all of their on-line communications are no more or less secure than mail, fax or voice telephone service. Cloudburst9 cannot take any responsibility for the security of information transmitted over Cloudburst9’s facilities or on the World Wide Web. Cloudburst9 will not intentionally monitor private electronic mail messages sent or received by its subscribers unless required to do so by law, governmental authority, or when public safety is at stake. Cloudburst9 may, however, monitor its service electronically to determine that its facilities are operating satisfactorily. Also, Cloudburst9 may disclose information, including but not limited to, information concerning a subscriber, a transmission made using our network, or a Web site, in order to comply with a court order, subpoena, summons, discovery request, warrant, statute, regulation, or governmental request. Cloudburst9 assumes no obligation to inform the subscriber that subscriber information has been provided and in some cases may be prohibited by law from giving such notice. Finally, Cloudburst9 may disclose subscriber information or information transmitted over its network where necessary to protect Cloudburst9 and others from harm, or where such disclosure is necessary to the proper operation of the system. Finally, Cloudburst9 wishes to emphasize that in signing the service agreement, subscribers indemnify Cloudburst9 for any violation of the service agreement, law, or Cloudburst9 policy that results in loss to Cloudburst9 or the bringing of any claim against Cloudburst9 by any third-party. This means that if Cloudburst9 is sued because of a subscriber's activity, the subscriber will pay any damages awarded against Cloudburst9, plus costs and reasonable attorneys' fees. By accepting service from Cloudburst9, the customer agrees to conform to the above practices and policy. We hope this AUP is helpful in clarifying the obligations of Internet users, including Cloudburst9 and its subscribers, as responsible members of the Internet. |
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In order to maintain your computers and home network for optimum performance, we recommend that you use the following products and procedures: Operating System Always maintain the most current updates. Firewall Install and maintain an up-to-date version. There
are free software programs available to download from the Internet or you may
purchase it as a package with your antivirus. If you have Windows XP it is included
in the operation system, but must be selected to be operational. This firewall
may not protect your computer to the extent that other products can. The following
products are recommended and are free. Antivirus Install and maintain an up-to-date version and
virus signatures. Norton Antivirus and McAfee are purchased on a yearly basis.
We recommend the following free software for home users. Spyware Control You should also install software to detect spyware
that reports your browsing habits back to web sites, sends you popup ads and other
intrusive programs that will slow down your connection speed. We recommend Ad-Aware. Updates, New Versions and Definitions Software programs all have new changes and corrections more often than a teenager's wardrobe. These new changes can be called versions, updates, definitions or patches. They are nearly always free. Check monthly or even weekly for new versions to all programs. Be sure to check for updates for your operating system, your browser, antivirus, firewall, spy detection programs and even your word processor such as Office. These updates are important to the functioning of the program and often to the security and safety of your computer. Filtering Web Sites If you have children under the age of 18, we recommend
that you use a filter to block unacceptable web sites. It may only take a misspelled
word, when typing a web site to mistakenly go to an unacceptable site. Following
are some programs that will allow you to control the content of the web pages
that are viewed. All of them range in price from $39.95-49.95. Other useful free software Acrobat Reader: http://www.filehippo.com/download_adobe_acrobat_reader Other useful Tips If you are having problems, the first thing to do is RESTART your computer, before calling Tech support. Also, restart your antenna power and your router, if you have one. Give your Cloudburst9 email address only to trusted people and on trusted web sites. If you need to give an email address on a web site that is questionable, create an account with Excite, Yahoo, or Hotmail and use it for those subscriptions. It can always be abandoned. Use a surge protector on your computer and monitor. During a thunderstorm, shutdown and unplug your computer for best protection from lightning. When on the Internet, and a popup box opens on top of your page, don’t click on it, even if it flashes and says you are a WINNER, particularly, if it says you have spyware and they can stop it! Just close the box by clicking on the X. Free downloads for "smiley" faces and screen savers may also be disguising malicious programs. Be very selective about where you and the users in your home go on the Internet. Even opening some web pages can corrupt your machine, change your home page or download programs without your knowledge. Consider using a non-Microsoft browser. Most viruses target Windows operating systems and spread through the Internet, either through email or a web site. By using a browser and email program that is not made by Microsoft, you reduce the chances of the virus being able to move to your machine. Mozilla Firefox (http://www.getfirefox.com) and Thunderbird (http://www.getthunderbird.com) are free downloads and are excellent alternatives to Internet Explorer/Outlook Express. |
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Cloudburst9 eBill provides a secure way to mange your Cloudburst9 account online. You are granted access to your account(s) subject to compliance with the following Cloudburst9 eBill Terms and Conditions: Please read the following Terms and Conditions carefully before accessing your account(s). By signing up with Cloudburst9 eBill, you agree to be bound by and comply with the Terms and Conditions governing access to your account(s). If you do not agree to comply with these Terms and Conditions, you may not request access to your account via Cloudburst9 eBill.
In addition to these Terms and Conditions, you agree to be bound by and comply with the requirements of the applicable Account Disclosure Statement, our tariffs, rules and regulations, and any applicable state and federal laws and regulations. In turn, we agree to be bound to these Terms and Conditions as well. WE MAKE NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND WITH RESPECT TO Cloudburst9 eBill, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, WARRANTIES OF FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR MERCHANTABILITY. WE ASSUME NO RESPONSIBILITY WITH RESPECT TO ANY USE OF Cloudburst9 eBill. YOU AGREE THAT WE SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL, INDIRECT, PUNITIVE, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES OR FOR THE LOSS OF PROFIT, REVENUE, OR DATA ARISING OUT OF THE SUBJECT MATTER OF THIS AGREEMENT. FURTHERMORE, YOU AGREE TO INDEMNIFY AND HOLD US HARMLESS FROM ANY ACTIONS, CLAIMS, DAMAGES, LIABILITIES, OR LOSSES ARISING FROM YOUR USE OF Cloudburst9 eBillTHAT IS NOT IN COMPLIANCE WITH THIS AGREEMENT. You further agree that this Agreement shall not be assigned or transferred and that any attempt to assign or transfer this Agreement shall be null and void. This Agreement shall be construed under the laws of Iowa. We reserve the right to terminate access to any account(s) enrolled in Cloudburst9 eBill at any time. We also reserve the right to change any charges, fees, or terms described in the Cloudburst9 eBill Terms and Conditions. |
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Keota • Washington • Kalona • Sigourney • Atalissa |