Definitions
This Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) is an integral part of your agreement with Xponent for the provision of services (collectively, the “Services”) as detailed on our Hosting plans page. It operates alongside our Service Level Agreement (SLA) and our Terms & Conditions (T&C).
This Policy is designed to protect our customers, systems, and the broader internet community from irresponsible, malicious, or illegal activities. This is a non-exclusive list of prohibited actions. Xponent reserves the right to modify this Policy at any time, effective upon notice to you. Xponent retains the sole and absolute right to interpret, apply, define, and implement this Policy.
Xponent provides managed hosting exclusively for WordPress and WordPress-compatible plugins and themes.
Managed WordPress sites are expected to operate within normal resource envelopes. If a site consumes resources to a degree that degrades service for other clients, Xponent will notify you and may request optimisation, throttle or isolate the site, or require a plan upgrade. HTTP 503 errors caused by application resource exhaustion are excluded from uptime guarantees under our SLA.
The use of Xponent’s services in a manner that violates local, national, or international law is strictly prohibited. This includes the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA), the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act (ECT Act), and any comparable laws in your jurisdiction, as well as:
You may not use Xponent’s services to host, distribute, or link to content that Xponent determines to:
The use of Xponent’s services to conduct or participate in Denial of Service (DoS) or Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attacks is strictly prohibited.
Any attempt to undermine, disrupt, or cause harm to an Xponent server, network component, or another Xponent subscriber is prohibited. Forbidden actions include:
The use of Xponent’s servers, network, or resources for cryptocurrency mining, minting, or related proof-of-work or proof-of-stake activities is strictly prohibited.
You may not send unsolicited bulk or commercial emails. Email is considered unsolicited unless you have a documented, pre-existing relationship with the recipient or they have explicitly opted in to receive your communications. All email marketing must comply with applicable regulations, including the CAN-SPAM Act, the Protection of Personal Information Act (POPIA), and section 45 of the Electronic Communications and Transactions Act (ECT Act).
Collecting or harvesting email addresses from the internet or from Xponent systems for the purpose of bulk mailing is prohibited.
You are prohibited from obscuring, forging, or misrepresenting email headers, return addresses, or routing information.
To ensure efficient server management, security monitoring, and automated maintenance, Xponent servers maintain administrative access protocols.
If you resell, rent, or allow third parties to utilize Xponent Services, you assume full responsibility for their compliance with this AUP. Any violation by a third party utilizing your account will be treated as a violation by you.
Xponent complies with valid legal processes. When presented with a legitimate subpoena, court order, or government warrant, we will disclose requested customer information as legally required. To the extent permitted by law, Xponent will make commercially reasonable efforts to notify you of such data requests.
To report an alleged violation of this AUP, please contact our abuse team at su*****@********co.za. Reports must include your verified contact information, the offending domain/IP address, and clear documentation or evidence of the violation.
Xponent aims to balance customer business continuity with strict network integrity. Our staff will work with you to mitigate issues before enforcing service interruptions, provided there is a good-faith effort to comply.
The following framework outlines how potential violations are handled:
| Step | Phase | Description / Actions Required | Service Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Step 1 | First Alleged Violation | Xponent generates an inquiry ticket to gather facts or notify you of a minor, potential violation. | Fully Functional |
| Step 2 | Acknowledgment & Notice | A formal ticket details the specific violation and outlines the explicit corrective actions required. | Fully Functional |
| Step 3 | Disregarded or Continuous Abuse | If a ticket is ignored or the violation persists, engineers will disable the public network port. | Restricted Access (private network access only for remediation) |
| Step 4 | Failure to Resolve | If you fail to cooperate or resolve the issue, services will be suspended. On ordinary termination, data export follows T&C clause 3.5 and the SLA offboarding section. On termination for AUP violation, Xponent may withhold the export and destroy data at its discretion. | Suspension / Permanent Termination |
Periods of restriction or suspension under this AUP are excluded from uptime calculations under our SLA.
Disclaimer: Xponent retains the sole discretion to refuse new service to any individual, group, or business entity. We reserve the right to immediately discontinue or terminate services for accounts with excessive, severe, or repeated violations.
This AUP is an integral part of your agreement with Xponent and operates alongside our Service Level Agreement and our Terms & Conditions. To the extent of any conflict between these documents, the specific terms of the relevant agreement clause apply to that matter.
Your indemnities to Xponent, including for unlawful data acquisition and copyright infringement, are set out in clauses 6 and 7 of our Terms & Conditions and remain in force for the term of this agreement and after its termination.