Effective 10 July 2026
1. Why this policy exists
Our shared hosting works the way the name suggests: many clients share the same server. That is what keeps hosting affordable, but it also means we all share one reputation. If one account sends spam, runs malware or hammers the server, every other client on that machine pays the price — sites slow down, and the server's IP address can land on blacklists that block everyone's email.
This policy sets out the rules that protect all of our clients. Almost nobody ever falls foul of them on purpose — they are here so that when something does go wrong, everyone knows where they stand and we can act quickly and fairly.
2. What you may not host or do
You may not use our hosting, email or any other service we provide to host, store, send, link to or take part in any of the following:
- Illegal content or activity under the laws of the Republic of South Africa;
- Spam or bulk unsolicited email, whether sent from our servers or advertising a site hosted with us;
- Malware, phishing or fraud — including fake login pages, scam storefronts and anything designed to deceive or harm visitors;
- Content that infringes copyright or trademarks, such as pirated software, media or counterfeit branding;
- Attempts to hack, probe or overload our systems or anyone else's — port scanning, brute-force attacks, denial-of-service activity and the like;
- Reselling our hosting to third parties without a reseller agreement with us — if you'd like to resell, talk to us and we'll happily discuss it.
If you are not sure whether something you have in mind is allowed, ask us first. We would far rather answer a question than suspend an account.
3. Email rules
Email is where shared hosting is most fragile, so we are strict here — for everyone's benefit:
- Opt-in recipients only. Send only to people who asked to hear from you. Purchased, rented or scraped mailing lists are not allowed, full stop.
- Include a working unsubscribe. Every bulk or marketing email must let people opt out easily, and opt-outs must be honoured promptly.
- Talk to us before sustained bulk sending. If you plan to send newsletters or campaigns at volume, discuss it with us first so we can point you at the right setup.
Here is why we take this seriously: spam sent from a shared server gets that server's IP address blacklisted, and then legitimate email from every client on the machine starts bouncing. Because one person's spam hurts all of our clients, we act on spam complaints quickly — usually faster than on any other kind of issue.
4. Fair resource use
Shared hosting is built for websites and email. It is not built for:
- Cryptocurrency mining or similar sustained heavy computation;
- Using your account as a file dump or general storage unrelated to your website;
- Torrents, seedboxes or peer-to-peer file sharing;
- Scripts or processes that hog CPU or memory and starve other clients on the server.
Growing is not a violation — it's the goal. If your site becomes so busy that it genuinely outgrows shared hosting, we won't just cut you off. We'll get in touch, explain what we're seeing and suggest the next step, such as a custom setup built for your traffic.
5. Security is shared
We look after the servers; you look after what runs inside your account. That partnership only works if both sides do their bit:
- Keep your CMS, themes and plugins updated. Outdated software is how the vast majority of sites get hacked.
- Use strong, unique passwords for cPanel, email and your website admin — and don't share them around.
- Tell us immediately at hosting@customhosting.co.za if you suspect your site or a mailbox has been compromised. Speed matters, and there's no blame attached — we've seen it all.
If we find a compromised site on our platform, we may patch it, isolate it or temporarily suspend it to protect the other clients on the server. We'll always let you know what we've done and help you get cleanly back online.
6. What happens if these rules are broken
We're a small business, not a faceless corporation, and our default is to talk first:
- Normally: we'll warn you, explain the problem and give you a fair chance to fix it.
- If it continues: we'll suspend the account or the offending service until it's resolved.
- For serious abuse — active spam runs, malware distribution, phishing or illegal content — we will suspend immediately and without notice, because every minute of delay harms other clients.
- Repeat offences may lead to termination of the account.
We also cooperate with lawful requests from South African authorities where the law requires it. How we handle your information in that process is covered in our privacy policy.
7. Reporting abuse
If you believe a website or email service hosted by us breaks these rules — spam, phishing, stolen content or anything else — please email hosting@customhosting.co.za with as much detail as you can (the site address, what you saw, and when). We will investigate every report and take action where it's warranted.
8. Where this fits
This Acceptable Use Policy forms part of our Terms of Service — by using our hosting and related services, you agree to both. We may update this policy from time to time as threats and technology change; when we do, we'll post the updated version on this page with a new effective date. This policy is governed by the laws of the Republic of South Africa.
Unsure whether something you're planning fits within these rules? Please just ask — contact us and we'll give you a straight answer.