Anti Spam Policy
ABCHK Anti-Spam Policy
This Anti-Spam Policy is issued by ABC Computer Systems Ltd. (“ABCHK”).
By accessing or using any ABCHK service, all customers, resellers, and end-users expressly agree to comply with this Policy.
Use of ABCHK systems constitutes acceptance of these terms, which are incorporated into and form part of the ABCHK Service Agreement.
1. Scope of Application
This Policy applies to all ABCHK services, including but not limited to webmail, EDM, hosting, SMTP, and related platforms. It binds all customers, resellers, and their end-users. Violations of this Policy constitute a breach of the ABCHK Service Agreement. This Policy also applies to any form of electronic communication transmitted via ABCHK systems, including email, SMS, instant messaging, and push notifications.
2. Purpose
ABCHK enforces strict standards for lawful and ethical communication. This Policy protects the integrity of ABCHK’s services, ensures compliance with global anti-spam laws, and safeguards the wider Internet community.
ABCHK operates a strict permission-based communication policy: no user may send unsolicited messages under any circumstances.
3. Definition of Spam
Spam is defined as the transmission of Unsolicited Broadcast Email (UBE) or Unsolicited Commercial Email (UCE) to recipients who have not expressly requested such communications. This includes:
- Advertising or promotional messages
- Informational announcements or surveys
- Distribution of website addresses or mailing lists
Spam also includes:
- Phishing, spoofing, or social engineering attempts
- Any unsolicited, unexpected, or unwanted communication sent without recipient consent
- Messages intended to mislead, extort, or exploit
- “Graymail” (messages technically opted into but unwanted due to excessive frequency or irrelevance)
4. Consent Standards
Valid consent requires explicit opt-in by the recipient. Acceptable methods include double opt-in, written agreement, or electronic confirmation. Implied consent or pre-checked boxes are not sufficient. Customers must:
- Retain records of consent for audit purposes
- Ensure consent is specific, informed, and time-bound
- Provide recipients with clear options to withdraw consent at any time
5. Mailing Lists
A mailing list is legitimate only if recipients have explicitly agreed to receive communications. The following practices are strictly prohibited:
- Renting or purchasing email addresses from third parties
- Collecting addresses from search engines, directories, newsgroups, websites, or public sources
- Using email extraction software to harvest addresses
- Continuing to email individuals who have unsubscribed
- Falsifying sender information or email addresses
- Targeting generic role-based addresses (e.g., admin@company.com, hr@company.com, sales@company.com, info@company.com)
- "Co-registration" (where consent is bundled with third-party services) unless explicitly disclosed to and approved by the recipient
Customers must maintain list hygiene by:
- Suppressing bounced addresses and inactive accounts
- Regularly removing spam traps
- Collecting only necessary recipient data (data minimization)
6. Prohibited Activities
Unsolicited Mail
- Sending UBE/UCE, bulk mail, or newsletters without prior consent
- Use of purchased lists, “safe lists,” or selling of email lists
- Sites or services advertised via spam (“spamvertised”)
Harassment & Abuse
- Harassment through language, frequency, or excessive message size
- Abusive use of network resources
Forgery & Misrepresentation
- Forging or manipulating email headers, routing information, or sender identity
- False or misleading “From,” “Reply,” or “Subject” fields
Technical Misuse
- Maintaining open mail relays
- Embedding malicious code, covert attachments, or executable files
- Attempts to compromise mail servers or extract private data
- Sending emails via compromised accounts (“account takeover”)
- Using obfuscation techniques to bypass spam filters
Illegal or Harmful Content
- Obscenity, pornography, or violent material
- Fraudulent or deceptive offers (e.g., counterfeit documents, pirated software, pyramid schemes)
- Products or services intended to evade regulation or taxation
- Fake charity solicitations or political campaign spam
- Emerging threats like AI-generated spam (e.g., deepfake media or AI-assisted phishing)
Prohibited Campaigns
ABCHK does not permit campaigns promoting: escort/dating services, pharmaceutical sales, “work from home” or “get rich quick” schemes, trading tips or stock promotions, pyramid/MLM recruitment, affiliate marketing (unless conducted with full disclosure of affiliations, no misleading claims, and explicit recipient consent), debt collection or credit repair, mortgages or loan solicitations, nutritional/herbal/vitamin supplements, adult novelty items, list brokers or rentals, illegal goods, pirated software/media, gambling/betting services, crypto scams, NFTs, deepfake/AI deceptive content, phishing impersonation attempts, environmental or health misinformation.
7. Customer Responsibilities
Customers are responsible for their own activities and those of their end-users. Customers providing services to third parties must contractually enforce this Policy with their users. Violations by end-users will be treated as violations by the customer. All communications sent via ABCHK services must:
- Provide clear and accurate sender information
- Include a functional unsubscribe mechanism and statement
- Avoid false, invalid, or misleading subject lines or body content
- Obtain prior consent from recipients before sending messages
- Clearly state or illustrate the service being offered
- Identify the originator of the campaign and disclose all associated costs
Customers must:
- Maintain audit logs of campaigns for compliance checks
- Train staff and resellers on anti-spam practices
8. ABCHK Monitoring Practices
ABCHK actively monitors its systems to detect and prevent spam, using a combination of automated filters, rate limiting, AI-based detection, and internal monitoring tools. This includes tracking indicators such as excessive bounced emails, sudden changes in sending patterns (e.g., an email account sending from a different country in an abnormal manner), or any activity that may pose future risks to ABCHK's infrastructure or reputation. Such monitoring helps maintain service integrity and protect the community.
If suspicious activity is detected, the account may be temporarily suspended pending investigation. This proactive approach reassures users of our commitment to ethical communication while setting clear expectations for compliance.
9. Enforcement & Complaint Handling
ABCHK enforces a zero-tolerance stance against spam. Violations will result in:
- First violation: warning and corrective action
- Second violation: suspension of services
- Third violation: termination and blacklisting
Escalation timelines are as follows:
- Immediate suspension for severe violations (e.g., phishing, AI-assisted fraud, or high-volume spam)
- Warnings and 24–48 hour resolution periods for minor violations (e.g., minor list hygiene issues)
Spam complaints should be forwarded with full headers to abuse@ABCHK.com. ABCHK will notify the offending customer and require resolution within 48 hours. Failure to resolve will result in SMTP blocking or full IP traffic blocking. Repeat violations may result in extended blocks (minimum 7–30 days) or termination.
ABCHK may impose administrative fees for handling spam complaints, blacklist removal, or abuse investigations. Repeat offenders may be reported to regulators or industry watchdogs. To support compliance, ABCHK may collaborate with customers during investigations, such as by sharing anonymized complaint data to help identify and improve issues.
9.1 Violation Reset Period
For enforcement purposes, violations are cumulative within a rolling 90-day period. If no further violations occur within 90 days of the last incident, any subsequent complaint will be treated as a new first violation.
9.2 Immediate Suspension for Blacklisting
If a spam complaint results in ABCHK IP addresses being blacklisted by any recognized spam monitoring authority, ABCHK will immediately suspend the affected SMTP service(s). Service will remain suspended until the customer provides written confirmation and operational assurance that no further spam activity will occur. Customers must implement corrective measures and agree to ongoing compliance monitoring before service restoration.
9.3 Mailbox Aggregation Rule
Violations are assessed at the customer level, not limited to individual mailboxes. Complaints arising from any mailbox under a customer’s account, domain, or service allocation will be treated cumulatively. Customers may not evade enforcement by rotating or creating new mailboxes. Multiple complaints across different mailboxes will be aggregated and escalated according to the violation tiers in this Policy. Intentional mailbox hopping to avoid enforcement may result in immediate suspension of all related services.
9.4 Internal Blacklist Control
In addition to warnings or suspensions, ABCHK will add the recipient address associated with a confirmed spam complaint to its internal blacklist. Customers are prohibited from sending further communications to any blacklisted address. This safeguard is designed to prevent repeat complaints and protect ABCHK’s IP reputation. Attempts to bypass or ignore the blacklist will be treated as violations of this Policy.
If a recipient address is added to the blacklist in error, or if the customer can demonstrate that the complaint was invalid, the customer may notify ABCHK in writing. Upon verification, ABCHK will remove the address from the blacklist.
10. Compliance with Laws
All communication conducted through ABCHK services must comply with applicable laws and regulations, including but not limited to:
- Hong Kong SAR: Unsolicited Electronic Messages Ordinance
- United States: CAN-SPAM Act of 2003
- Australia: Spam Act 2003
- European Union: GDPR (where applicable)
- Any other relevant local, national, or international anti-spam and data protection laws
Customers are solely responsible for ensuring compliance in all jurisdictions where their communications are sent or received.
11. Liability & Indemnification
Customers shall indemnify ABCHK against any claims, damages, regulatory fines, blacklist penalties, or reputational harm arising from their violation of this Policy. ABCHK shall not be liable for any damages resulting from enforcement actions, including suspension, termination, or blocking of traffic. ABCHK reserves the right to recover costs associated with blacklist removal, legal fees, and technical remediation.
12. Cooperation with Reporting Authorities
ABCHK cooperates with recognized spam reporting and open relay databases, including:
This cooperation also extends to major mailbox providers (e.g., Microsoft/Hotmail/Outlook, Yahoo, Gmail) and Internet Service Providers (ISPs) that issue spam complaints or reputation alerts. Complaints from these entities shall be treated as equivalent to reports from recognized spam authorities.
Customers receiving complaints from these organizations, mailbox providers, or ISPs must respond directly and take immediate corrective measures. Failure to do so may result in suspension, blacklisting, or termination of services as outlined in Section 9 (Enforcement & Complaint Handling).
13. Policy Updates
This Policy may be updated at any time. Changes will be published on ABCHK’s website. Customers are responsible for monitoring updates and ensuring compliance
|
