Acceptable Use Policy

1. Introduction

This Acceptable Use Policy ("AUP") governs your use of Ping's bulk notification services. By using our platform, you agree to comply with this policy and all applicable laws and regulations.

Violation of this AUP may result in suspension or termination of your account, legal action, and reporting to relevant authorities.

2. Prohibited Content

You may not use Ping to send messages containing:

• Spam or Unsolicited Messages: Messages sent to recipients who have not explicitly opted in to receive communications from you
• Illegal Content: Content that violates any applicable laws, including but not limited to scams, fraud, phishing attempts, or malware distribution
• Harassment or Threats: Content that harasses, threatens, intimidates, or promotes violence against any individual or group
• Hate Speech: Content that promotes discrimination, hatred, or violence based on race, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, disability, or other protected characteristics
• Misleading or Deceptive Content: False, misleading, or deceptive information, including fake sender identities or fraudulent claims
• Adult or Explicit Content: Pornographic or sexually explicit material (except where legally permitted and properly age-gated)
• Intellectual Property Violations: Content that infringes on copyrights, trademarks, trade secrets, or other intellectual property rights
• Malicious Software: Viruses, malware, trojans, or any code designed to damage or gain unauthorized access to systems

3. Consent Requirements

You must obtain and maintain proper consent for all message recipients:

• Explicit Opt-In: Recipients must actively consent to receive messages from you through clear affirmative action (checkbox, form submission, etc.)
• Clear Disclosure: At the point of consent, you must clearly explain what types of messages recipients will receive and how frequently
• Opt-Out Mechanism: Every message must include a clear, functional, and easy-to-use opt-out mechanism (e.g., "Reply STOP to unsubscribe")
• Consent Records: You must maintain records of consent for all recipients and be able to provide proof upon request
• No Purchased Lists: You may not purchase, rent, scrape, or obtain recipient contact lists from third parties without verified consent
• Respect Opt-Outs: You must honor opt-out requests within 48 hours and permanently remove those contacts from your lists

4. Technical Restrictions

You agree not to:

• Use automated scripts or bots to scrape data or harvest contact information
• Attempt to circumvent rate limits, usage quotas, or other technical restrictions
• Share your account credentials or allow unauthorized access to your account
• Reverse engineer, decompile, or attempt to extract source code from our platform
• Launch distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks or otherwise disrupt our services
• Use our services to send messages on behalf of third parties without proper authorization
• Manipulate sender information to disguise the origin of messages

5. Content Quality Standards

All messages sent through Ping must:

• Clearly identify the sender (business name, brand, or individual)
• Include accurate subject lines that reflect message content
• Provide valid contact information for the sender
• Honor the messaging preferences and frequency expectations set during opt-in
• Comply with CAN-SPAM Act, GDPR, POPIA, and other applicable regulations

6. Monitoring and Enforcement

Ping reserves the right to monitor message content and usage patterns to ensure compliance with this AUP. We employ automated spam detection systems and may manually review accounts flagged for suspicious activity.

We track complaint rates and delivery metrics. Accounts with complaint rates exceeding 0.3% or other red flags may be subject to review, restriction, or suspension.

7. Enforcement Actions

Violations of this AUP may result in:

• First Violation: Written warning and requirement to remediate the issue immediately
• Second Violation: Temporary account suspension (7-30 days) pending investigation and corrective action
• Third Violation or Severe Violations: Permanent account termination without refund
• Legal Action: In cases of illegal activity, we will cooperate with law enforcement and may pursue civil or criminal remedies

8. WhatsApp-Specific Requirements

For WhatsApp Business API users, you must also comply with:

• WhatsApp Business Policy and Commerce Policy
• 24-hour messaging window rules (only message within 24 hours of user-initiated contact, unless using approved templates)
• Message template approval requirements for marketing and promotional content
• Quality rating maintenance (Green or Yellow rating required; Red rating may result in restrictions)

9. Reporting Violations

If you become aware of any violations of this AUP by other users, please report them to: [email protected]

We take all reports seriously and will investigate promptly.

10. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Acceptable Use Policy from time to time. Material changes will be communicated to active users via email or platform notification at least 30 days before taking effect.

Your continued use of Ping after policy changes take effect constitutes acceptance of the updated AUP.