Acceptable Use Policy

Last Updated: November 14, 2025

Effective Date: November 14, 2025

1. Introduction

This Acceptable Use Policy ("AUP") governs your use of Guard.ch services and is incorporated into our Terms of Service. By using Guard.ch, you agree to comply with this AUP.

Guard.ch provides virtual machine (VM) services for legitimate business, development, testing, and personal use. We respect user privacy and do not monitor the content of your VMs. However, we have zero tolerance for illegal activities, abuse, or activities that harm our infrastructure, other users, or third parties.

Violation of this AUP may result in immediate account suspension or termination without refund.

2. Acceptable Uses

You may use Guard.ch virtual machines for lawful purposes, including but not limited to:

2.1 Development and Testing

Software development, testing, and debugging
Web application testing and quality assurance
Automated testing and continuous integration/deployment (CI/CD)
Performance testing and load testing (of your own systems only)
Browser compatibility testing
Security testing of your own applications and systems

2.2 Business and Productivity

Remote work and business applications
Document creation and editing
Data processing and analysis
Financial modeling and business intelligence
Customer relationship management (CRM)
Enterprise resource planning (ERP) applications

2.3 Education and Research

Educational coursework and assignments
Software training and certification preparation
Academic research (in compliance with applicable ethics guidelines)
Learning programming, system administration, or cybersecurity
Teaching and instructional purposes

2.4 Web Browsing and Communication

General web browsing and internet access
Accessing geo-restricted content you have legal rights to access
Email and business communication
Video conferencing and collaboration tools
Social media access

2.5 Authorized Security Testing

Penetration testing and vulnerability assessment of your own systems
Security research with proper authorization
Capture The Flag (CTF) competitions and challenges
Bug bounty programs (where you have explicit authorization)
Defensive security tool development and testing

2.6 Media and Content

Streaming video and audio (for personal or authorized use)
Content creation and editing
Graphic design and multimedia production

2.7 Data Processing

Data analysis and scientific computing
Database management and administration
Backup and data migration
File conversion and processing

Important: All uses must comply with applicable laws, third-party terms of service, and intellectual property rights.

3. Prohibited Activities

The following activities are strictly prohibited on Guard.ch:

3.1 Illegal Activities

You shall NOT use Guard.ch services to:

Violate any applicable laws, regulations, or legal obligations in Switzerland, your jurisdiction, or any jurisdiction where the services are accessed
Facilitate, promote, or engage in any criminal activity
Violate export control, sanctions, or embargo laws
Engage in money laundering, fraud, or financial crimes
Traffic in controlled substances or weapons
Violate data protection or privacy laws (Swiss FADP, EU GDPR, etc.)
Access, distribute, or store illegal content including:
- Child sexual abuse material (CSAM)
- Content promoting terrorism or violent extremism
- Content inciting violence, hatred, or discrimination
- Revenge pornography or non-consensual intimate images
- Content that violates court orders or legal restrictions

3.2 Intellectual Property Violations

You shall NOT use Guard.ch services to:

Infringe copyright, trademark, patent, trade secret, or other intellectual property rights
Pirate software, movies, music, games, or other copyrighted content
Distribute cracked software, keygens, or license circumvention tools
Host or distribute counterfeit goods
Violate software licensing terms or end-user license agreements (EULAs)

Exception: You may use Guard.ch for security research on software you legally own or have authorization to test.

3.3 Malicious Activities and Cyberattacks

You shall NOT use Guard.ch services to:

Develop, host, distribute, or execute malware, viruses, trojans, ransomware, spyware, rootkits, or other harmful code intended for malicious use
Launch or facilitate denial-of-service (DoS) or distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks against any target
Conduct unauthorized hacking, cracking, or penetration testing of third-party systems
Perform port scanning, network reconnaissance, or vulnerability scanning of systems you do not own or have explicit written authorization to test
Attempt to bypass security measures, access controls, or authentication systems
Engage in session hijacking, man-in-the-middle attacks, or network interception
Exploit vulnerabilities to gain unauthorized access to systems, networks, or data
Participate in botnets or command-and-control (C2) infrastructure
Conduct brute-force attacks against authentication systems
Engage in SQL injection, cross-site scripting (XSS), or other web application attacks against third-party systems without authorization

Authorized Security Testing: You may conduct security testing and research on:

Your own systems and infrastructure
Systems where you have explicit written authorization from the owner
Legitimate CTF competitions and authorized bug bounty programs
Defensive security tools and honeypots you operate

You must be able to provide proof of authorization upon request.

3.4 Spam and Abuse

You shall NOT use Guard.ch services to:

Send unsolicited bulk email (spam), SMS, or other communications
Operate email spam infrastructure or botnets
Engage in email harvesting or scraping for spam purposes
Send fraudulent, deceptive, or misleading messages
Conduct phishing, vishing, smishing, or social engineering attacks
Operate fake websites impersonating legitimate entities
Engage in advance-fee fraud, lottery scams, or similar schemes
Manipulate email headers or forge sender information

3.5 Harassment and Abuse of Individuals

You shall NOT use Guard.ch services to:

Harass, stalk, threaten, intimidate, or harm individuals
Engage in cyberbullying or online harassment campaigns
Dox individuals (publish private personal information without consent)
Create or distribute deepfakes or manipulated media to harm individuals
Engage in sextortion or blackmail
Facilitate or promote violence against individuals or groups

3.6 Platform Abuse and Unauthorized Access

You shall NOT:

Attempt to gain unauthorized access to Guard.ch systems, infrastructure, or other users' accounts
Attempt to access other users' virtual machines or data
Exploit vulnerabilities in Guard.ch services for any purpose other than responsible disclosure to Guard.ch
Reverse engineer, decompile, or disassemble Guard.ch platform software (excluding software within your own VMs)
Use automated tools (bots, scrapers) to abuse Guard.ch services or APIs
Create multiple accounts to circumvent limits, restrictions, or bans
Share, sell, or transfer your account to another person without authorization
Interfere with, disrupt, or degrade the performance of Guard.ch services
Bypass security measures, access controls, rate limits, or usage restrictions
Conduct benchmark tests or competitive analysis without prior written consent

3.7 Resource Abuse

You shall NOT:

Mine cryptocurrency or perform proof-of-work computations without explicit written authorization from Guard.ch
Monopolize or abuse system resources in a manner that degrades service for other users
Run applications designed to consume excessive CPU, memory, network, or storage resources without legitimate purpose
Operate high-frequency trading (HFT) platforms or latency-arbitrage systems
Use Guard.ch as a primary file hosting or content delivery service (CDN) for public distribution
Operate peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing networks that violate intellectual property rights
Run game servers, game bots, or game cheating tools (unless explicitly allowed by the game's terms of service)

Cryptocurrency Mining: Any cryptocurrency mining, proof-of-work, or proof-of-stake validation activities are prohibited unless you obtain prior written authorization from Guard.ch. Contact support@guard.ch if you have a legitimate use case.

3.8 Resale and Unauthorized Commercial Use

You shall NOT:

Resell, sublicense, or redistribute Guard.ch services without written authorization
Use Guard.ch as infrastructure for a competing service
Operate VPN services, proxy services, or anonymization services for public use or commercial purposes without authorization
Use Guard.ch for high-volume commercial scraping or data mining operations
Provide Guard.ch access to third parties as a service

3.9 Privacy Violations

You shall NOT use Guard.ch services to:

Unlawfully collect, process, or store personal data in violation of Swiss FADP, EU GDPR, or other privacy laws
Conduct surveillance or monitoring of individuals without legal authorization
Process personal data without proper legal basis, consent, or data processing agreements
Transfer personal data in violation of applicable data protection laws
Engage in profiling or automated decision-making that violates privacy laws

3.10 Market Manipulation and Financial Fraud

You shall NOT use Guard.ch services to:

Engage in securities fraud, insider trading, or market manipulation
Operate pump-and-dump schemes or fraudulent investment schemes
Conduct click fraud or advertising fraud
Manipulate online reviews, ratings, or social media metrics
Engage in affiliate fraud or incentivized traffic schemes

3.11 Circumvention of Legal Obligations

You shall NOT use Guard.ch services to:

Evade legal obligations, court orders, or regulatory requirements
Circumvent content filtering, monitoring, or access restrictions required by law
Conceal your identity to evade law enforcement or legal process
Destroy evidence or obstruct justice

4. Resource Fair Use

While we do not impose strict hard limits on resource consumption, you agree to use resources reasonably and in good faith.

4.1 Fair Use Principles

Reasonable Use: Use resources appropriate for your subscription plan and intended use case
No Monopolization: Do not consume resources in a manner that degrades service for other users
Efficiency: Optimize your applications and workflows to use resources efficiently
Cooperation: If we contact you regarding unusual resource consumption, cooperate with us to resolve the issue

4.2 What We Monitor

We may monitor aggregate resource usage patterns (CPU, memory, network, storage) to ensure fair use and service quality. We do not monitor the content of your VMs.

4.3 Excessive Use

If we identify excessive resource consumption that impacts service quality for other users, we may:

Contact you to discuss your usage and find solutions
Request that you optimize your usage or upgrade your plan
Implement temporary throttling to protect service quality
Suspend or terminate your account if abuse continues

5. Compliance with Third-Party Terms

You are responsible for compliance with the terms of service of:

Software providers (e.g., Microsoft Windows licensing terms)
Websites and online services you access from your VMs
API providers and web services you interact with
Content platforms and social media networks

Example: If you access a streaming service from your VM, you must comply with that service's terms of service, including geographic restrictions and account sharing policies.

6. Reporting Violations

6.1 Report Abuse

If you become aware of violations of this AUP by other Guard.ch users, please report them to: Email: abuse@guard.ch

Please include:

Description of the alleged violation
Evidence (URLs, timestamps, screenshots if applicable)
Your contact information

6.2 Responsible Disclosure

If you discover a security vulnerability in Guard.ch services, please report it responsibly: Email: security@guard.ch

Do not exploit, disclose publicly, or share the vulnerability with others before we have addressed it.

7. Enforcement and Consequences

7.1 Investigation

We reserve the right to investigate suspected violations of this AUP. During investigations, we may:

Review account metadata, usage patterns, and access logs (we do not access VM content except as required by law)
Temporarily suspend your account or VMs
Request information or documentation from you
Cooperate with law enforcement authorities

7.2 Penalties for Violations

Depending on the severity and nature of the violation, we may take the following actions:

Warning: For minor or first-time violations, we may issue a warning and request corrective action.

Temporary Suspension: Your account and VMs may be temporarily suspended while we investigate or while you remedy the violation.

Account Termination: Serious violations or repeated violations may result in immediate and permanent account termination without refund.

Legal Action: We reserve the right to pursue legal action and cooperate with law enforcement for illegal activities, including:

Reporting violations to appropriate authorities
Providing information in response to valid legal process (subpoenas, court orders)
Pursuing civil or criminal remedies for damages

No Refunds: Accounts terminated for AUP violations are not eligible for refunds.

7.3 Data Preservation

In cases of serious violations or legal investigations, we may preserve account data and logs as required by law or legal process, even if this extends beyond our normal retention periods.

8. Your Responsibilities

You are solely responsible for:

All activities that occur under your account and within your VMs
Ensuring your use complies with this AUP, our Terms of Service, and all applicable laws
Securing your VMs and the applications running within them
Ensuring that users you grant access to your VMs comply with this AUP
Obtaining necessary licenses, authorizations, or permissions for your activities
Implementing appropriate security measures to prevent unauthorized use of your account

9. No Obligation to Monitor

Guard.ch does not monitor the content of your virtual machines. We have no obligation to monitor, review, or screen content, and we are not responsible for content stored or transmitted via your VMs.

However, we may investigate and take action if we receive reports of AUP violations or become aware of illegal activities.

10. Cooperation with Law Enforcement

Guard.ch complies with Swiss law and valid legal process. We may disclose user information, account data, or VM metadata in response to:

Court orders, subpoenas, or warrants
Valid legal requests from Swiss or international law enforcement (subject to legal review)
Emergency situations involving imminent threats to life or safety

We will notify users of legal requests when legally permitted to do so.

11. Changes to This Policy

We may update this Acceptable Use Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our services, legal requirements, or to address new abuse patterns.

Notification: We will notify you of material changes by:

Posting the updated AUP with a new "Last Updated" date
Sending email notification to your account email (for significant changes)
Displaying a notice on the Guard.ch platform

Your Acceptance: Your continued use of Guard.ch after changes become effective constitutes your acceptance of the updated AUP. If you do not agree, you must stop using the service and may delete your account.

12. Interpretation

This AUP should be read in conjunction with our Terms of Service, Privacy Policy, and other applicable policies
In case of conflicts, the Terms of Service take precedence
Examples provided in this AUP are illustrative and not exhaustive
Absence of a specific prohibition does not imply permission
We reserve the right to make determinations about AUP compliance on a case-by-case basis

13. Questions and Contact

If you have questions about this Acceptable Use Policy or need clarification about whether a specific use is permitted, please contact us:

Email: support@guard.ch

Postal Address: See our Imprint for full contact details.

Governing Law: This Acceptable Use Policy is governed by Swiss law.

Language: This AUP is provided in English. In case of conflicts with translations, the English version prevails.

By using Guard.ch, you acknowledge that you have read, understood, and agree to comply with this Acceptable Use Policy.