Please read these Terms of Service ("Terms") carefully before using NexForum. By accessing or using our services you agree to be bound by them.

1. Acceptance of Terms

By accessing nexforum.net or using any NexForum service ("Service"), you agree to be legally bound by these Terms and our Privacy Policy. If you do not agree, do not use our services. These Terms form a legally binding agreement between you and NexForum ("we," "us," or "our").

If you are using our services on behalf of an organisation, you represent that you have authority to bind that organisation to these Terms.

2. Eligibility

You must be at least 13 years of age to use NexForum. Users between 13 and 18 years of age must have verifiable parental or guardian consent. By using our services you represent that you meet these requirements. We reserve the right to require age verification at any time.

3. Account Registration

To use our hosting services you must create an account. You agree to:

• Provide accurate, current, and complete registration information
• Keep your account information up to date
• Maintain the security and confidentiality of your password
• Notify us immediately of any unauthorised account access at contact page
• Accept full responsibility for all activities under your account
• Not create multiple accounts to circumvent limits, bans, or suspensions
• Not share your account credentials with third parties

4. Description of Services

NexForum provides managed forum hosting services including: one-click installation of open-source forum software (phpBB, MyBB, SMF, Flarum, Vanilla Forums, bbPress, FluxBB, PunBB), web hosting infrastructure, automated SSL certificate provisioning, email delivery, and related services.

Service features and storage limits vary by plan as described on our pricing page. We reserve the right to modify, suspend, or discontinue any aspect of our services with reasonable prior notice where practicable.

5. Acceptable Use Policy

You agree to use NexForum's services only for lawful purposes and in ways that do not infringe the rights of others. You are solely responsible for all content hosted under your account and for ensuring your forum complies with all applicable laws in your jurisdiction and in the jurisdictions of your members.

You must not:

• Use our services to host content that is unlawful under applicable law
• Attempt to gain unauthorised access to our systems or other users' accounts
• Use our hosting resources for cryptocurrency mining, torrenting, or proxying
• Engage in bulk unsolicited messaging or email spam
• Interfere with the stability or performance of our hosting infrastructure
• Misrepresent your identity or impersonate NexForum staff
• Attempt to reverse-engineer, decompile, or extract our proprietary systems
• Use our services to facilitate phishing, credential harvesting, or fraud

6. Prohibited Content

The following content is strictly prohibited on any forum hosted by NexForum and will result in immediate account termination:

• CSAM — Any sexual content involving minors, without exception
• Terrorism & extremism — Content promoting, glorifying, or facilitating acts of terrorism, genocide, or mass violence
• Illegal content — Pirated software or media, stolen personal data, hacking tools, or content illegal under applicable law
• Malware — Viruses, ransomware, spyware, phishing pages, or any malicious code
• Targeted harassment — Content designed to harass, stalk, or threaten specific individuals
• IP infringement — Large-scale copyright or trademark infringement
• Fraud — Investment scams, fake lotteries, identity theft facilitation, or pyramid schemes
• Non-consensual intimate imagery — Sharing private sexual images without consent

Violations of this section may be reported to relevant law enforcement authorities. We cooperate fully with lawful legal requests.

7. Your Content & Data

Ownership: You retain full ownership of all content you and your forum members create. We make no claim of ownership over your forum data.

Licence to us: By hosting your forum with NexForum, you grant us a limited, non-exclusive, royalty-free licence to store, process, cache, and transmit your content solely as necessary to provide the hosting service. This licence terminates when you delete your content or close your account.

Responsibility: You are solely responsible for your forum's content and for compliance with applicable laws, including GDPR, COPPA, and any other data protection regulations applicable to your members.

Data portability: You may export your forum data at any time using your forum software's built-in backup and export tools. We will not prevent legitimate data exports.

Backups: While we perform infrastructure-level backups on paid plans, you are responsible for maintaining your own regular forum backups. We do not guarantee the recovery of lost data.

8. Intellectual Property

The NexForum name, logo, website design, and proprietary software are owned by NexForum and protected by applicable intellectual property laws. The forum software we install (phpBB, MyBB, SMF, etc.) is open-source and governed by their respective licences.

You may not use our name, logo, or branding without prior written permission, except as necessary to identify NexForum as your hosting provider.

9. Payment & Billing

Free Plan

The Starter plan is free with no trial period, no credit card required, and no hidden charges. It remains free for as long as you comply with these Terms.

Paid Plans

Paid plans are billed monthly in advance. All payments are processed securely via Stripe. Prices are in USD and exclude applicable taxes, which are your responsibility. By providing payment details you authorise recurring charges until you cancel.

Refunds

We offer a 30-day money-back guarantee on the first payment of any new paid plan. After 30 days, payments are non-refundable except where required by law (e.g., EU consumer rights).

Cancellation

You may cancel a paid plan at any time from your client portal. Your plan continues until the end of the current billing period. After cancellation, your account automatically reverts to the free Starter tier — your forum is not deleted.

Price Changes

We will provide at least 30 days' notice of any price increases. Continued use after the effective date constitutes acceptance of the new pricing.

10. Service Availability

We target 99.9% monthly uptime for hosted forums. This equates to approximately 44 minutes of unplanned downtime per month. Scheduled maintenance is excluded from uptime calculations and will be communicated with advance notice where possible.

The 99.9% uptime target is a commitment, not a guarantee, and does not form a Service Level Agreement (SLA) with financial remedies unless explicitly agreed in writing for Enterprise customers.

11. Termination & Suspension

We may suspend or terminate your account and forum(s) immediately for:

• Breach of Section 6 (Prohibited Content)
• Actions threatening platform security or other users
• Fraudulent use of payment methods

We may suspend or terminate with 14 days' notice for:

• Repeated or serious breach of Sections 4 or 5
• Non-payment of applicable fees
• Free plan forums inactive for more than 12 consecutive months
• Discontinuation of a particular service

Upon termination, your right to use the service ceases immediately. Where practicable, we will allow you to export your data before deletion. Account data is deleted within 30 days of termination.

You may close your account at any time by contacting us or using the account deletion option in your client portal.

12. Disclaimer of Warranties

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, NEXFORUM PROVIDES ITS SERVICES "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, TITLE, OR NON-INFRINGEMENT.

We do not warrant that our services will be uninterrupted, error-free, or free from security vulnerabilities. We make no warranty regarding the accuracy or completeness of any content on our platform.

13. Limitation of Liability

TO THE MAXIMUM EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, NEXFORUM AND ITS DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, AND AGENTS SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, INCLUDING LOSS OF PROFITS, DATA, GOODWILL, OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION, ARISING OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH YOUR USE OF OUR SERVICES.

Our total cumulative liability for any claim arising from these Terms or our services shall not exceed the greater of: (a) the amount you paid us in the 12 months preceding the claim, or (b) $10 USD.

Some jurisdictions do not allow exclusion or limitation of certain damages. In such jurisdictions, our liability is limited to the greatest extent permitted by law.

14. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless NexForum and its officers, directors, employees, and agents from and against any claims, liabilities, damages, losses, and expenses (including reasonable legal fees) arising out of or in connection with: (a) your use of our services; (b) your forum's content; (c) your violation of these Terms; or (d) your violation of any third-party rights.

15. Governing Law & Disputes

These Terms are governed by the laws of England and Wales. Any disputes arising under these Terms shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales, without regard to conflict of law provisions.

For EU/EEA consumers, nothing in this section limits your rights to bring claims before the courts of your country of residence or to use applicable EU online dispute resolution mechanisms.

16. Changes to Terms

We may modify these Terms at any time. For material changes, we will provide at least 14 days' advance notice by email to your registered address and/or a prominent notice on our website. Your continued use of our services after the effective date of any changes constitutes your acceptance of the revised Terms.

If you do not agree with changes, you may close your account before they take effect.

17. Contact

Questions about these Terms should be directed to us via our contact page. For formal legal notices, use the subject line "Legal Notice." We aim to respond within 5 business days.