Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Hacking & Security Policy

Any attempt at hacking our systems or using our servers/software to hack is strictly prohibited.

Server Abuse

Any attempt to undermine or cause harm to a server, server or website performance, or customer, of Fawkes Digital Marketing is strictly prohibited.

Unauthorized use of other people's accounts or computers is strictly prohibited. Fawkes Digital Marketing will strongly react to any use or attempted use of an internet account or computer without the owner's authorization. Such attempts include: "internet scamming" (tricking other people into releasing their passwords), password robbery, security hole scanning, etc.

Any unauthorized use of accounts or computers by a Fawkes Digital Marketing customer, whether or not the attacked account or computer belongs to Fawkes Digital Marketing, will result in action against the attacker. Possible actions include warnings, account suspension or cancellation, and civil or criminal legal action, depending on the seriousness of the attack.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Fawkes Digital Marketing has the right to discontinue service or deny access to anyone who violates the agreements outlined on this or any other agreement page. No refunds or fees paid will be made if account termination is due to a violation of the terms outlined in this agreement.

Customers may not run IRC, bots, or clients on Fawkes Digital Marketing's servers beyond the chat clients utilized within a website. Unacceptable uses also include, but are NOT limited to: Bulk emailing, unsolicited emailing, newsgroup spamming, pornographic content, adult content, illegal content, copyright infringement, trademark infringement, warez, cracks, software serial numbers, and/or anything else determined by Fawkes Digital Marketing to be unacceptable use of Fawkes Digital Marketing's services including abuse of server resources.

All hosting accounts may be terminated for any of the following:

• Non-payment of services.
• Blatant expressions of bigotry, racism, or hatred.
• Promoting or providing instructional information about illegal activities or promoting physical harm or injury against any group or individual.
• Displaying material that exploits children under 18 years of age.
• Displaying material that exploits adults over the age of 18.
• Violating any local or federal laws.
• Acts of copyright infringement, including offering pirated computer programs or links to such programs, information used to circumvent manufacturer-installed copy-protect devices, including serial or registration numbers for software programs or any cracker utilities.
• Exporting encryption software that is not allowed to be exported outside the United States.

Unsolicited Email (Spam)

Unsolicited commercial advertisements (spam) are not allowed in email. Fawkes Digital Marketing takes a zero-tolerance approach to spam originating from our servers or for spam advertising of domains hosted on our servers. All email servers have anti-spam safeguards in place, and we are notified whenever these actions occur.

The following activities are not allowed:

• Unsolicited bulk or commercial messages ("spam"). This includes, but is not limited to, bulk mailing of commercial advertising, informational announcements, charity requests, petitions for signatures, and political or religious tracts. Such messages may only be sent to those who have explicitly requested it from your domain.
• Forging, altering or removing electronic mail headers is prohibited. Any domain sending stealth spam will be terminated without warning and without refund.
• Sending numerous copies of the same or substantially similar message with the intent to disrupt a server or account ("mail bombing").
• Spamming Newsgroups: Commercial advertisements are unwelcome in most Usenet discussion groups and on most e-mail mailing lists. Inappropriate posting may result in account cancellation. See the newsgroup or mailing list's charter for whether advertising is allowed or not. "Spamming," or sending a message to many different off-topic newsgroups, is particularly unethical and will be treated as such.
• Mail may not be used to harass or intimidate others. Harassment, whether through language, frequency of messages, or size of messages, is prohibited. Sending a single unwelcome message may be considered harassment. If a recipient asks to stop receiving e-mail, you must not send that person any further messages.
• Providing spamware (software used to send bulk email or software used to harvest email addresses) or links to sites providing spamware is strictly prohibited and subject to demand for removal or account cancellation.

Server Resource Abuse

Server resource abuse include, but are not limited to, the use of: CGI, Perl, XSS, Sendmail, mySQL, MSSQL, PHP, ASP, ASP.Net, CFML, HTTP, SMTP, POP3 and FTP. If server resource abuse is detected, possible actions include, but are not limited to: disabling of the offending script or scripts, disabling of the specific service, disabling of the entire account or account cancellation. If server overload is a result of server resource abuse, these actions will be taken without prior notice or warning.

Security Auditing

Fawkes Digital Marketing reserves the right to monitor activity on our servers and network for the purposes of integrity, security, performance, reliability, and good business practices. By becoming a client, you consent to such monitoring of files, applications, internet traffic and any other content uploaded or recived through the Fawkes Digital Marketing network or servers.

Any attempt to circumvent, alter, or otherwise bypass our ability to accurately monitor our services is prohibited and can result in a termination of services, without any possibility of a refund.

Fawkes Digital Marketing will adhere to it's Privacy Policy when monitoring it's network and services. Should any issues arise out of such monitoring, the customer will be notified before action is taken unless Fawkes Digital Marketing, at it's sole discretion, deems the issue as an emergency in which immediate action is required.

Network Security

Customers may not use the Fawkes Digital Marketing Network to circumvent user authentication or security of any host, network, or account. This includes but is not limited to accessing data not intended for the customer, logging into a server or account the customer is not expressly authorized to access, password cracking, probing the security of other networks in search of weakness, or violating any other organization's security policy. Customers may not attempt to interfere or deny service to any user, host, or network. This includes, but is not limited to, flooding, mail bombing, or other deliberate attempts to overload or crash a host or network.

Fawkes Digital Marketing will cooperate fully with investigations of systems or network security violations at other sites, including cooperating with law enforcement authorities in investigating suspected criminal violations. Users who violate system or network security may incur criminal or civil liability. You are solely responsible for any security breaches affecting servers or accounts under your control. If your server or website is responsible for or involved in an attack on or unauthorized access into another server or system, Fawkes Digital Marketing will shut it down immediately. You will pay any charges resulting from the cost of correcting security breaches affecting Fawkes Digital Marketing or any of its other customers.

Payment Policies

Fawkes Digital Marketing requires payment terms of Net 0 unless otherwise agreed upon. Accounts over 90 days of no payment will be assessed a 10% finance charge as outlined on your invoice. An electronic check or credit card is required to keep your account current at all times.

Setup/initial site building fees are non-refundable. All pricing is guaranteed for any term of pre-payment. Fawkes Digital Marketing reserves the right to change prices at any time unless other terms have been agreed upon. The customer is responsible for all money owed on the account from the time it was established to the time that the customer notified Fawkes Digital Marketing to request for termination of services. All payment is in U.S. currency. Fawkes Digital Marketing will bill each client $50.00 per returned check, and per credit card chargeback received.

Fawkes Digital Marketing's obligation to provide the Service is contingent on your payment of the agreed-upon fees and charges. Accepted payment methods are credit card (Visa, MasterCard, Discover Card, and American Express), business check (electronic or written), or money order. Checks and money orders should be sent at least one week prior to the invoice due date to help ensure that Fawkes Digital Marketing receives the payment in a timely manner and before the invoice due date. Fawkes Digital Marketing reserves the right to only accept a certified payment if payment problems occur with a specific customer/company.

Fawkes Digital Marketing requires payment for invoices immediately ("Due Date") unless alternate arrangements are stated on the invoice. It is your responsibility to ensure that Fawkes Digital Marketing receives payment of the agreed-upon fees. Accounts not brought current will be assessed a 10% monthly finance charge, and can be compounded every month they are late. This charge will occur monthly based on the invoice due date until our financial institution has cleared payment. Should your account go past the 7-day grace period, it can be suspended, and a re-connection fee can be assessed. All accounts that routinely pay late can be requested to make all future payments with credit card or electronic checking withdrawal so that payments are processed on their invoice due date.

All setup fees and domain name registration fees are non-refundable for any reason. The business will own domains once payment in full is received. Fawkes Digital Marketing reserves the right to change prices at any time unless other terms have been agreed upon. The customer is responsible for all money owed on the account from the time it was established to the time that the customer notified Fawkes Digital Marketing to request for termination of services. All payments are in U.S. Currency. Fawkes Digital Marketing will bill each client $50.00 per returned check, and per credit card chargeback received.

Should the service be suspended for any reason, fees will continue to accrue. The account will be subject to a $50 per-service reconnect charge if service is interrupted for non-payment. Reactivation will only occur once the outstanding balance has been received in full. Partial payments will not restore services. If multiple services are deactivated due to non-payment, all outstanding invoices must be paid in full before any one service will be reactivated. Fawkes Digital Marketing reserves the right to keep any service deactivated until our financial institution has cleared the funds paid.

Upon any account being terminated, all outstanding invoices must be paid in full prior to our providing them and working with your new provider.

Non-Payment

When non-payment of services happens, we will do our best to work with you.

• Email notifications to correct the payment by updating your credit card information on file. You can either update your information through FreshBooks or submit it through our Payment Information form here.
• After two weeks, with no response, a written letter will be sent to the primary address/contact on file in our CRM (Customer Relationship Management) system.
• After 45-days of non-payment and no communication to bring the acccount back in good standing.
  • Your website will go into an "Under Construction" mode, preventing anyone from seeing your website.
  • Email will still be active during this time.
• After 90-days of non-payment and no communication to bring the acccount back in good standing.
  • A message stating the website is slated for deletion due to non-payment.
  • Email will be turned off.
  • Any access to Dropbox and other available online sources will be removed.
• After 120-days of non-payment and no communication to bring the acccount back in good standing.
  • Your website will be deleted.
  • Your email will be removed.
  • We will have backups saved and stored up to 180 days. After the 1-year all data will be removed.
• After 180-days of non-payment and no communication to bring the acccount back in good standing we will list your domain for sale for the exact amount owed for services not paid for.

Note: Any account over 180 days of non-payment or returning after leaving our service will no longer be at your old annual/monthly rate. You will be paying the current yearly/monthly payment plan rates.

Refunds and Disputes

All payments to Fawkes Digital Marketing are non-refundable. One-time setup fees, pre-payments, and subsequent charges, regardless of usage. You shall not be entitled to any refunds, pro-rated or otherwise, in the event of early termination of this agreement by Fawkes Digital Marketing or by you according to the terms outlined by this agreement.

Fawkes Digital Marketing, at its sole discretion and judgment, may determine whether to offer you a refund, pro-rated or otherwise. Either full or in increments, which Fawkes Digital Marketing will outline to you. Any refunds will be returned by company check.

Credit

If our public network does not experience 100% network uptime in a given month, Fawkes Digital Marketing will credit 10% of the customer's monthly service fees for customers affected services. Credits issued for every 30 minutes of network downtime experienced up to 100% of the monthly service fee. The customer account must be in good standing.

System Information & Information Gathering

IP Address Information

Fawkes Digital Marketing administers the network on which customer servers reside. The customer cannot use IP addresses not assigned to them by Fawkes Digital Marketing staff. A dedicated IP address that will be released to the client can be done for a fee if the hosting server allows the transfer of the IP address. Not all hosting providers allow this. Before you receive this, Fawkes Digital Marketing will obtain written authorization and provide it if available. Otherwise, any dedicated IP address will be released back to the hosting provider.

Material and Product Requirements

You must ensure that all material and data placed on Fawkes Digital Marketing's equipment is in a condition that is "server-ready," which is in a form requiring no additional manipulation by Fawkes Digital Marketing which could interfere with any other site on the server. Any software installed needs to have appropriate licensing and proof of ownership provided. Fawkes Digital Marketing will not try to validate any of this information for content, correctness, or usability. It is up to you to provide us with this information upon installation.

The use of the Services requires a certain level of knowledge of internet languages, protocols, and software. This level of knowledge varies depending on the anticipated use and desired content of your Web site. You must have the necessary knowledge to create and maintain a website. Fawkes Digital Marketing does not provide this knowledge or customer support outside of the Services.

Intellectual Property Rights

Material accessible to you through Fawkes Digital Marketing's Services may be subject to protection under the United States or other copyright laws or laws protecting trademarks, trade secrets, or proprietary information. Except when expressly permitted by the owner of such rights, you must not use Fawkes Digital Marketing or its servers and network in a manner that would infringe, violate, dilute, or misappropriate any such rights concerning any material that you access or receive through the Fawkes Digital Marketing Network. If you use a domain name in connection with Fawkes Digital Marketing or a similar service, you must not use that domain name in violation of any trademark, service mark, or similar rights of any third party.

Electronic Commerce

You will be solely responsible for the development, operation, and maintenance of your online store and products and all contents and materials appearing online or on your products, including, without limitation:

• The accuracy and appropriateness of content and materials appearing within the store or related to your products.
• Ensuring that the content and materials appearing within the store or related to your products do not violate or infringe upon the rights of any third party.
• Ensuring that the content and materials in the store or related to your products are not libelous or otherwise illegal. You will be solely responsible for the final calculation and application of shipping and sales tax. You will also be solely responsible for accepting, processing, and filling any customer orders and handling any customer inquiries or complaints.
• You are also responsible for the security of any customer credit card numbers and related customer information you may access as a result of conducting electronic commerce transactions through your website. You will keep all such information confidential and will use the same degree of care and security as you use with your confidential information.

Domain Name Registration

Customer agrees to pay Fawkes Digital Marketing any and all domain registration costs unless otherwise negotiated within a specific plan they signed up for. If the client changes plans that do not cover Fawkes Digital Marketing paying for the domain registration, it is up to the client to pay this registration cost.

All fees are non-refundable, in whole or in part, even if Customer's domain name registration is suspended, canceled, or transferred prior to the end of Customer's then-current registration term. Fawkes Digital Marketing reserves the right to change fees, surcharges, and renewal fees or to institute new fees at any time, for any reason, at its sole discretion.

We will do good faith to secure a client's domain prior to payment being received if one is agreed upon so that the client's web presence is secured. Until payment is received, the domain will remain the property of Fawkes Digital Marketing. After payment is made, the domain will become the client's property and only be maintained by Fawkes Digital Marketing.

Lawful Purpose

Fawkes Digital Marketing reserves the right to refuse service to anyone. Customers may only use Fawkes Digital Marketing's servers for lawful purposes. Transmission of any material in violation of any Federal, State, or Local regulation is prohibited. This includes, but is not limited to, copyrighted material, material legally judged to be threatening or obscene, and material protected by trade secrets. The designation of any materials as described above is left entirely to the discretion of Fawkes Digital Marketing management. Regardless of the place of signing this agreement, the client agrees that for purposes of venue and jurisdiction, this contract was entered into and performed in Cullman County, Alabama, and any dispute will be litigated or arbitrated in Cullman County, Alabama. Customer further waives all objections to venue or jurisdiction and acknowledges that venue and jurisdiction in any such litigation will be held in Cullman County Courts. IN NO EVENT SHALL Fawkes Digital Marketing's MAXIMUM LIABILITY EXCEED FIVE HUNDRED ($500.00) DOLLARS.

Client Exclusivity & Conflict of Interest Policy

At Fawkes Digital Marketing, we believe in transparency, integrity, and delivering real results. That's why we've established clear and fair boundaries to ensure our clients receive our full attention and effort—without competing against each other. In the digital space, not everyone can be #1 in the same market. We know it. Our clients know it. And that's exactly why these rules exist.

Our Loyalty Promise: One Industry, One County

We limit our core marketing services to only one client per industry per county. If you're an insurance agency based in Cullman County, Alabama, you have exclusive access to our full suite of marketing services in that category for your county. We will not take on another insurance agency in the same area. This isn't just ethical—it's smart business.

Political Campaigns: No Conflicts of Interest

Running for office? We'll only work with one candidate per election, regardless of party affiliation. If you're running for mayor as a Republican, we won't work with any other Republican, Democrat, or Independent in that same race. Period. You get our undivided strategic support.

What Is "Core Marketing"?

Your business must have an active website with us on our Enterprise web servers for exclusivity. From there, you will have the ability to lock yourself into one or more of our core marketing services (below):

• Local Organic SEO (Search Engine Optimization)
• Paid Search Ads (Google Ads)
• Social Media Management

These are what we consider core marketing services—services that directly impact visibility, ranking, and growth in your local market.

What's Not Included in Core Marketing?

We may still offer non-exclusive services like:

• Website development with our Website Design Essentials Package or our regular website design
• Business website hosting
• Business email hosting
• Services that the customer is not using in the core marketing services.
  • Note: f, for example, the business is doing Local Organic SEO but not social media management, we will first contact them and let them know that someone in their industry wants to do social media management. If they want us to do it for them, we will. If not, we will provide it to their local competition.
• Access to our proprietary software tools, such as Brilliance CRM

Just note: You're at a disadvantage if you're not in a core marketing plan. Our exclusive marketing clients will significantly outperform others in your industry and region—especially those working with generic or less specialized agencies.

Defining the Service Area

By default, your exclusive service area is the county of your business's primary physical location. This helps prevent direct local competition and ensures we can focus on helping you dominate your home territory. We understand there will be overlap when you're close to a county line. We have to draw the line somewhere, and by providing an entire county, we ensure our customers can own their area.

Exceptions to the Rule

We're flexible—but only with complete transparency and permission. We will do so if a competitor comes, say your friends, or asks us to talk with you for permission (e.g., an exemption). If you tell us no, that's the answer. If you say yes, you can also give us limitations as you are being more than fair to your competitor and us.

Exceptions may apply if:

• Our existing core marketing client gives us written approval to take on another business in a neighboring or non-competing area.
• Industries that naturally overlap (e.g., finance and insurance) allow for non-core service collaboration, especially when their service offerings don't directly compete.

Each request is reviewed case by case, and integrity will always remain our top priority. If it were reversed, you would want us to do this for your business.

For any customer who becomes more than 30 days behind in payment, it is our discretion to bring on a competitor. If this does happen where you know you will be late, communication is the most important thing to work toward to prevent this.

Why This Sets Us Apart

Most agencies won't make this promise. We do. At Fawkes Digital Marketing, we stand by our clients and never compete against them. This approach builds trust, loyalty, and results—and that's why businesses continue to choose us.

Asking us to disregard this level of trust automatically means we are not a good fit for each other.