Legal - DMCA Copyright Policy

·DMCA Copyright Policy

·Last Updated on December 5, 2024

·DigitalOcean, LLC ("DigitalOcean") has a simple way to handle copyright issues under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act ("DMCA"). If you think someone is using your content without your permission, follow the steps below to report it. Please use the linked form to issue your DMCA complaint to avoid delays.

·How to Report Copyright Infringement

·If you think your copyrighted content is being infringed on DigitalOcean, complete the DMCA Form and include the following information:

• 1Identification of the specific copyrighted work claimed to have been infringed including the URL or IP address of the allegedly infringing content.
• 2Contact information about the complaining party, including address, telephone number and e-mail address.
• 3A statement that the complaining party has a good faith belief that the material is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law.
• 4A statement made under penalty of perjury that the information provided is accurate and the complaining party is authorized to make the complaint on behalf of the copyright owner.
• 5A physical or electronic signature of a person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of the copyright that has been allegedly infringed.

·Please use the linked DMCA Form to submit your complaint. Using any other method may delay the process.

·What Happens Next

• 1Review: DigitalOcean will check your complaint for completeness and may follow up if additional information is needed. Please note if you do not provide the additional information requested, we may not be able to respond to, or move forward with, your complaint.
• 2Forwarding: If the complaint is valid and involves a DigitalOcean customer, we will send your complaint and contact information to the customer using the content.
• 3Removing the Content: The customer may simply remove the content once they receive the complaint. If they do so, DigitalOcean will consider the DMCA complaint resolved. If the customer does not remove the content, then DigitalOcean may disable the entire server used by the customer to host the content.

·A few additional points to remember: (1) please make sure you are the copyright owner or have permission to act on their behalf before you submit your complaint; (2) understand that submitting false claims can have consequences; and (3) DigitalOcean does not decide whether the content is in fact infringing; that is up to the copyright owner and the person using the content. In other words, DigitalOcean does not assess whether there is, in fact, a copyright violation; instead, we rely on the customer to issue a counter-notice if they believe they have the rights to continue using the content at issue.

·Repeat Infringer Policy

·DigitalOcean may terminate accounts of users who repeatedly infringe copyrights.

·Information for DigitalOcean Customers

·DigitalOcean will forward any DMCA complaints to customers for review. If you are a customer and receive notice of a DMCA complaint made against you, you have the following options:

• 1Remove the Content: If you do not have the rights to use the content described in the DMCA complaint, please remove the content immediately. If you remove the content, the DMCA complaint is considered resolved.
• 2Issue a Counter-notice: If you believe you have the rights to use the content, you may issue a counter-notice. While the counter-notice process is ongoing, you will need to remove the disputed content from your server. More information about counter-notices is available here.

·Please note - If you do not take action on a DMCA complaint, DigitalOcean may disable the entire server or Droplet you are using to host the content as we cannot selectively remove individual pieces of content hosted on your server.

·Frequently Asked Questions

• 1The content is still live. How do you explain this? If content is still visible, it might have moved to a new server or another hosting provider. You can also try to clear your cache and check again. Please note that if DigitalOcean does not host the content, we are unable to remove it. If the content has been moved to a new server hosted on DigitalOcean, please submit another DMCA complaint. Please note - if you are using any specific tools or methods such as VPNs, proxies, or other technical measures to access the content, please specify what you are using in the DMCA form. These tools may bypass geo-blocking or other restrictions, making the content appear accessible in your location but not to our staff. Additionally, please include your location in your response as some content may be restricted or blocked in specific regions.
• 2What is DigitalOcean's role in processing DMCA complaints? DigitalOcean does not proactively monitor content hosted by customers on our services. We rely on customers to disable or remove infringing content. If they do not act by removing the content, then the only option for DigitalOcean is to disable the server hosting the content in its entirety. Please note, we cannot and will not judge the validity of any copyright infringement claim submitted to us on its face.
• 3What is the role of Content Delivery Networks (CDN) or web infrastructure and security providers in processing DMCA complaints? At a high level, CDNs or web infrastructure security providers operate as intermediaries between users and cloud hosting providers to direct and manage network traffic over the internet. Occasionally, DigitalOcean has to work with these providers to respond to DMCA complaints as we need certain information that only they have access to or can provide (e.g., if the customer is operating behind an obfuscated IP address, we may need these intermediaries to provide us information about the actual IP address so we can determine whether the allegedly infringing content is actually hosted on DigitalOcean). Please note it may take us additional time to investigate and respond to a DMCA complaint if we have to engage these third parties as we rely on them to provide critical information needed to respond to the request.
• 4I am a DigitalOcean customer based outside of the U.S., how does DMCA apply to me? DigitalOcean and its customers are required to adhere to U.S. laws. If you are a DigitalOcean customer and do not act on a DMCA complaint, we may disable the server used to host the content to comply with applicable law.

·This information is for general purposes and is not legal advice. If you have questions, seek advice from a legal professional.