Keeping You Informed

Review our complete Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy, or visit key topics below.

Acceptable Use Policy

Read our policy about how to properly use the Foothills Communications network as well as information about inappropriate use and misuse of the the network.

CALEA Compliance

In compliance with CALEA, Foothills Communications equipment, facilities and services have surveillance capability to assist law enforcement.

Copyright Infringement

Learn more about your rights and the actions Foothills Communications is required by federal law to take if copyright infringement claims are filed.

Internet Fraud Complaints

Visit official government web resources to report and learn about internet fraud.

USAC Lifeline Support

Learn more about your USAC eligibility requirements.

Network Disputes & Pricing

Foothills Communications belongs to an alliance of independent cable providers striving to retain flexibility and fair pricing in cable television programming. To learn more, visit TVOnMySide.com.

Network Management Policy (Net Neutrality)

Foothills Communications believes in being a responsible member of the Internet Community, including adhering to the “net neutrality” rules set forth by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

Privacy Policy

Foothills Communications is committed to your privacy. Review our policy on how we store, protect, and distribute your personal information.

Red Flag Compliance

Foothills Communications actively works to detect, prevent and mitigate identity theft.

Terms of Use

Read our terms of use and conditions for Foothills Communications products and services.

Acceptable Use Policies

You agree to comply with the rules of the Service and the appropriate rules for other networks or services connected directly or indirectly to the Service, including Acceptable Use Policies established for the Internet as a whole.

You acknowledge that all references herein to Foothills Communications refer to the company and its affiliates, suppliers, and agents.

The Service may only be used for lawful purposes for your individual use. You agree to use responsible Internet practices, including, without limitation, using computer security and anti-virus protections, to ensure that unauthorized third parties do not gain access to your computer or computer network or the Service.

I. Restrictions on Network & Usage, Conduct & Information, and Technical Use

You further agree not to:

1. Resell the Service, permit the use of the Service by any unauthorized users, or otherwise make available to anyone outside the Premises the ability to use the Service (i.e., through wi-fi or other methods of networking), in whole or in part, directly or indirectly;

2. Restrict or inhibit any other user from using and enjoying the Internet;

3. Restrict, inhibit, interfere with, or otherwise disrupt performance of the Service or cause a performance degradation, regardless of intent, purpose or knowledge, to the Service or any Foothills Communications (or Foothills Communications supplier) host, server, backbone network, node or service;

4. Connect the Foothills Communications Equipment to any computer outside of your Premises;

5. Interfere with computer networking or telecommunications service to any user, host or network, including, without limitation, denial of service attacks, flooding of a network, overloading a service, improper seizing and abusing operator privileges, and attempts to “crash” a host;

6. Accessing and using the Service with anything other than a dynamic Internet Protocol (“IP”) address that adheres to the dynamic host configuration protocol (“DHCP”). You may not configure the Service or any related equipment to access or use a static IP address or use any protocol other than DHCP unless expressly permitted to do so by Foothills Communications.

7. Post or transmit any message, data, image or program that would violate the property rights of others, including unauthorized copyrighted text, images or programs, trade secrets or other confidential proprietary information, and trademarks or service marks used in an infringing fashion;

8. Post or transmit emails or other information or software which contains a virus, malicious code, spyware, adware, cancelbot, trojan horse, worm or other harmful component;

9. Post, publish, transmit, reproduce, distribute or in any way exploit any information, software or other material obtained through the Service for commercial purpose (other than as expressly permitted by Foothills Communications with regards to such information, software or other material);

10. Upload, post, publish, transmit, reproduce, or distribute in any way, information, software or other material obtained through the Service which is protected by copyright, or other proprietary right, or derivative works with respect thereto, without obtaining permission of the copyright owner or right holder;

11. Post or transmit any unlawful, threatening, abusive, libelous, defamatory, obscene, pornographic, profane, or otherwise objectionable information of any kind (as determined in Foothills Communications sole discretion), including without limitation any transmissions constituting or encouraging conduct that would constitute a criminal offense, give rise to civil liability, or otherwise violate any local, state, national or international law, including without limitation the U.S. export control laws and regulations;

12. Transmit spam (i.e., mass unsolicited email messages) or flames (the sending of a large number of email messages to a single or multiple addresses);

13. Gain or attempt to gain unauthorized access to or otherwise disrupt or deface websites, networks, systems or accounts owned by Foothills Communications or any third parties, including without limitation, through the use of worms, trojan horses, denial of service attacks or other computer hacking techniques, disrupt the Service or network connectivity of Foothills Communications or any third parties, misuse Foothills Communications or third party facilities or create fraudulent accounts; or

14. Edit, transmit, distribute, reproduce, or modify in any part or copy onto any media The Walt Disney Company and its affiliated company content, text, photo, graphic, audio, and/or video material (including but not limited to such material from ESPN, ABCNews, Movies.com, SOAPNet or any other Disney company) (“Disney Content”), except that Customer may download one copy of the Disney Content on a single computer for the Subscriber’s personal, noncommercial home use only, provided that (i) Customer keeps intact all copyright and other proprietary notices, (ii) Customer makes no modifications to the Disney Content, (iii) Customer does not use the Disney Content in a manner that suggests an association with any of Disney’s products, services, or brands. Customer agrees that The Walt Disney Company and its affiliated companies will not be held liable for any delays, inaccuracies, errors, or omissions in the Disney Content or in the transmission of delivery of all or any part of the Disney Content, or for any damages arising from any of the foregoing.

15. Avoid incurring charges for or otherwise being required to pay for usage of the Service;

16. Invade another person’s privacy, stalk, harass, or otherwise violate the rights of other persons;

17. Undertake or accomplish any unlawful purpose. This includes, but is not limited to, posting, storing, transmitting or disseminating information, data or material which is libelous, obscene, unlawful, threatening or defamatory, or which infringes the intellectual property rights of any person or entity, or which in any way constitutes or encourages conduct that would constitute a criminal offense, or otherwise violate any local, state, federal, or non-U.S. law, order, or regulation;

18. Post, store, send, transmit, or disseminate any information or material which a reasonable person could deem to be unlawful;

19. Upload, post, publish, transmit, reproduce, create derivative works of, or distribute in any way information, software or other material obtained through the Service or otherwise that is protected by copyright or other proprietary right, without obtaining any required permission of the owner;

20. Collect, or attempt to collect, personal information about third parties without their consent;

21. Send voluminous copies of the same or substantially similar messages, empty messages, or messages which contain no substantive content, or send very large messages or files that disrupts a server, account, blog, newsgroup, chat, or similar service;

22. Initiate, perpetuate, or in any way participate in any pyramid or other illegal scheme;

23. Participate in the collection of voluminous amounts of e-mail addresses, screen names, or other identifiers of others (without their prior consent), a practice sometimes known as spidering or harvesting, or participate in the use of software (including “spyware”) designed to facilitate this activity;

24. Collect responses from unsolicited bulk messages;

25. Falsify, alter, or remove message headers;

26. Falsify references to Foothills Communications or its network, by name or other identifier, in messages;

27. Impersonate any person or entity, engage in sender address falsification, forge anyone else’s digital or manual signature, or perform any other similar fraudulent activity (for example, “phishing”);

28. Violate the rules, regulations, terms of service, or policies applicable to any network, server, computer database, service, application, system, or Web site that you access or use;

29. Use the Internet service or facilities for web-hosting, e-mail hosting, or other unusually high-bandwidth consumption unless you have made special subscription arrangements with Foothills Communications and the usage does not otherwise violate law or regulation;

30. Access any other person’s computer or computer system, network, software, or data without his or her knowledge and consent; breach the security of another user or system; or attempt to circumvent the user authentication or security of any host, network, or account. This includes, but is not limited to, accessing data not intended for you, logging into or making use of a server or account you are not expressly authorized to access, or probing the security of other hosts, networks, or accounts without express permission to do so;

31. Use or distribute tools or devices designed or used for compromising security or whose use is otherwise unauthorized, such as password guessing programs, decoders, password gatherers, keystroke loggers, analyzers, cracking tools, packet sniffers, encryption circumvention devices, or Trojan Horse programs. Unauthorized port scanning is strictly prohibited;

32. Copy, distribute, or sublicense any proprietary software provided in connection with the Service by Foothills Communications or any third party, except that you may make one copy of each software program for back-up purposes only;

33. Distribute programs that make unauthorized changes to software (cracks);

34. Service, alter, modify, or tamper with the Foothills Communications Equipment or Service or permit any other person to do the same who is not authorized by Foothills Communications;

II. CUSTOMER OBLIGATIONS & COMPANY RIGHTS

a. Customer Obligations

In addition to being responsible for your own compliance with this AUP, you are also responsible for any use or misuse of the Service that violates this AUP, even if it was committed by a friend, family member, or guest with access to your Service account. Therefore, you must take steps to ensure that others do not use your account to gain unauthorized access to the Service by, for example, strictly maintaining the confidentiality of your Service login and password. In all cases, you are solely responsible for the security of any device you choose to connect to the Service, including any data stored or shared on that device. It is also your responsibility to secure the Customer Equipment and any other Premises equipment or programs not provided by Foothills Communications that connects to the Service from external threats such as viruses, spam, bot nets, and other methods of intrusion.

b. Foothills Communications Rights

Foothills Communications reserves the right to refuse to transmit or post, and to remove or block, any information or materials, in whole or in part, that it, in its sole discretion, deems to be in violation of this AUP, or otherwise harmful to Foothills Communications network or customers using the Service, regardless of whether this material or its dissemination is lawful so long as it violates this AUP.

Foothills Communications has no obligation to monitor the Service or your use of the Service. However, you agree that Foothills Communications has the right to monitor the Service electronically from time to time and to disclose any information as necessary to satisfy any law, regulation or other governmental request, to operate the Service properly, or to protect itself or its subscribers. Foothills Communications will not intentionally monitor or disclose any private email message, except as stated above. Foothills Communications reserves the right to refuse to post, to block or remove any information or materials, in whole or in part, that, in its sole discretion, are unacceptable, undesirable, or in violation of its AUP, the Subscriber Agreement or applicable law. Foothills Communications may further deny any person or entity access to all or part of its system, without notice, if such person or entity engages in any conduct or activities that Foothills Communications, in it’s sole discretion, believes violates any of its AUP.

Foothills Communications may deny you access to all or part of the Service without notice if you engage in any conduct or activities that Foothills Communications in its sole discretion believes violates any of the terms and conditions in this AUP. If Foothills Communications denies you access to the Service because of such a violation, you shall have no right to access the Internet or your email account through Foothills Communications.

III. Network Management and Limitations on Data Consumption

Foothills Communications manages its network with the goal of delivering a fast, safe and uncompromised broadband Internet experience to all of its customers. But, high-speed bandwidth and network resources are not unlimited. Managing the network is essential for the promotion of best possible Broadband Internet experience by all of Foothills Communications customers. The company uses reasonable network management practices that are consistent with industry standards. Foothills Communications tries to use tools and technologies that are minimally intrusive and, in its independent judgment guided by industry experience, among the best in class. Of course, the company’s network management practices will change and evolve along with the uses of the Internet and the challenges and threats on the Internet.

If Foothills Communications didn’t manage its network, its customers would be subject to the negative effects of spam, viruses, security attacks, network congestion, and other risks and degradations of service. By engaging in responsible network management, including enforcement of this AUP, Foothills Communications can deliver the best possible broadband Internet experience to all of its customers.

a. Network Usage and Data Consumption Restrictions

You acknowledge that all of the Foothills Communications Internet services are intended for periodic, active use of email, user newsgroups, transfers via FTP, Internet chat, Internet games, and browsing of the Internet. You must comply with all current bandwidth, data storage, and other limitations on the Foothills Communications Internet services that have been established by Foothills Communications and Foothills Communications suppliers. You agree not to intentionally use the Foothills Communications Internet service on a standby or inactive basis in order to maintain a connection. The excessive use or abuse of Foothills Communications network resources by one Customer may have a negative impact on all other Customers. Accordingly, in addition to the Prohibited Uses and Activities provided in Section I, you may not use the Foothills Communications Internet service or take any action, directly or indirectly, that will result in excessive consumption or utilization of the system or network resources, or which may weaken network performance, as determined in Foothills Communications sole discretion. Such prohibited actions include, but are not limited to: using the Foothills Communications Internet Services to host a web server site which attracts excessive traffic at your location, continuously uploading or downloading streaming video or audio, use net hosting, continuous FTP uploading or downloading, or acting in a manner that negatively effects other users’ ability to engage in real time exchanges and use of the Foothills Communications Internet Services.

Foothills Communications reserves the right to suspend or terminate Service accounts where data consumption is not characteristic of a typical user of a similar Services account as determined by Foothills Communications in its sole discretion.

Common activities that may cause excessive data consumption in violation of this AUP include, but are not limited to, numerous or continuous bulk transfers of files and other high capacity traffic using (i) file transfer protocol (“FTP”), (ii) peer-to-peer applications, and (iii) newsgroups. You must also ensure that your use of the Service does not restrict, inhibit, interfere with, or degrade any other person’s use of the Service, nor represent (as determined by Foothills Communications in its sole discretion) an overly large burden on the network. In addition, you must ensure that your use of the Service does not limit or interfere with Foothills Communications ability to deliver and monitor the Service or any part of its network.

If you use the Service in violation of the restrictions referenced above, that is a violation of this AUP. In these cases, Foothills Communications may, in its sole discretion, suspend or terminate your Service account or request that you subscribe to a higher tier of the Service if you wish to continue to use the Service at higher data consumption levels. Foothills Communications may also provide versions of the Service with different speed and data consumption limitations, among other characteristics, subject to applicable Service plans.

Foothills Communications determination of the data consumption for Service accounts is final.

IV. VIOLATION OF THIS ACCEPTABLE USE POLICY

Foothills Communications reserves the right to immediately suspend or terminate your Service account and terminate the Subscriber Agreement if you violate the terms of this AUP or the Subscriber Agreement.

Foothills Communications does not routinely monitor the activity of individual Service accounts for violations of this AUP, except for determining aggregate data consumption in connection with the data consumption provisions of this AUP. However, in the company’s efforts to promote good citizenship within the Internet community, it will respond appropriately if it becomes aware of inappropriate use of the Service. Foothills Communications has no obligation to monitor the Service and/or the network. However, Foothills Communications and its suppliers reserve the right at any time to monitor bandwidth, usage, transmissions, and content in order to, among other things, operate the Service; identify violations of this AUP; and/or protect the network, the Service and Foothills Communications users.

Foothills Communications prefers to inform customers of inappropriate activities and give them a reasonable period of time in which to take corrective action. Foothills Communications also prefers to have customers directly resolve any disputes or disagreements they may have with others, whether customers or not, without Foothills Communications intervention. However, if the Service is used in a way that Foothills Communications or its suppliers, in their sole discretion, believe violates this AUP, Foothills Communications or its suppliers may take any responsive actions they deem appropriate under the circumstances with or without notice. These actions include, but are not limited to, temporary or permanent removal of content, cancellation of newsgroup posts, filtering of Internet transmissions, and the immediate suspension or termination of all or any portion of the Service (including but not limited to newsgroups). Neither Foothills Communications nor its affiliates, suppliers, or agents will have any liability for any of these responsive actions. These actions are not Foothills Communications exclusive remedies and Foothills Communications may take any other legal or technical actions it deems appropriate with or without notice.

Foothills Communications reserves the right to investigate suspected violations of this AUP, including the gathering of information from the user or users involved and the complaining party, if any, and examination of material on Foothills Communications servers and network. During an investigation, Foothills Communications may suspend the account or accounts involved and/or remove or block material that potentially violates this AUP. You expressly authorize and consent to Foothills Communications and its suppliers cooperating with (i) law enforcement authorities in the investigation of suspected legal violations, and (ii) and system administrators at other Internet service providers or other network or computing facilities in order to enforce this AUP. Upon termination of your Service account, Foothills Communications is authorized to delete any files, programs, data, e-mail and other messages associated with your account (and any secondary accounts).

The failure of Foothills Communications or its suppliers to enforce this AUP, for whatever reason, shall not be construed as a waiver of any right to do so at any time. You agree that if any portion of this AUP is held invalid or unenforceable, that portion will be construed consistent with applicable law as nearly as possible, and the remaining portions will remain in full force and effect.

YOU AGREE TO DEFEND, INDEMNIFY AND HOLD Foothills COMMUNICATIONS HARMLESS FROM ANY AND ALL LIABILITIES, COSTS AND EXPENSES, INCLUDING REASONABLE ATTORNEYS’ FEES, RELATED TO ANY VIOLATION OF THIS AUP BY YOU OR AUTHORIZED USERS OF YOUR ACCOUNT, OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE USE OF THE SERVICE OR THE INTERNET OR THE PLACEMENT OR TRANSMISSION OF ANY MESSAGE, INFORMATION, SOFTWARE OR OTHER MATERIALS ON THE INTERNET BY YOU OR USERS OF YOUR ACCOUNT. Your indemnification will survive any termination of the Subscriber Agreement.

V. REDRESS AND GOVERNING LAW

a. Governing Law / Resolution of Disputes – Arbitration

Any dispute or claim between you, the Customer, and Foothills Communications arising out of or relating to the service provided in connection with this AUP or the Subscriber Agreement shall be resolved by arbitration (“Arbitration”), unless otherwise specified in Customer’s individual Subscriber Agreement. To the extent that there is a conflict regarding this Arbitration provision, the Customer’s individual Subscriber Agreement supersedes the Terms and Policies of the individual Services.

The arbitrator’s decision shall follow the plain meaning of the relevant documents, and shall be final and binding. The parties agree that no arbitrator has the authority to: (i) award relief in excess of what the Subscriber Agreement provides; or (ii) award punitive or exemplary damages. Judgment on the award rendered by the arbitrators may be entered in any court having jurisdiction thereof. All claims shall be arbitrated individually and Customer will not bring, or join any class action of any kind in court or in arbitration or seek to consolidate or bring previously consolidated claims in Arbitration. CUSTOMER ACKNOWLEDGES THAT THIS ARBITRATION PROVISION CONSTITUTES A WAIVER OF ANY RIGHT TO A JURY TRIAL.

b. Governing Law / Resolution of Disputes – Governing Law

The Agreement and the relationship between you and Foothills Communications shall be governed by the laws of the State of Kentucky without regard to its conflict of law provisions. To the extent court action is initiated to enforce an arbitration award or for any other reason consistent with the Arbitration provision herein, you and Foothills Communications agree to submit to the personal and exclusive jurisdiction of the courts located within the State of Kentucky and waive any objection as to venue or inconvenient forum. The failure of Foothills Communications to exercise or enforce any right or provision of this AUP or the Subscriber Agreement shall not constitute a waiver of such right or provision. If any provision of this AUP or the Subscriber Agreement is found by a court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid, the parties nevertheless agree that the court should endeavor to give effect to the parties’ intentions as reflected in the provision, and the other provisions of this AUP or the Subscriber Agreement remain in full force and effect. You agree that regardless of any statute or law to the contrary, any claim or cause of action arising out of or related to use of the service, this AUP or the Subscriber Agreement must be filed within one (1) year after such claim or cause of action arose or be forever barred.

VI. COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT

Foothills Communications policy for addressing copyright infringement can be found in the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) Notice.

CALEA Compliance

The Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act of 1994 (CALEA) requires telecommunications common carriers to ensure that their introduction of new technologies and services does not interfere with the execution of law enforcement wiretaps and other electronic surveillance.

In compliance with CALEA, Foothills Communication’s equipment, facilities and services have surveillance capability to assist law enforcement.

Customer Proprietary Network Information – (CPNI) Statement

Foothills Communications is compliant with FCC rules and regulations implemented pursuant to Section 222 of the Communications Act of 1934, as Amended, regarding the collection, access, use, disclosure or distribution of Customer Proprietary Network Information (“CPNI”), as well as regarding customer privacy safeguards with respect to CPNI. Foothills Communications makes an annual CPNI certification filing with the FCC and has adopted CPNI policies and procedures for training employees, agents and independent contractors, as well as for addressing and reporting any such violations.

CPNI is defined in Section 222(f) of the Communications Act as (A) information that relates to the quantity, technical configuration, type, destination, and amount of use of a telecommunications service subscribed to by any customer of a wireline or wireless telecommunications carrier, and that is made available to the carrier by the customer solely by virtue of the carrier-customer relationship; and (B) information contained in the bills pertaining to telephone exchange service or telephone toll service received by a customer of a carrier (except that CPNI does not include subscriber list information). Generally, CPNI includes personal information regarding a consumer’s use of his or her wireline and/or wireless telecommunications services. CPNI encompasses information such as: (a) the telephone numbers called by a customer; (b) the frequency, duration and timing of a customer’s phone calls, and (c) the telecommunications and information services purchased by a customer (including, but not limited to, local exchange, toll, cellular, paging, data transmission, call waiting, call forwarding, call blocking, Primary Interexchange Carrier (PIC) freeze, three-way calling, conference calling, voice mail, Internet access, call back, caller identification, call trace and toll denial services).

It is the official policy of Foothills Communications that all access, use, disclosure or distribution of Customer Proprietary Network Information (“CPNI”) be in accordance with the customer privacy safeguards and CPNI regulations set forth in the Communications Act and the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”) Rules, and that all Foothills Communication’s employees, agents and independent contractors who handle the customers’ CPNI are aware of these customer privacy safeguards and CPNI regulations, and comply with them fully.

Copyright Infringement – Digital Millennium Copyright Act

In operating the Services, Foothills Communications may act as a “services provider” under the DMCA and offer services as an online provider of materials and links to third party websites. As a result, third party materials that are not owned or controlled by Foothills Communications may be transmitted, stored, accessed or otherwise made available using the Service. You agree to notify Foothills Communications if and to the extent any situation arises wherein you believe any material available through the Service infringes a copyright. Any claimant must notify Foothills Communications using the notice procedure for claimed infringement under the DMCA and provide the following:

If you believe that your work has been copied and has been posted, stored or transmitted to Foothills Communication’s website in a way that constitutes copyright infringement, please submit a notification pursuant to the DMCA by providing Foothills Communication’s designated agent the following written information: (i) an electronic or physical signature of the person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of the copyright interest; (ii) a description of the copyrighted work that you claim has been infringed upon; (iii) a specific description of where the material that you claim is infringing is located on the website; (iv) your address, telephone number, and email address; (v) a statement by you that you have a good-faith belief that the disputed use is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law; and (vi) a statement by you, made under penalty of perjury, that the above information in your notice is accurate and that you are the copyright owner or authorized to act on the copyright owner’s behalf.

Foothills Communication’s designated agent (the proper party for notice) to whom any copyright owner should address infringement notices under the DMCA:

Foothills Communications
Designated Agent
1621 Kentucky Route 40 West
Staffordsville, KY 41256
888-262-3782

Foothills Communications will respond expeditiously to remove or disable access to material Foothills Communications determines may be infringing and will follow the procedures specified in the DMCA to resolve the claim between the notifying party and the alleged infringing party who provided the applicable content.

Foothills Communications also has no obligation to monitor its Services, but may do so and disclose information regarding use of the Services for any reason if Foothills Communications, in its sole discretion, believes that it is reasonable to do so, including, without limitation, to: (i) satisfy laws, regulations, or governmental or legal requests, (ii) operate the Services properly, or (iii) protect itself and its customers and users. Foothills Communications may immediately remove material or information from Foothills Communication’s servers, in whole or in part, which Foothills Communications, in its sole and absolute discretion, determines to infringe another’s property rights or to violate the AUP.

To the extent any of your Services from Foothills Communications include wireless access, wireless systems use radio channels to transmit voice and data communications over a network, and privacy cannot be guaranteed. We are not liable to Customer or any other party for any lack of privacy resulting from using any wireless services of Foothills Communications. Customer acknowledges that wireless service is inherently not secure and that wireless communications can be intercepted by equipment and software designed for that purpose. Notwithstanding efforts to enhance security with respect to the Service, Foothills Communications cannot guarantee the effectiveness of these efforts and will not be liable to Customer or any other party for any lack of security that may result from use of the Service. Customer acknowledges that Customer is responsible for taking such precautions and providing such security measures best suited for Customer’s situation and intended use of the Service. Foothills Communications strongly encourages Customer to obtain security solutions, such as virtual private networks, encryption and personal firewalls, as more fully described at https://www.foothills.net.

Miscellaneous. You acknowledge and agree that this Agreement, together with all other terms and conditions incorporated herein, constitutes the entire agreement of the parties for the provision and use of the Services and the complete and exclusive statement of the terms agreed upon, all prior agreements and understandings being merged herein. Neither this Agreement nor any interest herein of Customer may be assigned, sublet, or in any manner transferred by Customer without the prior, written consent of Foothills Communications, which consent may be withheld in Foothills Communication’s sole discretion. Any attempted assignment or transfer in contravention of the preceding sentence shall be void. A waiver by Foothills Communications of any terms herein shall not be construed as a waiver of any subsequent breach of this Agreement. This Agreement shall be governed by the laws of the State of Kentucky without regard to choice of law principles. No amendments or modifications to this Agreement shall be effective or binding against Foothills Communications unless expressly agreed to in writing by an authorized representative of Foothills Communications. In the event any one or more of the provisions contained in this Agreement shall be invalid, illegal or unenforceable in any respect under any applicable statute or rule of law, then such provisions shall be deemed inoperative to the extent that they are invalid, illegal or unenforceable, and the remainder of this Agreement shall continue in full force and effect. Any invalid, illegal or unenforceable provisions shall be reformed and modified so that they express the original intent of the parties hereto as closely as reasonably practicable without being invalid, illegal or unenforceable.

Internet Services

Foothills Communications, d/b/a foothills.net (“Foothills”) offers our customers Internet Services (the “Service” or “Services”) subject to these terms and conditions(the “Agreement”). For purposes of this Agreement, “you,” “your,” “Customer,” and “Member” refer to the person purchasing the Services. “We,” “our,” and “us” refer to Foothills Communications.

Activation, Cancellation or Modification. Services can be ordered, cancelled or modified by calling our Foothills Communications office at 888-262-3782. In some cases we may be able to assist you remotely over the phone or via the Internet by computer in accordance with our fee schedules. Fees apply in accordance with our fee schedules for any work performed. Certain of our fee schedules may be listed on our website at www.foothills.net and are subject to change without notice. Any fees will be added to your bill if you are a current customer of Foothills Communications, and payment will be due in the same manner as payment for other Foothills Communications services. Cancellation will be effective as of the end of the month in which notice is received, and you will remain liable for Service charges for that month. Requests for upgrades to the Services which are accepted will take effect at the beginning of the next month following receipt of the upgrade request. Requested downgrades to the Services will be subject to standard installation charges, if any.

By enrolling in, activating, using, or paying for the Services, you agree to the terms and conditions in this Agreement, including but not limited to the prices, charges, and terms and conditions provided to you in marketing and informational materials associated with the Services and on the Foothills Communications website, www.foothills.net, as amended, all of which are incorporated herein by reference. If you do not agree to all of the aforementioned terms and conditions, do not use the Services, and cancel the Services immediately by calling Foothills Communications at the phone numbers listed above.

All use of the Services, whether or not authorized by you, shall be deemed your use. You are responsible for ensuring that all use of the Services complies with this Agreement.

Modification of Agreement. This Agreement may be updated or changed by us from time to time. You can review the most current version of the Agreement at any time at: www.foothills.net. If Foothills Communications makes a change to the Agreement and that change has a material impact on the Services, you will be provided notice of that change by contact to your current mail or email address in the records of Foothills Communications. You agree to periodically visit the aforementioned website to review any such changes. Your continued use of the Services following the sending of such notice by Foothills Communications, or the expiration of thirty (30) days following posting of the change on the Foothills Communications website, whichever occurs first, constitutes your acceptance of such changes.

Subscription for Services. Each Customer elects to subscribe to the Services for the Minimum Service Term set forth on the Customer’s enrollment form or other subscription document commencing from the date of acceptance by Foothills Communications and installation, as applicable. If no Minimum Service Term is selected for the applicable Service, then the Minimum Service Term shall be one month from the date of commencement of Service.

You agree that, should you terminate any Service prior to payment of all applicable amounts and/or fulfillment of the Minimum Service Term commitment, you will be liable for, and agree to immediately pay, any applicable amount for the following items which are not paid in full at the time of termination: (i) activation fee, (ii) installation fee, and/or (iii) equipment charge. Additionally, by accepting the Service and terminating Service prior to expiration of the Minimum Service Term, you agree to pay a reimbursement of the total reductions, discounts and promotional offerings accepted by you in connection with your agreement to accept Services. You acknowledge that these charges and fees are in addition to any other normally billed amounts that may be owed at the time of termination.

You agree that the following terms and restrictions apply to the Services:

(i) Foothills Communications does not provide, and is not responsible for Customer equipment and software used by you in connection with use of the Services (unless otherwise noted). You are responsible for all such equipment, software and any data thereon without responsibility or liability of Foothills Communications;

(ii) You are responsible for the following charges (to the extent applicable): all city, state, and federal taxes and other required charges on the Services;

(iii) You acknowledge that the Services will not function in the event of an Internet Protocol (“IP”) network interruption;

(iv) You further acknowledge that the listed speeds for any Service offering may not be available due to geographical and/or a number of other factors. Speed is not guaranteed unless stated so as part of the terms for service. Actual data transfer or “throughput” may be lower than sync-rate due to Internet congestion or configuration, server or router speeds, protocol overheads, signal strength or other factors which cannot be controlled by Foothills Communications, and

(v) The specific rates and charges for the Services are set forth on Foothills Communications’s price list.

Subscription for Services. Each Customer elects to subscribe to the Services for the Minimum Service Term set forth on the Customer’s enrollment form or other subscription document commencing from the date of acceptance by Foothills Communications and installation, as applicable. If no Minimum Service Term is selected for the applicable Service, then the Minimum Service Term shall be one month from the date of commencement of Service.

You agree that, should you terminate any Service prior to payment of all applicable amounts and/or fulfillment of the Minimum Service Term commitment, you will be liable for, and agree to immediately pay, any applicable amount for the following items which are not paid in full at the time of termination: (i) activation fee, (ii) installation fee, and/or (iii) equipment charge. Additionally, by accepting the Service and terminating Service prior to expiration of the Minimum Service Term, you agree to pay a reimbursement of the total reductions, discounts and promotional offerings accepted by you in connection with your agreement to accept Services. You acknowledge that these charges and fees are in addition to any other normally billed amounts that may be owed at the time of termination.

You agree that the following terms and restrictions apply to the Services:

(i) Foothills Communications does not provide, and is not responsible for Customer equipment and software used by you in connection with use of the Services (unless otherwise noted). You are responsible for all such equipment, software and any data thereon without responsibility or liability of Foothills Communications;

(ii) You are responsible for the following charges (to the extent applicable): all city, state, and federal taxes and other required charges on the Services;

(iii) You acknowledge that the Services will not function in the event of an Internet Protocol (“IP”) network interruption;

(iv) You further acknowledge that the listed speeds for any Service offering may not be available due to geographical and/or a number of other factors. Speed is not guaranteed unless stated so as part of the terms for service. Actual data transfer or “throughput” may be lower than sync-rate due to Internet congestion or configuration, server or router speeds, protocol overheads, signal strength or other factors which cannot be controlled by Foothills Communications, and

(v) The specific rates and charges for the Services are set forth on Foothills Communications’s price list.

Pricing Changes. Foothills Communications reserves the right where allowed by regulation to change pricing for its Services at any time without notice to you; provided that Foothills Communications will not change the basic rate for ordered Services during the Minimum Service Term commitment period applicable to you. Following expiration of a Minimum Service Term commitment, or upon any payment default by you, Foothills Communications may adjust the rates for Services to reflect any pricing increases made by Foothills Communications for the applicable Services.

Payment. Payment of each invoice for the Services is due in full, without deduction or offset, within fifteen (15) days of the invoice date at the invoice address for payment. A late fee of $15.00 will be applied to unpaid accounts twenty-two (22) days from the date of invoice. Accounts unpaid twenty-eight (28) days after the date of invoice may have their service interrupted. You agree to pay interest on any amounts past due at the rate of 1 1/2% per month (or the maximum amount required by law, whichever is less). You also agree that Foothills Communications may suspend and/or terminate the Services if any amounts due Foothills Communications are not paid by their due date. Foothills Communications may assign unpaid late balances to a collection agency for appropriate action. In the event legal action is necessary to collect on balances due, you agree to reimburse Foothills Communications for all expenses incurred to recover sums due, including attorneys’ fees and other legal expenses. You will be charged a $25.00 fee for any check or other instrument (including credit card charge backs) tendered by you and returned unpaid by a financial institution for any reason.

Any loss of Services caused by the action or inaction of the Customer, or by a defect or failure of Customer equipment, will not suspend Customer’s obligations to pay for the Services, and Customer shall remain liable for all applicable charges.

Credit Card and Credit Reporting Authorization. You may be asked to provide us with a valid email address and a credit card number from a card issuer that we accept in order to activate your Services. You hereby authorize Foothills Communications to charge and/or place a hold on your credit card with respect to any unpaid charges related to the Services. You authorize the issuer of the credit card to pay any amounts described herein without requiring a signed receipt, and you agree that this Agreement is to be accepted as authorization to the issuer of the credit card to pay all such amounts. You authorize Foothills Communications and/or any other company who bills for products or services or acts as billing agent for Foothills Communications to continue to attempt to charge and/or place holds on your credit card with respect to all sums described herein, or any portion thereof, until such amounts are paid in full.

You agree to provide Foothills Communications with updated credit card information upon Foothills Communications’s request and any time the information you previously provided is no longer valid. You are solely responsible for maintaining and updating the credit card information. Without limiting the applicability of any other provisions of this Agreement, you acknowledge and agree that neither Foothills Communications nor any Foothills Communications affiliated company will have any liability whatsoever for any non-sufficient funds or other charges incurred by you as a result of such attempts to charge, and/or place holds on, your credit card. If you mistakenly provide a debit card number, instead of a credit card number, you authorize all charges described herein to be applied to such debit card unless and until you provide a credit card number. In the event you are enrolled, or later enroll, in an automatic payment or electronic funds transfer plan, you agree that all sums described herein may be charged, at Foothills Communications’s option, to the account number provided for such automatic payment or electronic funds transfer plan.

To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, you authorize Foothills Communications to disclose your account information, including your payment history and confidential information, to credit reporting agencies or private credit reporting associations, and periodically obtain and use your credit report and other credit information from credit reporting agencies, private credit reporting associations and other sources in connection with Foothills Communications’s offering of the Services. You understand that if you fail to fulfill the terms of your obligations to Foothills Communications, Foothills Communications may report your failure to credit reporting agencies as well as pursue Foothills Communications’s other rights and remedies.

Advances or Deposits. We may require you to make deposits or advance payments for Services, which we may use to satisfy your initial bill for Services, to offset against any unpaid balance on your account, or as otherwise set forth in this Agreement or permitted by law. Interest will not be paid on advance payments or deposits unless required by law. We may require additional advance payments or deposits if we determine that the initial payment was inadequate. Based on your creditworthiness or for other reasons, we may establish limits and restrict service or features as we deem appropriate. If your account balance goes beyond the limit we set for you, we may immediately interrupt or suspend service until your balance is brought below the limit. Any charges you incur in excess of your limit become immediately due. Upon determination solely by Foothills Communications of satisfactory payment history or as required by law, Foothills Communications may begin refunding of the deposit or advance payment through bill credits, cash payments, or as otherwise determined solely by Foothills Communications or as required by law.

Access to Premises. You will provide Foothills Communications with reasonable access to your premises in order to install, maintain, and repair the Services, and you authorize any other adult resident or guest at your residence to grant access to your premises for these purposes. You understand and agree that Foothills Communications may drill, cut, and otherwise alter improvements on the premises. If you do not own your premises, you warrant that you have obtained permission from any necessary party, including but not limited to the owner, landlord, or building manager, to make alterations Foothills Communications deems appropriate for the work to be performed. You acknowledge that Foothills Communications may use existing wiring, including altering the wiring and removing accessories, located within your premises.

You agree that the installation, inspection, maintenance, repair, and/or removal of any equipment could result in service outages or potential damage to your equipment, computers, computer network and/or the contents thereof and/or the loss of any recorded programming. Accordingly, you agree that you are solely responsible for providing any needed back-up for your information and data or programming and that in no event will Foothills Communications or any of its employees, agents, contractors, or business associates be liable for any loss of data or programming or damage to your equipment, computers, computer network and/or the contents thereof.

You will be responsible for payment of service charges for visits by Foothills Communications or its subcontractors to your premises when a service request results from causes not attributable to Foothills Communications or its subcontractors.

Foothills Communications Equipment. Unless expressly identified as being sold to Customer, title to all hardware and/or software provided by Foothills Communications in connection with this Agreement (the “Equipment”) shall remain with Foothills Communications. Foothills Communication’s repair and maintenance obligations as to its Equipment are limited solely to ordinary wear and tear and shall not include maintenance and repair necessary as a result of any other cause, including without limitation, vandalism or intentional or negligent acts or omissions by the Customer or third parties. Maintenance and repairs related to such causes are the Customer’s sole responsibility and liability. The Customer shall provide appropriate space, power and environment for, and take reasonable care of, the Equipment. Customer agrees not to damage or misuse the Equipment. Unless expressly agreed to in writing, the Customer will be solely responsible and liable for connection of the Customer’s computers and other equipment to the Equipment. The Customer will at all times be solely responsible and liable for the maintenance and repair of Customer’s computers and Customer’s other equipment. Customer shall return to Foothills Communications all Equipment within thirty (30) days following the expiration, cancellation or termination of this Agreement, or Foothills Communications will charge the Customer the un-depreciated list price of the unreturned Equipment in addition to all applicable late return fees.

Password Security. Upon Foothills Communication’s acceptance of Customer’s registration for certain Services, Foothills Communications may provide Customer with a username, password and user identification number. Customer and members of Customer’s household are the only authorized users of the account and must comply with this Agreement. Customer must keep all passwords and identifications confidential so that no one else may access the Services through Customer’s account. Customer must notify Foothills Communications immediately upon discovering any unauthorized use of the account. Using a personal account for high volume or commercial use (e.g., revenue generation, advertising, etc.) is prohibited. Usernames and passwords are Foothills Communication’s property, and Foothills Communications may alter or replace them at any time.

Limited Warranty. Foothills Communications will use reasonable efforts to provide Services and the Equipment in accordance with prevailing industry standards. Foothills COMMUNICATIONS MAKES NO OTHER WARRANTIES CONCERNING THE SERVICES OR ANY EQUIPMENT PROVIDED HEREUNDER, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR USE AND ANY WARRANTIES REGARDING THE DESIGN, CONDITIONS OF, OR QUALITY OF THE MATERIAL OR WORKMANSHIP OF ANY SERVICES OR EQUIPMENT. IN NO EVENT WILL Foothills COMMUNICATIONS BE LIABLE TO THE CUSTOMER OR TO ANY THIRD PARTY FOR ANY INDIRECT, SPECIAL, INCIDENTAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL LOSSES OR DAMAGES, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, LOSS OF REVENUE, LOSS OF GOODWILL, LOSS OF BUSINESS, OR LOSS OF PROFITS, ARISING IN ANY MANNER FROM THIS AGREEMENT AND THE PERFORMANCE OR NONPERFORMANCE OF Foothills COMMUNICATION’S OBLIGATIONS HEREUNDER, HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY THEORY OF LIABILITY, EVEN IF Foothills COMMUNICATIONS HAS BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. CUSTOMER’S SOLE REMEDY RELATED TO ANY DEFECT OR FAILURE OF THE SERVICES IS LIMITED TO A REFUND OF THE PRO RATED PORTION OF THE MONTHLY CHARGES FOR THE AFFECTED SERVICES UP TO AN AGGREGATE MAXIMUM OF ONE MONTH’S CHARGES.

Limitations on Use. You acknowledge that the Services are provided for your personal use and not for resale or assignment. No Services or Equipment may be transferred to another location or shared with another person who is not bound by this Agreement. You will not use the Services for telemarketing or any excessive usage inconsistent with normal residential usage patterns (or, if a commercial customer under a commercial service plan, consistent with normal usage for that plan). If Foothills Communications determines, in its sole discretion, that you are reselling or transferring Services or that you are using Services in an improper manner or other manner unduly burdensome on Foothills Communication’s network and facilities, Foothills Communications reserves the right, without advance notice, immediately to terminate or modify the Services, or to change your Service plan to a different offer on a prospective basis, and, in addition, to assess additional charges for each month in which excessive usage occurred.

Status of Internet Usage. The Customer acknowledges that the Internet is an ever-changing network not controlled by any single government or entity, but reliant upon the interconnectivity and operability of various networks. ACCORDINGLY, NOTWITHSTANDING ANYTHING HEREIN TO THE CONTRARY, ANY INTERNET ACCESS AS WELL AS ALL SERVICES RELATED TO SUCH ACCESS ARE PROVIDED ON AN “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE” BASIS. No advice or information given by Foothills Communications or its contractors or their respective employees shall create a warranty. Foothills Communications does not warrant that service will be uninterrupted or error free or that any information, software or other material accessible through the Internet is free of viruses, cancelbot, spyware, worms, trojan horses, or other harmful components. The Customer also understands that the Internet contains unedited materials, some of which are explicit and/or offensive. Foothills Communications has no control over and accepts no responsibility whatsoever for any such materials. The Customer agrees Customer accesses such materials at Customer’s own risk.

Anti-Virus. Any anti-virus and SPAM protection offered in connection with Foothills Communication’s Services is offered for Customer’s incoming email services and is provided through third party vendors and subject to their warranties and limitations. NO GUARANTEES ARE MADE OR PROVIDED THAT THE SERVICES WILL BE VIRUS OR SPAM FREE OR THAT CUSTOMER EQUIPMENT WILL BE PROTECTED FROM HACKERS, VIRUSES, SPAM, SPYWARE, CANCELBOT, WORMS, TROJAN HORSES OR OTHER HARMFUL COMPONENTS. CUSTOMER IS SOLELY RESPONSIBLE FOR MAINTAINING ADEQUATE FIREWALL PROTECTION, ANTI-VIRUS, SPYWARE AND OTHER SPAM PROTECTION FOR CUSTOMER EQUIPMENT IN ORDER TO UTILIZE THE SERVICES AND PROTECT CUSTOMER EQUIPMENT AND INFORMATION.

Acceptable Use Policies. The Customer (which for purposes hereof includes any authorized user of Customer) agrees not to use or permit its users to use the Services provided by Foothills Communications in ways that violate laws, infringe the rights of others, interfere with the users of Foothills Communication’s network or other networks, or otherwise violate Foothills Communication’s Acceptable Use Policies as set forth at https://www.foothills.net (the “AUP”) and incorporated herein by reference and as set forth below. Foothills Communications reserves the right to modify the terms and conditions of the AUP from time to time, without direct notice to Customer, and those changes will become effective within thirty (30) days from posting. Customer agrees to periodically visit the aforementioned website to review any such changes. The use of the Services by Customer after any changes to the AUP will constitute Customer’s acceptance of any changes. If Customer violates the AUP, Foothills Communications may immediately suspend the Services without prior notice. Foothills Communications also reserves the right to terminate the Services in the event of chronic or uncured violations of the AUP as determined by Foothills Communications. Notwithstanding anything herein, Foothills Communications shall be under no obligation to monitor the compliance of Customer with the AUP.

Digital Millennium Copyright Act (“DMCA”) Notice. In operating the Services, Foothills Communications may act as a “services provider” under the DMCA and offer services as an online provider of materials and links to third party websites. As a result, third party materials that are not owned or controlled by Foothills Communications may be transmitted, stored, accessed or otherwise made available using the Service. You agree to notify Foothills Communications if and to the extent any situation arises wherein you believe any material available through the Service infringes a copyright. Any claimant must notify Foothills Communications using the notice procedure for claimed infringement under the DMCA and provide the following:

If you believe that your work has been copied and has been posted, stored or transmitted to Foothills Communication’s website in a way that constitutes copyright infringement, please submit a notification pursuant to the DMCA by providing Foothills Communication’s designated agent the following written information: (i) an electronic or physical signature of the person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of the copyright interest; (ii) a description of the copyrighted work that you claim has been infringed upon; (iii) a specific description of where the material that you claim is infringing is located on the website; (iv) your address, telephone number, and email address; (v) a statement by you that you have a good-faith belief that the disputed use is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law; and (vi) a statement by you, made under penalty of perjury, that the above information in your notice is accurate and that you are the copyright owner or authorized to act on the copyright owner’s behalf.

Foothills Communication’s designated agent (the proper party for notice) to whom any copyright owner should address infringement notices under the DMCA is DMCA-Designated Agent, 1621 Kentucky Route 40 West, Staffordsville, KY 41256, 888-262-3782. Foothills Communications will respond expeditiously to remove or disable access to material Foothills Communications determines may be infringing and will follow the procedures specified in the DMCA to resolve the claim between the notifying party and the alleged infringing party who provided the applicable content.

Foothills Communications also has no obligation to monitor its Services, but may do so and disclose information regarding use of the Services for any reason if Foothills Communications, in its sole discretion, believes that it is reasonable to do so, including, without limitation, to: (i) satisfy laws, regulations, or governmental or legal requests, (ii) operate the Services properly, or (iii) protect itself and its customers and users. Foothills Communications may immediately remove material or information from Foothills Communication’s servers, in whole or in part, which Foothills Communications, in its sole and absolute discretion, determines to infringe another’s property rights or to violate the AUP.

To the extent any of your Services from Foothills Communications include wireless access, wireless systems use radio channels to transmit voice and data communications over a network, and privacy cannot be guaranteed. We are not liable to Customer or any other party for any lack of privacy resulting from using any wireless services of Foothills Communications. Customer acknowledges that wireless service is inherently not secure and that wireless communications can be intercepted by equipment and software designed for that purpose. Notwithstanding efforts to enhance security with respect to the Service, Foothills Communications cannot guarantee the effectiveness of these efforts and will not be liable to Customer or any other party for any lack of security that may result from use of the Service. Customer acknowledges that Customer is responsible for taking such precautions and providing such security measures best suited for Customer’s situation and intended use of the Service. Foothills Communications strongly encourages Customer to obtain security solutions, such as virtual private networks, encryption and personal firewalls, as more fully described at https://www.foothills.net.

Miscellaneous. You acknowledge and agree that this Agreement, together with all other terms and conditions incorporated herein, constitutes the entire agreement of the parties for the provision and use of the Services and the complete and exclusive statement of the terms agreed upon, all prior agreements and understandings being merged herein. Neither this Agreement nor any interest herein of Customer may be assigned, sublet, or in any manner transferred by Customer without the prior, written consent of Foothills Communications, which consent may be withheld in Foothills Communication’s sole discretion. Any attempted assignment or transfer in contravention of the preceding sentence shall be void. A waiver by Foothills Communications of any terms herein shall not be construed as a waiver of any subsequent breach of this Agreement. This Agreement shall be governed by the laws of the State of Kentucky without regard to choice of law principles. No amendments or modifications to this Agreement shall be effective or binding against Foothills Communications unless expressly agreed to in writing by an authorized representative of Foothills Communications. In the event any one or more of the provisions contained in this Agreement shall be invalid, illegal or unenforceable in any respect under any applicable statute or rule of law, then such provisions shall be deemed inoperative to the extent that they are invalid, illegal or unenforceable, and the remainder of this Agreement shall continue in full force and effect. Any invalid, illegal or unenforceable provisions shall be reformed and modified so that they express the original intent of the parties hereto as closely as reasonably practicable without being invalid, illegal or unenforceable.

NONDISCRIMINATION AND NETWORK MANAGEMENT POLICIES:

Foothills Communications manages its network in accordance with the FCC’s Internet Policy Statement adopted on August 5, 2005. Foothills Communications does not discriminate or favor any lawful Internet applications, content, or services where lawfully used. Foothills Communications promotes the ability of Customer to freely access and disseminate lawful content in a manner that respects others’ use of the network and that complies with the law. Foothills Communications supports industry practices for safeguarding children, intellectual property rights of others and Customer’s privacy and security. Foothills Communications follows standard best efforts for Internet delivery with respect to allocation of capacity without differentiation among applications, providers and sources. Generally accepted technical measures to provide acceptable service levels to all Customers will be used by Foothills Communications, such as application–neutral bandwidth allocation, as well as measures to address service attacks, illegal content and other harmful activities to protect network integrity and reliability.

Further, Foothills Communications supports the following Internet principles of the FCC:

To encourage broadband deployment and preserve and promote the open and interconnected nature of the public Internet, consumers are entitled to access the lawful Internet content of their choice; to run applications and use services of their choice, subject to the needs of law enforcement; to connect their choice of legal devices that do not harm the network; and are entitled to competition among network providers, application and service providers, and content providers.

ACCEPTABLE USE POLICIES:

You agree to comply with the rules of the Service and the appropriate rules for other networks or services connected directly or indirectly to the Service, including Acceptable Use Policies established for the Internet as a whole.

The Service may only be used for lawful purposes for your individual use. You agree to use responsible Internet practices, including, without limitation, using computer security and anti-virus protections, to ensure that unauthorized third parties do not gain access to your computer or computer network or the Service.

You further agree not to:

(i) Resell the Service or otherwise permit the use of the Service by any unauthorized users;

(ii) Restrict or inhibit any other user from using and enjoying the Internet;

(iii) Post or transmit any message, data, image or program that would violate the property rights of others, including unauthorized copyrighted text, images or programs, trade secrets or other confidential proprietary information, and trademarks or service marks used in an infringing fashion;

(iv) Post or transmit emails or other information or software which contains a virus, malicious code, spyware, adware, cancelbot, trojan horse, worm or other harmful component;

(v) Post, publish, transmit, reproduce, distribute or in any way exploit any information, software or other material obtained through the Service for commercial purpose (other than as expressly permitted by Foothills Communications with regards to such information, software or other material);

(vi) Upload, post, publish, transmit, reproduce, or distribute in any way, information, software or other material obtained through the Service which is protected by copyright, or other proprietary right, or derivative works with respect thereto, without obtaining permission of the copyright owner or right holder;

(vii) Post or transmit any unlawful, threatening, abusive, libelous, defamatory, obscene, pornographic, profane, or otherwise objectionable information of any kind (as determined in Foothills Communication’s sole discretion), including without limitation any transmissions constituting or encouraging conduct that would constitute a criminal offense, give rise to civil liability, or otherwise violate any local, state, national or international law, including without limitation the U.S. export control laws and regulations;

(xiii) Transmit spam (i.e., mass unsolicited email messages) or flames (the sending of a large number of email messages to a single or multiple addresses);

(ix) Gain or attempt to gain unauthorized access to or otherwise disrupt or deface websites, networks, systems or accounts owned by Foothills Communications or any third parties, including without limitation, through the use of worms, trojan horses, denial of service attacks or other computer hacking techniques, disrupt the Service or network connectivity of Foothills Communications or any third parties, misuse Foothills Communications or third party facilities or create fraudulent accounts; or

(x) Edit, transmit, distribute, reproduce, or modify in any part or copy onto any media The Walt Disney Company and its affiliated company content, text, photo, graphic, audio, and/or video material (including but not limited to such material from ESPN, ABCNews, Movies.com, SOAPNet or any other Disney company) (“Disney Content”), except that Customer may download one copy of the Disney Content on a single computer for the Subscriber’s personal, noncommercial home use only, provided that (i) Customer keeps intact all copyright and other proprietary notices, (ii) Customer makes no modifications to the Disney Content, (iii) Customer does not use the Disney Content in a manner that suggests an association with any of Disney’s products, services, or brands. Customer agrees that The Walt Disney Company and its affiliated companies will not be held liable for any delays, inaccuracies, errors, or omissions in the Disney Content or in the transmission of delivery of all or any part of the Disney Content, or for any damages arising from any of the foregoing.

Foothills Communications has no obligation to monitor the Service or your use of the Service. However, you agree that Foothills Communications has the right to monitor the Service electronically from time to time and to disclose any information as necessary to satisfy any law, regulation or other governmental request, to operate the Service properly, or to protect itself or its subscribers. Foothills Communications will not intentionally monitor or disclose any private email message, except as stated above.

Foothills Communications reserves the right to refuse to post or to remove any information or materials, in whole or in part, that, in its sole discretion, are unacceptable, undesirable, or in violation of its AUP. Foothills Communications may further deny any person or entity access to all or part of its system, without notice, if such person or entity engages in any conduct or activities that Foothills Communications, in its sole discretion, believes violates any of its AUP.

Foothills Communications may deny you access to all or part of the Service without notice if you engage in any conduct or activities that Foothills Communications in its sole discretion believes violates any of the terms and conditions in this AUP. If Foothills Communications denies you access to the Service because of such a violation, you shall have no right to access the Internet or your email account through Foothills Communications.

YOU AGREE TO DEFEND, INDEMNIFY AND HOLD Foothills COMMUNICATIONS HARMLESS FROM ANY AND ALL LIABILITIES, COSTS AND EXPENSES, INCLUDING REASONABLE ATTORNEYS’ FEES, RELATED TO ANY VIOLATION OF THIS AGREEMENT BY YOU OR AUTHORIZED USERS OF YOUR ACCOUNT, OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE USE OF THE SERVICE OR THE INTERNET OR THE PLACEMENT OR TRANSMISSION OF ANY MESSAGE, INFORMATION, SOFTWARE OR OTHER MATERIALS ON THE INTERNET BY YOU OR USERS OF YOUR ACCOUNT.

PRIVACY POLICY:

Foothills Communications is committed to protecting the privacy and security of the information provided by Customers and other parties visiting Foothills Communication’s website.

Personal Information. Visitors can generally browse our website anonymously without providing any personal information. However, there are cases where we may request information from people visiting our website. When personally identifiable information is collected, you will know because you will need to provide the requested information through the completion of a form. Personally identifiable information may include a visitor’s name, address, telephone number and email address. We will not collect any personally identifiable information unless the Customer or visitor provides it to us voluntarily. If you choose not to give information we request, you can still visit our website, but you may be unable to access certain options, offers, and services. Foothills Communications is dedicated to building a long-term relationship with all of our website visitors and customers. We will not sell, share or rent this information to others in ways other than as set forth in this Privacy Policy. This Privacy Policy does not apply to the use or disclosure of information that is collected or obtained by us through means other than our website.

Log Files. Our log tracking collects visitors’ IP addresses to analyze trends, administer our website, track visitor movement, and gather broad demographic information to help determine the type of information visitors are interested in seeing on our website. This tracking only collects IP addresses and not personally identifiable information. Visitors are not personally identifiable within our log files. Foothills Communications only uses this information for internal purposes and does not share this information with non-affiliated companies or institutions.

Cookies. A “Cookie” is a piece of information that is sent from a Foothills Communications web server to a visitor’s browser and stored on the visitor’s hard drive. Foothills Communications uses Cookies when a Customer or visitor orders a product or registers for a specific program. The Cookie stores information that allows Foothills Communication’s website to remember a Customer or visitor the next time he or she visits it. Cookies also allow us to tailor our website to better match Customers’ or other visitors’ interests and preferences. The applicable party may choose to disable Cookies by changing his or her browser settings; however, such party may not be able to access some of the information or features on our website after doing so.

Registration. In some cases, a person may be required to complete a registration form to order a product or to receive certain information. During the registration process, the person is required to give specific information such as name and email address. This information is used to contact the person regarding services offered by Foothills Communications for which the person has expressed interest.

Ordering Services. When ordering Services online, Foothills Communications will request certain information from a Customer to complete an order. The Customer’s information will include name, address, telephone number, email address, payment information and other information as may be requested by Foothills Communications in the order form. This information is used for billing purposes, fulfillment of orders, ongoing account maintenance and upgrades.

Security. When asked to enter certain sensitive information (such as credit card number and/or social security number), that information is encrypted and is protected through third party security systems. Access to visitor information is restricted to Foothills Communications and underlying parties through their respective developers, network operations personnel and other qualified employees or agents (such as billing clerks or customer care representatives). In addition, the servers on which Foothills Communications stores personally identifiable information are kept in a secure location. While we use reasonable efforts to safeguard the confidentiality of your information, Foothills Communications will have no responsibility for disclosure of any information obtained due to errors in transmission or the unauthorized acts of third parties.

Marketing Contacts. If a party wishes to subscribe to newsletters or other marketing information, such as email updates, Foothills Communications will ask for contact information, including a street address or email address. In addition, we may ask for information that will help deliver pertinent information from Foothills Communications. Persons who do not wish to receive Foothills Communications newsletters or promotional materials may opt-out of receiving these communications. Each contact the visitor receives from Foothills Communications will inform the visitor how to unsubscribe from these communications.

Sharing of Personal Information. Collected personal information is only used for the business purposes of Foothills Communications and is not shared with external, non-affiliated companies except as provided in this Privacy Policy. Foothills Communications may partner with other parties to provide specific services, such as billing solutions, which are designed to enhance the functionality of our products and services. When a customer signs up for these services, Foothills Communications will only share names or other contact information that is necessary for the third party to provide these services. We may also provide your personal information to third party agents we have hired to help us provide a good or service you have requested. For example, we would need to provide your address to a shipping company to deliver a package you have ordered. In addition, we outsource certain functions of our business, and those agents may have access to your personal information; however, in such cases our agents are prohibited from disclosing your personal information to others.

We may share statistical or aggregated non-personal information about our visitors with advertisers, business partners, sponsors and other third parties. No personal information is supplied in these cases. This data is used to customize our website content and advertising to deliver a better experience to our users.

Correction/Updating Personal Information. If a Customer needs to update or change personal identification information, Foothills Communications will help the Customer to correct, update or remove personal data provided to Foothills Communications. The Customer can update or change personally identifiable information by contacting Foothills Communications directly or through its website.

Notification of Changes. If we make any changes to the Foothills Communications Privacy Policy, we will post those changes on Foothills Communication’s website so Customers and visitors are informed of what information we collect and how we use that information. We will only use information in accordance with the current Foothills Communications Privacy Policy.

Links. Foothills Communication’s website contains links to other websites. Foothills Communications is not responsible for the contents or privacy practices of these websites. We encourage our visitors and customers to read the privacy policy of each website they visit. This Privacy Policy applies solely to information collected on Foothills Communication’s website.

Policies For Children. FOOTHILLS COMMUNICATIONS DOES NOT KNOWINGLY SOLICIT, COLLECT OR USE ANY PERSONAL INFORMATION FROM VISITORS UNDER 13 YEARS OF AGE. NO INFORMATION SHOULD BE SUBMITTED TO OUR WEBSITE BY GUESTS UNDER 13 YEARS OF AGE, AND VISITORS UNDER 13 YEARS OLD ARE NOT ALLOWED TO REGISTER FOR OUR CONTESTS, NEWSLETTER, PRODUCTS OR SERVICES.

Special Cases. Foothills Communications reserves the right to disclose personal information in special cases, when we have reason to believe that disclosing this information is necessary to identify, contact or bring legal action against someone who may be causing injury to or interference with (either intentionally or unintentionally) our rights or property, other website users, or anyone else that could be harmed by such activities. We may disclose personal information without notice to you in response to a subpoena or when we believe in good faith that the law permits it or to respond to an emergency situation.

Specific areas or pages of our website may include additional or different provisions relating to collection and disclosure of personal information. In the event of a conflict between such provisions and this Privacy Policy, such specific terms shall control.

Questions. If you have any questions or concerns about this Privacy Policy or the privacy practices of Foothills Communications, please contact us at our corporate offices or on our corporate website at www.foothills.net.

NOTICES:

Unless otherwise specified in this Agreement, notices to you may be made by email, posting online at www.foothills.net, bill insert, regular mail or call to your telephone number. It is your responsibility to check for such notices.

Unless otherwise specified in this Agreement, notices by you to Foothills Communications must be given by calling our Foothills Communications office at 800-292-5457, and such notices are effective as of the date that our records show we received your call.

LEGAL NOTICES must be given by letter delivered by overnight mail or certified mail to Foothills Communications, ATTN: CEO, 1621 Kentucky Route 40 West, Staffordsville, KY 41256.

Nondiscrimination and Network Management Policies

(Net Neutrality)

Foothills Communications manages its network in accordance with the FCC’s Internet Policy Statement adopted on August 5, 2005. Foothills Communications does not discriminate or favor any lawful Internet applications, content, or services where lawfully used. Foothills Communications promotes the ability of Customer to freely access and disseminate lawful content in a manner that respects others’ use of the network and that complies with the law. Foothills Communications supports industry practices for safeguarding children, intellectual property rights of others and Customer’s privacy and security. Foothills Communications follows standard best efforts for Internet delivery with respect to allocation of capacity without differentiation among applications, providers and sources. Generally accepted technical measures to provide acceptable service levels to all Customers will be used by Foothills Communications, such as application–neutral bandwidth allocation, as well as measures to address service attacks, illegal content and other harmful activities to protect network integrity and reliability.

Further, Foothills Communications supports the following Internet principles of the FCC:

To encourage broadband deployment and preserve and promote the open and interconnected nature of the public Internet, consumers are entitled to access the lawful Internet content of their choice; to run applications and use services of their choice, subject to the needs of law enforcement; to connect their choice of legal devices that do not harm the network; and are entitled to competition among network providers, application and service providers, and content providers.

I. Device Attachment Rules/Application Specific Behaviors

Except as may be provided elsewhere herein, Foothills Communications does not currently engage in any application-specific behaviors nor does it employ device attachment rules for its network. Customers may use any lawful applications or devices with Foothills Communications.

II. Specialized Services

Foothills Communications does not provide any Specialized Services at this time.

Terms of Use Agreement: Online Bill Pay

Foothills Communications (foothills.net) Web Site (the “Service”) is an on-line document presentment and payment service provided by Foothills Communications. It is recommended that all payment authorizations be received by Foothills Communications at least three (3) business days before the actual due date, not the late date, to allow processing time and prevent late payments.

Please read this Agreement carefully before accessing or using the Service. By accessing or using the Service, you agree to be bound by the terms and conditions below. If you do not accept the terms and conditions of this Agreement, you may not access or use the Service. Foothills Communications may modify this Agreement from time to time, and such modifications shall be effective immediately upon posting of the modified Agreement. By continuing to access or use the Service following such modifications, you agree to be bound by the modified Agreement.

Document Presentment and Payment Services. By accessing the Service, you authorize

  1. Foothills Communications to establish and maintain your documents and payment authorizations and
  2. Foothills Communications to process your payments according to your instructions.

When Foothills Communications receives a payment authorization, you authorize Foothills Communications to charge your transaction account and remit funds on your behalf so that the funds arrive as close to the business day designated by you as reasonably possible. While it is anticipated that Foothills Communications will complete most transactions within twenty-four (24) hours of the day designated, it is understood that due to circumstances beyond the control of Foothills Communications, particularly delays in handling and posting payments by slow-responding companies or financial institutions, some transactions may take a day or even a few days longer.

For this reason, it is recommended that all payment authorizations be received by Foothills Communications at least three (3) business days before the actual due date, not the late date. If you properly follow the procedures described herein, and Foothills Communications fails to process payment authorizations in a timely manner, Foothills Communications will not impose any additional fees or charges for late payments. In any other event, including, but not limited to, sending a payment authorization less than three (3) days prior to the actual due date, the risk of incurring and the responsibility for paying any and all late charges or penalties shall be borne by you.

Foothills Communications will use its best efforts to process all your payment authorizations promptly and properly. However, Foothills Communications shall incur no liability if it is unable to complete any payments initiated by you because of the existence of any one or more of the following circumstances:

  1. Your account does not contain sufficient funds to complete the transaction or the transaction would exceed the credit limit of your overdraft account.
  2. You have not provided Foothills Communications with correct names or account information.
  3. Circumstances beyond Foothills Communication’s control (such as, but not limited to, fire, flood, or interference from an outside force) prevent the proper transmission of your payment authorization and Foothills Communications has taken reasonable precautions to avoid those circumstances.

Provided none of the foregoing, three (3) exceptions to the Foothills Communications performance obligations are applicable, Foothills Communications shall be responsible for properly directing the payment authorization.

THE FOREGOING SHALL CONSTITUTE Foothills COMMUNICATION’S ENTIRE LIABILITY AND YOUR EXCLUSIVE REMEDY HEREUNDER.

Authorization of payment of taxes or court-directed payment through the Service is prohibited.

Password and Security. The Service will be accessible through a password chosen by you. You agree not to give or make available your password to any unauthorized individuals. If you believe that your password has been lost or stolen or that someone may attempt to use your password without your consent or has authorized payments without your permission, you must notify Foothills Communications at once.

You must not restrict or inhibit any other Foothills Communications customer from using the Service. You may not send any unlawful, fraudulent, libelous, defamatory, obscene, pornographic, threatening, offensive, or otherwise objectionable information of any kind. You may not use the Service to conduct any illegal activity or solicit the performance of any illegal activity, including without limitation the U.S. export control laws and regulations.

In the event Your Bank Returns a Transaction. In using the Service, you are requesting Foothills Communications to make payments for you from your designated transaction account. If your financial institution, or the holder of the account from which you have designated payment is unable to process a transaction (for example, there are not sufficient funds in your account to cover the transaction), the transaction may not be completed.

Types of Payments and Limitations on Payees

You may use the Service to authorize payment from an account that you designate. Foothills Communications reserves the right to refuse to pay any person or entity to whom you may direct a payment. Foothills Communications is obligated to notify you promptly if they decide to refuse to pay a person or entity designated by you. This notification is not required if you attempt to pay tax or court-related payments, which are prohibited under this Agreement.

Charges

Foothills Communications reserves the right to charge a fee for receiving a document electronically and/or making electronic payments.

EXCLUSION OF WARRANTIES

FOOTHILLS COMMUNICATIONS IS PROVIDING THE SERVICE “AS IS” WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, NON INFRINGEMENT AND TITLE. FOOTHILLS COMMUNICATIONS DOES NOT WARRANT THAT THE SERVICE IS ERROR-FREE, OR THAT ACCESS TO AND USE OF THE SERVICE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED OR ERROR-FREE.

LIMITATION OF LIABILITY

IN NO EVENT SHALL FOOTHILLS COMMUNICATIONS OR ITS LICENSORS OR SUPPLIERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES WHATSOEVER (INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, DIRECT, INDIRECT, SPECIAL OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES) ARISING OUT OF THE DELIVERY, PERFORMANCE, OR USE OF THE SERVICE, WHETHER INCURRED BY YOU OR ANY THIRD PARTY, EVEN IF FOOTHILLS COMMUNICATIONS OR ITS LICENSORS OR SUPPLIERS HAVE BEEN ADVISED OR MAY OTHERWISE KNOW OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGES. IF ANY LIABILITY IS IMPOSED ON FOOTHILLS COMMUNICATIONS, ITS LICENSORS OR SUPPLIERS, FOOTHILLS COMMUNICATION’S AND ITS LICENSORS OR SUPPLIERS TOTAL LIABILITY TO YOU OR ANY THIRD PARTY SHALL NOT EXCEED THE AMOUNT YOU PAID FOR THE SERVICE. Some jurisdictions prohibit exclusion or limitation of liability for implied warranties or consequential or incidental damages, so the above limitation may not apply to you. You may also have other legal rights that vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction.

Assignment

You may not assign this Agreement to any other party. Foothills Communications may assign this Agreement to any future, directly or indirectly, affiliated company. Foothills Communications may also assign or delegate certain of its rights and responsibilities under this Agreement to independent contractors or other third parties.

General

This Agreement constitutes the entire agreement and supersedes any prior agreements or understandings, oral or written, between Foothills Communications and you concerning the Service. Failure or delay in enforcing any right or provision of this agreement shall not be deemed a waiver of such provision or right with respect to any subsequent breach or a continuance of an existing breach. If any provision of this Agreement shall be held to be unenforceable that provision will be enforced to the maximum extent possible, and the remaining provisions of this Agreement will remain in full force and effect.

By accessing or using the Service, you agree to be bound by the terms and conditions herein. If you do not accept the terms and conditions of this Agreement, you may not access or use the Service. Foothills Communications may modify this Agreement from time to time, and such modifications shall be effective immediately upon posting of the modified Agreement. By continuing to access or use the Service following such modifications, you agree to be bound by the modified Agreement.

Red Flag Rules Compliance Statement

In compliance with the Federal Communications Commission’s Substantive Rules 16 C.F.R. §681.2(b)(5), Foothills Communications is providing this notice to advise you of your rights concerning identity theft and Red Flag Rules. Foothills Communications has developed and implemented a written Identity Theft Prevention Program to detect, prevent, and mitigate identity theft in connection with the opening of certain accounts or certain existing accounts. The Foothills Communications program addresses methods of identifying, detecting, and preventing Red Flags. Foothills Communications makes every effort to detect Red Flags, such as by obtaining identifying information about and verifying the identity of a person opening an account. Foothills Communications also authenticates customers, monitors transactions and verifies the validity of change of address requests. In order to prevent Identity Theft, Foothills Communications will not open a new account and will close an existing account, and notify law enforcement if Red Flags are detected.

Privacy Policy Regarding the Collection and Use of Customer’s Social Security Number

1. How your social security number is collected.

We obtain your social security number when you apply for service. Additionally, we may obtain a social security number at the time of processing Capital Credits.

2. How your social security number is used.

Your social security number is obtained because we will be extending credit to you by billing you after the services have been provided to you.

3. How do we protect your social security number?

We are sensitive to your concerns that your social security number might fall into the wrong hands, which could result in identity theft or general access to your personal information by unauthorized persons.

Your Application for service, and any other documents containing your social security number, are filed in a secure location to which only authorized personnel have access. Personnel who receive your Application have strict instructions to immediately transport such documents to the secure area and to not permit such documents to remain on desks, in baskets or elsewhere in public work areas where they could be seen by unauthorized individuals. Personnel are prohibited from copying or in any way duplicating documents containing your social security number except duplication for an authorized purpose.

Your social security number does not appear in electronic form accessible on our network by any individuals not authorized to have access to your social security numbers. Firewalls, passwords and other safeguards have been installed in our network to restrict access to your social security number to those employees so authorized. Employees authorized to have access to your social security numbers are prohibited from saving your social security number, in any fashion, on a the hard drive of any laptop or other stand alone computer not saving data on our network.

We will not include your social security number on any documents, such as monthly statements, for which it serves no purpose. We need your social security number on file for the purposes stated but will not use it unnecessarily so as to limit the opportunity for it to be inadvertently disseminated.

All employees who will come in contact with your social security number are provided initial training before they are permitted to handle any document containing social security numbers and will be reminded, through periodical updated training, of the importance of protecting the privacy of social security numbers and our policies which have been designed to insure such protection, asserting the need to safeguard customers’ social security numbers. Before discarding any customer records, employees are to shred any portion of the records which contain a customer’s social security number.

4. Who can access your social security number?

Authorized employees will have access to documents containing your social security number.

If your account is turned over for collection purposes and the attorney/collection agency requests your social security number to assist in collection proceedings, we will provide your number to them as our agent.

If we receive a subpoena or Court order compelling us to turn your records over to a law enforcement agency or investigator or to a party in connection with a legal proceeding, then we will release them, including your social security number, as required by law. If the subpoena is issued in a civil matter, you should have the opportunity to seek a protective order or to quash the subpoena to protect the confidentiality of your information.

5. How will we eventually dispose of your social security number?

Even after you terminate service and pay all amounts owed to us on your account, we will retain your records in accordance with our record retention policy and this privacy policy. We may need your information for processing Capital Credits and will need to retain this information for a number of years. If we elect to destroy your records in accordance with our policy, the records containing your social security number will be shredded and any electronic records containing your social security number will be permanently deleted.

Broadband Internet Service – Privacy Policy

Foothills Rural Telephone Cooperative (“Foothills” or “Company”) is committed to protecting its Broadband Internet service customers’ privacy. Users should review this privacy policy to better understand Foothills’s views and practices, and how they pertain to them as customers of Foothill’s web service.

What types of information does Foothills collect?

Foothills may collect two types of information: personal information and non-personal information. “Personal information” refers to information that is particular to you, such as, your name, address, phone number, fax number, and e-mail address. “Non-personal information” refers to information that does not by itself identify a specific individual. This information may include Foothills’s website Uniform Resource Locator (“URL”) that you just came from, what browser you are using and your Internet Protocol (“IP”) address.

How do we collect information from you?

In general, Foothills does not collect personal information on this site without your knowledge and active participation. You may visit our site without divulging any personal information; however, there are areas of this site that might require personal information in order to contactFoothills directly, specifically, when registering e-mails, obtaining remote access, and contacting online technical support.

Information is collected on this site in the following ways:

· Browsing our site

Foothills may collect IP addresses for the purposes of system administration, to gather broad demographic information, and to monitor the level of activity on our site. Foothills may collect information from visitors to our site regarding the referring URL, your IP address, which browser you used to come to our site, and the pages of our site that you viewed during your visit and any search terms entered on our site.

· Cookies

“Cookies” are small pieces of information that are stored by your browser on your computer hard drive. Our cookies do not contain any personally identifying information. Your web browser may allow you to be notified when you are receiving a cookie, giving you the choice to accept it or not. While you can still navigate through our site if you do not accept cookies, you may not be able to register for e-mails or obtain remote access from Foothills.

· E-mail

As noted above, on Foothills’s website, you are given the opportunity to send e-mail to us.Foothills retains the information in any e-mail that you send to us, such as your name, e-mail address, address, telephone number, etc. Foothills may periodically send you e-mails or other company information. Foothills will not send you e-mails if you have previously requested us not to do so and/or have not registered to receive them.

Foothills reserves the right to access broadband traffic from individual accounts for the purposes of general maintenance and management of the network, as well as upon request by law enforcement officials.

How is your personal information used?

Foothills uses your information in connection with delivering its products and services to you. More importantly, Foothills wants to deliver a compelling online experience that will keep customers coming back to visit the service again and again. Foothills uses the information supplied to it as a means to personalize portions of the service. Some of these personalized services are made available directly by Foothills, while others may be offered by its content partners. In addition, Foothills analyzes and evaluates customer preferences, comments, and criticisms of its offerings in order to make improvements to the present and future versions of the service.

Foothills uses the personal information it collects to provide you with information or samples that you have requested. In addition, we use the non-personal information we collect to provide you with a better site experience in the future. Foothills does not rent, sell or trade your private information to any non-affiliated third party.

Who is collecting your information?

While you are on Foothills’s website, the Company may collect non-personal and e-mail information. In addition, we will provide links in Foothills’s website to third party websites.Foothills is not responsible for the third party websites. Foothills urges you to review carefully the privacy policies posted on these sites. Foothills cannot guarantee the accuracy of the information found on these sites. Please be aware that Foothills does not control, nor are we responsible for, the privacy policies of third parties or their company websites. This Privacy Statement applies only to Foothills and the information we collect on our site.

With whom do we share your information?

As described above, some of your information may be shared with third parties as a result of your navigation to the third party web site. In addition and with your prior authorization, we may, in the future, need to share certain personal or non-personal information with our affiliated companies with whom we have established business relationships.

Foothills will never willfully disclose individually identifiable information about its customers to a third party without first receiving that customer’s permission unless Foothills believes in good faith that the law requires it, or to protect the rights or property of Foothills.

How does Foothills protect your personal information?

Foothills takes reasonable precautions to protect your personal information against unauthorized access by storing the information on a secure server, which is accessible only by authorized personnel.

Unfortunately, no data transmission over the Internet can be guaranteed to be 100% secure and we will not be held liable should a third party illegally obtain your personal information. While we have made significant efforts to protect your personal information, we cannot ensure or warrant the security of any information you transmit to us, and you do so at your own risk.

Foothills takes special care to protect the safety and privacy of young people using its services. The Foothills site does not knowingly collect information about children and the majority of its site is not specifically directed to children. Foothills believes that children should get their parents’ consent before giving out any personal information. Foothills encourages parents and legal guardians to participate in their child’s experience on its website. Children should always ask a parent for permission before sending personal information to Foothills, or to anyone on the Internet.

How do you provide consent?

By using Foothills’s website, you agree with our Privacy Statement and our policies and procedures contained herein regarding the collection and sharing of your information.

How often are changes made to the Privacy Statement and how will you learn of the changes?

Foothills reserves the right to change, modify or update this Privacy Statement at any time without notice. In the event of any modification, we will post the changes in this Privacy Statement so that you will always know what information we are gathering and how we might use that information. However if such changes are material, we will either announce the change on the home page of the site or take such other action as we deem appropriate under the circumstances. Accordingly, you should periodically visit this page to determine the current Privacy Statement to which you are bound.

Foothills Communications (“Foothills”) has adopted this Acceptable Use Policy (“AUP”) to outline the acceptable use of Foothills’ Broadband Internet service (“Broadband Service”). This AUP is in addition to any restrictions contained in the Foothills Agreement for Residential Broadband Services (the “Subscriber Agreement”) available at www.foothills.net. Please refer to the Frequently Asked Questions (“FAQs”) at www.foothills.net which includes explanations of how Foothills implements and applies many of the provisions contained in this AUP.All capitalized terms used in this AUP that are not defined here have the meanings given to them in the Subscriber Agreement. You, the customer, must comply with this AUP. Your failure to do so could result in the suspension or termination of your Broadband Service account. If you do not agree to comply with this AUP, you must immediately stop all use ofthe Broadband Service and notify Foothills so that it can close your account. Foothills may revise this AUP from time to time by posting a new version on the Web site at www.foothills.net (the “Foothills website”). Foothills will use reasonable efforts to make customers aware of any changes to this AUP, which may include sending e-mail announcements or posting information on the Foothills website. Revised versions of this AUP are effective immediately upon posting. Accordingly, customers of the Foothills Communications Internet Broadband Service should read any Foothills announcements they receive and regularly visit the Foothills web site and review this AUP to ensure that their activities conform to the most recent version. If you have questions regarding this AUP, or to report violations of it, you can contact Foothills at ww.foothills.net. To report illegal content on the Internet go to www.ftc.gov.

I. Prohibited Uses and Activities

In general, this AUP prohibits uses and activities involving the Broadband Service that are illegal, infringe the rights of others, or interfere with or diminish the use and enjoyment of the Broadband Service by others.

A. Network and Usage Restrictions

No user of the Broadband Service, Customer Equipment, or Foothills Equipment may, individually or in combination with another:

  1. restrict, inhibit, or otherwise interfere with the ability of any other person, regardless of intent, purpose or knowledge, to use or enjoy the Broadband Service (except for safety and security functions such as parental controls, for example), including, without limitation, posting or transmitting any information or software which contains a worm, virus, or other harmful feature, or generating levels of traffic sufficient to impede others’ ability to use, send, or retrieve information;
  2. restrict, inhibit, interfere with, or otherwise disrupt performance of the Broadband Service or cause a performance degradation regardless of intent, purpose or knowledge, to the Broadband Service or any Foothills (or Foothills supplier) host, server, backbone network, node or service, or otherwise cause a performance degradation to any Foothills (or Foothills supplier) facilities used to deliver the Broadband Service;
  3. resell the Broadband Service or otherwise make available to anyone outside the Premises the ability to use the Broadband Service (for example, through wi-fi or other methods of networking), in whole or in part, directly or indirectly. The Broadband Service is for personal and non-commercial residential use only and you agree not to use the Broadband Service for operation as an Internet service provider or for any business enterprise or purpose (whether or not for profit);
  4. connect the Foothills Equipment to any computer outside of your Premises;
  5. interfere with computer networking or telecommunications service to any user, host or network, including, without limitation, denial of service attacks, flooding of a network, overloading a service, improper seizing and abusing operator privileges, and attempts to “crash” a host; and
  6. accessing and using the Broadband Service with anything other than a dynamic Internet Protocol (“IP”) address that adheres to the dynamic host configuration protocol (“DHCP”). You may not configure the Broadband Service or any related equipment to access or use a static IP address or use any protocol other than DHCP unless you are subject to a Broadband Service plan that expressly permits you to do so.

B. Conduct and Information Restrictions

No user of the Broadband Service, Customer Equipment, or Foothills’ Equipment may, individually or in combination with another:

  1. avoid incurring charges for or otherwise being required to pay for usage of the Broadband Service;
  2. invade another person’s privacy, stalk, harass, or otherwise violate the rights of other persons;
  3. undertake or accomplish any unlawful purpose. This includes, but is not limited to, posting, storing, transmitting or disseminating information, data or material which is libelous, obscene, unlawful, threatening or defamatory, or which infringes the intellectual property rights of any person or entity, or which in any way constitutes or encourages conduct that would constitute a criminal offense, or otherwise violate any local, state, federal, or non-U.S. law, order, or regulation;
  4. post, store, send, transmit, or disseminate any information or material which a reasonable person could deem to be unlawful;
  5. upload, post, publish, transmit, reproduce, create derivative works of, or distribute in any way information, software or other material obtained through the Broadband Service or otherwise that is protected by copyright or other proprietary right, without obtaining any required permission of the owner;
  6. collect, or attempt to collect, personal information about third parties without their consent;
  7. transmit unsolicited bulk or commercial messages commonly known as “spam;”
  8. send voluminous copies of the same or substantially similar messages, empty messages, or messages which contain no substantive content, or send very large messages or files that disrupts a server, account, blog, newsgroup, chat, or similar service;
  9. initiate, perpetuate, or in any way participate in any pyramid or other illegal scheme;
  10. participate in the collection of voluminous amounts of e-mail addresses, screen names, or other identifiers of others (without their prior consent), a practice sometimes known as spidering or harvesting, or participate in the use of software (including “spyware”) designed to facilitate this activity;
  11. collect responses from unsolicited bulk messages;
  12. falsify, alter, or remove message headers;
  13. falsify references to Foothills or its network, by name or other identifier, in messages;
  14. impersonate any person or entity, engage in sender address falsification, forge anyone else’s digital or manual signature, or perform any other similar fraudulent activity (for example, “phishing”);
  15. violate the rules, regulations, terms of service, or policies applicable to any network, server, computer database, service, application, system, or Web site that you access or use.

C. Technical Restrictions

No user of the Broadband Service, Customer Equipment, or the Foothills Equipment may, individually or in combination with another:

  1. use the Internet service or facilities for web-hosting, e-mail hosting, or other unusually high-bandwidth consumption unless you have made special subscription arrangements with Foothills and the usage does not otherwise violate law or regulation;
  2. access any other person’s computer or computer system, network, software, or data without his or her knowledge and consent; breach the security of another user or system; or attempt to circumvent the user authentication or security of any host, network, or account. This includes, but is not limited to, accessing data not intended for you, logging into or making use of a server or account you are not expressly authorized to access, or probing the security of other hosts, networks, or accounts without express permission to do so;
  3. use or distribute tools or devices designed or used for compromising security or whose use is otherwise unauthorized, such as password guessing programs, decoders, password gatherers, keystroke loggers, analyzers, cracking tools, packet sniffers, encryption circumvention devices, or Trojan Horse programs. Unauthorized port scanning is strictly prohibited;
  4. copy, distribute, or sublicense any proprietary software provided in connection with the Broadband Service by Foothills or any third party, except that you may make one copy of each software program for back-up purposes only;
  5. distribute programs that make unauthorized changes to software (cracks);
  6. use or run dedicated, stand-alone equipment or servers from the Premises that provide network content or any other services to anyone outside of your Premises local area network (“Premises LAN”), also commonly referred to as public services or servers. Examples of prohibited equipment and servers include, but are not limited to, e-mail, Web hosting, file sharing, and proxy services and servers;
  7. use or run programs from the Premises that provide network content or any other services to anyone outside of your Premises LAN, except for personal and non-commercial residential use;
  8. service, alter, modify, or tamper with Foothills Equipment or Broadband Service or permit any other person to do the same who is not authorized by Foothills.

II. Customer Conduct and Features of the Broadband Service

A. Customer Obligations

In addition to being responsible for your own compliance with this AUP, you are also responsible for any use or misuse of the Broadband Service that violates this AUP, even if it was committed by a friend, family member, or guest with access to your Broadband Service account. Therefore, you must take steps to ensure that others do not use your account to gain unauthorized access to the Broadband Service by, for example, strictly maintaining the confidentiality of your Broadband Service login and password. In all cases, you are solely responsible for the security of any device you choose to connect to the Broadband Service, including any data stored or shared on that device. It is also your responsibility to secure the Customer Equipment and any other Premises equipment or programs not provided by Foothills that connect to the Broadband Service from external threats such as viruses, spam, bot nets, and other methods of intrusion.

B. Foothills’ Rights

Foothills reserves the right to refuse to transmit or post, and to remove or block, any information or materials, in whole or in part, that it, in its sole discretion, deems to be in violation of Sections I or II of this AUP, or otherwise harmful to Foothills’ network or customers using the Broadband Service, regardless of whether this material or its dissemination is lawful so long as it violates this AUP. Neither Foothills nor any of its affiliates, suppliers, or agents have any obligation to monitor transmissions or postings (including, but not limited to, e-mail, file transfer, blog, newsgroup, and instant message transmissions) made on the Broadband Service. However, Foothills and its affiliates, suppliers, and agents have the right to monitor these transmissions and postings from time to time for violations of this AUP and to disclose, block, or remove them in accordance with this AUP, the Subscriber Agreement, and applicable law.

C. Service Restrictions

All of Foothills’ network and system services are provided according to scheduled fees for each type of service. You agree to use such services in accordance with the terms set forth below. 1. Email and Web-Hosting Services (i) Unsolicited Email Prohibited – You may not use Foothills-hosted email addresses for the purpose of sending unsolicited email. You may not use or cause to be used Foothills’ equipment, network connectivity, or other resources to originate, deliver, relay or otherwise transmit unsolicited email messages. You may not engage in any of the foregoing prohibited activities by using the service of any other provider, third-party agent, re-mailing service or address forwarding service, in such a way that Foothills’ network addresses or Foothills-hosted web or email services are in any way identified as being associated with the sending of unsolicited email. (ii) Unauthorized use, or forging, of mail header information (e.g. “spoofing”) is prohibited. (iii) Fraudulent Activity Prohibited – You may not use the Foothills email and web-hosting services to make fraudulent offers to sell or buy products, items, services, or to advance any type of financial scam such as “pyramid schemes”, “Ponzi schemes”, or “chain letters.” You may not use techniques to hide or obscure the source of any e-mail or other communications. (iv) Foothills reserves the right to suspend or delay delivery of email to Customer utilizing Foothills email services and/or the virtual domain email if the volume of email being redirected, stored, or delivered on the Customer’s behalf is deemed excessive. Excessive traffic is defined as any amount of email that consumes more than 10MB of disk storage space per individual mailbox or any volume of email traffic that noticeably degrades performance on the server in question, in the sole discretion of Foothills. Stored mail exceeding these limits may be transferred to a compressed file at Foothills’ discretion.

Foothills will attempt to notify the account holder via the account contact information on record; however, Foothills reserves the right to delete the contents of such email boxes upon thirty (30) days after attempted notification. The Broadband Service may not be used to communicate or distribute e-mail or other forms of communications in violation of Section I of this AUP. As described below in Section III of this AUP. Foothills uses reasonable network management tools and techniques to protect customers from receiving spam and from sending spam (often without their knowledge over an infected computer). Foothills is not responsible for deleting or forwarding any e-mail sent to the wrong e-mail address by you or by someone else trying to send e-mail to you. Foothills is also not responsible for forwarding e-mail sent to any account that has been suspended or terminated. This e-mail will be returned to the sender, ignored, deleted, or stored temporarily at Foothills’ sole discretion.

In the event that Foothills believes in its sole discretion that any subscriber name, account name, or e-mail address (collectively, an “identifier”) on the Broadband Service may be used for, or is being used for, any misleading, fraudulent, or other improper or illegal purpose,Foothills (i) reserves the right to block access to and prevent the use of any of these identifiers and (ii) may at any time require any customer to change his or her identifier. In addition, Foothills may at any time reserve any identifiers on the Broadband Service forFoothills’ own purposes. In the event that a Broadband Service account is terminated for any reason, all e-mail associated with that account (and any secondary accounts) will be permanently deleted as well. 2. Instant, Video, and Audio Messages Each user is responsible for the contents of his or her instant, video, and audio messages and the consequences of any of these messages. Foothills assumes no responsibility for the timeliness, misdelivery, deletion, or failure to store these messages. In the event that a Broadband Service account is terminated for any reason, all instant, video, and audio messages associated with that account (and any secondary accounts) will be permanently deleted as well. 3. Personal Web Pages and File Storage As part of the Broadband Service, Foothills provides access to personal Web pages and storage space through the Personal Web Pages and Online Storage features (collectively, the “Personal Web Features”). You are solely responsible for any information that you or others publish or store on the Personal Web Features. You are also responsible for ensuring that all content made available through the Personal Web Features is appropriate for those who may have access to it. For example, you must take appropriate precautions to prevent minors from receiving or accessing inappropriate content. Foothills reserves the right to remove, block, or refuse to post or store any information or materials, in whole or in part, that it, in its sole discretion, deems to be in violation of Section I of this AUP. For purposes of this AUP, “material” refers to all forms of communications including text, graphics (including photographs, illustrations, images, drawings, logos), executable programs and scripts, video recordings, and audio recordings.

Foothills may remove or block content contained on your Personal Web Features and terminate your Personal Web Features and/or your use of the Broadband Service if we determine that you have violated the terms of this AUP. III. Network Management and Limitations on Data Consumption Foothills manages its network with the goal of delivering a fast, safe and uncompromised broadband Internet experience to all of its customers. But, high-speed bandwidth and network resources are not unlimited. Managing the network is essential for the promotion of best possible Broadband Internet experience by all of Foothills’ customers.

The company uses reasonable network management practices that are consistent with industry standards. Foothills tries to use tools and technologies that are minimally intrusive and, in its independent judgment guided by industry experience, among the best in class. Of course, the company’s network management practices will change and evolve along with the uses of the Internet and the challenges and threats on the Internet. All broadband Internet service providers manage their networks. Many of them use the same or similar tools thatFoothills does. If the company didn’t manage its network, its customers would be subject to the negative effects of spam, viruses, security attacks, network congestion, and other risks and degradations of service. By engaging in responsible network management including enforcement of this AUP, Foothills can deliver the best possible broadband Internet experience to all of its customers. Visit Foothills’ website at https://www.foothills.net for more information.

III. Network Management

Foothills uses various tools and techniques to manage its network, deliver the Broadband Service, and ensure compliance with this AUP and the Subscriber Agreement. These tools and techniques are dynamic, like the network and its usage, and can and do change frequently. Foothills’ network management practices may include (i) identifying spam and preventing its delivery to customer e-mail accounts, (ii) detecting malicious Internet traffic and preventing the distribution of viruses or other harmful code or content, (iii) temporarily lowering the priority of traffic for users who are the top contributors to current network congestion, and (iv) using other tools and techniques that Foothills may be required to implement in order to meet its goal of delivering the best possible broadband Internet experience to all of its customers.

A. Network Usage and Data Consumption Restrictions

You acknowledge that all of the Foothills Internet services are intended for periodic, active use of email, user newsgroups, transfers via FTP, Internet chat, Internet games, and browsing of the Internet. You must comply with all current bandwidth, data storage, and other limitations on Foothills’ Internet Services established by Foothills and Foothills suppliers. You agree not to intentionally use Foothills’ Internet Services on a standby or inactive basis in order to maintain a connection. The excessive use or abuse of Foothills’ network resources by one Customer may have a negative impact on all other Customers. Accordingly, you may not use Foothills’ Internet Service or take any action, directly or indirectly, that will result in excessive consumption or utilization of the system or network resources, or which may weaken network performance, as determined by Foothills’ sole discretion.

Such prohibited actions include, but are not limited to: using Foothills’ Internet Service to host a web server site which attracts excessive traffic at your location, continuously uploading or downloading streaming video or audio, use net hosting, continuous FTP uploading or downloading, or acting in a manner that negatively effects other users’ ability to engage in real time exchanges and use of Foothills’ Internet Service. The broadband service is for personal and non-commercial residential use only. Therefore, Foothills reserves the right to suspend or terminate broadband service accounts where data consumption is not characteristic of a typical residential user of the broadband service as determined by Foothills in its sole discretion. Common activities that may cause excessive data consumption in violation of this AUP include, but are not limited to, numerous or continuous bulk transfers of files and other high capacity traffic using (i) file transfer protocol (“FTP”), and (ii) newsgroups. You must also ensure that your use of the Broadband Service does not restrict, inhibit, interfere with, or degrade any other person’s use of the Broadband Service, nor represent (as determined by Foothills in its sole discretion) an overly large burden on the network. In addition, you must ensure that your use of the Broadband Service does not limit or interfere with Foothills’ ability to deliver and monitor the broadband service or any part of its network. If you use the broadband service in violation of the restrictions referenced above, that is a violation of this AUP. In these cases, Foothills may, in its sole discretion, suspend or terminate your broadband service account or request that you subscribe to a version of broadband service (such as a commercial grade Internet service, if appropriate) if you wish to continue to use the broadband service at higher data consumption levels.

Foothills may also provide versions of the Broadband Service with different speed and data consumption limitations, among other characteristics, subject to applicable broadband service plans. Foothills’ determination of the data consumption for broadband service accounts is final.

IV. Violation of AUP

Foothills reserves the right to immediately suspend or terminate your broadband service account and terminate the Subscriber Agreement if you violate the terms of this AUP or the Subscriber Agreement. Foothills does not routinely monitor the activity of individual broadband service accounts for violations of this AUP, except for determining aggregate data consumption in connection with the data consumption provisions of this AUP. However, in the company’s efforts to promote good citizenship within the Internet community, it will respond appropriately if it becomes aware of inappropriate use of the broadband service. Foothills has no obligation to monitor the broadband service and/or the network. However, Foothills and its suppliers reserve the right at any time to monitor bandwidth, usage, transmissions, and content in order to, among other things, operate the broadband service; identify violations of this AUP; and/or protect the network, the broadband service and Foothills users. Foothills prefers to inform customers of inappropriate activities and give them a reasonable period of time in which to take corrective action. Foothills also prefers to have customers directly resolve any disputes or disagreements they may have with others, whether customers or not, without Foothills’ intervention.

However, if the broadband service is used in a way that Foothills or its suppliers, in their sole discretion, believe violates this AUP, Foothills or its suppliers may take any responsive actions they deem appropriate under the circumstances with or without notice. These actions include, but are not limited to, temporary or permanent removal of content, cancellation of newsgroup posts, filtering of Internet transmissions, and the immediate suspension or termination of all or any portion of the broadband service (including but not limited to newsgroups). Neither Foothills nor its affiliates, suppliers, nor agents will have any liability for any of these responsive actions. These actions are not Foothills’ exclusive remedies and Foothills may take any other legal or technical actions it deems appropriate with or without notice. Foothills reserves the right to investigate suspected violations of this AUP, including the gathering of information from the user or users involved and the complaining party, if any, and examination of material on Foothills’ servers and network. During an investigation, Foothills may suspend the account or accounts involved and/or remove or block material that potentially violates this AUP.

You expressly authorize and consent to Foothills and its suppliers cooperating with (i) law enforcement authorities in the investigation of suspected legal violations, and (ii) and system administrators at other Internet service providers or other network or computing facilities in order to enforce this AUP. Upon termination of your broadband service account, Foothills is authorized to delete any files, programs, data, e-mail and other messages associated with your account (and any secondary accounts). The failure of Foothills or its suppliers to enforce this AUP, for whatever reason, shall not be construed as a waiver of any right to do so at any time. You agree that if any portion of this AUP is held invalid or unenforceable, that portion will be construed consistent with applicable law as nearly as possible, and the remaining portions will remain in full force and effect. You agree to indemnify, defend and hold harmless Foothills and its affiliates, suppliers, and agents against all claims and expenses (including reasonable attorney fees) resulting from any violation of this AUP. Your indemnification will survive any termination of the Subscriber Agreement.

Privacy Policy: Protecting Your Information

Foothills Communications is committed to respecting and protecting the privacy of our customers. As discussed below, we have strict policies governing access by employees and others to customer communications and information. We access customer accounts, records or reports for authorized business purposes only. We educate our employees about their obligation to safeguard customer information and communications, and we hold them accountable for their actions. In short, privacy is a priority for Foothills Communications in all aspects of our business.

This Customer Privacy Policy is divided into four sections:

  1. Section I describes several general principles that express Foothills Communications commitment to assuring strong and meaningful customer privacy protection.
  2. Section II describes, more specifically, how Foothills Communications protects the confidentiality of Customer Proprietary Network Information (CPNI).
  3. Section III describes Foothills Communications “Do Not Call” practices, which are designed to protect our customers from unwanted telemarketing.
  4. Finally, Section IV provides our contact information should you have any questions about this policy or Foothills Communications privacy practices more generally.

PRIVACY POLICY

Download a PDF of the Privacy Policy or read it below:

Section I – GENERAL PRIVACY PRINCIPLES

The following principles express Foothills Communications commitment to assuring strong and meaningful customer privacy protection, and are intended to guide Foothills Communications efforts to balance customer privacy with customer interest in receiving quality services. These principles apply to our use of “individual” customer information – that is, information about specific customers. “Individual” customer information includes “personal information” – information particular to you, including your address, phone number, fax number and email address – and “non-personal information” that may include information such as your network traffic data, services and features used or call record details. These policies are fully consistent with applicable laws and regulations governing privacy, including the regulations of the Federal Communications Commission (“FCC”). Individual customer information is distinct from “aggregated” customer information, which does not reveal a customer’s identity. Further, the examples provided below are intended to be illustrative, not all-inclusive.

1. Foothills Communications obtains and uses individual customer information for business purposes only.

Foothills Communications obtains and uses customer information that helps us to provide our customers with quality telecommunications services. In addition to supporting the direct provision of service, this information may be used to protect customers, employees and property against fraud, theft or abuse; to conduct industry or consumer surveys; and to maintain good customer relations. Access to databases containing customer information is limited to employees who need that information to perform their jobs. These employees are required to follow strict rules when handling customer information, and are subject to disciplinary action if they fail to do so.

In order to better serve our customers, we may ask them questions to elicit additional information about their special needs and interests. For example, we may ask whether customers work at home, whether any members of the household have special needs, or whether teenagers reside in the household in order to determine whether customers may be interested in or might benefit from additional lines or services. In all cases, the information we gather is used to facilitate the provision of quality customer service. We do not share this information with third parties to market non-Foothills Communications services to our customers.

2. Foothills Communications collects information from customers in a number of different ways.

Foothills Communications may collect information from you through communications such as via the web, or by phone, email or mail delivery, or through the services provided to you as the customer.

You may visit our site without divulging any personal information; however, there are areas of this site that might require personal information in order to contact Foothills Communications directly, specifically, when registering e-mails, obtaining remote access, and contacting online technical support.

Information may also be collected in the following ways:

Browsing Our Site

    • IP addresses may be collected for the purposes of system administration, to gather broad demographic information, and to monitor the level of activity on our site.
    • Information may be collected regarding the referring URL, which browser you used to come to our site, and the pages of our site that you viewed during your visit and any search terms entered on our site.
    • E-mails may be sent by the customer to Foothills Communications on this website. Foothills Communications may retain the information in any e-mail that you send to us, such as your name, e-mail, address, or telephone number.

Broadband Internet Service

    • Foothills Communications may monitor the network and take measurements of network performance and the performance of your Internet connection to improve the customer’s, or Foothills Communications, overall service levels.
    • During communications with Foothills Communications for service support, we may also access information about your customer premise equipment such as computers and wireless modem devices or other device settings to provide customized technical support or to install specific applications or services for your use.
    • Foothills Communications reserves the right to access broadband traffic from individual accounts for the purposes of general maintenance and management of the network, as well as upon request by law enforcement officials.

Provision of Information by Third Parties

    • Foothills Communications may obtain credit information about you from third parties when you purchase products or services from Foothills Communications.

3. Foothills Communications informs customers how information Foothills Communications obtains about them is used, as well as their options regarding its use.

Foothills Communications uses customer information in a transparent fashion, and discloses to customers the types of information Foothills Communications obtains about them how and when that information is used, when that information might be disclosed, the stringent measures we employ to protect that information, and ways that customers can restrict the use or disclosure of that information. This Privacy Policy is available on our website at https://www.foothills.net and from Foothills Communications service representatives.

4. Foothills Communications gives customers opportunities to control access by others to customer information and how Foothills Communications uses individual information about them.

Foothills Communications is committed to providing customers with opportunities to control how Foothills Communications uses customer information about them. For example, customers may inform us of which telephone listings they want to include in our directories and in directory assistance and may also choose to have a non-published number, or a non-listed number, or to exclude your address from your listing. Customers in areas where Caller ID services are available have the ability to block the display of their phone numbers and names. (Note that Caller ID blocking does not prevent the transmission of your phone number when you dial certain business numbers, including 911, or 800, 888, 877, and 900 numbers.) Further, customers can express a preference not to be called for marketing purposes (please see Section III, below, for more information on Foothills Communications “Do Not Call” policy). Customers may also opt out of our direct mailings and other service marketing programs. (Please see Section II, below, for information on Foothills Communications policy on the use of “Customer Proprietary Network Information”). A customer may indicate a change in such preferences at any time by contacting Foothills Communications customer service.

We do use individual customer information internally for planning purposes – so that we can, for example, develop, test and market new products and services that meet the needs of our customers. Ordinarily, such information is combined into aggregations that do not include individual customer identities. Under certain circumstances, we are required by law to disclose the aggregated information to other companies, but in such cases customer identities are not included.

5. Foothills Communications enables customers to control how Foothills Communications discloses individual information about them to other persons or entities, except as required by law or to protect the safety of customers, employees or property.

Ordinarily, Foothills Communications will only share individual customer information with persons or entities outside the company to assist us in the provision of services to which the customer subscribes. We do not use third-party marketers, nor do we share access to individual customer information derived from the provision of Foothills Communications telecommunications services with other companies interested in marketing other services to our customers – and we would not do so without the consent of the customer. Foothills Communications is committed to ensuring that customer information is not used without the knowledge and permission of our customers.

However, there are exceptions to our general practice. For example, unless you request otherwise, we may share certain personal or non-personal information with our affiliated companies with whom we have established business relationships. In addition, if Foothills Communications enters into a merger, acquisition, or sale of all or a portion of its assets, a customer’s personally identifiable information will, in most instances, be transferred as a part of the transaction, subject to required notices to affected customers. In addition, we may, where permitted by law, provide information to credit bureaus, or provide information and/or sell receivables to collection agencies, to obtain payment for Foothills Communications billed products and services. We are also required by law to provide billing name and address information to a customer’s long distance carrier and other telephone companies to allow them to bill for telecommunications services. (By law, customers with non-published or unlisted service have the right not to have their billing name and address disclosed when they make a calling card call or accept a collect or third party call. However, if they do restrict disclosure, they will be unable to make calling card calls or accept collect and third party calls.) Similarly, we are required to provide directory publishers with subscriber listing information – name, address and phone number, and for yellow page advertisers, primary advertising classification – for purposes of publishing and delivering directories. In addition, under certain circumstances, we may share customer information with other carriers or with law enforcement, for example, to prevent and investigate fraud or other unlawful use of communications services.

6. Foothills Communications strives to ensure that the information we obtain and use about customers is accurate.

Foothills Communications is committed to ensuring that the information we obtain and use about customers is accurate. To that end, we strive to verify that our customer records are correct. Customers who find an error in their Foothills Communications bills are encouraged to notify Foothills Communications. Foothills Communications service representatives are trained to answer customer questions about, and to give customers reasonable access to, the information we have about them. Our service representatives will also provide explanations of how such information is used and how to correct any inaccuracies if they occur.

In addition to reviewing their bills, customers can access their customer information by contacting Foothills Communications customer service. However, Foothills Communications will only provide customer information after properly authenticating the identity of the requesting “customer” in accordance with applicable law and industry best practices. In this way, Foothills Communications can maximize the ability of its customers to review their customer information for accuracy while minimizing the risk that this information falls into the wrong hands. Foothills Communications service representatives can explain how customers may be authenticated to obtain access to their own customer information.

7. All Foothills Communications employees are responsible for safeguarding individual customer communications and information.

Foothills Communications takes reasonable precautions to protect your personal information against unauthorized access. Foothills Communications requires its personnel to be aware of and protect the privacy of all forms of customer communications as well as individual customer records. Foothills Communications makes clear that employees who fail to comply with its privacy policies will face disciplinary action, which can include dismissal. All employees are trained regarding their responsibilities to safeguard customer privacy. We strive to ensure that information we have about our customers is accurate, secure and confidential, and to ensure that our employees comply with our privacy policy.

We never tamper with, intrude upon or disclose the existence or contents of any communication or transmission, except as required by law or the proper management of our network. Access to databases containing customer information is limited to employees who need it to perform their jobs – and they follow strict guidelines when handling that information. We use safeguards to increase data accuracy and to identify and authenticate the sources of customer information. We use locks and physical security measures, sign-on and password control procedures, and internal auditing techniques to protect against unauthorized use of terminals and entry into our data systems. Foothills Communications requires that records be safeguarded from loss, theft, unauthorized disclosure, and accidental destruction.

In addition, sensitive, confidential, or proprietary records are protected and maintained in a secure environment. It is our policy to destroy records containing sensitive, confidential, or proprietary information in a secure manner. Hard copy confidential, proprietary, or sensitive documents are made unreadable before disposition or recycling, and electronic media must be destroyed using methods that prevent access to information stored in that type of media. Just as employees would report stolen property, missing records and suspicious incidents involving records are referred to Foothills Communications Management. We encourage our employees to be proactive in implementing and enforcing Foothills Communications privacy policies. If employees become aware of practices that raise privacy or security concerns, they are required to report them to their supervisors.

Foothills Communications regulatory department is responsible for ensuring that all Foothills Communications business units and their employees comply with privacy laws and regulations. Foothills Communications also requires any consultants, suppliers and contractors that may come into contact with CPNI to observe these privacy rules with respect to any of our customers’ individual customer information. They must abide by these principles when conducting work for us, and they will be held accountable for their actions.

Foothills Communications also takes special care to protect the safety and privacy of young people using its services. Foothills Communications does not knowingly collect information about children. Foothills Communications believes that children should get their parents’ consent before giving out any personal information. Foothills Communications encourages parents and legal guardians to participate in their child’s experience using Foothills Communications services. Children should always ask a parent for permission before sending personal information to Foothills Communications.

While we have made significant efforts to protect your personal information, we cannot ensure or warrant the security of any information you transmit to us, and you do so at your own risk. Unfortunately, no data transmission over the Internet can be guaranteed to be 100% secure and we will not be held liable should a third party illegally obtain your personal information via Internet transmission.

8. Foothills Communications participates in and supports consumer, government and industry efforts to identify and resolve privacy issues.

We participate in legislative and regulatory proceedings, industry association efforts, consumer group efforts, and general business group activities relating to telecommunications privacy issues. Our Industry Affairs personnel are responsible for the coordination of Foothills Communications public policy participation.

9. Foothills Communications complies with all applicable privacy laws and regulations wherever Foothills Communications does business.

Customer and policymaker perceptions of privacy have changed over time and will continue to do so. Changes in technology can also alter what is appropriate in protecting privacy. Laws may change accordingly. We regularly examine – and update as necessary – Foothills Communications privacy policies and internal procedures to ensure compliance with applicable law and evolving technology. Foothills Communications also will monitor customer needs and expectations. Foothills Communications will work with policymakers and consumers to ensure that we continue to safeguard privacy, giving customers choices, flexibility and control. Foothills Communications considers privacy laws and regulations to be the minimum standards to which we will adhere in protecting privacy. In addition to complying with the law, Foothills Communications will adhere to its internal privacy policies and procedures wherever we do business.

10. Foothills Communications complies only with valid, properly issued, and legally enforceable third-party requests for access to customer information.

Foothills Communications may release customer information in response to requests from governmental agencies, including law enforcement and national security agencies, in accordance with federal statutory requirements or pursuant to court order. Before releasing any customer information, Foothills Communications will ensure that the underlying governmental request satisfies all procedural and substantive legal requirements and is otherwise proper. For example, Foothills Communications will ensure that any court orders are valid, properly issued, and legally enforceable. Except as required by law or with the approval of the customer, Foothills Communications will not release any customer information in response to subpoenas or similar requests issued by private parties. Further, Foothills Communications will be diligent in authenticating the validity of any “governmental” request to ensure that the request actually originates from an authorized government agency.

Section II – USE OF CUSTOMER PROPRIETARY NETWORK INFORMATION

Customers count on Foothills Communications to respect and protect the privacy of information we obtain in the normal course of providing telecommunications services to our customers. Foothills Communications is committed to protecting the privacy of all customer information, and in particular the privacy of customer proprietary network information (or CPNI).

1. Definition of “Customer Proprietary Network Information.”

The term “customer proprietary network information” is defined by federal statute to mean: (i) information that relates to the quantity, technical configuration, type, destination, location, and amount of use of a telecommunications service subscribed to by any customer of a telecommunications carrier, and that is made available to the carrier by the customer solely by virtue of the carrier-customer relationship; and (ii) information contained in the bills pertaining to telephone exchange service or telephone toll service received by a customer of a carrier.

2. Use of Customer Proprietary Network Information.

Under federal law, you have the right to, and we have the duty to protect, the confidentiality of your CPNI. However, we may use CPNI without your consent, in a manner consistent with applicable law, to: (i) initiate, render, bill, and collect for our services; (ii) market services among the categories of service to which you already subscribe; (iii) provide inside wiring installation, maintenance, and repair services; (iv) provide maintenance and technical support for our services; (v) protect our rights and property, and protect users of our services and other carriers from fraudulent, abusive, or unlawful use of, or subscription to, these services; and (vi) provide any inbound telemarketing, referral, or administrative services for the duration of a customer-initiated call.

Further, after providing you with the required notice and opportunity to “opt out,” we may use your CPNI, in a manner consistent with applicable law, to market additional communications-related services to you and conduct surveys in order to improve our service offerings.

Foothills Communications will not use your CPNI for purposes other than those described above unless we first obtain your express “opt in” consent. For example, without such consent we will not use CPNI to market services not provided by Foothills Communications, and will not share your CPNI with third parties (subject to the limitations discussed below).

3. Limits on the disclosure of CPNI outside Foothills Communications.

As a general rule, Foothills Communications does not use third-party marketers and will not disclose your CPNI to third party contractors without your explicit “opt in” consent. This means that our records of the services you buy and the calls you make generally will remain private if you choose to keep them so, since we will not ordinarily disclose this information to outside parties without your permission. However, we will release customer information without involving you if disclosure is required by law, or necessary to protect the safety of customers, employees or property. For example: When you dial 911, information about your location may be transmitted automatically to a public safety agency.

Certain information about your long distance calls may be transmitted to your long distance company for billing purposes. We are also required by law to give competitive local exchange carriers access to customer databases for purposes of serving their customers, to exchange credit information with other carriers, and to provide listings (other than certain non-published and non-listed information) to directory publishers.

We will disclose information as necessary to comply with law enforcement statutes, such as to comply with valid, properly issued, and legally-enforceable subpoenas, warrants and court orders.

We may, where permitted by law, share CPNI with third parties where necessary to provide the services to which you subscribe, to protect our rights or property, and to protect users of our services and other carriers from fraudulent, abusive or unlawful use of services.

We may, where permitted by law, provide CPNI to third parties such as credit bureaus, or sell receivables to collection agencies, to obtain payment for Foothills Communications billed products and services.

4. Authentication to prevent unauthorized access to CPNI.

Foothills Communications is committed to ensuring that only properly authorized individuals are able to access CPNI for legitimate purposes. This includes ensuring that any request by a “customer” to access CPNI is valid and properly authenticated, in accordance with applicable law and industry best practices. In general, our internal policies and procedures are designed to ensure that CPNI is not released to unauthorized individuals.

Further, if a “customer” calls us to access “call detail records” (which include the number called, the number from which a call was placed, and the time, location, or duration of any call), we will not release those records unless (i) during the call, the customer provides a pre-established password; (ii) the information is sent to the customer’s address of record; or (iii) after the call, we call the customer’s telephone number of record to provide the requested information. If a “customer” attempts to access CPNI through our website, we will only provide such access if the customer has first established a password and back-up authentication mechanism for the relevant account, in a manner that does not rely on readily-available biographical or account information. If a “customer” attempts to access CPNI by visiting a retail location in person, we will only provide such access if the “customer” presents valid photo identification matching the name of record on the account. (Note that different procedures may apply to certain business customers served by a dedicated account representative where the underlying service agreement addresses CPNI protection and authentication.) We also will notify you at your address of record if anyone changes the access authorization or authentication information associated with your account.

5. Notice of unauthorized access to CPNI.

As a company, we are vigilant in our efforts to protect your CPNI. However, should we become aware that your CPNI has been accessed without proper authority, we will take swift action to fully document and address such unauthorized access and provide appropriate notice. In particular, we will (i) notify law enforcement (including the United States Secret Service and the Federal Bureau of Investigation) within seven business days; and (ii) notify you and any other affected customers within seven business days thereafter, unless earlier notification is necessary to avoid immediate and irreparable harm, or we are instructed by law enforcement personnel to refrain from providing such notice.

Section III – Foothills Communications “DO NOT CALL” LIST

Any Foothills Communications customer can express a preference not to be called by us for marketing purposes, and Foothills Communications will respect such preference. A customer that does not wish to receive sales calls from Foothills Communications specifically may ask to be placed on our company-specific “Do Not Call” list. We will note the customer’s request immediately, although it may take up to 30 days for the customer’s telephone number to be removed from any active lists or sales programs that are currently underway.

Any customer can ask to be put on our “Do Not Call” list by contacting Foothills Communications customer service department. The requesting customer should provide, at a minimum, the telephone number that is the subject of the request, although inclusion of the customer’s name and address is also useful. If a customer is served by multiple telephone numbers, the customer should tell us all numbers that should be placed on the “Do Not Call” list.

A residential customer will remain on our “Do Not Call” list for five years, and a business customer will remain on our “Do Not Call” list for one year, unless the customer asks to be removed from the list by contacting our customer service department. If a customer’s telephone number ever changes, the customer must give us updated information in order for the “Do Not Call” status to remain in effect.

Notwithstanding the fact that a customer’s telephone number is on our “Do Not Call” list, we may still contact that customer with respect to surveys, billing, and other service-related matters. Further, the customer should understand that being on our “Do Not Call” list will not prevent calls from other companies unaffiliated with Foothills Communications.

Section IV – FURTHER INFORMATION

Foothills Communications reserves the right to change, modify or update this Privacy Policy at any time without notice. In the event of any modification, we will post the changes in this Privacy Policy so that you will always know what information we are gathering and how we might use that information. However if such changes are material, we will either announce the change on the home page of the site or take such other action as we deem appropriate under the circumstances. Accordingly, you should periodically visit this page to determine the current Privacy Policy to which you are bound.

If you have any questions or comments concerning this Customer Privacy Policy, or if you believe that the Company has not adhered to its privacy policy, please contact Foothills Communications customer service department. You may contact Foothills Communications via regular mail at:

Foothills Communications

1621 Kentucky Route 40 West
Staffordsville, KY 41256

Phone: 888-262-3782

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) changed the rules for companies like ours, effectively forcing us to add a new charge (an Access Recovery Charge or ARC) to everyone’s bill.

The FCC has changed the rules governing a long-standing federal program called Universal Service that aids rural telephone companies because it is more difficult and expensive to provide telephone service in rural areas (with lower population densities, bigger service areas and tougher terrains) than it is to connect urban areas like Lexington or Louisville with higher population densities, smaller service areas and relatively uniform geographies. Universal Service has made it possible for nearly all Americans to have access to comparable telephone service at reasonably affordable rates, no matter where they work or live.

The FCC, which oversees the Universal Service program, made changes to the program’s rules to provide more direct financial support for broadband deployment by moving funds away from residential voice telephone service and shifting the cost burden onto local telephone companies and their customers. We will experience severe financial repercussions if we do not institute the Access Recovery Charge.

Unfortunately, the FCC has significantly underestimated the impact that its reform measures will have on Foothills Communications, other rural communications companies, and the customers we serve. The FCC’s new rules mean that even with this rate increase we will have less money to maintain and upgrade our network, which down the road could leave our community with second-rate service or, in the worst case, no telephone service at all. Compromising our fixed, landline service has repercussions for broadband and wireless services, too. Often the only wireless portions of wireless communications are from your handset to the nearest cell tower or from a device to a modem/router providing WiFi service. Both the cell tower and the modem/router are ultimately connected to a wireline network to provide the bandwidth, speed and reliability you require.

We work very hard to connect you to the world at an affordable and competitive price. Over the years we have brought you high definition TV and high speed internet over fiber, while maintaining dependable, high quality telephone services. We’ll continue to fight each and every day to ensure you can access the information, communications and entertainment services you demand and that you have the most reliable experience possible.

If you have any questions about the Access Recovery Charge or the rules that are causing it, please call us at 606-297-3501, 349-6111 or 673-3193.

A growing number of telephone consumers in rural areas across Kentucky and many other states are reporting problems receiving long distance, wireless and intercompany phone calls.

These problems are very frustrating for residential and business consumers alike who may miss important calls from family, friends and business associates. Naturally, telephone consumers turn to their local telephone company for a resolution. However, these particular calling problems originate outside of Foothills Communications local telephone network, and therefore cannot be fixed by Foothills Communications.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has addressed concerns regarding these call completion issues and has a page on their website dedicated to educating consumers on them. On that webpage, the FCC is telling consumers to report these issues to the long distance or wireless carrier of the person placing the call.

For more information about call completion problems, visit the FCC’s website at the address shown below, or call the FCC at 1-888-225-5322:

http://www.fcc.gov/encyclopedia/problems-long-distance-or-wireless-calling-rural-areas

As a Foothills Communication’s customer, you can report your call completion problem to us by calling 297-3501, 349-6111 or 673-3193. Although we cannot fix the problem, we are collecting call information to report to the FCC on behalf of our customers. Please have the following information available when you call us:

  • The date and time the call was placed
  • The phone number the call was made from
  • The phone number the call was made to
  • The name of the caller’s long distance or wireless provider
  • Details about the problem that occurred on both ends of the call, such as: call did not go through, could not hear called party, Caller ID was incorrect, etc.

The Universal Service Fund (USF) is a federal program that was created by Congress over 80 years ago for the purpose of providing support to rural telephone companies so that residents in rural areas could have access to telephone service at reasonably affordable rates. At that time, the larger commercial companies chose to only serve the urban areas and cities because providing service in rural areas, like ours, is much more difficult and costly due to terrain, distances between homes, etc., which is why our customer owned cooperative was formed. This program has helped Foothills and companies like us to offer telephone service and broadband services at reasonably affordable rates no matter where our customers live by spreading the costs of connecting rural areas with non-rural areas over the networks of all telephone providers throughout America.

However, the FCC has recently changed the rules governing the USF program. This change shifts more of the cost of providing service onto rural telephone companies and their customers.

How does this affect you? For the first time, the federal government has set nationwide minimums for local rates. If our company does not meet the minimum price, the federal funding we rely on from USF to maintain service in our communities will be severely reduced. Since our residential local rate is well below the required minimum price, we are forced to increase our local rate over time until the rate floor has been reached.

The government introduced another fee in July 2012 – the Access Recovery Charge, or ARC – to help offset lost revenues we previously collected from large carriers, like AT&T and Verizon, for connecting calls from their networks. The ARC fee, initially set at $0.50, is expected to have annual increases of $0.50 per year until it reaches $3.00 for residential customers and twice that for business customers.

To offset some of the price increases and to add value to your service, we are now offering basic Caller ID and Three Way Calling at no charge. We’ve also reduced the price for Caller ID Name & Number, Caller ID on Call Waiting, and our MultiChoice Feature Package. In addition, cooperative members earn Capital Credit rewards on every dollar spent with us.

While we’re not thrilled with the recent USF changes, or the additional costs associated with it, we want you to know we are dedicated to providing services at the lowest possible prices that will ensure the cooperative continues to provide the best service with the best value.

On or around October 20th, Foothills Rural Telephone Cooperative Corp, Inc. will file with the KY Public Service Commission a change in basic local service rates charged to residential subscribers due to a Federal Communication Commission mandate. With this change, all residential subscribers will receive Call Waiting and Three Way Calling as part of your standard service. Residential local service rates for our members will be $18.

Customers who subscribe to these features will receive them at no additional cost. We anticipate that the average monthly residential increase will be 21-cents with some customers experiencing a rate reduction. The average residential subscriber will have a less than 1% increase in regulated local service. If approved by the PSC, the effective date of this rate change will be December 1, 2014.

The need to modify basic service rates is mandated by recent changes enacted by the Federal Communications Commission which set minimal local service rate levels as a condition of continued receipt of federal high cost support that allows us to deploy fiber optic facilities and support advanced voice and broadband services. Because this support is vital to the economic health of our community, we have no choice but to request this rate modification.

You may examine this application at the offices of Foothills Rural Telephone Cooperative Corp., Inc., located at 1621 KY Route 40 W, Staffordsville, KY 41256, during regular business hours or at the offices of the Kentucky Public Service Commission located at 211 Sower Boulevard, Frankfort, Kentucky, Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., or through the commission’s Web site at http://psc.ky.gov.

Comments regarding the application may be submitted to the Public Service Commission through its Website or by mail to Public Service Commission, Post Office Box 615, Frankfort, Kentucky 40602. Rates contained in this notice are the rates proposed by the Company but the Public Service Commission may order rates to be charged that differ from the proposed rates contained in this notice.

You may submit a timely written request for intervention to the Public Service Commission, Post Office Box 615, Frankfort, Kentucky 40602, establishing the grounds for the request including the status and interest of the party. If the Commission does not receive a written request for intervention within thirty (30) days of initial publication or mailing of this notice, the Commission may take final action on the application.

There are two ways to qualify for the Lifeline Program.

One: Income-Based Eligibility

If your household’s income is at or below 135 percent of the federal poverty guidelines, you may be eligible for a Lifeline Program discount. To determine if your household meets this criteria, use our federal poverty guidelines eligibility chart. This chart is updated each year.

Find the total number of members of your household in the left column, and your household location (Alaska, Hawaii, or 48 U.S. states and D.C.), and if your household is at or below the listed household income, your household may be eligible for a Lifeline Program discount.

Two: Program-Based Eligibility

If you, or someone in your household, participate in one of the following federal or state assistance programs, you may be eligible for a Lifeline Program discount.

  • Federal Public Housing Assistance (FPHA) or Section 8;
  • Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as Food Stamps;
  • Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP);
  • Medicaid;
  • National School Lunch Program (NSLP);
  • Supplemental Security Income (SSI);
  • Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF);
  • If you participate in a qualifying program established by your state, or
  • If you reside on Tribal lands (any federally recognized Indian tribe’s reservation, Pueblo, or colony, including former reservations in Oklahoma, Alaska Native regions, Hawaiian Home Lands, or Indian Allotments) andparticipate in any of the federal or state assistance programs below:
    • Bureau of Indian Affairs General Assistance;
    • Head Start (only households meeting the income qualifying standard);
    • Tribal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (Tribal TANF); or
    • Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations.

One Benefit per Household

Only one Lifeline Program discount (one telephone line – either landline or wireless) is allowed per household. The definition of a “household” is anyone living at an address (including children, relatives, people not related to you, etc.) who share income(s) and household expenses.