Acceptable Use Policy
Effective Date: February 9, 2026
Essence of Melanin
Owned and operated by 8x10designs, Duchess Arrita Robinson
Email: hello@essenceofmelanin.com
Phone: 484-378-9108
Purpose
This Acceptable Use Policy (“AUP”) outlines the prohibited uses of the Essence of Melanin website, products, and services, including our AI customer assistance feature. By accessing or using our website, you agree to comply with this policy.
Prohibited Activities
You may not use our website, services, or AI assistant for any of the following purposes:
Illegal Activities
- Any activity that violates local, state, federal, or international laws
- Fraudulent activities, including credit card fraud or identity theft
- Money laundering or financing of illegal activities
- Sale or distribution of illegal goods or services
- Infringement of intellectual property rights
Harmful or Abusive Behavior
- Harassment, bullying, threats, or intimidation of any person
- Hate speech or content that promotes violence, discrimination, or harm based on race, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, disability, or any other protected characteristic
- Stalking or unwanted contact with individuals
- Distribution of sexually explicit or inappropriate content
- Exploitation or endangerment of minors in any form
Fraudulent or Deceptive Practices
- Impersonating Essence of Melanin, its employees, or any other person or entity
- Providing false or misleading information when placing orders or communicating with us
- Unauthorized use of another person’s payment information or personal data
- Filing false refund claims or chargebacks
- Creating fake accounts or using bots to manipulate our systems
Misuse of AI Customer Assistant
- Attempting to manipulate the AI assistant into providing prohibited content
- Using the assistant to generate harmful, illegal, or offensive content
- Spamming the assistant with repetitive or malicious queries
- Attempting to extract proprietary information or reverse engineer the AI system
- Using the assistant for automated scraping or data mining
- Inputting personal information of others without their consent
- Sexual, abusive, or harassing interactions with the AI assistant
Technical Abuse
- Hacking, cracking, or attempting to gain unauthorized access to our systems
- Introducing viruses, malware, or other harmful code
- Denial of service (DoS) or distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks
- SQL injection, cross-site scripting (XSS), or other security exploits
- Automated scraping, crawling, or data extraction without permission
- Reverse engineering or decompiling our software or website code
- Bypassing security measures or access controls
Spam and Unwanted Communications
- Sending unsolicited bulk emails or spam through our systems
- Using our contact forms for spam or marketing purposes
- Creating multiple accounts to abuse promotions or discounts
- Posting spam or irrelevant content in any interactive features
Intellectual Property Violations
- Unauthorized copying, reproduction, or distribution of our designs
- Reselling our products as your own
- Removing watermarks, copyright notices, or branding from our designs
- Using our designs for commercial purposes without permission
- Claiming ownership of our intellectual property
Misuse of Products
- Purchasing products with the intent to resell as bootleg or counterfeit items
- Altering our designs and claiming them as original work
- Using our designs in ways that violate the rights of third parties
- Commercial use of products purchased for personal use
Consequences of Violations
If you violate this Acceptable Use Policy, we reserve the right to take the following actions:
Immediate Actions
- Suspension or termination of your account
- Cancellation of pending orders without refund
- Blocking of your IP address or device from accessing our website
- Removal of any content you have posted
- Termination of AI assistant access
Legal Actions
- Reporting illegal activities to law enforcement
- Cooperation with legal investigations
- Civil action to recover damages
- Referral to fraud prevention agencies
- Pursuit of injunctive relief to prevent further violations
Financial Consequences
- Forfeiture of refunds for canceled orders
- Liability for costs incurred due to your violations
- Permanent ban from making future purchases
Reporting Violations
If you become aware of any violations of this Acceptable Use Policy, please report them immediately to:
Email: hello@essenceofmelanin.com
Subject: “AUP Violation Report”
Please include:
- Description of the violation
- Date and time (if applicable)
- Any evidence (screenshots, links, etc.)
- Your contact information (optional but helpful)
Monitoring and Enforcement
We reserve the right to:
- Monitor use of our website and services to ensure compliance with this policy
- Review AI assistant conversations for quality assurance and safety purposes
- Investigate suspected violations
- Take action against violators at our sole discretion
We do not actively monitor all user activities, but we respond promptly to reported violations and may conduct investigations when we detect suspicious behavior.
No Liability for Third-Party Actions
We are not responsible for the actions of third parties who violate this policy. However, we will take appropriate action upon discovering or being notified of violations.
Modifications to This Policy
Essence of Melanin reserves the right to modify this Acceptable Use Policy at any time. Changes will be effective immediately upon posting to our website. Continued use of our website after changes are posted constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.
Severability
If any provision of this Acceptable Use Policy is found to be unenforceable or invalid, the remaining provisions will continue in full force and effect.
Contact Us
For questions about this Acceptable Use Policy, please contact us:
Email: hello@essenceofmelanin.com
Phone: 484-378-9108
By using Essence of Melanin’s website and services, you acknowledge that you have read, understood, and agree to comply with this Acceptable Use Policy.
