Acceptable Use Policy

Last updated: May 2025.

This Acceptable Use Policy (“AUP”) defines how ShopSynco’s platform may and may not be used. It supplements the Terms & Conditions and the Refund & Cancellation policy. Violation of this AUP may result in immediate account suspension or permanent termination without notice or refund.

1. Absolutely Prohibited Products & Categories

The following product categories are strictly and unconditionally banned on ShopSynco. Listing, selling, promoting, or facilitating the sale of any item in these categories is a zero-tolerance violation that will result in immediate and permanent account termination without prior notice, without any refund, and without the right to appeal through standard support channels.

🍺 Alcohol & Intoxicants

Beer, wine, spirits (whisky, rum, vodka, gin, etc.), country liquor, fermented beverages, home-brewing kits, distillation equipment marketed for alcohol production, and any product whose primary purpose is the production or consumption of alcohol. Sale of alcohol in India is governed by individual state excise laws and requires specific licences that ShopSynco is not equipped to facilitate or verify.

🚬 Tobacco & Nicotine Products

Cigarettes, cigars, bidis, pipe tobacco, raw tobacco leaf, chewing tobacco (gutka, khaini, zarda), pan masala containing tobacco, hookah tobacco and accessories, electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes), personal vaporisers, vaping devices and their components (coils, pods, tanks), e-liquids (with or without nicotine), nicotine pouches, nicotine patches or gum intended for recreational rather than medically supervised use, and smoking paraphernalia primarily associated with tobacco consumption.

🥗 Pork & Pork-Derived Products

Fresh pork, frozen pork, cured pork (bacon, ham, prosciutto, salami, pepperoni), pork sausages, lard, pork dripping, pork-based gelatin, and any food product, supplement, or consumable that lists pork or pork derivatives as an ingredient. This restriction applies unconditionally and regardless of the religious, dietary, cultural, or geographic context in which such products are offered or the audience they are marketed to.

💊 Controlled Substances & Drugs

Narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances under the NDPS Act, 1985; prescription medicines sold without a valid licensed pharmacy registration under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940; Schedule H and Schedule X drugs without prescription; recreational drugs; research chemicals marketed as drug substitutes; drug precursors and synthesis chemicals; synthetic cannabinoids; kratom; and any product marketed, labelled, or known to produce the effects of a controlled substance.

🔫 Weapons, Firearms & Explosives

Firearms of any category (pistols, rifles, revolvers, shotguns, air guns), ammunition and cartridges, silencers, bump stocks, prohibited knives and blades, swords, tasers, stun guns, explosives, detonators, blasting caps, fireworks classified as hazardous under applicable law, and any accessory whose primary design purpose is to modify, silence, enhance lethality, or conceal a weapon. Sale of most such items requires an Arms Act licence, which ShopSynco cannot facilitate.

👜 Counterfeit & Infringing Goods

Products bearing the trademarks, logos, trade dress, or design patents of third-party brands without their genuine written authorisation; replica or “inspired by” luxury goods; pirated software, video games, films, music albums, or e-books; and fake or forged official documents including academic certificates, government IDs, driving licences, and hall tickets.

🔞 Adult & Explicit Content

Pornographic material in any digital or physical format; escort or companionship services; adult entertainment subscriptions; sex toys marketed to adults in a manner that violates community standards; and any content depicting minors in a sexual context. The latter may also constitute a criminal offence and will be reported to law enforcement.

🎲 Gambling & Betting

Online casino services, sports betting platforms, lottery tickets, scratch cards, prediction markets operating without regulatory approval, fantasy sports platforms operating outside their applicable regulatory framework, slot machine software, and any other product or service that constitutes gambling under the Public Gambling Act, 1867 or applicable state gambling legislation.

🦁 Endangered Species & Wildlife Products

Products made from or containing any animal or plant species protected under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972 (India) or Appendices I and II of CITES — including ivory, rhino horn, tiger skins and bones, shahtoosh (Tibetan antelope wool), sea turtle shells, protected bird species and their eggs, and coral. This includes both raw materials and processed products derived from such species.

👥 Human Exploitation

Products, services, content, or listings that facilitate, enable, or promote human trafficking, debt bondage, forced labour, child labour, forced marriage, sexual exploitation, or any other form of modern slavery as defined under applicable Indian law.

☣️ Hazardous Chemicals & Biological Agents

Industrial-grade pesticides, herbicides, rodenticides, and toxic solvents not licensed for general retail sale; biological agents, pathogens, and toxins; radioactive materials; and any substance classified as a hazardous chemical under the Manufacture, Storage and Import of Hazardous Chemical Rules, 1989 or any successor regulation.

🏥 Fraudulent & Misleading Health Products

Products making unsubstantiated cure or treatment claims for regulated medical conditions (cancer, diabetes, HIV, etc.); miracle weight-loss products with fabricated testimonials; unapproved medical devices; products misleadingly labelled as “Ayurvedic”, “herbal”, or “natural” while containing undisclosed pharmaceutical or controlled ingredients; and any product that violates the Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act, 1954.

🚫 Any Other Illegal or Government-Banned Product

Any product or service that is illegal under the laws of India or any Indian state; subject to a government-mandated sale ban or import restriction; or that ShopSynco has otherwise communicated (via updated policies or direct notice) as prohibited on the platform.

⚠️ Enforcement — Zero Tolerance

ShopSynco reserves the right to determine, in its sole and final discretion, whether any product, listing, or activity falls within a prohibited category. Upon such a determination — or upon receipt of a credible complaint from a third party or authority — the merchant’s store will be blocked immediately and without prior notice. The account will be permanently terminated. No refund of subscription fees, transaction fees, or any other amount paid will be issued. ShopSynco may report violations, along with any relevant merchant details, to law enforcement agencies, the Enforcement Directorate, FSSAI, drug control authorities, or any other applicable regulatory body.

2. Prohibited Technical Activities

  • Probing, scanning, or testing ShopSynco system vulnerabilities without written authorisation.
  • Attempting to circumvent or disable security, rate limiting, authentication, or access control mechanisms.
  • Automated scraping of ShopSynco platform data beyond what the official API explicitly permits.
  • Uploading or transmitting malware, ransomware, viruses, or any destructive or malicious code.
  • Reverse-engineering, decompiling, or disassembling any part of the ShopSynco software or infrastructure.
  • Routing customer payments through external payment channels to avoid transaction fee deductions.
  • Creating multiple accounts to circumvent plan limits, feature restrictions, or account bans.

3. Prohibited Business Practices

  • Misrepresenting your identity, your business, or your products to ShopSynco or to customers.
  • Artificially inflating order volumes, review counts, wishlist activity, or store metrics.
  • Engaging in any form of money laundering or using ShopSynco to process illicit funds.
  • Publishing false, misleading, or defamatory content about competitors on your store or in reviews.
  • Using ShopSynco-hosted storefronts to conduct phishing, social engineering, or identity theft.

4. Resource Use

Automated scraping, excessive API calls, or usage patterns that materially degrade service quality for other merchants may be throttled or blocked without notice. If your usage substantially exceeds normal patterns for your plan tier, we may contact you to discuss an appropriate plan upgrade or custom usage agreement.

5. Enforcement

ShopSynco may, at its sole discretion and at any time: remove or disable any content that violates this AUP; throttle or restrict specific features or API access; suspend your account temporarily pending investigation; or permanently terminate your account. For prohibited product violations, termination is immediate and permanent with no right of reinstatement. For other AUP violations, we may (but are not obligated to) issue a warning before taking further action. Nothing in this section limits our rights or remedies under the Terms & Conditions, applicable law, or equitable principles.

6. Reporting Violations

If you become aware of a ShopSynco store that appears to be selling prohibited products or otherwise violating this AUP, please report it immediately to abuse@shopsynco.com with the store URL, screenshots or evidence, and a brief description. We take all reports seriously and investigate promptly. Your identity will be kept confidential to the extent permitted by law.