Inside Our Response to Abuse and Investigations

Zero tolerance for illegal activity

Kolo has zero tolerance for illegal activities on our infrastructure. We are committed to providing secure, sustainable colocation services while maintaining clear expectations that all activity within our facilities must comply with applicable laws and our terms of service. We actively support law enforcement efforts to combat cybercrime and abuse, engaging in workshops and meetings with police to improve our processes for responding to reports of suspicious activity and supporting investigations in our data centers.

This article explains our role, the limitations of our visibility into client activities, and how we cooperate with authorities to address abuse decisively and responsibly.

How we work with law enforcement

We cooperate fully and promptly with law enforcement, not only when we receive official requests or legal warrants but also through proactive engagement to help prevent criminal activities. We have an ongoing exchange with authorities and cybercrime units to enhance our operational awareness and to strengthen our processes for identifying and addressing suspicious patterns.

Working with the Dutch Cybercrime Unit

Our collaboration with the Dutch cybercrime police is more than case-by-case support; it is an active partnership. Through regular meetings and workshops, we improve our understanding of how to identify suspicious patterns in our environment while helping law enforcement understand the operational realities of modern data centers. This mutual learning supports more responsive, responsible infrastructure oversight and is a cornerstone of our commitment to law enforcement cooperation.

Our role as a colocation provider

Kolo provides the physical foundation for digital services: rack space, redundant power, cooling, and network access. That’s it. Clients bring their own hardware, software, and data into our facilities, and while they maintain control over their systems, we require that all activities comply with applicable laws and our terms of service.

We do not have access to what is stored or processed on client systems, nor do we monitor client data or applications. However, we work closely with clients to ensure compliance and take immediate action, including termination of contracts, should violations be identified through legal and contractual processes.

When abuse happens

Should any systems in our facilities be used for illegal purposes, we are prepared to respond swiftly and decisively. We identify potential abuse through collaboration with law enforcement, threat intelligence partners, and third-party reports.

When abuse is identified, we act immediately. We do not tolerate illegal activity within our environment and take decisive action including service suspension and account termination. We fully cooperate with law enforcement and maintain the right to terminate contracts when clients engage in prohibited activities.

In many cases, authorities are already involved when issues come to our attention. Once investigations begin, our role shifts from infrastructure provider to trusted partner in the investigative process, providing full cooperation while maintaining the confidentiality required for effective law enforcement operations.

Our approach to client screening

Our first line of defense is vetting who we do business with. Every potential client must pass a strict Know Your Customer (KYC) process, ensuring we engage only with legitimate companies led by identifiable individuals with a clear and lawful business purpose. We regularly revisit this process to confirm compliance, screening company and ownership details against sanctions lists and high-risk jurisdiction databases.

Our direct client screening is comprehensive and thorough. Some clients operate as service providers themselves, such as large hosting companies with thousands of downstream users. While we maintain strict oversight of our direct customers, we cannot realistically screen every end user in these complex supply chains. We address this through proactive abuse response, clear escalation paths, and immediate cooperation should issues arise.

Closing Thoughts: Responsible, Decisive, and Clear

At Kolo, we take our responsibility seriously and act decisively to protect our customers’ operations, contribute to a safer digital environment, and support law enforcement in upholding lawful activity across our facilities.

We believe the best infrastructure partners do not just react when things go wrong; they build systems, processes, and relationships that prevent abuse in the first place.

We welcome conversations about our approach to compliance, ethics, and security, and are committed to transparency in how we operate.

Here, Trust Happens.

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