Are you getting This Account Has Been Suspended error message on your website or cPanel?
In this article, I will help you solve This Account Has Been Suspended error message. I will also discuss why you’re seeing this message and what you should do so that you don’t get this message in future.
I can understand that seeing this message could be annoying for you, but you can fix this issue by contacting your web hosting provider.
This message means your web host has temporarily blocked your hosting account. Your website files are usually still on the server. In most cases the reason is an unpaid renewal invoice, and the website comes back online soon after you pay it.
There could be many reasons why you’re seeing this error, so let’s see some of the common reasons and after that, we’ll discuss a fix for this error.
Common Reasons Why Web Hosting Providers Suspend a Hosting Account
Web hosting providers don’t suspend an account unless you fail to follow their terms of service (TOS). Here are some common reasons why your account can be suspended by your hosting provider.
Payment Issues
The most common reason I have observed web hosting providers suspend a web hosting account is when someone fails to renew their web hosting plan on time.
As you must be aware, you need to pay an amount every year to keep using web hosting services. If you forget or fail to pay your web hosting renewal fee on time, your web hosting provider suspends your account.
All web hosting providers send you reminder emails to pay the invoice, but sometimes those messages hit your spam folder and you miss them.
Sometimes the credit card you have linked to your account for automatic payments expires and the payment is not made.
Sometimes the renewal amount is also much higher than what you paid the first time, because most hosts give a big discount only on the first purchase. If your card has a low limit or your bank blocks an international payment, the renewal fails and you may not even notice it.
Whatever is the reason, if your invoice is not paid on time, web hosts suspend your hosting account.
Policy Violation
When you sign up with a web host, you agree to the policies created by your web host. If you violate any of their policies, they suspend your account.
Policies differ from host to host. Certain things which are OK with one web hosting provider might not be OK with the other.
Some of the most common policy violation reasons are:
- You published some copyrighted content
- You published adult content on your website
- You are using your account for phishing or spamming purposes
There could be many other policy violation reasons that may get your account suspended.
Your Website is Consuming Too Many Resources
If you’re on shared hosting and your website is consuming too much resource that is causing other websites to slow down, your account could be suspended.
When your website consumes too much resource, your web host sends an email to you detailing the issue and how you can resolve this.
Usually, when your website starts getting heavy traffic, it requires resources to handle the traffic and this may affect other websites on the server.
In this situation, your web host may suggest you move to a VPS hosting or a dedicated server.
A poorly coded website can also take up too much resource and you need a web developer to fix the issue for you. On WordPress websites, I have seen this happen a lot with heavy page builders and badly written plugins.
Your Website is Hacked
One of the other common reasons why a web hosting account is suspended is when your website is hacked.
When a hacker hacks your website, it may perform some actions that are against the terms of service of the web host. When your web host detects any such activity, it suspends your account.
Sometimes the hacker also inserts malware into your website that hampers the performance of the server or gives threat to the other websites hosted on the server. This also gets your account suspended.
Your New Account is Under Verification
Sometimes a brand new hosting account gets suspended within a few hours of purchase. This usually happens when the hosting provider’s fraud check wants to verify your payment or identity. You will get an email asking for a document or a confirmation. Once you reply, your account is activated again.
How to Solve “This Account Has Been Suspended” Error Message?
When you see this message on your website, the first thing you should do is find out the reason why your account is suspended.
You may check your emails (including spam folders) to see if your web hosting provider has sent you any details why they have suspended your account.
Log in to your hosting account’s billing area, not cPanel. When an account is suspended, the cPanel login is usually blocked too, but the billing area still works and shows any unpaid invoice.
If the reason mentioned is a payment issue, just log in to your web hosting account and make the payment, your website will go live in no time.
You may also reach out to your web host’s customer support team if you require any assistance in making the payment.
If you have violated any of their terms of service, or your website is consuming resources that are causing issues to other websites, they may suspend your account without prior notice.
In this condition, you can take help from the customer support team to solve the issue. They will tell you what to do next.
If the reason for suspension is a hacked website, take professional help of a web developer to remove the malicious code from your website. Also, change the passwords of your hosting account and website admin logins.
Suspended vs Terminated: Is Your Data Safe?
A suspended account is only blocked. Your files, database and emails are usually still on the server. A terminated account is different, because the host deletes the account and its data after some time. Every host has its own policy on how long they keep a suspended account before termination, so don’t leave a suspended account unpaid for weeks. Ask their support how many days you have.
How to Avoid This Error in Future
- Keep the email address on your hosting account updated, and add your host’s email to your contacts so reminders don’t go to spam.
- Turn on auto-renewal and update your card details before the card expires.
- Check the renewal price a month before the due date, so the bigger amount doesn’t surprise you.
- Keep a backup of your website outside your hosting account. If your account is ever terminated, this backup is the only way to get your website back.
If you follow the tips mentioned in this article, I am sure you’ll be able to solve “This Account Has Been Suspended” website issue.
