Free Hosting – Generous or Irresponsible?

It seems that as usual the idea of free web hosting has pundits split right down the middle in terms of whether it’s a blessing or a curse. Over recent months there have been more and more calls for hosting companies to begin exercising more vigilance when it comes to handing out free hosting services, but there’s always the chance that in doing so they’re end up alienating vast swathes of their target audiences.Is Free Hosting Too Much of a Risk?Those opposed to free hosting have a pretty simple argument that’s easy enough to take on board. The long story short being that when and where free hosting is offered, it’s offered with little to no regulation, no rules as to who can take it and no real control over what it’s used for. We’ve always lived in a world where some are inclined to be given an inch and take a mile, so it’s pretty inevitable that a fair few users of free hosting take advantage of the packages and so the kinds of things they really shouldn’t be doing.From spam to scams and to all manner of other criminal acts, anything goes when there’s no one there to control you. The result is a web that’s packed to the rafters with dodgy websites you’d be well advised to stay away from, not to mention a million and one complaints that they shouldn’t have been allowed to go live in the first place. But as all you often need to do is give fake name and fake email address, it’s not as if those doing wrong can be held accountable.  A Valuable ResourceOn the flipside of the argument though are those that to a certain extent rely on free hosting. From students to kids to small businesses to bloggers to hobbyists, it’s really not as if everyone with the desire to build a smaller website is able to cough up funds or open a subscription account. As such, to in any way get rid of the idea of free hosting would mean to pretty much wipe off the face of the Earth millions of pages of quality content from those that have nothing but the best intentions.Free hosting is a brilliant resource as it allows those with passion and determination every opportunity to develop their talents and take them to the next level. They get first-hand experience of building and operating a site without having to take any risks at all – it really is a unique opportunity.A Simple SolutionAs for the solution, it’s actually a heck of a lot simpler than most seem to suggest. Theoretically, the whole matter could be put to rest if the hosting companies offering these free hosting packages were to become just a little bit more proactive when it came to checking the validity of those signing up. It’s not a case of going to the ends of the Earth to verify identities, but to put one or two minor account verification processes in place as standard could make all the difference in the world.