WELLS COLLEGE COMPUTER, INTERNET, AND ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATIONS POLICY

 

I.          General Statement of Policy

 

Wells College (the “College”) is committed to academic excellence and committed to providing the resources necessary to maintain academic excellence.  Pursuant to this goal, computers, computer accounts, network and Internet access, electronic mail, and related services (individually and collectively, these computing resources and services are referred to as the “Computer System”) are provided for use by all members of the College community.  This policy applies to any student, faculty member, staff member, employee, or other individual who has received appropriate authorization to use the College’s Computer System.  Access to and use of the College’s Computer System is a privilege, and such use must be consistent with the terms of this policy, and with the goals, standards, and overall mission of the College.

 

II.        Electronic Communications

 

                        All messages, data, files, programs, Internet web sites, and all other material or information (individually and collectively referred to as “Electronic Communications”) stored in or transmitted via the College’s Computer System are College records.  Accordingly, the College reserves the right to access and disclose the content of Electronic Communications stored in or transmitted via its Computer System:  (1) as it deems appropriate for the administration and maintenance of the Computer System; (2) when the College determines that such access or disclosure is necessary to investigate a possible breach of security, misuse of College resources, violation of law, or infringement of College rules; (3) when the College determines that such access and disclosure is necessary in connection with an academic, disciplinary, or administrative inquiry, or legal proceeding; or  (4) for all other purposes permitted by law.  The College may routinely monitor and log usage data such as network session connection times and end-points, computer and disk utilization for each user, security audit trails, network loading, etc.

 

                        Each user’s use of the Computer System constitutes consent to the College’s access, disclosure, and monitoring.  Users of the Computer System should not have any expectation of privacy in any Electronic Communications stored in or transmitted via the College’s Computer System.

 

III.       Prohibited Uses of the Computer System

 

            The College’s Computer System may not be used in any manner that is inconsistent with the goals, standards, or mission of the College.  The College’s faculty, staff, other employees, and guests are expected to use the Computer System only for legitimate purposes consistent with their employment and the College’s mission.  Students may use the Computer System for lawful and proper recreational purposes, unless such use interferes with another student’s ability to complete their academic work.

Prohibited uses of the Computer System for all users include, but are not limited to:

 

                        1.         Engaging in copyright infringement or other unauthorized copying and/or distribution of material;

 

                        2.         Downloading music, movies, or other similar files for personal use, except within the limited recreational context described above and within full copyright compliance;

 

                        3.         Installing software on the College’s computer system;

 

                        4.         Attempting to access or monitor another user’s Electronic Communications, reading, copying, changing, or deleting another user’s messages, files, or software, without permission of the user, or in some other way invading the privacy of others;

 

                        5.         Engaging in any illegal commerce or any illegal activity of any kind;

 

                        6.         Posting or transmitting any material that is threatening, abusive, profane, defamatory, obscene, offensive, or pornographic, or that is discriminatory, harassing, derogatory, or demeaning to any individual or group based on race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, disability, familial status, age, national origin, ethnicity, or other prohibited basis;

 

                        7.         Engaging in any type of harassment of other individuals, including continually sending unwanted messages after a request to stop;

 

                        8.         Attempting to destroy or sabotage the Computer System or attempting to perform any act that impacts upon the proper operation of the Computer System, such as intentionally spreading computer viruses;

 

                        9.         “Hacking,” tampering, or attempting to gain unauthorized access to confidential information within the College’s Computer System or to other remote computer systems;

 

                        10.        Accessing, transmitting, or releasing information or data of a confidential  or proprietary nature obtained by virtue of the user’s position with the College to unauthorized persons;

 

                        11.        Attempting to subvert security systems or data protection schemes to gain unauthorized access to other accounts;

 

                        12.        Performing acts that are wasteful of computing resources or that unfairly monopolize resources to the exclusion of others, such as sending unnecessary mass mailings or chain letters;

 

                        13.        Sending electronic mail messages to the “everyone group” (students@wells.edu, staff@wells.edu, or faculty@wells.edu) except for necessary and legitimate purposes, such as in the event of campus emergencies or urgent operational needs, for notification of campus meetings, and for notification of College-sponsored events or other events off campus which relate to the College’s educational goals;

 

                        14.        Operating businesses, unauthorized fund raising or using the Computer System in some other way for personal financial gain; and

 

                        15.        Creating and/or operating web sites on computers on the College network without obtaining prior approval from the College.

 

                        All users of the Computer System must act responsibly and maintain the integrity of the Computer System.  The College reserves the right to limit, restrict, revoke, suspend, deny, or extend computing privileges and access to the Computer System.  Those who do not abide by the College’s policies regarding the Computer System are subject to having their computer privileges, including use of and access to the Computer System limited, restricted, suspended, revoked, or denied, and may be subject to campus disciplinary procedures, termination of employment, and/or appropriate legal action.