HomeMy WebLinkAbout129-04 - Res. Amending Res. 36-97 Mason County Electronic Information Acceptable Use Policy RESOLUTION NO . 129 - 04
A RESOLUTION AMENDING RESOLUTION 3 & 97, MASON COUNTY ELECTRONIC
INFORMATION ACCEPTABLE USE POLICY
WHEREAS, Mason County provides a communications and data network capable of
offering Electronic Mail (e- mail ) , Voice Mail , Internet access, data storage and data
processing to employees to assist and facilitate legitimate Mason County business
operations .
WHEREAS, the current electronic communications policy needs to be amended ;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Board of Mason County Commissioners to
adopt the Mason County Electronic Information Acceptable Use Policy, attached hereto
as Exhibit A .
t
Effective this day of December, 2004 .
BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
MASON COUNTY, WASHINGTON
ATTEST: / Wesley . John on , Chairperson
eb1cca S . Rogers, Clerk of the Board
Herb Baze, tbmmissioner
J'
APP OV D T 0 - M : s
Chief Deputy Pr secuting Attorney Jayni L . Kamin , Comm ssioner
Michael Clift
C : All Departments
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Exhibit A
MASON COUNTY
ELECTRONIC INFORMATION
ACCEPTABLE USE POLICY
(Revision F)
A. Policy
Mason County provides a communications and data network capable of offering Electronic
Mail (e-mail) , Voice Mail, Internet access , data storage and data processing to employees to
assist and facilitate legitimate Mason County business operations . Mason County
information and information resources shall be used in an approved, lawful manner to
avoid loss or liability to Mason County and/or loss of public confidence in the operation of
Mason County.
Utilization of these systems is a privilege . Employees should never put information on or
access services unless they would be comfortable with the information associated with their
name in public . By using Mason County' s communications and data systems , employees
agree that they are aware of, understand and comply with the provisions of this policy.
B . Definitions
Computers Systems : Includes individual desktop and laptop computers (PC' s) , e-mail
system, internet access , file servers , digital media such as floppy disks , Compact Digital disk
(CD ' s) and Digital Video disks (DVD ' s) , and all other components of Mason County' s
computer systems .
E-Mail : The County' s e-mail system .
Intranet: Web site containing content for internal use .
Internet: The world wide network of computers .
Software : The digital programs that perform functions on the PC' s and network. All
software normally has a copyright and is licensed .
Streaming Audio (or Video) : Technology used to "play" or view audio/video on a PC from
a remote source or Web site over the network. Can be used for music, voice , lectures ,
videos and other audio/video material . It generally consists of a continuous stream of data
coming over the network.
Web Browsing: Use of a software tool to access Web sites on the Internet.
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C . Roles and Responsibilities
Mason County owns all information services resources ; use of such resources constitutes
consent to monitor, inspect and audit any data or information resident on those resources
without permission or further notice .
Board of County Commissioners shall approve the Acceptable Use Policy.
Elected officials and Department Heads shall be responsible for the following:
a. Informing their personnel of acceptable use policies and acceptable use of
information resources .
b . Ensuring that personnel under their supervision comply with these polices .
C . Ensure the contract personnel under their supervision comply with these polices
and procedures .
D . Equipment and Programs
Acquiring Hardware and Software : To prevent the introduction of malicious code and
protect the integrity of County information resources , all hardware and software shall be
obtained through or with the advice of Information Services .
Complying with Copyright and Licensing: All software utilized shall be procured by Mason
County and shall be licensed and registered in the name of Mason County. All personnel
shall abide by software copyright laws and shall not obtain, install, replicate , or use software
except as permitted by the software licensing agreements .
Using Personally Owned Software : To protect the integrity of County resources and
licensing requirements , personnel shall not use personally owned software on Mason
County information systems . This includes , but not limited to , personally purchased and
licensed applications and shareware . Exception : Personally owned Personal Digital
Assistant (PDA' s) that are compatible with the County systems , may be installed with the
authorization of the Elected Official or Department Head . The software licensing that
accompanies the PDA must allow concurrent home and business use .
E. E-Mail and Voice Mail (Electronic Communications)
Access to Mason County' s electronic communication systems is provided to personnel for
the conduct of government business . Since electronic communications may be monitored,
all personnel using government resources for the transmission or receipt of electronic
communications shall have no expectation of privacy.
E-mail and voice mail are not considered records storage systems . E-mail is only held by
the system for 30 days and is automatically deleted after that time . Voice mail is only held
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by the system for 90 days and is automatically deleted after that time . Public record
information should only be retained on the e-mail or voice mail systems while it is being
worked on or distributed . Upon completion, e-mail or voice mail that is considered official
correspondence , minutes or official messages documenting action must be printed or
transcribed by the author, filed and the electronic copy deleted . Informational e-mail or
voice mail may be deleted at any time . The use of c-mail or voice mail for legal advice or
to respond to legal questions is highly discouraged .
Acceptable Use : Mason County provides electronic communications to facilitate the
conduct of government business . Occasional and incidental personal electronic
communications use shall be permitted if it does not interfere with the government' s ability
to perform its mission . However, while they remain in the system, personal messages shall
be considered to be in the possession and control of Mason County and sha11 be deemed
public information, unless specifically protected by law.
Prohibited Use : Prohibited activities when using government electronic mail shall include ,
but not be limited to , sending or arranging to receive the following:
a. Information that violates county, state or federal laws and regulations .
b . Any material that may defame , libel, abuse , tarnish, or portray in false light, the
recipient, the sender, or any other person .
C . Pornographic , racist, sexually oriented, offensive material, chain letters ,
unauthorized mass mailings , or malicious code .
Encryption: Encrypting electronic mail, messages or data shall comply with the following:
a. Use of encryption will be approved by the Commissioners .
b . Place the key or other similar file for all encrypted electronic mail in a directory
or file system that can be accessed by the responsible Elected Official or
Department Head prior to encrypting email .
C . Supply the key or other device needed to decrypt the electronic mail upon
request by authorized management.
d . Use of encryption without prior authorization will be considered violating this
policy.
F. Internet Access
Access to the Internet is available to employees , contractors , whose duties require it for the
conduct of government business . Since Internet activities may be monitored, all personnel
accessing the Internet shall have no expectation of privacy.
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Acceptable Use : Mason County provides Internet access to facilitate the conduct of
government business . Occasional and incidental personal internet use shall be permitted if
it is not a Prohibited Use activity, is not conducted during county work time and does not
interfere with the government' s ability to perform its mission . Elected officials and
Department Heads shall determine when usage is acceptable for their employees .
Prohibited Use : Prohibited activities when using the Internet include , but are not limited
to , the following:
a. Browsing explicit pornographic or hate-based web sites , hacker or cracker sites ,
or other sites that Mason County has determined to be off-limits .
b . Posting, sending, or acquiring sexually explicit or sexually oriented material,
hate-based material, hacker-related material, or other material determined to be off-
limits .
C . Posting or sending sensitive information without management authorization .
d . Accessing outside personal e-mail accounts such as Hotmail or Yahoo mail . Downloads or attacr
C . Using other services available on the Internet, such as FTP or Telnet, on
systems for which the user does not have an account, or on systems that have no
guest or anonymous account for the service being used .
f. Posting commercial announcements or advertising material .
g. Promoting or maintaining a personal or private business .
h . Receiving news feeds and push data updates , unless the material is required for
government business .
i . Using non-work related applications or software that occupy excess workstation
or network processing time (e . g. , processing in conjunction with screen savers ,
streaming audio or video feeds) .
j . Conducting fund-raising, endorsing any product or service , lobbying, or
participating in any political or campaign activity.
G. Generally Prohibited Uses of Information Resources
Generally prohibited activities when using government information resources shall include ,
but are not limited to , the following:
a. Stealing or copying of electronic files without permission .
b . Violating copyright laws . This includes downloading copyright music or video
files .
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C . Browsing the private files or accounts of others , except as provided by
appropriate authority.
d . Performing unofficial activities that may degrade the performance of systems or
waste employee time , such as the playing of electronic games .
C . Performing activities intended to circumvent security or access controls of any
organization, including the use of hardware or software tools intended to defeat
software copy protection, discover passwords , identify security vulnerabilities ,
decrypt encrypted files , or compromise information security by any other means .
f. Writing, copying, executing, or attempting to introduce any computer code
designed to self4eplicate , damage , or otherwise hinder the performance of or
access to any computer, network, or information .
g. Accessing the County network via modem or other remote access service
without the approval of management.
h. Promoting or maintaining a personal or private business , or using County
information resources for personal gain .
i . Using someone else ' s logon ID and password .
J . Disclosing any County information that is not otherwise public .
H . Monitoring, Auditing and Inspection
Elected Officials and Department Heads may monitor, inspect or audit the e-mail, data or
information their employees create or utilize on the County information services resources
at anytime .
System administrators and other personnel with unrestricted access to email, files , data and
similar services shall receive approval from the supervising Elected Official or Department
Head prior to decrypting, opening or reading the e-mail, data or information of their
employees .
If due to unusual circumstances , such as result of viruses , malicious programs , equipment
failure or error, employee e-mail, data or information is read or intercepted, then system
administrators and other employees that intercept, read, or view the information shall
I
nform the responsible Elected Official or Department Head at the first opportunity.
An Elected official may only be monitored, inspected or audited only with the express
authorization of the Prosecutor .
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