Use by Staff and Monitoring
Of College Communication
Systems
Contents
Page
Overview
1
1
2
3
4
5
1
1
1
1
1
Summary
Further Information
History
Approval
Review
Key Information
2
A summary for all staff
1.
3
4
5
6
Policy
1.1 Purpose
1.2 Statement
Misuse / Abuse
Private / Personal use
3.1
Post
3.2
Telephone calls
3.3
E-mail
Monitoring
Video Surveillance
Primary Information
2
2
2
2
2
2
3
3
3
3
4
More detailed information and good practice guidelines for staff who use College
communication systems.
1
2
Use of e-mail
Use of Internet
4
5
Appendices
6
Appendix A IT Acceptable Use Statement - Staff
Appendix B Legal Framework
6
7
1
2
3
7
7
8
Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 (RIPA)
The Data Protection Act 1998
The Human Rights Act 1998
This document is available in large print or in an alternative format that meets your needs. Please
contact the HR Officer. 
May 2001
Ref:POL0024
Use by Staff and Monitoring
Of College Communication
Systems
1.
Overview
Summary
This document gives the College's policy on the use and monitoring of communication systems for both private and
work purposes. It gives guidance on what constitutes unacceptable use and explains the College's action
in response to inappropriate use.
2.
Further Information
Director of Corporate Services
IT Manager
Personnel Manager
3.
History
This is a new policy.
It was written by the Vice Principal (Julia Dingle) based on guidance from employment law specialists and the AoC.
The content was agreed with the IT Manager (Mark Taylor).
Further consultation included
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Principalship (Roy Snelling, Julia Dingle, Pat Thompson, Rod Wheat)
SMT
Personnel Manager (Hazel Ford)
IT Manager (Mark Taylor)
Estates Manager (Chris McCulloch)
Central Services Manager (David Simons)
NATFHE Branch Representative (Luisa Staff)
UNISON Shop Steward (Angela George)
4.
Approval
The policy was approved by the Senior Management Team on 14 May 2001.
5.
Review
This document will be reviewed annually by the Senior Management Team. 
May 2001
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Use by Staff and Monitoring
Of College Communication
Systems
Key Information
A summary for all staff
1.
Policy
1.1
Purpose
To ensure that staff understand what constitutes misuse / abuse of the College's communications systems that can
lead to :
harassment and discrimination, intentional or inadvertent revelation of confidential information
junk e-mail, copyright infringement, wasting / draining of College and computer resources / capabilities
e-mail forgery, defamation.
1.2
Statement
When using the College's communications systems staff are expected to follow the guidance in this document at all
times.
College communication systems are primarily for work-related purposes. Staff are permitted to use College
systems for private use provided that they adhere to these guidelines. Total confidentiality of such use cannot be
guaranteed. Private use means for personal or domestic reasons not business transactions.
The College reserves the right to routinely monitor all in-coming and out-going communication to ensure that no
misuse / abuse of systems is taking place and to ensure that all communication relevant to the College's business is
dealt with promptly. Use of systems may be recorded for the purposes of preventing and detecting misuse / abuse
by any user.
Staff should be aware that breach of these guidelines may amount to misconduct and may lead to invoking the
disciplinary procedure. Repeated breaches or a serious breach could lead to dismissal.
2.
Misuse / Abuse
The Primary Information Section of this document gives detailed guidance.
Staff are advised that they must at all times act responsibly in their communications with others. It is never
acceptable to cause offence whatever form of communication is used. Other College policies, e.g. Harassment and
Data Protection, apply at all times.
E-mail and to access the Internet provides new opportunities, risks and liabilities. It is essential that employees
using e-mail and the Internet read the key and primary information sections of this document to make themselves
aware of the potential liabilities involved.
The abbreviated language often used in e-mails can itself inadvertently cause offence.
E-mails, even after they have been deleted, can be retrieved and can be used as evidence.
3.
Private / Personal Use
3.1
Post
Staff are permitted to use the College's system for personal mail provided that the correct postage is paid. Such
mail would never be opened. However the College reserves the right to open unstamped mail if it is suspected that
there is any misuse of the system. Such mail would be opened by the Assistant Director of Corporate Services and
referred to the appropriate manager.
In-coming mail is always assumed to be College business. Mail marked as 'private', 'personal' or 'confidential' will
not be opened provided that the recipient is in work. 
May 2001
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Use by Staff and Monitoring
Of College Communication
Systems
Key Information
A summary for all staff
However, such mail will be opened by a line manager or supervisor if the member of staff is not available for
more than 3 working days, for example when staff are on holiday or sick leave and no alternative arrangements
are in place. Staff should not use the College address for private correspondence.
Mail received after a member of staff has left the College's employment will be opened by a line manager or
supervisor. Personal mail opened in this way will be passed to Personnel to forward appropriately.
3.2
Telephone Calls
Staff are permitted to make brief, local calls and take in-coming calls for personal reasons provided that
the duration is minimised, there is no interruption or detriment to College business, the call could not
reasonably have been made outside of working time or on a personal mobile phone, they are exceptional
not regular.
If staff have mobile phones at work they should only make or receive calls that do not interfere with their duties or
other staff. Mobile phones should not be used at all in any learning environment.
3.3
E-mail
Staff are permitted to send and receive personal e-mails provided that
all guidance on the use of e-mail in the Primary Information section of this document is adhered to, there
is no interruption or detriment to College business, the amount of use is reasonable (eg. 2 brief e-mails
sent or received per working day, any attachments kept to a minimum).
If staff are long term absent their e-mails may be read by a line manager or supervisor with the Principal's
permission. After a member of staff has left their e-mails will be forwarded to a line manager or supervisor.
Staff are permitted to use the College's Internet facility for personal use during their own time on the condition
that it does not prevent the machine being used by someone else for College business. The guidelines in the
Primary Information section of this document apply equally to personal use of the Internet.
4.
Monitoring
Staff should be aware that although personal use of College systems is allowed such communication may be
monitored. The College monitors internal and external e-mails and the use of the Internet. The use of both may
be recorded. The College reserves the right to access any user's e-mails at any time for its legitimate purposes.
In order to ensure compliance with its legal obligations the College will undertake the following monitoring
arrangements on an appropriate basis:
College equipment will be checked to ensure that no unauthorised software, copyrighted or improper
material is being stored, individual Internet usage in terms of time spent and sites visited will be
monitored, e-mails both in transit and storage may be subject to screening.
5.
Video Surveillance
Staff should be aware that, for the safety and security of all, in public areas video recording equipment is used.
Recordings are monitored and used to help identify individuals who behave unacceptably, for example carrying
outs acts of violence, theft or vandalism. For the purposes of dealing with such behaviour only, relevant
recordings may be kept for a limited period and may be passed to the Police to assist their investigations where a
criminal act is suspected. •
May 2001
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Ref:POL0024
Use by Staff and Monitoring
Of College Communication
Systems
Primary Information
More detailed information and good practice guidelines for staff who use College communication systems
1.
Use of e-mail
E - mail is a method of communication. All rules apply i.e. harassing or offensive behaviour is not acceptable. A
specific problem of e-mail is that because it uses a truncated, abbreviated language offence may be taken where
none was intended. When we communicate face to face with someone there are many ways in which we show that
we do not intend to offend. This is through tone of voice, facial expression and other gestures. Special
consideration has to be given to e-mail because these clues, that help the recipient interpret the meaning, are
missing.
The following list is not exclusive but is intended as guidance on appropriate use of e-mail.
You must not
 send abusive e-mails, even in response to abuse directed at you, such abuse should be immediately
reported to your line manager
 use e-mail to harass other users, fellow employees, or in any way to harass or threaten anyone in any
manner
 participate in chain or pyramid letters or similar schemes
 send anything at all which is defamatory, users tend to regard e-mail like telephone calls and to be less
discreet than they would in a letter. This increases the risk of defamatory statements. Therefore, sending
personal e-mails from any system is discouraged
 send unsolicited, irrelevant or inappropriate e-mails
 replace one-to-one discussions where the latter would be more appropriate, for example, when making a
complaint or criticism
 forward material e-mailed to you personally to others, particularly to Internet newsgroups or mailing lists,
without the permission of the originator
 create e-mail congestion by sending trivial messages or unnecessarily copying e-mails. You should
regularly delete unnecessary e-mails to prevent over-burdening the system
 use anonymous mailing services to conceal your identity when mailing through the Internet, falsify e-mails
to make them appear to originate from someone else, or provide false information to any Internet service
which requests name, e-mail address or other details
You should
 avoid sending excessively large e-mails or attachments unless absolutely necessary
 before sending an attachment, ensure that the recipient(s) use the same software as was used to originate
the attachment. Also, consider whether the use of an attachment adds to the value of the message; if not,
keep it simple and send text
 acknowledge incoming e-mail if it is received from an external source who may not have any means of
knowing if the e-mail has arrived
 inform the sender immediately and delete the message from the system if you receive an e-mail in error
 take care to ensure that all data sent or received is virus-free
 be aware of the responsibilities that result if you have your e-mail address published in any media
 avoid the inappropriate use of upper case in e-mail as it is generally interpreted as SHOUTING
 reflect in the body of the message if the message is sent to multiple addresses. Not all recipients can
properly identify "copy" addresses. 
May 2001
Page - 4 -
Ref:POL0024
Use by Staff and Monitoring
Of College Communication
Systems
Primary Information
More detailed information and good practice guidelines for staff who use College communication systems
Legal considerations
 advice given on e-mail has the same legal bearing as any other written advice. For formal communications
a permanent record needs to be kept
 you must make sure that the appropriate authority has been obtained before transmitting any college
information or advice
 you must retain hard copies of any e-mails sent during the course of contract negotiations or in other
appropriate instances
 you must not enter into any contractual agreements using e-mail without the explicit consent of your
manager. Any commercial correspondence engaged in must be in line with the College financial regulations
 you must ensure that no copyright / licensing laws are breached when composing or forwarding e-mails and
e-mail attachments. The responsibility for determining whether material is subject to any copyright /
licensing laws rests solely with you. Where this cannot be determined then the material must not be used
 if you receive copyrighted material via e-mail or the Internet, you will breach copyright if you pass it on to a
third party
 you must not transmit confidential, personal or other sensitive information via e-mail, unless authorised to
do so or appropriate encryption is applied
 e-mail communications, either internally or externally, are not guaranteed to be private nor to arrive at their
destination either within a particular time, or at all.
2.
Use of Internet
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you must restrict your use of the Internet to work related matters only in College time
you are reminded that during your contractual hours you must devote your time and attention to the
College's business
you may use the Internet for personal "surfing" outside of your normal College working hours. Use of the
Internet during normal working hours is confined solely to research / data collection in relation to the
employee's normal duties
you must not view or download any obscene or discriminating material
you must not use the Internet to download and subsequently re-use any software for which the College is
not licensed. The responsibility for determining whether software is licensed or not rests solely with you.
Where this cannot be determined then the software must not be downloaded
the responsibility to ensure that any information used from the Internet is free from any copyright restriction /
licensing laws rests solely with you. Where this cannot be determined then the material must not be used
staff who place information on the College Website must make every effort to ensure that such information
is free from inaccuracy or defamatory statements and does not infringe copyright
no material of any kind which is generally considered to be either offensive or sexually
explicit may be viewed or stored on College equipment. Any member of staff found
searching for, or in possession of such material, shall be considered to have committed
a serious offence which will be dealt with by the application of the formal College
Disciplinary procedure. 
May 2001
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Use by Staff and Monitoring
Of College Communication
Systems
Appendix A
Statement on Acceptable Use - Staff
College IT facilities are to be used for work and research. When using these facilities it is not acceptable to:
-- Play games
-- Mistreat or tamper with equipment
-- Remove, deface or tamper with equipment markings or labels
-- Create or transmit any offensive, obscene or indecent images, data or other material Create or transmit
material which is designed or likely to cause annoyance, inconvenience or needless anxiety
-- Create or transmit defamatory material
-- Infringe copyright
-- Transmit unsolicited commercial or advertising material
-- Access facilities or services without authorisation
-- Waste staff effort or IT resources
-- Corrupt or destroy other users' data
-- Violate the privacy of other users
-- Disrupt the work of other users
-- Use the network in a way that denies service or access to other users (for example deliberate or reckless
overloading of the system)
-- Continue to use a piece of equipment or software after a member of staff has requested you to stop using it
-- Introduce "viruses" into the system
-- Load software without the agreement of IT Support.
Failure to comply with the above may result in disciplinary action being taken against you.
If you encounter faulty IT equipment in the college please notify the IT Helpdesk who will ensure appropriate steps
are taken to rectify the fault as soon as possible. 
May 2001
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Use by Staff and Monitoring
Of College Communication
Systems
Appendix B
Legal Framework
1.
Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 (RIPA)
Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 (RIPA), together with Regulations issued pursuant to that Act, the
Telecommunications (Lawful Business Practice) (Interception of Communications) Regulations 2000, which came
into force in October 2000 is a key piece of legislation.
The Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (RIPA), prohibits the interception of e-mails without first obtaining the
consent of both the sender and the recipient. However, the Regulations, which came into force on 2 October 2000,
provide an important exception to the general rule that communications may only be monitored with consent.
The Regulations enable businesses to intercept telecommunications without the consent of their employees for
certain legitimate purposes, including detecting unauthorised use of the system and ensuring its efficient operation.
However, the employer must make reasonable efforts to inform employees that communications may be monitored.
The Regulations enable businesses to
monitor or record without consent:
-- to establish the existence of facts
-- ascertain compliance with regulatory or self-regulatory practices or procedures
-- to ascertain or demonstrate the standards which ought to be achieved by persons using the business's
system
-- preventing or detecting crime
-- public authorities: in the interests of national security
-- ensuring the effective operation of the system
-- to investigate or detect unauthorised use of the system.
monitor (but not record) without consent:
-- to determine whether they are relevant to business
-- communications to support or counselling helplines, if the helpline is provided free and on a confidential
basis and operated in a way that users may remain anonymous if they choose.
2.
The Data Protection Act 1998
The Data Protection Act 1998 came into force in May 2000.
Whilst it may well be legitimate for the right for respect to privacy to be interfered with, any interference should be
proportionate to the interest which the employer is seeking to protect. The Data Protection Commissioner has
issued a Code of Practice (which is currently in draft form) on the use of personal data in employer/employee
relationships. It emphasises the importance of employee privacy and autonomy. In the interest of these principles,
the Data Protection Commissioner sets out guidelines for monitoring and emphasises the importance of
proportionality. As such, the Code encourages employers to look at ways of monitoring which are the least intrusive.
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May 2001
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Use by Staff and Monitoring
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Systems
Appendix B
3.
The Human Rights Act 1998
The Human Rights Act 1998 came into force in October 2000.
Article 8 of the Human Rights Act states that "everyone shall have the right to respect for his private and family life,
his home and his correspondence". However, this right is qualified and may be interfered with in order to protect the
rights and freedoms of others.
An employer, for example, may claim that, by monitoring e-mails, it is protecting the rights of
other employees to have a workplace which is free from discrimination (assuming the employer
prohibits the sending of discriminatory material via e-mail). Similarly, the employer may
legitimately argue that, by having CCTV, it is providing its employees with a safe work
environment and further, taking action which is necessary to prevent crime. 
May 2001
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