Respect for intellectual labor and creativity is vital to academic discourse and enterprise. This principle applies to works of all authors and publishers in all media. It encompasses respect for the right to acknowledgment, the right to privacy, and the right to determine the form, manner, and terms of publication and distribution. Because electronic information is volatile and easily reproduced, respect for the work and personal expression of others is especially critical in computer environments. Violations of authorial integrity, including plagiarism, invasion of privacy, unauthorized access, and trade secret and copyright violations, may be grounds for sanctions against members of the academic community. Excerpts from The Georgia Computer Systems Protection Act may be found in the Appendix to this policy.

1. Background and Purpose

This section provides guidelines for what typically constitutes acceptable and unacceptable use of the Middle Georgia College computing facilities. By using the computing resources of Middle Georgia College, the user agrees to abide by the following guidelines and rules regarding computer use at Middle Georgia College. Middle Georgia College reserves the right to review any account and files created on its resources.

2.1 Authorized Use Specific to Computing Resources

Computing resources at MGC are provided strictly in support of College activities. Guidelines for use of these resources can be found in the Appendix to this policy. In open access areas if a computer is needed for class-related work, a user who is not performing class-related work must relinquish the workstation upon request.

2.2. Unauthorized Use Specific to Computing Resources

The use of computing facilities not open for public use, the use of closed facilities not assigned for instruction, or the use of a computer not directly assigned to the individual without authorization violates computer usage policies and may subject the offender to sanctions under these policies.

Access to telecommunications resources for authorized users is a privilege provided in order to conduct the business of the College. However, it must be understood that privileges are conditioned upon acceptance of the accompanying responsibilities.

3.1. Privacy

We want to preserve the individual's privacy to the greatest extent possible. Electronic and other technological methods must not be used to infringe upon privacy. However, users must recognize that Middle Georgia College computer systems and networks are public and subject to the Georgia Open Records Act. Users, thus, utilize such systems at their own risk.

3.2. Ownership of intellectual works

People creating intellectual works using Middle Georgia College computers or networks, including but not limited to software, should consult Determination of Rights and Equities in Intellectual Property (Board of Regents Policy Manual, section 603.03, 2/9/94 and any subsequent revisions), and related Middle Georgia College policies.

3.3. Freedom from harassment and undesired information

All members of the campus have the right not to be harassed by computer or network usage by others. (See 4.1.3.)

Just as certain privileges are given to each member of the campus community, each of us is held accountable for our actions as a condition of continued membership in that community. The interplay of privileges and responsibilities within each individual situation and across campus engenders the trust and intellectual freedom that form the heart of our community. This trust and freedom are grounded on each person's developing the skills necessary to be an active and contributing member of the community. These skills include an awareness and knowledge about information and the technology used to process, store, and transmit it.

4.1. Common courtesy and respect for rights of others

The rules of conduct of the College apply to the use of all telecommunications resources.

4.1.1. Privacy of information

Files of personal information, including programs, no matter on what medium they are stored or transmitted, may be subject to the Georgia Open Records Act, if stored on Middle Georgia College's computers. That fact notwithstanding, no one should look at, copy, alter, or destroy anyone else's personal files without explicit permission (unless authorized or required to do so by law or regulation). Simply being able to access a file or other information does not imply permission to do so. Such action is still prohibited.

Similarly, no one should connect to a remote computer on the network without prior permission in some form from the administrator of that system. People and organizations link computers to the network for numerous different reasons, and many consider unwelcome connects to be attempts to invade their privacy or compromise their security.

4.1.2. Intellectual property

You are responsible for recognizing (attributing) and honoring the intellectual property rights of others.

4.1.3. Harassment

Rules of conduct of the College related to any form of harassment apply to the use of telecommunications resources.

4.2. Responsible use of resources

You are responsible for knowing what information resources (including networks) are available, remembering that the members of the community share them, and refraining from all acts that waste or prevent others from using these resources or from using them in whatever ways have been proscribed by the College and the laws of the State and Federal governments. Details regarding available resources are available in many ways, including consulting your supervisor or professor, conferring with other users, and examining on-line and printed references maintained by the College and others.

4.3. Game playing

College computing and network services are not to be used for extensive or competitive recreational game playing. All game playing that is detrimental to network operations is prohibited. Recreational game players occupying a seat in a public computing facility must give up that seat when others who need to use the facility for academic or research purposes are waiting.

4.4. Information integrity

It is your responsibility to be aware of the potential for and possible effects of manipulating information, especially in electronic form, to understand the changeable nature of electronically stored information, and to verify the integrity and completeness of information that you compile or use. Do not depend on information or communications to be correct when they appear contrary to your expectations; verify it with the person who you believe originated the message or data.

4.5. Use of desktop systems

You are responsible  for the security and integrity of College information, departmental data, e-mail files, etc.,  stored on your personal desktop system or that is stored in your data server account. This responsibility includes making regular backups, controlling physical and network access to the data, and using virus protection software provided by the College on your College-owned desktop system. Avoid storing passwords or other information that can be used to gain access to other campus computing resources on or around your computer. Such information should be stored out of sight in a secure environment.

The known location of computing equipment is important in analyzing network problems. Send a copy of the campus inventory control form to OITS.

4.6. Access to facilities and information

4.6.1. Sharing of access

Computer accounts, passwords, and other types of authorization are assigned to individual users and must not be shared with others. You are responsible for any use of your account.

4.6.2. Permitting unauthorized access

You may not run or otherwise configure software or hardware to intentionally allow access by unauthorized users.  This includes not setting your PC to memorize passwords or to automatically log in to servers, if your PC is physically accessible by other people.

4.6.3. Use of privileged access

Special access to information or other special computing privileges are to be used in performance of official duties only. Information that you obtain through special privileges is to be treated as private.

4.6.4. Termination of access

When you cease being an authorized user or if you are assigned a new position and/or responsibilities within the College, your access authorization must be reviewed. You must not use facilities, accounts, access codes, privileges, or information for which you are not authorized in your new circumstances.  The department head must notify OITS of these changes in personnel status.

4.7. Attempts to circumvent security

Users are prohibited from attempting to circumvent or subvert any system's security measures. This section does not prohibit authorized use of security tools by system administration personnel. You may not use any cloaking device to disguise or hide your identity. This includes changing your name on the system without authorization.

4.7.1. Decoding access control information

The use of any computer program or device to intercept or decode passwords or similar access control information is prohibited.

4.7.2. Denial of service

Deliberate attempts to degrade the performance of a computer system or network or to deprive authorized personnel of resources or access to any College computer system or network are prohibited. Any bootup passwords on your PC or any computer or file access passwords must be provided in writing to the department supervisor.

4.7.3. Harmful activities

Activities that are harmful to telecommunications resources are prohibited. These include, but are not limited to, creating or propagating viruses; disrupting services; damaging files; intentional destruction of or damage to equipment, software, or data belonging to Middle Georgia College or other users.

4.7.4. Unauthorized access

Unauthorized access to telecommunications resources is prohibited. In particular, users are not permitted to engage in activities that are detrimental to the system or other users. These include, but are not limited to:

• damaging computer systems
• obtaining extra resources not authorized to you
• depriving another user of authorized resources
• gaining unauthorized access to systems.

Examples of prohibited means of obtaining unauthorized access are the use of:

• a special password
• loopholes in computer security systems
• another user's password
• abilities used during a previous position at the College
• a master key
• any unauthorized access to electronic files.

4.7.5. Unauthorized monitoring

The use of computing resources for unauthorized monitoring (observing, listening, recording, etc.) of electronic communications is prohibited.

4.8. Academic honesty

All College rules of conduct apply to the use of telecommunications resources. Use of telecommunications equipment for purposes that involve academic dishonesty is a violation of College policy.

4.9. Use of copyrighted information and materials

Using, inspecting, copying, and storing copyrighted computer programs and other material, in violation of copyright, is prohibited.

4.10. Use of licensed software

No software may be installed, copied, or used on College resources except as permitted by the owner of the software. Software subject to licensing must be properly licensed and all license provisions (installation, use, copying, number of simultaneous users, term of license, etc.) must be strictly followed.

4.11. Political campaigning; commercial advertising

Board of Regents policy (section 914.01) states "The use of System materials, supplies, equipment, machinery, or vehicles in political campaigns is forbidden." The use of College computers and networks shall conform to these policies.

4.12. Personal business

Computing facilities, services, and networks may not be used in connection with compensated outside work nor for the benefit of organizations not related to Middle Georgia College, except in connection with scholarly pursuits (such as faculty publishing activities) and limited authorized consulting (See Faculty Handbook.) These exceptions (such as electronic communications or storing data on single-user machines) must not interfere with other users' access to resources (computer cycles, network bandwidth, disk space, printers, etc.) and must not be excessive. State law restricts the use of State facilities for personal gain or benefit.

4.13. Solicitation

Solicitation for activities/services not directly related to the Middle Georgia College business or authorized activities is prohibited.

Our society depends on institutions like Middle Georgia College to educate our citizens and advance the development of knowledge. However, Middle Georgia College must responsibly manage financial and human resources.

5.1. Allocation of resources

Middle Georgia College may allocate resources in differential ways in order to achieve its overall mission.

5.2. Control of access to information

Middle Georgia College may control access to its information and the devices on which it is stored, manipulated, and transmitted, in accordance with the laws of Georgia and the United States and the policies of the College and the Board of Regents.

5.3. Imposition of sanctions

Middle Georgia College may impose sanctions and punishments on anyone who violates the policies of the College regarding computer and network usage.

5.4. System administration access

A System Administrator (i.e., the person responsible for the technical operations of a particular machine) may access others' files for the maintenance of networks and computer and storage systems, such as to create backup copies of media. However, in all cases, individuals' privileges and rights of privacy are to be respected to the greatest extent possible.

5.5. Monitoring of usage, inspection of files

Units of Middle Georgia College managing the operation of computers and networks may routinely monitor and log usage data, such as network session connection times and end-points, CPU and disk utilization for each user, security audit trails, network loading, etc. These units may review this data for evidence of violation of law or policy, and other purposes.

When necessary, these units may monitor the activities of and inspect the files of users. Individuals' privileges and right of privacy are to be respected to the greatest extent possible.

5.6. Suspension of individual privileges

Units of Middle Georgia College managing the operation of computers and networks may suspend computer and network privileges of an individual for reasons relating to his/her physical or emotional safety and well being, for reasons relating to the safety and well-being of others, or for the protection of College property. Access may be restored when safety and well-being can be reasonably assured, unless suspended as a result of disciplinary action.

6.1. Security procedures

Middle Georgia College has the right to develop, implement, maintain, and enforce appropriate security procedures to ensure the integrity of individual and institutional information, however stored, and to impose appropriate penalties when security is purposefully abridged.

6.2. Anti-harassment procedures

Middle Georgia College has the right to enforce all policies regarding harassment as applicable to the use of these telecommunications policies.

6.3. Upholding of copyrights and license provisions

Middle Georgia College has the right to enforce copyrights, laws governing access and use of information, and rules of organizations supplying information resources to members of the community (e.g., acceptable use policies for use of Internet).    The department head is responsible for ensuring that appropriate licenses and copyright permissions have been obtained prior to the use of the programs or material in question.

6.4. Individual unit responsibilities

Each administrative unit of Middle Georgia College has the responsibility to:

• enforce this policy
• provide for security in its area

If warranted by the importance and sensitivity of information stored and processed in their facility, an administrative unit must also:

• perform and verify integrity of regular media backups
• employ appropriate security-related software and procedures
• guard confidentiality of private information, including user files and system access codes
• control physical access to equipment
• provide proper physical environment for equipment
• provide proper access administration; e.g., prompt and appropriate adjustment of access permissions upon a user's termination or transfer.

6.5. Public information services

Units and individuals may, with proper authorization from the Office of Information Technology Services (OITS), configure computing systems to provide information retrieval services to the public at large. (Current examples include library services.) However, in so doing, particular attention must be paid to the following sections of this policy: 2.1 (authorized use [must be consistent with College mission]), 3.2 (ownership of intellectual works), 4.2 (responsible use of resources), 4.9 (use of copyrighted information and materials), 4.10 (use of licensed software), and 6.4 (individual unit responsibilities). Usage of public services must not cause computer or network loading that impairs other services.

7.1. Investigative contact

If you are contacted by a representative from an external organization (District Attorney's Office, FBI, GBI, Southern Bell Security Services, etc.) who is conducting an investigation of an alleged violation involving Middle Georgia College computing and networking resources, inform the Office of Information Technology Services, the President, and your vice-president immediately, and refer the requesting agency to one of these.

7.2. Responding to security and abuse incidents

All users and units should report any discovered unauthorized access attempts or other improper usage of Middle Georgia College computers, networks, or other information processing equipment. If you observe, or have reported to you (other than as in 7.1 above), a security or abuse problem with any College computer or network facilities, including violations of this policy:

• Take immediate steps as necessary to ensure the safety and well-being of information resources. For example, if warranted, a system administrator should be contacted to temporarily disable any offending or apparently compromised computer accounts, or to temporarily disconnect or block offending computers from the network (see section 5.6).
• Ensure that the following people are notified: (1) your unit head, and (2) the Director of Information Technology Services.

7.3. First  minor incident

If a person appears to have violated this policy, the incident may be dealt with at the OITS or appropriate administrative unit level. The alleged offender will be furnished a copy of the College Computer and Network Usage Policy (this document), and will sign a form agreeing to conform to the policy. All incidents and consequences must be reported to Information Technology Services.

7.4. Subsequent minor violations or first major violations

Subsequent or major violations of these policies will be reported to Information Technology Services who may then forward a report to either the Vice President for Student Affairs (for students) or the appropriate judicial channels (for employees) for the determination of sanctions to be imposed.

7.5. Range of disciplinary sanctions

Persons in violation of this policy are subject to a range of sanctions, including, but not limited to, the loss of computer or network access privileges, disciplinary action, dismissal from the College, and/or legal action. Some violations may constitute criminal offenses, as outlined in the Georgia Computer Systems Protection Act and other local, state, and federal laws; the College will carry out its responsibility to report such violations to the appropriate authorities.

7.6. Appeals

Appeals of disciplinary sanctions should be directed through the existing procedures established for employees and students.

1. Background And Purpose of WWW Pages

This College encourages faculty, staff, and students to publish on the World Wide Web within the constraints of existing laws and policies. Through this medium MGC has rich opportunities for the institution and individuals; however, it presents a dichotomy for policy makers to ensure appropriate freedom of expression while maintaining a consistent, cohesive institutional presence.

This Policy imparts minimal stylistic consistency guidelines and provides some guidance to the legal implications of publishing on the World Wide Web. These guidelines address "Official College Home Pages," "Other Official Ancillary Pages" and "Unofficial/Courtesy College Pages." This Document provides guidelines for all pages published by Middle Georgia College authorized users.

Development of WWW pages is subject to applicable College policies such as those pertaining to copyright, "fair use," and intellectual property rights; Federal Educational Rights and Privacy Act; Federal Computer Abuse Amendment Act; Federal Electronic Communications Privacy Act; and other state and federal laws.

Failure to adhere to these and the policies described herein may ultimately lead to revocation of the privilege to use College computing resources.

The Office of Institutional Advancement shall oversee the appearance of official College Home Pages.

The Office of Information Technology Services shall manage the resource and technical issues regarding web accounts, College servers and system configuration. This office will coordinate with the Office of Institutional Advancement to determine which pages are ready for publication on the server.

Guidelines for all WWW pages are established by the Office of the Vice President for Academic Affairs in cooperation with the Office of Institutional Advancement. All Web pages must comply with these guidelines. (Appendix B)

For the purpose of this Policy, an "Official College Page" may represent the College or an organizational unit of the College. There are two types of official College pages: Official Home and Official Ancillary. Official home pages refer to pages so designated by OITS and the first pages designated by major organizational units of the College. Official ancillary pages are any other pages associated with that home page, and are so designated (for example, supporting information and student organizations).

OITS will designate official home pages and Institutional Advancement must approve their design and content. If an Official Home Page or Official Ancillary Page links to an unofficial page, the official page must carry a disclaimer of Middle Georgia College for the content of the unofficial page.

Middle Georgia College's WWW site is considered an official publication and external marketing tool, as well as a campus-wide information source. As with printed publications, only approved College information will be communicated on the MGC Home Page and all institutional links.

As campus resources allow, unofficial or “courtesy” pages may be accommodated within the College's network. For the purpose of this Policy, an "Unofficial College Page" is any page published through the use of any resource belonging to Middle Georgia College which does not fall into the category of official home pages.

The College recognizes the impossibility of reviewing all information published electronically by Middle Georgia College authorized users and, therefore, disclaims any responsibility for the content of unofficial pages. The College does reserve the right to review and investigate any page or pages published with the use of Middle Georgia College resources and enforce these policies with respect to such pages. Guidelines (Appendix B) are provided to guide and assist faculty, staff, and students who create an individual page or pages.

Below are excerpts from the Georgia Computer Systems Protection Act. These excerpts contain some of the laws, set forth by the State of Georgia, which govern computer use.

Section 4. Computer fraud and abuse.

(a) Whoever knowingly and willfully, directly or indirectly, without authorization, accesses, causes to be accessed, or attempts to access any computer, computer system, computer network, or any part thereof which, in whole or in part, operates in commerce or is owned by, under contract to, or in conjunction with state, county, or local government or any branch, department, or agency thereof, any business, or any entity operating in or affecting commerce for the purpose of:

(1) Devising or executing any scheme or artifice to defraud, or (2) Obtaining money, property, or services for themselves or another by means of false or fraudulent pretenses, representations, or promises shall, upon conviction thereof, be fined a sum of not more than two and one-half times the amount of the fraud or theft, or imprisoned not more than 15 years, or both.

(b) Whoever intentionally and without authorization, directly or indirectly accesses, alters, damages, destroys, or attempts to destroy any computer, computer system, or computer network, or any computer software, program or data shall, upon conviction thereof, be fined not more than $50,000.00 or imprisoned not more than 15 years, or both.

1. Guidelines For All World Wide Web Pages

1.1 Information on each page must be kept accurate, up-to-date, and conform to editorial standards including spelling, grammar, style, etc.

Each unit which creates a home page must assign a faculty or staff member to update its page as appropriate.

1.2 Middle Georgia College will observe the same copyright rules for its Web pages that it does for printed materials. Graphics or text may not be placed on pages without demonstrated permission of the artist or author.

1.3 The content of pages must not violate applicable export laws and regulations; must not constitute a copyright or trademark infringement; and must not otherwise violate any local, state, or federal laws.

1.4 The content of pages must not be such that it offends the average person, applying contemporary community standards, such as pornography.

1.5 All pages must be in compliance with all appropriate Middle Georgia College campus policies and procedures. Special attention should be paid to the section detailing what one may and may not do with a computer user account at the College. The application of this policy to the World Wide Web will allow immediate termination of any resource that makes excessive use of network bandwidth without authorization.

1.6 No page shall make available any information about the systems providing publishing capabilities, including, but not limited to security information and personal information about users on the system, other than the author, without the express permission of that user.

1.7 The preferred name for the College is "Middle Georgia College."

1.8 Authors or originators using trademarks must have express permission of the person(s) or organization(s) owning the trademarks prior to their use.

1.9 Authors or originators using photos and images may need the permission of not only the person or organization who owns the photo or image, but also from any individuals or persons included in the photo or image.

1.10 Any use of other copyrighted material must have the express written permission of the person or organization that owns the copyright. The College reserves the right to require proof of such written permission and to remove the material if that proof cannot be produced.

The following guidelines are in addition to Section 1 of Appendix B. (Guidelines for All WWW Pages)

2.1 Guidelines for All Official (Home and Ancillary) Pages

2.1.1 Information Technology Services in cooperation with Institutional Advancement will designate all Official Home Pages.

2.1.2 In order to assure a degree of continuity, maintain a consistent image, and increase usage of information published by Middle Georgia College, the right is reserved to monitor and review the Official College Pages for the College's departments and all major divisions. Photographs other than those taken by the Middle Georgia College Public Relations photographers should be approved by Institutional Advancement before being placed on pages.

2.1.3 It is suggested that the authors of Official College Pages show the date the document was last modified.

2.1.4 In the absence of extensive legislation or court decisions regarding the Internet, Middle Georgia College will incorporate a brief disclaimer at the bottom of any official page that links to any page other than another official College page noting that: “This web page, and others that portray the College's WWW logo with approved links to this page are officially sanctioned by Middle Georgia College. All other linked pages are the responsibility of the respective authors.”

2.1.5 Student Organizations may create web pages which must be approved by the Organization's faculty advisor and Institutional Advancement. These pages must be linked to an appropriate web page managed by the Office of Student Affairs. The College sponsor of each organization must periodically review the content of the student organization's web page. Student organization pages are considered ancillary pages and will be published on a space available basis.

2.2 Additional Guidelines for Official (Home and Ancillary) Pages

The following guidelines are in addition to Section 1 of Appendix B. (Guidelines for All WWW Pages)

3.1 The e-mail address or a readily-apparent link back to the appropriate address of the author or other person responsible for placing the information on the World Wide Web shall be displayed on each page.

3.2 Any pages discovered in violation of the Policies and Guidelines shall be subject to immediate removal from the Network including but not limited to the possible removal of the individual account from the system.

3.3 The use of the official College graphics, including logos, seals or other identifying marks is prohibited on unofficial pages.

3.4. Student pages shall not usually be directly linked from official College web pages. Individual departments may elect to provide an index of student pages if the following disclaimer appears prior to the index: "The information contained on student web pages represents the student and not necessarily that of MGC. The student takes full responsibility for the information presented."

Information Technology Services at Middle Georgia College will provide the following resources for electronic publishing via the World Wide Web.

4.1 Information Technology Services will provide the ability for faculty, staff, and students to use their current Windows-NT server accounts to publish pages on the World Wide Web. The content of these pages must comply with the above guidelines and must be contained in each users home directory and comply with current disk quota restrictions.

4.2 Information Technology Services will provide this resource to faculty, staff, and students on a machine which complies with production level maintenance and security.

4.3 Information Technology Services will provide a machine addressed www.mgc.edu on which "Official College Pages" and the main Middle Georgia College Home Page will be placed. The server will also provide space  for academic division and administrative departmental ancillary pages. This machine will also comply with production level maintenance and security.

4.4 Information Technology Services will provide the above services in order to provide a place for both "Official" and "Unofficial" College Pages. Information Technology Services will provide the WWW server and all functions related to running the server (e.g., Security, Disk Space, etc.). Information Technology Services will not create, modify, nor install said pages on the provided server. This is the responsibility of each individual division, department, unit, or individual. This again is left up to the publisher of the Web Page.