E-Mail & Internet Usage Policy-Final
E-Mail & Internet Usage Policy-Final
E-Mail & Internet Usage Policy-Final
The purpose of this policy is to ensure the proper use of E-MAIL & INTERNET. Provided as a means of effective and efficient communication channel and make users aware of what the Company deems as acceptable and unacceptable use of its e-mail /internet system. The Company reserves the right to amend this policy at any time and at its discretion. In case of amendments, users will be informed appropriately. E-MAIL ACCOUNTS All employees of the organization shall be provided with an unique identity using his/her First Name and Last Name within 5 working days of joining with an request / approval from Head of the Department / Head HR. All e-mail accounts and its contents maintained on our e-mail systems is the property of the Company. Passwords should not be given to other people and should be changed once a month. For better security for your e-mail account it is highly recommended the Password to contain a combination of alphanumerical and special characters E-mail accounts not used for 90 days will be deactivated and possibly deleted. BEST PRACTICES e-mail as an important means of communication and recognizes the importance of proper e-mail content and speedy replies in conveying a professional image and delivering good customer service. Therefore Company wishes users to adhere to the following guidelines: Writing e-mails: o Write well-structured e-mails and use short, descriptive subjects. o Companys e-mail style is informal. This means that sentences can be short and to the point. You can start your e-mail with Hi, or Dear, and the name of the person. Messages can be ended with Best Regards. The use of Internet abbreviations and characters such as smileys however, is not encouraged. o Signatures must include your name, job title and company name. A disclaimer will be added underneath your signature (see Disclaimer) o Use the spell checker before you send out an e-mail. o Cross-check when you mark CC to others or when using Reply to All feature tab. (Sometimes by oversight or carelessness the e-mail may be sent/copied or replied with unintended and damaging consequences, especially comments/views/opinions ,expressed which are solely intended for a department/internal Company use which may be confidential in nature or certain commercial aspects such as pricing, discounts etc) o Do not send unnecessary attachments. Compress attachments larger than 200K before sending them. o Do not write e-mails in capitals. o Do not use cc: or bcc: fields unless the cc: or bcc: recipient is aware that you will be copying a mail to him/her and knows what action, if any, to take. o If you forward mails, state clearly what action you expect the recipient to take. o Only send e-mails of which the content could be displayed on a public notice board. If
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they cannot be displayed publicly in their current state, consider rephrasing the e-mail, using other means of communication, or protecting information by using a password (see confidential). Only mark e-mails as important if they really are important The TO address marked in the Mail -- ID is for person to whom the mail is marked and is responsible for replying / taking action on the mail. The other recipients to whom the mail is marked is deemed as for info. It is advisable to send it to the TO address for action and mark in CC to the others for info E-mails relating to sharing of jokes / thoughts / mind games etc are to be restricted and care should be taken not cause any annoyance to other recipients and should be stopped sharing with persons immediately if they so express with a due apology. E-mails relating to admin issues Rule of E-mails using all users facility
Replying to e-mails: o It is individuals discretion that the E-mails can be answered within stipulated time may be within 4 - 8 working hours, priority e-mails may be immediately answered. o Priority e-mails are e-mails from existing users, group members, customers and business partners or any other respective contact. Newsgroups: o Users need to request permission from their supervisor before subscribing to a newsletter or news group. Maintenance: o Delete any e-mail messages that you do not need to have a copy of, and set your e-mail client to automatically empty your deleted items on closing. o This will enable user to have his mail box size limits maintained well within available / allocated space. o All mails are stored in a single file and the data needs to backed up / archived regularly and keep this file to minimum size for better access without having to wait for longer.
PERSONAL USE Although Companys e-mail system is meant for business use, Company allows the reasonable use of email for personal use if certain guidelines are adhered to: Personal use of e-mail should not interfere with regular work. Personal e-mails must also adhere to the guidelines in this policy. Personal e-mails are kept in a separate folder, named Private. The e-mails in this folder must be deleted weekly so as not to clog up the system. THE FORWARDING OF CHAIN LETTERS, JUNK MAIL, JOKES AND EXECUTABLES IS STRICTLY FORBIDDEN. Users are not allowed to send more than 5 personal e-mails a day. Do not send mass mailings. All messages distributed via the companys e-mail system, even personal e-mails, are Companys property. CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION Avoid sending confidential information by e-mail. If you do, you must secure the information by including it in a Microsoft Word or Excel file and protecting it with a password. Then provide the recipient with the password by means of other communication, for instance by telephone. All large size attachments more than 5 MB needs to be split into chunks of equal size of 5MB and sent. This practice will help in making the users to simultaneously work in using network applications. Always Contact your Systems Administrators help in sending large files to recipient based on urgency.
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LEGAL RISKS E-mail is a business communication facility and users are obliged to use this facility in a responsible, effective and lawful manner. Although by its nature e-mail seems to be less formal than other written communication, the same laws apply. Therefore, it is important that users are aware of the legal risks of e-mail: If you send e-mails with any libelous, defamatory, offensive, racist or obscene remarks, you and Company can be held liable. If you unlawfully forward confidential information, you and the Company can be held liable. If you unlawfully forward or copy messages without permission, you and the Company can be held liable for copyright infringement. If you send an attachment that contains a virus, you and the Company can be held liable.
By following the guidelines in this policy, the e-mail user can minimize the legal risks involved in the use of e-mail. If any user disregards the rules set out in this E-mail Policy, the user will be fully liable and Company will disassociate itself from the user as far as legally possible. LEGAL REQUIREMENTS The following rules are required by law and are to be strictly adhered to: It is strictly prohibited to send or forward e-mails containing defamatory, offensive, racist or obscene remarks. If you receive an e-mail of this nature, you must promptly notify your superiors. Do not forward a message without acquiring permission from the sender first. Do not send unsolicited e-mail messages. Do not forge or attempt to forge e-mail messages. Do not send e-mail messages using another persons e-mail account. Do not copy a message or attachment belonging to another user without permission of the originator. Do not disguise or attempt to disguise your identity when sending mail.
DISCLAIMER The following disclaimer will be added to each outgoing e-mail: NON-DISCLOSURE: The information in this e-mail including any attachments is confidential and may be legally privileged and is intended solely for the addressee. If you are not an intended recipient, please delete this message and all attachments and notify us immediately by replying to this transmission. Any use, disclosure or distribution of the contents of this email and any attachments is unauthorised and may be unlawful. Finally, the recipient should check this e-mail and any attachments for the presence of viruses. The company accepts no liability for any damage caused by any virus transmitted by this e-mail.
NO EXPECTATION OF PRIVACY Employees are given computers and Internet access to assist them in the performance of their jobs. Employees should have no expectation of privacy in anything they create, store, send or receive using the companys computer equipment. The computer network is the property of the Company and may be used only for its purposes.
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MONITORING OF COMPUTER AND INTERNET USAGE: The Company has the right to monitor and log any and all aspects of its Computer system including, but not limited to, monitoring Internet sites visited by Users, including and not limited to monitoring chat, newsgroups, and the like, monitoring file downloads, and all communications sent and received by users. BLOCKING SITES WITH INAPPROPRIATE CONTENT: The Company has the right to utilize software that makes it possible to identify and block access to Internet sites containing offensive, derogatory, propagate violence, sexually explicit, anti social or other such material deemed inappropriate in the workplace. PROCEDURE The Company will periodically audit its systems, including e-mail and Internet access, to determine whether there is evidence of abuse or misuse. Employees who abuse or misuse any Company technology will be disciplined by warnings, disciplinary action up to and including immediate termination which ever may deem to be appropriate by the Company. SYSTEM MONITORING You must have no expectation of privacy in anything you create, store, send or receive on the companys computer system. Your e-mails can be monitored without prior notification if Company deems this necessary. If there is evidence that you are not adhering to the guidelines set out in this policy, the Company reserves the right to take disciplinary action, including termination and/or legal action. QUESTIONS If you have any questions or comments about this E-mail Policy, please contact [Name], [Tel], [E-mail]. If you do not have any questions Company presumes that you understand and are aware of the rules and guidelines in this E-mail Policy and will adhere to them.
DECLARATION I have read, understand and acknowledge receipt of the E-mail policy. I will comply with the guidelines set out in this policy and understand that failure to do so might result in disciplinary or legal action.
Signature:
_________________________
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