SUNY College at Oneonta Policy for Use of Campus Information Technology
The State University of New York College at Oneonta endorses the following statement of Software and Intellectual Rights that was developed through EDUCOM, a non-profit consortium of colleges and universities committed to the use and management of information technology in higher education.
"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 acknowledgement, right to privacy, and 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."
Policy
The above statement provides a guide for the use of all information technology facilities, labs and resources on campus. Use of information technology facilities and resources applies to, but is not limited to, the use of desktop computers, notebook computers, mainframe computers, servers of any kind, computer networks, network connections, modem connections and any other device that involves computing and/or network connectivity. It also applies to computer files, programs, or data stored on floppy disk, hard disk, magnetic tape, CD-ROM, cartridge, removable hard drives, zip drives or any other storage media. Information technology facilities and files owned by others should be used or accessed only with the owner's permission. The college information technology facilities are for the exclusive use of currently enrolled SUNY College at Oneonta students, faculty and staff and retired faculty, retired staff and "friends of the College" with a valid usercode.
Viewing or using another person's computer programs, files or data without authorized permission is unethical and/or illegal behavior, an invasion of that person's privacy and a violation of this policy. Such behavior, if used for personal gain, is plagiarism. Campus standards apply even when material appears to be legally unprotected. Improper use of copyrighted material may be illegal.
The following guidelines govern the use of information technology at the SUNY College at Oneonta:
Unauthorized access to restricted databases or servers or networks is prohibited and will be considered a violation of this Policy, as will setting up or attempting to set up an unauthorized server or any other devise on any of the SUNY networks.
Use of information technology facilities by an individual must be authorized through the Computer Usercode Agreement process resulting in a usercode being issued to the individual. www.oneonta.edu/general/policies/usercode.asp
Usercode access is exclusively for the recipient's own authentic academic and administrative purposes relating to the State University of New York. There will be a limited number of exceptions for cooperative accounts that may be issued, for example, to classes, and in such cases a specific individual will always be responsible for activity in that account.
Changing another person's password is considered a form of harassment and is a violation of this policy.
Users are responsible for their use of computer hardware, accounts and usercode. These should be used only for the State purpose; e.g., instructional class accounts must be used only to support the given courses. University information technology facilities are not to be used for private monetary gain.
Users should be aware that information content might or might not have value to the owner and may be protected by copyright laws. Ownership of information should be considered prior to use.
Users of the College’s computer systems should be aware of their responsibilities under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act. www.ala.org/washoff/osp.html
Users must not browse, access, copy or change private files nor change public files without authorization.
Users must not attempt to modify any computer system or software in any unauthorized manner. The use of invasive software, such as "worms" and "viruses" destructive to computer systems, is illegal and will be considered a violation of this policy. Copyrighted software must only be used in accordance with its license or purchase agreement.
Users do not have the right to receive and/or use unauthorized copies of software, or make unauthorized copies of software for themselves or others.
College information technology facilities are a valuable resource for College use and they should be conserved. Users should properly utilize these resources to minimize any unnecessary impact of their work on others; e.g.. users should:
a) avoid excessive game playing and other recreational computing;Transmitting rude, obscene or harassing material via any electronic facility provided by the College could be considered harassment. Users should take care to avoid sending, forwarding or otherwise transmitting material that may be considered harassing. Users should be aware that federal Telecommunications legislation specifies penalties for harassment, the transmission of indecent material and for the transmission of indecent material to people, or available to people, under 18 years of age even at their request. Inappropriate display of offensive material may be considered harassment. See Subtitle A Sec. 502 http://www.fcc.gov/Reports/tcom1996.pdf
Hardware, software, manuals, supplies, etc. must not be removed from computing sites without proper authorization, and abuse or misuse of any computer hardware or software will be regarded as illegal and/or unethical behavior and the perpetrator will be held in violation of this policy.
Violations of this Policy for the Use of Campus Information Technology are treated like other academic dishonesty or misuse of property violations as outlined in the Student Handbook and applicable faculty and staff handbooks. Violators may also be billed for illegal use of the computer systems and may be prosecuted for statutory violations.
Approved by the President's Cabinet, April 1999
SUNY College at Oneonta - Ravine Parkway - Oneonta, NY 13820 - 607.436.3500
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