POL17 - Acceptable Use of City Digital Equipment, Internet Access, Electronic Communications and Other Applications

1. City owned digital equipment, access to the Internet, and City provided applications may not be used for purposes that are prohibited by City of Seattle policy, ethics rules, or City, State or Federal law (See GUI 17A for details)

2. Digital equipment and all applications must be authorized and installed by appropriate personnel in each City department (See GUI 17B for details)

3. Streaming video, audio or music files, image storage and other bandwidth or storage intensive features must be used judiciously and with strict business justification (See GUI 17C for details).

4. Any network usage that might put an undo strain on City resources must be approved in writing by the CTO before implementation

5. Resources of any kind for which there is a fee, whether accessed via the Internet, email or other applications, must not be accessed or downloaded without prior approval from a supervisor

6. Use of any of these resources must be consistent with applicable Electronic Records Retention Laws and Policies

7. Nothing in these policies confers a right to privacy in digital data upon any person

8. The use of proxy servers to avoid detection of non-business related Internet activities is prohibited

9. Viewing or printing of written or graphic materials that denigrate or show hostility or aversion to an individual or group is prohibited

10. Minimal use of City owned digital equipment, access to the Internet, and City provided applications including email for personal purposes is allowed (For details see GUI 17D)

GUI 17A Prohibited Uses of City-owned Digital Equipment

City equipment may not be used for any of the following purposes as defined by City policy, ethics rules and City and State laws (this is not necessarily an all inclusive list - others may apply and the user is charged with using discretion):

- conducting private business;
- political campaigning;
- announcing union membership meetings or conducting other exclusively union business;
- making unauthorized general message distributions to all users ("everyone");
- sharing or storing unlicensed software or audio/video files;
- or any other illegal usage.

GUI 17B Installation of Hardware/Software

Only software or hardware that meets the City's defined standards will be installed unless an exception has been documented in writing.

This includes but is not limited to applications specifically designed to communicate electronically. Electronic communication technology poses a particular security risk due to the two-way nature of these applications.

Examples of electronic communication technology requiring a written exception include instant messaging (IM), voice over IP (VoIP), and Internet Relay Chat (IRC).

GUI 17C Use of Bandwidth Intensive Application/Features

Use of video, audio, image storage, etc. can put a strain on the available resources of the City's networks and bandwidth. The Office of Information Security reserves the right to require a review of any usage that is discovered to have strained the City's resources.

Users should work with their IT management to establish the resource and bandwidth requirements of any new applications or systems. In collaboration with departmental IT management all new applications or projects should be assessed for any possible negative effects due to resource strain. If it is suspected that strain could be caused by the proposed application or system, it should be reviewed and approved in writing by the CTO.

GUI 17D Guidance on De-Minimus Use of City Digital Equipment

To the extent permitted by your department's policies, you may use City owned digital equipment, access to the Internet, and other applications including e-mail and other authorized electronic communications such as Instant Messaging, to announce or distribute notice of departmental or personal events of interest to your co-workers. However, all messages announcing or promoting an event such as a training opportunity, charitable fund raising campaign or other presentation must be approved by a designated management representative before they are disseminated universally across any e-mail facility.

You may also use these resources to schedule personal appointments and for other reasonable personal purposes as long as such use is incidental and does not interfere with your workload, as determined by your supervisor.