AVID SCIENCE FICTION FANS MAY REMEMBER some of the more interesting scenarios that appeared in movies and books 50 years ago. Remember the story about the manned flight to the moon where the lack of technology prevented communication with the astronauts once the rocket left the Earth's atmosphere, or the engineer on some distant planet several hundred years in the future who pulls out his slide rule to tackle some difficult problem?

Many of the advances that we accept as a routine part of our lives would have seemed like miracles in 1950. While much of this new technology has been instrumental in helping us perform our jobs more effectively and efficiently, sometimes there are unexpected drawbacks attached to the benefits we receive. An example of this is the Internet and email.

Typically, these problems arise as the result of one of two situations: a) abuse of the privilege of having access to the Internet and email, or b) failure to understand privacy and ownership issues of information on the Internet and in email. To reduce the potential for problems, counties should have a policy addressing employees' use and responsibility in regard to the county's email and Internet systems.

A key issue that needs to be addressed is personal use of the county's email and Internet systems. Some employers view such use as parallel to using company phones for personal calls. Under this philosophy, reasonable limited personal use is allowed as long as it does not interfere with the employee's work and all the guidelines for responsible use are followed. Often such use is allowed during break, lunch, or other periods when the employee is not expected to be doing work for the county. Other employers take a firmer stance and say that there will be no personal use of email or Internet. As with most policies, the final decision is up to each employer as to whether personal use is allowed, and, if so, what limitations will be placed on such use.

A significant question is whether an employer can access an employee's email communications. Under the Electronic Communications Privacy Act of 1986, the intentional interception of electronic communications is a criminal act with substantial civil and criminal penalties, where the interception occurs on the premises of a business affecting interstate commerce. Exceptions, however, provide an employer with certain rights. Where one party consents to the interception, this prohibition does not apply. It is generally accepted that consent exists if the employer notifies the employees that their email communications will be monitored. A second exception allows employers to intercept email messages during the ordinary course of business. However, because of the newness of email, many issues are in a gray area and case law is still evolving.

To protect the county, an effective email policy should establish ownership of any documents generated on the county's email system and what expectation of privacy an employee has regarding email. The policy should clearly state that all messages created on the county's email system are the property of the county and that employees cannot expect such documents to remain private, including personal communications. Rather than just saying that email may be monitored by the county, it is probably wise to say that it will be monitored. Employees also need to be aware of the fact that email is subject to the discovery process during litigation and is considered a public record subject to the Open Records Act, just as are other county documents. In addition to policy statements regarding the county's ownership of email communications and the fact that the employee has no expectation of privacy, it is probably wise to have all employees sign a statement of understanding of those issues.

Another important part of an email policy is defining what is acceptable and unacceptable content of email documents. Generally, any message needed for the effective operation of the county is acceptable, but information that should viewed as confidential should not be included in email. This latter category could include certain personnel information, bid information, litigation issues, and other similar items. (Remember that there is no guarantee of privacy or confidentiality for any email.)

• Engaging in an activity that is fraudulent, illegal, or malicious;
• Sending or storing anything offensive, obscene, or defamatory;
• Sending email to harass or annoy other individuals;
• Sending email that tends to interfere with the productivity of other employees; and
• Using email for personal gain.

It is also wise to include a statement that prohibits any use of email that violates county policy or is not in the best interest of the county.

The same general rules that apply to email should also apply to Internet use. Examples of accepted uses of the Internet would include conducting county business, research, and information gathering. Internet sites that are pornographic, contrary to the goals of the county, or that are used for personal gain should not be intentionally accessed. A policy should also prohibit the downloading of any software without approval from the MIS department or other proper authority.

While there is a wealth of information on the Internet, employees should be made aware of the fact that most of this information is subject to federal copyright laws just as written and recorded copyrighted material is protected. Just because information is found on the Internet, the user is not necessarily given the right to free, unlimited use of that information unless a disclaimer provides that right. (Some government sitets dealing with employment issues, for example, encourage the user to copy and freely distribute the information.) Generally, an Internet user is allowed to download one copy of copyrighted material for personal use. Any other use, without the permission of the copyright owner, could lead to legal action by the copyright owner.

Computer storage space is another problem generated by email and the Internet. Too often, there is a tendency to save everything to an internal drive that rapidly eats into the available internal memory. Many data processing professionals say that email and Internet information should be deleted as soon as it is no longer needed. If the information must be stored for an extended period, it should be moved to diskette or other external storage system.

Another area of concern is unauthorized access and use of the county's email and Internet systems. To reduce this potential, each user should have his or her own unique logon name and password. The importance of keeping the logon name and password confidential should be stressed to each employee and these should never be given to anyone except the system administrator and, where deemed necessary, to a manager who may need access to the employee's files in the absence of the employee. Even though passwords are used, employees need to be aware of the fact that this still is not a guarantee of privacy.

Consequences of violation of the county's email and Internet policies need to be communicated to all employees. Depending on the severity of the violation, discipline could range from a simple warning up to termination.

The email and Internet are great tools in today's workplace. They help us communicate faster, be more productive, and to have access to greater resources. However, like any tool, they can be misused and cause severe harm. Therefore, it is important that we inform our employees how to use these tools responsibility and a well written, clearly stated policy is a major step in accomplishing this goal.