ACCEPTABLE USE POLICY F. Paul Greene Harter Secrest & Emery LLP 1600 Bausch & Lomb Place Rochester, NY 14604 585-231-1435 fgreene@hselaw.com 2016 HARTER SECREST & EMERY LLP
THE FOLLOWING TEMPLATE WAS DESIGNED TO ASSIST IN DEVELOPING A POLICY GOVERNING ACCEPTABLE USE OF INFORMATION SYSTEMS. THIS DOCUMENT IS PROVIDED FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY AND SHOULD NOT BE CONSTRUED AS LEGAL ADVICE ON ANY SUBJECT MATTER. YOU SHOULD NOT ACT OR REFRAIN FROM ACTING BASED ON ANYTHING INCLUDED IN THIS DOCUMENT. BECAUSE THIS DOCUMENT CONTAINS GENERAL INFORMATION, IT MAY NOT REFLECT CURRENT LEGAL DEVELOPMENTS OR ADDRESS YOUR SITUATION. HARTER SECREST & EMERY LLP DISCLAIMS ALL LIABILITY FOR ACTIONS YOU TAKE OR FAIL TO TAKE BASED ON ANY CONTENT CONTAINED HEREIN. THIS TEMPLATE DOES NOT CREATE AN ATTORNEY- CLIENT RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN YOU AND HARTER SECREST & EMERY LLP. DO NOT RELY ON THIS DOCUMENT AS AN ALTERNATIVE TO LEGAL ADVICE. YOU SHOULD CONSULT A LAWYER IN PREPARING ANY POLICY. ACCEPTABLE USE POLICY Application and Purpose This Acceptable Use Policy (this policy ) applies to each employee, contractor, consultant, temporary employee, and other worker ( you or a User ) at [COMPANY NAME] ( us, we or Company ). This policy sets forth the rules that govern your use of or access to our computers, networks, communications systems and other information technology resources ( Systems ), even if such Systems are accessed remotely. You agree to this policy by using or accessing the Systems. Authorized and Unauthorized Use Generally. Except for limited personal and incidental use not otherwise prohibited by this or another Company policy, you may only use the Systems in support of our business and in connection with the scope of your employment or other working relationship with us. You may not use Systems in any manner that either interferes with your responsibilities to us or that violates this policy, law or another Company policy (e.g. policies concerning Discrimination and Harassment, Confidentiality, Workplace Violence and Standards of Behavior, and other policies). E-mail and Instant Messaging. You may not create or send electronic messages: That may be considered offensive, harassing, disruptive or that may contribute to a hostile environment; That contains profanity, obscenities or derogatory remarks; That constitutes chain letters or spam; To solicit or sell products or services unrelated to our business; or Page 1
In violation of any other Company policy. You must use good judgment when opening electronic mail and attachments from unknown senders because those messages and/or attachments may contain viruses, spyware, malware or other harmful code that can put the System and sensitive information at risk. You must delete all spam immediately any should not reply to spam in any way, including not responding to any opt-out or similar request to be removed from the distribution list. If you consistently receive spam, you should contact our information technology department to help filter or block incoming e-mail. Internet Use. In addition to other restrictions contained in this policy and other Company policies, your access or use of the Internet (including social media) through the Systems are subject to the following additional restrictions: You may not access or view pornographic, sexually explicit, illegal, obscene, offensive or hate sites, or any other website that might violate law or our policies, including those against harassment and discrimination; Your use must not involve any illegal or unethical activity (e.g., gambling, Warez sites containing pirated software, movies, games, or illegal hacking/cracking tools); Even if legal, you may access any online gambling, gaming or similar sights, including sights such as DraftKings or FanDuel; Your use must not constitute a conflict of interest with your obligations to the Company, which would include using the Internet for personal business or personal gain; Your use must be on personal time (hours not charged to us), must not interfere with our business or normal work activities, and must not adversely affect your performance or that of other people working for us; Your use must be incidental to overall usage and may not result in significant incremental cost or impact network performance (e.g., noticeable additional electronic mail traffic, large non-business related file transfers, significant video streaming or similar activities); You may not transmit or send sensitive or proprietary information, including software applications or personal information, to unauthorized persons; authorization for any transmission of any information protected by law (e.g., PII or PHI) must be approved by a supervisor prior to transmission and done using authorized protocols (e.g., encryption, VPN, SSL); You will not download software from any outside systems and may not use any externally provided software without permission from our information technology department. You may not post or distributed non-business related data, including software, games, movies, code or other inappropriate data. Page 2
You will not attempt to access another person s data (whether in or outside of the Company) unless that is part of your defined and permitted responsibilities to the Company and then only to the extent permitted; You may not add any hardware or peripherals to the Systems that would allow additional access to the Internet through the Systems, except to the extent permitted by our [Personal Device Policy]; Except for legitimate business webinars or videos that are necessary for your responsibilities to the Company, you may not download or watch/stream videos or audio; and You may not accept the terms or conditions of website or click through agreements without first obtaining approval from your supervisor. Social Media. The following rules apply to Social Media and are in addition to the other restrictions in this policy, including those on Internet usage. Social Media refers to any Internet-based communication platform or medium that allows for postings, updates, communication, or games with a primary focus on contemporaneous communication, networking, social connections, or commentary (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Craigslist, Instagram, Snap Chat, YouTube, blogs and websites that allow for user comments or reviews, etc.). No Personal Use. You may only use Systems to access Social Media in connection with work conducted for the Company, as set forth below. Regardless of your right to use Systems for limited personal use to the extent specified in this policy, you may not use Social Media for any personal reasons, which includes use on Company issued computers regardless of where they are used and using mobile devices, tablets or other devices to access Social Media when connected to our Systems. For example, this policy does not restrict your use of Social Media on a personal tablet (not connected to the Internet through our Systems), even if you can receive firm email on that device. However, this policy covers any use once your personal tablet or smart device connects to the Internet through the Systems (e.g., you connect to the Internet on your device using Company Wi- Fi). Approved Uses of Social Media and Approved Social Media Platforms. You may use Systems to access Social Media only in furtherance of the scope of your responsibilities to the Company and then only to: o Conduct research related to the Company s business; o Network for Company business purposes; o Market for Company s business purposes; and Page 3
o Engage in approved community involvement activities (e.g., board membership, volunteering, etc.). You may only use the following Social Media platforms for these approved purposes: o LinkedIn o Twitter o YouTube o [Others] We may add or remove Social Media platforms at any time and for any reason. You may request to add other Social Media platforms by contacting the director of information technology department, which request may be rejected for any reason. Standards for Approved Use of Social Media. When you use Social Media for approved purposes and on an approved platform, you must: o comply with all of our other policies; o comply with applicable laws including but not limited to laws regarding intellectual property, copyright, plagiarism, libel, slander or defamation; o conduct yourself in accordance with our ethical standards; o not pressure or harass employees, contractors or customers to participate in Social Media or social networking sites (unless participation is required as part of an employee s job); o not make any comments about the Company or third-parties, that could be considered defamatory, disparaging or that would cast the company or that third-party in a bad light; o not speak on our behalf unless specifically authorized to do so; o not leave Social Media sites, platforms or apps open on firm computers while not in use; o not use any Company logo or images without approval from your supervisor and the head of our [marketing][branding] department; o not allow Social Media sites to access your or our business contact lists, as this could divulge confidential information, including the identity of our customers and vendors; o not like, retweet, list as a favorite any other content unless it complies with all of the other aspects of this policy. Clarification. The restrictions on Social Media use, do not apply to conduct or speech expressly protected by federal or state laws or regulations. Nothing in these restrictions on Social Media use is intended to prohibit you from communicating about terms and conditions of employment. Page 4
Other Restricted Uses You may not play computer games (including online games) using our Systems. In addition to the above restrictions on downloading items from the Internet, you may not install any software or shareware to your hard drive or device without the prior approval of our information technology department. Telephone and Voicemail We may provide landline, VOIP and/or mobile telephone access and voicemail systems to you for use in connection with performance of your job duties. The above restrictions on email, Internet usage and Social Media usage apply to your use any such telephone service - that is, you cannot use telephone service to engage in an activity that you would be prohibited from engaging in another use of our systems (e.g., you cannot use the telephone to harass another, to engage in illegal activities, etc.). You may not use our telephones or mobile phones for commercial, religious or political solicitation, or to promote outside organizations. To ensure that our customers are provided with courteous and respectful service, and to prevent misuse of our resources, your telephone conversations and voicemail messages may, without notice, be monitored, recorded and reviewed. We may store recorded telephone conversations and voicemail messages for a period of time after they take place, and may delete such recordings from time to time. Security, Access and Passwords You must adhere to all of our security guidelines in connection with your use of Systems, including but not limited to the creation, format and scheduled changes of passwords. All user names, pass codes, passwords, and information used or stored on our computers, networks and systems are our property. You may not use unauthorized pass codes or passwords to gain access to information is prohibited. You may not use our systems in any way to gain access to files or any stored information, without prior approval from an authorized representative of the Company. You will not share user names, pass codes or passwords with any other person except for the administrative assistant assigned to that employee. You will immediately inform the information technology department if you know or suspect that any user name, pass code or password has been improperly shared or used or that security has been violated in any way. You must not attempt to disable or remove antivirus or malware prevention software or otherwise prevent the software from performing its intended purpose. You should not open any files or macros attached to an email from an unknown, suspicious or untrustworthy Page 5
source. All unexpected content from a trusted source should be verified with the source prior to opening. The willful introduction of a computer virus, malware or disruptive code to the Systems is prohibited. No Expectation of Privacy All information, messages and communications you prepare, save to or distribute using the Systems are our property and we may access, censor, withdraw and disclose them at any time, with or without prior notice. You have no expectation of privacy whatsoever in any message, files, data, document, facsimile, telephone conversation, Social Media post, conversation or message, or any other kind of information or communications transmitted to, received or printed from, or stored or recorded on the Systems. To prevent misuse, and maintain production and discipline, we reserve the right to monitor, intercept and review, without further notice, your activities using Systems, including but not limited to email, Internet usage social media postings and activities, and you consent to such monitoring by your acknowledgment of this policy and your use of such Systems. This might include, without limitation, the monitoring, interception, accessing, recording, disclosing, inspecting, reviewing, retrieving and printing of transactions, messages, communications, postings, logins, recordings and other uses of the systems as well as keystroke capturing and other network monitoring technologies. We also may store copies of such data or communications for a period of time after they are created, and may delete such copies from time to time without notice. Confidentiality and Proprietary Rights Our confidential information and intellectual property (including trade secrets) are extremely valuable to us and you should be treated accordingly and not jeopardized through your business or personal use of Systems, including e-mail, text messaging, internet access, social media and telephone conversations and voice mail. Other Policies All of our other policies to which you are subject (e.g., policies concerning Discrimination and Harassment, Confidentiality, Workplace Violence and Standards of Behavior) also apply to your use of the Systems and any use of the Systems in violation of another policy is a violation of both this policy and that other policy. For example, you may not use any System in any harassing, illegal or offensive manner, including any based on race, national origin, sex, sexual Page 6
orientation, age, disability, religious beliefs or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local law. Administration of this Policy Our [information technology department] is responsible for the administration of this policy. Discipline Employees who violate any provision of this policy are subject to discipline, up to and including termination of employment. Page 7
Acknowledgment of Receipt and Review I acknowledge the receipt of a copy of the Company s Acceptable Use Policy. I have read and familiarized myself with the policy s contents and I understand my responsibility for adhering to this policy. I agree to abide by the Company s rules and procedures as outlined in the policy. I understand that the Company, at its discretion, may monitor my activities when using Company equipment and information systems. I understand that violations of this policy will be investigated and, if found to be substantive, may result in disciplinary action, including but not limited to termination of employment. I further understand that certain violations of this policy may be subject to criminal prosecution. Signature Printed Name Date Page 8