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Computer Code of Ethics/
Acceptable Use of Campus Network and Computing Systems

Updated on November 20, 2007

This policy applies to Babson College students, faculty and staff.

Computer abuse affects everyone who uses computing facilities and results in significant expense to the College. The same moral and ethical behaviors that apply in the non computing environment apply in the computing environment. Babson College treats access and use violations seriously. Access to the College computing facilities and information resources is a privilege granted to the College’s students, faculty, administrators, and staff. Access to the College’s computing facilities and information resources may be restricted or terminated at the College’s sole discretion based on the following factors: failure to comply with relevant laws and contractual obligations (including the terms of any license agreements); the risk of damage or loss to the College; the impact of a violation upon the community or third parties; and costs incurred by the College in responding to abuses of the system. 

It is the responsibility of each member of the community to use the services provided by the College's campus network and computing systems appropriately and in compliance with all College, town, county, state, and federal laws and regulations. Furthermore, users are expected to use computer, electronic mail, and network services in an effective, ethical, responsible and efficient manner consistent with the instructional, research, public service and administrative goals of the College. This policy covers all persons accessing a computer, telecommunications or network resource at Babson College, including the campus data network, electronic mail, file sharing, printing, world-wide web services, telephone services and cable television. College computing systems are College resources which may be provided to employees for business purposes. Computers and the information contained on them are the property of the College and may be accessed by College officials at any time.

College policy and relevant laws apply to use of the College's network and computing services. Actions that are unacceptable in the College community are also unacceptable on the network, computing systems and other electronic services, including:

• Harassment in any form.
  
  
• Failure to respect the rights and property of others.
  
  
• Forgery or other misrepresentation of one's identity.
  
  
• Distribution, re-distribution, attempted downloading, or downloading of copyrighted materials without the permission of the copyright owner.

In addition, these policies specific to Babson's network and electronic services apply:

• College systems, networks and electronic services may only be used for legal purposes and to access only those systems, software, and data for which the user is authorized.
  
  
• College systems, networks and electronic services are provided only for uses consistent with the academic mission of the institution. They may not be used for private commercial or partisan political purposes, for personal gain, for unsolicited advertising, nor in any way that jeopardizes the College's tax-exempt status.  College facilities may not be used to provide Babson College network, internet access, cable television or telephone service to anyone outside of the Babson College community for any purpose. The College's conflict of interest and consulting/outside employment policies also apply.
  
  
• College facilities may not be used in ways that violate the privacy rights of individuals, the College's confidentiality policy or related laws.
  
  
• Information resources licensed by the College for the use of its students, faculty or staff may not be retransmitted outside of the College community. Examples include Encyclopedia Britannica (On-Line), site-licensed software, and commercial cable television service.
  
  
• Network, cable TV and telephone services and wiring may not be modified or extended beyond the area of their intended use. This applies to all wiring, hardware and in-room jacks.
  
  
• Computer users may not assign an IP number to their machines. IP numbers are assigned dynamically. Manually assigning an IP number to one's machine may disrupt the network access of another user. Users with special needs may request a non-DHCP IP address from the IT Service Center.
  
  
• All members of the Babson community who use the College’s computing resources must act responsibly.  This includes, but is not limited to, respecting the rights of other computer users, abiding by all pertinent   licensing and contractual agreements, and taking reasonable steps to protect the security of one’s computer and electronic identity (i.e.  changing passwords frequently, logging off each time you leave your   computer, locking computer, etc.).
  
  
• All electronic and telephonic communication systems and all communications and stored information sent, received, created on or contained in the Babson systems are the property of the College and as such, are to be used for job-related purposes. While members of the Babson community may make incidental personal use of Babson technology resources, it must be done in accordance with all College policies and relevant laws and at a level that is determined to be reasonable with respect to the use of College resources.
  
  
• You should not consider any material on these systems to be private. Even erased or deleted material may remain available. While the College respects the privacy of its users, the College reserves the right to look at, listen to or use anything on its systems and equipment, in its sole discretion, with or without notice, at any time and to by-pass any pass code. Circumstances for such action may include, but are not limited to, protecting the College from liability; complying with requirements of the law, regulations, or College policies; protecting the integrity, security, and proper functioning of the College’s computing systems; investigating violations of the law, regulations, or College policy; and enforcing College policy and adjudicating offenses.
  
  
• The campus network is a shared resource. Therefore, network uses or applications which inhibit or interfere with the use of the network by others are not permitted. (For example, applications which use an unusually high portion of network bandwidth for extended periods of time, thus inhibiting the use of the network by others, are not permitted)
  
  
• Users are required to know and obey the specific policies established for the systems and networks they access. They have a responsibility to stay informed of changes and adapt as needed. For any questions related to the computing policies at Babson please contact the IT Service Center.
  
  
• Administrators of the network, computer systems and other electronic services have the responsibility to protect the rights of users, to set policies consistent with those rights, and to publicize those policies to their users. They have authority to control or refuse access to the network or other services to anyone who violates these policies or threatens the rights of other users.
  
  
• Anybody who is active on any online communities (i.e. facebook.com, myspace.com, etc.) must be aware that any information, including personal weblogs and pictures, posted on these websites is public information. While the College does not typically review these online communities in an ongoing manner, if the College is made aware of any online posting which it deems to be problematic or indicative of policy violations, it reserves the right, but not the obligation, to respond.
  
  
• Violations of the Computer Code of Ethics/Acceptable Use Policy will be treated as violations of College policy and may result in disciplinary action. Prosecution under state and federal laws may also apply.