IEEE Electronic Mail Policy

Transcription

1 IEEE Electronic Mail Policy 1. Policy Responsibility and related documents This policy is maintained by the IEEE Information Technology Strategy Committee (ITSC), with revisions submitted to the Board of Directors for 30- day approval review and if objections are raised, for consideration during the subsequent Board meeting. The IEEE Electronic Mail Policy along with documents that provide additional guidance including the Acceptable Use Guidelines and Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) are located at 2. Definitions alias - The name for an individual electronic mailbox or other entity such as an electronic mail list. An alias is made up of a name field and a domain (e.g., name field@domain). sent to an alias is forwarded to the electronic address or mailbox of the individual or entity list - A collection of addresses representing people or a specific group, assembled and identified by a unique alias (e.g., anou- 2004@ieee.org). Any information sent to this alias is distributed to all addresses and/or aliases on the list list alias - The unique name for a collection of addresses and/or e- mail aliases assembled into a group (see list) list owner - Person responsible for the maintenance and integrity of an individual list Functional alias - An alias that represents an IEEE department, conference, entity, or other activity (e.g., helpdesk@ieee.org, or list-owner- ITSC04@ieee.org), as opposed to an individual's name Network Etiquette - (Netiquette) Tips and recommended practices for online communication Personal alias - The name for an individual s electronic mail mailbox (e.g., i.lastname@ieee.org). Electronic mail sent to a personal electronic mail alias is forwarded to the physical address (electronic mailbox) of the individual (see alias) Personal alias owner - The recipient of an alias for individual use. 3. Policy, Disclaimers and Limitations 3.1. The policy of the IEEE is to encourage and promote the responsible use of electronic communications in the administrative, business and technical operations of the Institute. It is also the policy of the IEEE to respect the privacy of individual users, to use commercially reasonable efforts to ensure the security, reliability and privacy of the IEEE's systems and networks and to comply with all applicable laws. By accepting or using an IEEE alias or using an IEEE hosted list, you agree to abide by the procedures, acceptable use practices

2 and network etiquette contained herein. [The annotated statement above regarding the interpretation of "use" is not traditional (i.e., by sending an from to Mr. Doe would not be considered to be using Bob's alias). Transmission of with a return address of bobt@ieee.org would be considered using Bob's alias although it should be noted that such use would only be conveyed through IEEE's systems if these were involved in delivery to the destination user.] 3.2. While the IEEE promotes the privacy of individual mail users consistent with its policies, the IEEE cannot guarantee the security or privacy of the IEEE's systems and networks or the networks and systems of others. The IEEE may disclose to government agencies or qualified entities information related to your use or your personal alias if it is required to do so by law or in the good-faith belief that such action is necessary to: (a) conform to the edicts of the law or (b) protect or defend the rights or property of the IEEE or its members The availability of and IEEE hosted lists are provided on an "as is" and "as available basis." the IEEE makes no representations or warranties, expressed or implied, of any kind with respect to any IEEE-hosted list or the IEEE's provision or your use of provided through the IEEE's servers and expressly disclaims all representations and warranties, including, without limitation, warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose Neither the IEEE nor any of its members, directors, employees or other representatives will be liable for damages arising out of or in connection with the use of an IEEE alias or an IEEE-hosted list, including, but not limited to, misaddressed, lost or undelivered messages even if advised of the possibility thereof. Each user shall be solely responsible for his or her use of . This is a comprehensive limitation of liability that applies to all damages of any kind, including, without limitation, indirect, incidental, special and consequential damages, loss of data, income, profit or goodwill, loss of or damage to property and claims of third parties Use of an assigned IEEE alias is a privilege, not a right. The IEEE reserves the right to discontinue alias or list service, with or without warning, for any reason including, but not limited to, violations of this policy. An IEEE alias does not authorize the recipient or user to represent the IEEE or to act on behalf of the IEEE. The IEEE reserves the right to modify this policy at any time, for any reason deemed appropriate. The most up to date version of the policy will be maintained at As a part of the maintenance process, IEEE IT Department employees may have incidental contact with (or other digital transfers) passing through IEEE systems. Information about such documents will be held in confidence The IEEE Code of Ethics applies to the use of IEEE services

3 4. IEEE Aliases 4.1. IEEE Personal Alias Service An IEEE alias is a privilege available to IEEE members and staff exclusively. Individuals who have not previously had this privilege revoked are eligible to request an alias. Upon receipt of a request for an e- mail alias, the IEEE shall evaluate such request and take appropriate action in light of this policy and other factors deemed appropriate by the IEEE. Additionally, the IEEE Computer Society and the IEEE Communications Society provide similar aliases (e.g., i.lastname@computer.org and e.g., i.lastname@comsoc.org), with similar constraints, to their Society members, affiliates and staff. Elsewhere in this document, IEEE is used to mean IEEE and the IEEE Societies noted in this paragraph Requests for a specific alias will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis It is the responsibility of the IEEE personal alias owner to maintain the correct forwarding address. If an alias points to an invalid address, this address will be disabled, and can only be re-established upon request. The URLs for alias maintenance are the same as those for requests above If your membership or affiliate status expires and is not renewed, the IEEE may elect to discontinue your IEEE alias. Once an alias has been discontinued, it may no longer be available announcements to individuals consistent with the IEEE s privacy policies, will be sent using the address identified by that individual for communications, which may or may not be the alias assigned to that individual The privilege of owning and using your assigned IEEE personal alias is not transferable. An IEEE alias may not be sold or used for any commercial venture The IEEE may implement tools to block viruses, "spam" or other problematic content from being forwarded through IEEE's aliases and lists as a benefit to alias users The creation of an IEEE personal membership benefit alias domain requires the approval of ITSC The IEEE reserves the right to reject or terminate certain alias name choices including, but not limited to, those that are deemed inappropriate, offensive, or distasteful. The use of company names, trade names, and trademarks (e.g., IBM@ieee.org, JohnDoeInc@ieee.org) is prohibited Functional Aliases Authorized staff can approve a functional alias within an established @comsoc.org) on behalf of an

4 IEEE event (e.g. conference) in compliance with established IEEE business practices, IEEE Policies and Procedures, and established practices within the responsible functional organization Functional aliases may be directed to one mailbox or split among a work team. 5. IEEE Lists 5.1. IEEE volunteers and staff may request the creation of IEEE-hosted lists. The purpose of the list is subject to review and approval by the responsible entity or functional organization in compliance with IEEE Bylaws, Policies and Procedures, business practices, and this policy 5.2. IEEE electronic mailing lists are used solely for the purpose of conducting IEEE business Every list must have an owner IEEE lists shall not be used to send unsolicited commercial commonly referred to as "SPAM" An IEEE alias owner may send communications to those members and customers who have requested to be contacted, provided that the response shall be specific to the content of the communication requested IEEE lists shall not be sold or given to third parties IEEE lists shall not be used for IEEE electioneering unless explicitly established for this purpose Communications outside of this policy, ITSC guidelines and those established by the list owner are not authorized and may be deleted from relevant archives, and the initiator blocked from further transmissions to the list Members of a mailing list (e.g., standards working group) are permitted to remove themselves from a mailing list at their own discretion, except as noted in For official IEEE business, IEEE members, staff, Society Affiliates and Standards Association members may automatically be included on mailing lists used for official IEEE business (e.g., corp97-bod@ieee.org). Members of such a mailing list cannot remove themselves from the list without executive director approval List communications should not be considered private Communications to lists consistent with the defined purpose and guidelines of that list do not require further authorization. Extracts from the SAMIEEE database of members who have specified interest in a specific area (society, section, topic, etc.) can be used for announcements relevant to that member selection IEEE staff or volunteers must have permission from the recipient to send information via using lists which were not created for this purpose. (e.g.

5 extracts from the SAMIEEE database). The staff or volunteer must provide a (or take advantage of an existing) mechanism for receiving permission from the member or customer. Direct communications covered may include, but are not limited to, the following: Announcements regarding changes to programs, services (e.g., subscription info, terms and conditions) Fund-raising announcements (e.g., Life Member Fund, IEEE Foundation, History Center) New product promotions (e.g., books, standards, merchandise, subscriptions) Low cost/no cost inventory reduction promotions (e.g., net warehouse sale ) Conference-related announcements (e.g., registration, call for papers, special activities, tour programs) Newsletters Surveys (e.g., IEEE member survey, library survey, Society membership needs assessment) Notwithstanding anything else in this policy or the guidelines established by a list owner, the Executive Director of the IEEE may approve limited mailings to select IEEE electronic mailing lists that would otherwise violate this policy or a list's established guidelines. The ITSC chair shall be notified of such use as soon as possible, but no later than 48 hours after this approval. 6. Additional internal IEEE policies apply to use by IEEE staff. Version ITSC.105, approved