Terms and Conditions for the Use of Information Technology Resources at CSB/SJU

In accordance with their mission to provide a liberal arts education, to foster the free exchange of ideas, and to provide effective support for its teaching, learning and research, it is the policy of the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University to permit broad access to information technology resources for students, faculty, and staff to use in fulfilling the institutional mission, and for appropriate college/university-related activities. Included in this policy is the intention to share information technology resources with other members of the broader community that have been granted access to the CSB/SJU network.

IT resources have been made widely available to make technology a natural part of day-to-day work and study for all members of the community.  Access to information technology resources however, carries with it the responsibility for ensuring that its use is primarily for institutional  purposes and related activities. Moreover,  the use of information technology resources must be consistent with institutional policies and local, state, and federal laws.  

Access Privileges:
Access and associated privileges are granted to an individual by username.  He or she may use that username to access and use the resources of the campus network, or any regional, national or international resource available through the campus network.

Guidelines:
Complying with acceptable use of technology and information resources requires you to:

  • use resources only for authorized purposes;
  • protect your username and system from unauthorized use. Do not share your password with anyone. You are responsible for all activities on your username;
  • access only information that is your own, that is publicly available, or to which you have been given authorized access;
  • use only legal versions of copyrighted software in compliance with vendor license requirements;
  • be considerate in your use of shared resources. Refrain from monopolizing systems, overloading networks with excessive data, and degrading services, disk space, printer paper or other resources;
  • restrict personal use of IT resources to non-work hours (employees only.);
  • install and run anti-virus software with current anti-virus definitions.

Personal web site "terms and conditions" have additional responsibilities set forth in separate policies. CSB/SJU students see J-Book or Bennie Book. Employees see the appropriate employee handbook.

Revocation of Access Privileges:
Anyone who has been granted a username will have their access privileges denied, restricted, or revoked for any of the following activities:

  • Using another person's username and password.
  • Attempting to read, copy, alter or destroy other's data files or software without permission.
  • Attempting to gain unauthorized access to another person's computer, whether local or off-campus.
  • Attempting to decode passwords or access control information.
  • Attempting to circumvent or subvert network security measures.
  • Engaging in any activity that might be purposefully harmful to networked systems or to any information stored thereon including, but not limited to, creating or propagating viruses, disrupting services, damaging files or making unauthorized modifications to institutional data. 
  • Misusing copyrighted material, including software, graphics, text, photographs, sound, video and musical recordings and storing such copies on institutional systems, or transmitting them over institutional networks. 
  • Using internal or external E-mail or messaging services to harass or intimidate. 
  • Using internal or external E-mail in violation of the Mass Email Guidelines and Procedures. 
  • Using the campus network or campus computers in a manner that violates the principals of academic honesty or appropriate behavior. (See CSB/SJU Joint Human Rights Policy; CSB/SJU students: see J-Book or Bennie Book.) 
  • Wasting resources, for example, by intentionally placing a program in an endless loop, printing excessive amounts of paper, or sending spam messages. 
  • Using the CSB/SJU's systems or networks for personal gain, such as performing unauthorized work for profit using institutional resources. 
  • Using institutional networks/systems/Internet bandwidth for personal commercial purposes, such as using electronic mail to circulate advertising for products or services. 
  • Engaging in any other activity that does not comply with institutional policies and local, state, and federal laws.

Violation Resolution Procedures:
Violations of acceptable use "Terms and Conditions" are a serious offense. Violators are subject to disciplinary action and also may be prosecuted under local, state, and federal laws. In addition to the revocation of access privileges, other disciplinary actions may be appropriate. (See CSB/SJU Joint Human Rights Policy; CSB/SJU students: see  Bennie Book or the J-Book.) 

CSB/SJU Students: If a student is in violation of this policy, the following steps will be taken: 

  • A notice will be sent to the student via e-mail stating that a violation has occurred and a copy of the notification will be sent to the Dean of Students for SJU, if the offender is an SJU student, or to the Dean of Students for CSB, if the offender is a CSB student. The Dean of Students for SJU or the Dean of Students for CSB will make the final determination as to any penalties imposed. 
  • After receiving the notice, the student must make an appointment to meet with either the Dean of Students for SJU or the Dean of Students for CSB to discuss the matter within six school days. 
  • If IT Services does not receive notice from either the Dean of Students for SJU or the Dean of Students for CSB that such a meeting has taken place, and, if the student's network has not been previously disabled, it will be disabled the seventh school day after notice of the violation was sent to the student. 
  • The student's network account will be disabled immediately if a second violation occurs between the time the notice of the violation was sent to the student and a meeting between the student and either the Dean of Students for SJU or the Dean of Students for CSB has occurred.

Corporate Members:
Possible violations along with supporting information are forwarded to the Human Resources Office for adjudication. Employees of the College of Saint Benedict/Saint John's University found in violation of this policy may be subject to disciplinary action including, but not limited to, written warnings, revocation of network access privileges and employee termination.

All Others:
Possible Terms and Conditions Policy violations along with supporting information are forwarded to the appropriate organization head for adjudication. Network users found in violation of the policy, may be subject to disciplinary action including, but not limited to, written warnings, and/or revocation of network access privileges.

Rights Reserved to IT Services:
In order to detect activity that violates access privileges, to maintain system and network security, and to manage network resources efficiently, IT Services reserves the following rights:

  • The right to copy and examine any file or other information resident on institutional systems, allegedly related to unacceptable use. 
  • The right to take measures to protect the network from systems and events that threaten or degrade operations. 
  • The right to monitor access activity. 
  • The right to monitor individual accounts. 
  • The right to automatically purge student accounts at the end of each semester.
  • The right to purge former employee accounts.

NOTE:  All reasonable precautions are made to provide a secure computing environment, however, absolute account privacy cannot be guaranteed.