ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATIONS AND TECHNOLOGY POLICY Sign and Return to Department Director (Original Document to be filed in Employee’s Permanent Personnel File) I hereby acknowledge that I have received a copy of the City of Johnston’s Electronic Communications and Technology Policy. I understand that all City Technology Resources, and all information created on, transmitted by, received from, or stored in the city’s electronic systems are the property of the City, and that I have no expectation of privacy in connection with the use of this equipment or with the creation, transmission, receipt, or storage of the information on this equipment. I acknowledge and consent to the city monitoring my electronic communications at any time as provided by the abovereferenced policy. I further recognize and understand that the City’s Technology Resources are for conducting the city's business. I have read the aforementioned document and agree to follow all policies and procedures set forth therein. I further agree to abide by the standards set in this document for the duration of my employment with the City of Johnston. I acknowledge violations of the provisions in this policy may subject me to disciplinary action, up to and including discharge from employment and that law enforcement may be contacted if the situation warrants. I understand that my electronic communications are a reflection on the City of Johnston, and all communications should be handled in a professional manner. I further acknowledge that I have read and understood the EMail Etiquette Form provided to me.
_______________________ Employee Name Printed
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____________________________ Employee Signature
______________ Date
Electronic Communications Technology Policy City of Johnston
Revised – November, 2009 Approved by Johnston City Council – November 2, 2009
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Acceptable Usage Policy For Electronic Communications and Technology Statement of Policy: It is the City of Johnston’s policy that electronic communications and technology are similar to other city assets, and are to be used in conducting city business. The City provides communication resources capable of offering computing resources, electronic mail (email), internet access, telephone and voicemail, facsimile machines, copy machines, and cellular telephones as well as other electronic communications devices (collectively referred to as the City’s Technology Resources) to assist in and facilitate City business and communications. The primary purpose of the City’s network and systems is to provide service to the public as part of City business, in a manner that is consistent with the City’s vision and values. De minimus, incidental personal use of the City’s Technology Resources by employees is permitted if accomplished in compliance with the provisions as set forth in this policy. Violations of this policy will be evaluated on a casebycase basis and may result in disciplinary action including termination. All forms of electronic communication are subject to all state and federal laws and rules applicable to the use of the electronic communications and technology. In addition, violations of this policy or misuse of the electronic systems and technology, which are of a criminal nature, may be referred to the appropriate authorities for criminal prosecution. Employees or any authorized user should be aware that if they use the City’s Technology Resources to transmit personal messages, such messages will be treated no differently than any other transmission and may be accessed, reviewed, copied, deleted, or disclosed by the City of Johnston and may be used in disciplinary proceedings. CityProvided Cellular Telephones Based on the particular duties of an employee’s position, the City may determine that it is in the City’s interest that the employee carry a cellular telephone. In the event an employee is provided with a device due to job responsibilities, the employee will be required to sign a cellular telephone policy and use agreement establishing the terms of use. No Expectation of Privacy The City’s Technology Resources are to be used in a manner consistent with this policy. By using the City’s Technology Resources, employees and authorized users acknowledge and agree that they have no expectation of privacy or confidentiality in their use of these systems or in any data they create, store, or transmit on or over the systems, including any data created, stored, or transmitted during incidental personal use of the City’s Technology Resources as permitted under this policy. Users further agree that they are aware of, understand and will comply with the provisions of this policy, and that their use of the City’s Technology Resources can and will be monitored and any data that they create, store, or transmit on or over City systems may be inspected by City management at any time. Users should understand that certain email messages, other electronic communications, and documents created on City computer systems may be considered a public record subject to disclosure and/or subject to discovery in the event of litigation.
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As such, the City of Johnston reserves the right to enter, search, and monitor the City’s Technology Resources without advance notice, for purposes such as investigating theft, disclosure of confidential or proprietary information, monitoring workflow or productivity, or personal abuse of the system. Acceptable Uses of the City’s Technology Resources The City’s Technology Resources are to be used by employees or other authorized users for City business. Incidental, de minimus personal use may be permitted where, in the judgment of the user’s supervisor or Department Director, such use does not interfere with productivity, nor distract from the users assigned work. Generally speaking, incidental, de minimus personal use means: · It is occasional and of short duration; · It occurs on a user’s personal time, such as a lunch break; · It does not interfere with job responsibilities; · It does not result in any expense to the City; · It does not solicit for or promote commercial ventures; · It does not utilize excessive network resources; · It does not constitute any prohibited use under this policy. As such, the City of Johnston reserves the right to enter, search, and monitor the City’s Technology Resources without advance notice, for purposes such as investigating theft, disclosure of confidential or proprietary information, monitoring workflow or productivity, or personal abuse of the system. Further, all email, faxes and other computer files on City of Johnston systems are considered public information and subject to disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act. Unacceptable uses of the City’s Technology Resources The City’s Technology Resources may not be used for creating, transmitting, retrieving or storage of any communications of a discriminatory or harassing nature or materials that are obscene. Harassment of any kind is prohibited. Use of the City’s Technology Resources to engage in any communication that violates federal, state, or local laws or regulations, or any City policy, is strictly prohibited at all times. The following uses of the City’s Technology Resources are inappropriate and are prohibited at all times, unless specifically exempted below: · Personal commercial use (benefiting an employee’s outside employment or commercial business); · Adopting the identity of another person on any electronic communication, attempting to communicate anonymously, misrepresenting one’s name, position or job description, or using another person’s sign on credentials; · Accessing, composing, or transmitting any electronic communication that contains material that a reasonable person would find harassing, intimidating, abusive, or offensive. These include but are not limited to pornographic, sexually explicit or indecent materials, or obscene or harassing messages to any individual or group because of their sex, race, religion, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability or other protected status. (Exception is made as part of a law enforcement investigation conducted by authorized Police personnel.); 4
· Use of the City’s Technology Resources to conduct unauthorized employee organization or association business; · Gambling; · Usage for recreational purposes including the loading of computer games or playing online games; · Copying, downloading, sending or receiving software or any material that violates any copyright law; · Usage that violates software license agreements; · Downloading of software programs not specifically approved by applicable Department Director and coordinated through the City’s IT vendor; · Deliberately propagating any virus, worm, Trojan horse, malware, spyware, or other code or file designed to disrupt, disable, impair or otherwise harm either the City’s networks or systems, or those of any other individual or entity; · Usage for political purposes, including partisan campaigning; · Use of the City’s Technology Resources in a manner to deprive others of system use or resources, including the sending of bulk email for other than official business. This includes, but is not limited to, chain letters, jokes, get rich quick schemes, advertising, or other forms of “spam”; · Any personal use, even if incidental, that results in expense to the City. Communications Each employee is responsible for the content of all forms of communication that they generate or send using the City’s Technology Resources. No electronic communications may be sent which hides the identity of the sender or represents the sender as someone else, which includes using someone’s email address or sign on. Any messages or information sent to an outside entity via an electronic network (e.g., bulletin board, online service or Internet) are statements that reflect on the City. While some users include personal "disclaimers" in electronic communications, there is still a connection to the City of Johnston. All communications sent by employees using the City’s Technology Resources must comply with all City policies. Precautions Downloading files from the Internet or opening email attachments from unknown sources can lead to spyware and/or virus attacks that can severely damage or degrade the City’s network and/or data. While antivirus and antispyware programs protect the City’s Technology Resources, there is no guarantee that all potential threats are eliminated. If you receive an unexpected attachment via email from someone you know but do not know why you received the attachment, contact them to verify its legitimacy. If you receive an unexpected, unusual attachment via email from someone you do not know, delete it immediately.
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If you receive any email that meets any description of malicious email about which you were previously notified, delete it immediately. In all cases, if you delete suspicious email, be certain it is permanently deleted from the Deleted Items. If you receive any message that a virus or spyware has been detected, contact the applicable Department Director immediately. If you notice that your computer is behaving strangely or if you suspect spyware or a virus has infected your computer, contact the applicable Department Director.
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EMail Etiquette Like any other privilege, access to the City’s Technology Resources comes with certain responsibilities. Please consider the following as you make use of the City’s electronic systems: · Confidential and sensitive information should not be sent via email. The privacy and integrity of an email message cannot be guaranteed. In addition, once created, there is no guarantee that attempts to erase or delete email will be effective. Remember that it is very easy for someone else to forward messages you thought were confidential. · ALWAYS include a subject line in your message. Make the subject line meaningful. If you are replying to a message but are changing the subject of the conversation, change the subject line as well. · Do not type your message in all uppercase letters as this is considered SHOUTING and is impolite. · Pay careful attention to where your reply is going. Do not “reply all” unless there is a very specific need for everyone to receive the message. It wastes disk space, clutters up inboxes and can be annoying. Flooding people with unnecessary messages may cause others to ignore all messages from you. · Use the carbon copy (cc) feature just as you would with postal mail. · Specifically identify the intended recipients of your email. Do not broadcast to all departments when the email pertains only to a specific location or department. · Follow chain of command procedures for corresponding with superiors. For example, do not send email directly to the "top" just because you can. · Do not say anything in an email that you would not say facetoface. On that note, do not forward an email sent to you, as a way of “tattling” on someone, unless the document you received violates City policy, in which case your supervisor should be notified. · When you compose an email message, read it over before sending it and ask yourself what your reaction would be if you received it. · Do not send chain letters through email. This includes any message that contains a request to forward the information to other people. · Know when to use the phone. Some issues can be resolved with one phone call instead of sending multiple emails back and forth. Remember that you cannot communicate as broad a range of information in email as you can in a facetoface meeting, or even in a telephone call. Your words come across, but all the non verbal signals facial expressions, eye contact, body language, tone of voice, are lost. We usually do not think about it, but we depend on those signals for information about the context of what is said; we need the signals to help us interpret the meaning beneath the words. Without them, we are often left to guess at the other person's intent. These nonverbal signals are the main reason that most people prefer to handle sensitive issues in facetoface meetings. It is hard to say something "with a smile" in electronic mail, and it is all too easy to misinterpret an offhand, joking remark as a personal attack.
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SYSTEM SECURITY Access Users are assigned software and computer hardware devices deemed necessary to perform their duties. Access to specific directories and files may be limited based on the sensitivity or confidentiality of the information in the files. Limitations may include denial of access to certain staff, readonly access, etc. Department Directors and the Assistant City Administrator authorize access rights and limitations. Passwords Passwords are currently set to expire every 42 days. There is a minimum password length of six characters. System Time Out and Log Off Users will set their systems to lock and password protect if the system is inactive for more than 30 minutes. All computers should be shut down at the end of the workday to allow for the most complete backup. AntiVirus We are currently using Sophos Endpoint Security for scanning server file systems and Perimeter’s Secure Email Manager, which utilizes McAfee antivirus to scan inbound and outbound email. Realtime protection runs all the time, with scheduled scans which run daily. Alliance Technology checks for updates during the weekly health maintenance visits. Weekly Maintenance Performed by Alliance Technology. Tape backups are tested by completing test restores of files. Disk size is evaluated. City staff requests are logged for resolution during the weekly maintenance visit. Software Licensing The City of Johnston is committed to limiting installation of software by users. This is controlled through Microsoft’s native security on personal computers, as well as by the Acceptable Usage policy referenced in this document. All software installations are performed by authorized personnel, and only after approval of the Department Director. Software and license keys are kept in the locked server room located at City Hall. All software installs are recorded. Recorded information includes the workstation or server name, the user ID (if applicable), the license key used, and the date of installation. Tape Backups Server backups are performed nightly. A full system back up, including the OS, will be performed monthly. There is a monthly backup performed on the last weekday of the month. All backup tapes are stored off site and are accessible 24hours/day. Users are advised to save
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their work to their file on the server. Individual PCs and laptops are NOT backed up. The Finance Clerk is assigned to change backup tapes and check the daily error logs to ensure successful backups. Other precautions Avoid having food or beverages near your computer that could be spilled. Protect electronic devices from extreme environmental conditions. Computers should not be left in vehicles in extreme heat or cold. The City will annually conduct an information risk assessment of our policy and procedures. We will periodically complete vulnerability scans and security awareness training.
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DISASTER RECOVERY PROCEDURES In the event of a disaster that makes City Hall unusable for city business, City Hall staff will meet at the Johnston Public Library, in the large meeting room. The library is located at 6700 Merle Hay Road, Johnston IA, 50131. If an alternate site is needed the City Administrator or his/her designee will contact staff and advise them of the alternate location. This plan addresses the need for the continuity of: · Water service to the community o Includes billing and processing payments, as well as work orders · Payroll functionality for city employees · Accounts Payable and Receivable · Functionality of the City Council Priority of restoration of services will be given to any services necessary for the continuation of public safety, communication and services. The needs listed above will then be prioritized. If needed, five (5) replacement computers and/or two (2) printers will be purchased or obtained from the vendor offering the quickest turnaround time. One of the replacement computers will serve as an authentication/network operating system server to provide LAN access for the remaining four PCs. The necessary software will also be purchased. Network cabling and one hub will also be procured to provide network capability for staff tasked with the continuity of the services listed above. City staff and/or our technology vendor(s) as listed below will be contacted to assist in setting up the required systems. Backup tapes will be retrieved from the city’s bank as soon as possible and files will be restored from the tape, allowing staff to continue to provide the City Council with the support needed to conduct the city’s business. Alliance Technologies (5152457769) will be contacted to assist in the disaster recovery process. Tyler Technologies (Incode – 18006462633) will be contacted for any assistance restoring the utility/financial system with the most complete data available from the stored backup tapes. This will facilitate the water, payroll, and accounts payable and receivable functionality. Once the severity of the disaster has been established and an assessment of available resources has taken place, the City Administrator or his/her designee will determine what additional hardware, software, and other IS needs will need to be procured for operations to return to pre disaster levels. At this time, if needed, the decision of physical location will also be addressed. The City Administrator or his/her designee will be responsible for the implementation of the recovery and will assign duties as required. The City Administrator or his/her designee will be responsible for any communication to the public during such a disaster. Immediately following the adoption of this plan, all department heads will meet with the City Administrator or his/her designee for review and implementation.
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Staff Contact Information City Administrator Jim Sanders
(515) 7277760
mobile (515) 2085397
(515) 7277769
mobile (515) 3131441
Community Development Director (515) 7277775 David Wilwerding
mobile (515) 3337130
Library Director Willona Goers
(515) 2785233
mobile (515) 9719764
Parks Director Ron Ward
(515) 7278091
mobile – (515) 2085391
Public Works Director Dave Cubit
(515) 2780822 x250
mobile – (515) 2085396
Police Chief Doug Nichols
(515) 2782345
mobile (515) 9710780
Fire Chief Jim Krohse
(515) 2765182
mobile (515) 2085388
Finance Director Teresa Rotschafer
(515) 7277783
mobile (515) 2505723
Utility Billing Clerk Marci Santi
(515) 7277772
Finance Clerk Jody Goodwin
(515) 7277770
Assistant City Administrator Stephanie Reynolds
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Vendor Contact Information Hardware and software issues regarding PC’s and servers: Alliance Technologies 400 Locust, Suite 840 Des Moines, IA 503092334 5152457769 8883875670
Incode issues for financial (including payroll) and utility programs: Tyler Technologies 8006462633
Internet Access: LightEdge 666 Walnut Street, Suite 900 Des Moines, IA 50309 5154711000
Automatic Meter Reading system: HEXAGRAM, INC. 23905 MERCANTILE RD. BEACHWOOD, OH 44122
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Phone: 8662055058 Fax: 2168968577
[email protected]