Answer to Question #166997 in Management for EUGINE HAWEZA

Question

Discuss/ explain suitable Internet usage policies for employees in a company.

Answer 1

An internet usage policy provides employees with rules and guidelines about the appropriate use of company equipment, network and Internet access. Having such a policy in place helps to protect both the business and the employee; the worker will be aware that browsing certain sites or downloading files is prohibited and that the policy must be adhered to or there could be serious repercussions, thus leading to fewer security risks for the business as a result of employee negligence. The internet usage policy is an important document that must be signed by all employees upon starting work.

Use of the internet by employees of company is permitted and encouraged where such use supports the goals and objectives of the business. However, access to the Internet through company is a privilege and all employees must adhere to the policies concerning computer, email and internet usage. Violation of these policies could result in disciplinary and/or legal action leading up to and including termination of employment. Employees may also be held personally liable for damages caused by any violations of this policy.

Employees are advised to use our company’s internet connection to complete their duties, seek out information that they can use to improve their work, and access their social media accounts, while conforming to the corporate’s social media policy. Besides, employees are permitted to access websites of their choice, while exercising good judgement and remaining productive at work whenever using the internet. Those are expected to keep the passwords secret all the time, log in into the corporate accounts only from safe devices and use strong passwords to log into job-related websites and services.

Conversely, employees are barred from downloading or uploading obscene, offensive or illegal materials, send unauthorized information to unauthorized recipients or perform unauthorize or illegal actions, like fraud, hacking, and buying/selling of illegal products. Besides, they should not visit potentially dangerous websites that can compromise the safety of organization’s network or computers.