General Guidelines for Proper Use of Computing Resources
Gordon College shares computing resources with students, faculty, and staff. While most users handle these facilities responsibly, a few who misuse them have the potential to seriously disrupt the work of others. In response, the MIS Department and system administrators have established regulations for all computing resources. These conditions apply to all Gordon College users to ensure the continued availability of computers, data networks, and services. Violations of this policy are unethical and potentially unlawful, and may result in disciplinary or legal action, including account suspension or termination.
Access to computing resources is a privilege extended to College faculty, staff, and students—not a right.
Computer User Responsibilities
(The following policies and responsibilities apply specifically to computer users and laboratories. These policies are subject to revision at any time.)
- Authorized Access: Users must possess a valid, authorized account to access computing resources that require authentication.
- Account Security: Users are responsible for safeguarding their accounts and passwords and must not disclose them to anyone.
- Data Ownership: Users may not transmit or disclose data or programs belonging to others without authorization.
- Hardware Integrity: Users may not engage in abusive or improper use of computer hardware, including tampering with equipment, attempting unauthorized repairs, or removing component parts.
- Lawful Use: Computer resources must not be used for illegal activities.
- Professional Conduct: Users may not use computer resources to harass, abuse, or intimidate computer personnel or other users.
- Content Restrictions: Accessing websites containing pornography, online games, or other inappropriate content is strictly prohibited.
- Executable Files: Running executable files (
.exe,.bat, etc.) downloaded directly from the internet is not allowed. - Web Filtering: The College reserves the right to filter or restrict access to specific internet sites and protocols.
- System Controls: Bypassing local administrative privileges, disabling endpoint security software, or utilizing third-party tools to bypass restrictions is strictly prohibited.
Security, Privacy, and Storage
The Gordon College system administrator employs various measures to protect the security of the institution’s computing resources and user accounts. However, users should be aware that the system administrator cannot guarantee absolute security and confidentiality. Users are expected to practice “safe computing” by establishing appropriate access restrictions for their data and documents. Important and confidential files must be stored exclusively in designated individual folders—never in shared folders—and users must actively safeguard their accounts and passwords.
Additionally, users should be aware that Gordon College system administrators are not responsible for data loss resulting from intentional or accidental deletion, system crashes, or hard disk failures. Users are responsible for regularly backing up their data and files using external storage devices (such as USB drives), their official GC domain email storage, Google Drive, or assigned network drives (e.g., Windows Explorer drives X:, Y:, or Z:).
Prevention and Prohibition of Unlicensed Software
To safeguard Gordon College’s network integrity, protect sensitive institutional and student data, and respect intellectual property rights, Gordon College strictly prohibits the downloading, installation, or use of unlicensed, unauthorized, or pirated software on any college-owned computer, server, or network-connected device.
Installing software without proper licensing exposes the institution to severe cyber threats—including malware, ransomware, and spyware—as well as the loss of vendor technical support.
Every user (faculty, admin and staff, or student) is personally and directly responsible for any unauthorized or unlicensed software installed on their assigned equipment.
Management Information System (MIS) Unit
Office of the Vice President for Administration and Finance