Approved by President
Effective Date: September 6, 2019
Responsible Division: Information Technology
Responsible Office:  Information Technology
Responsible Officer:  Vice President for Information Technology

I. Purpose

This policy identifies appropriate use of the information technology resources to support Middle Tennessee State University's (MTSU or University) goals and objectives and informs all users of the policies set forth by MTSU, the laws of the State of Tennessee, and the federal government.

II. Objective

The objective of this policy is to ensure that the use of information technology resources is related to, or for the benefit of, MTSU and the State of Tennessee. The use of information technology resources is a privilege that imposes certain responsibilities and obligations on users and is subject to policy and applicable law. Acceptable use must be legal, ethical, reflect honesty, and show restraint in the consumption of shared resources. It demonstrates respect for intellectual property, ownership of information, system security mechanisms, the individual’s rights to privacy, and freedom from intimidation, harassment, and unwarranted annoyance.

III. Definitions

A.  Information Technology Resources. Computing systems, networks, electronic storage, communication, and presentation resources provided by MTSU.

B.  Infrastructure Sponsor. Person responsible for the MTSU information technology resources infrastructure. The infrastructure sponsor is the Vice President for Information Technology and Chief Information Officer (CIO). The infrastructure sponsor is authorized to determine which information technology resources will be acquired and utilized by the University.

C.  System Sponsor. The individual(s) under whose authority a computing system, local network, or external network connection is funded. Individual computer systems and local networks may be sponsored by faculty members (i.e., using research grant funds), departments, colleges, or other units. In the latter case, the unit administrator is the System Sponsor.

D.  System Manager. The person(s) authorized by a system sponsor to grant, restrict, or deny user privileges, maintain the system files, inform users of all applicable policies, and generally ensure the effective operation of a system. In some cases, the system manager and the system sponsor may be the same individual(s).

E.  Facility Staff. Individuals who are authorized to monitor, manage, or otherwise grant temporary access to computing facilities (such as microcomputer laboratories) in which one (1) or more systems are used by either specific populations of faculty, staff, and students, or the entire campus community.

F.  User. Any individual who uses, logs in, attempts to use, or attempts to log in to a system (whether by direct connection or across one or more networks) or who attempts to connect to, or traverse, a network, whether via hardware, software, or both.

G.  Account. A combination of username and password that provides an individual with access to an information technology resource.

H.  Content. Any and all text, images, multimedia elements