(A) General policy. The electronic communication systems, the voice mail system, Internet access, and the computer hardware and software owned or leased by the city are to be used for business purposes. Using the city’s systems for any illegal purpose is prohibited. Any employee who is found in violation of this policy will be subject to disciplinary action.
(B) E-mail.
(1) The city’s e-mail system and all messages sent or received on the city’s e-mail system are city property. You should not expect any such communications to be private. The city will allow incidental personal use of city e-mail. E-mail should not be used to communicate sensitive, urgent, or confidential information. You should anticipate that an e-mail message could be disclosed to or read by individuals other than the intended recipient(s).
(2) You should refrain from:
(a) Using vulgarities, sarcasm, offensive, demeaning, or disruptive messages. This includes, but is not limited to, messages that are inconsistent with the city’s policies concerning equal employment opportunity, sexual harassment, and other unlawful harassment.
(b) Using e-mail to harass/threaten others.
(c) Initiating or propagating electronic chain letters.
(d) Sending inappropriate mass mailings (e.g., spamming, flooding, or bombing).
(C) Internet usage. The city may monitor computer, Internet, and e-mail usage, including retrieving and reading e-mail messages and other computer files. Access to the Internet is intended to support the city’s business. Personal use should be kept to a minimum.
(D) Social media. The city endorses the use of secure use of social media to enhance communication, collaboration, and information exchange to streamline processes and foster productivity. This policy established the city’s position on the utility and management of social media and provides guidance on its management, administration, and oversight. This policy is not meant to address one particular form of social media; rather social media in general, as advances in technology will occur and new tools will emerge.
(1) Policy. Social media provides a new and potentially valuable means of assisting departments and its personnel in meeting community outreach, problem solving, investigative, crime prevention, and related objectives. This policy identifies potential uses that may be explored or expanded upon as deemed reasonable by administrative and supervisory personnel. The city also recognizes the role that these tools play in the personal lives of some department personnel. The personal use of social media can have bearing on departmental personnel in some capacity. As such, this policy provides information of a precautionary nature as well as prohibitions on the use of social media by department personnel.
(2) On-the-job use.
(a) City-sanctioned presence.
1. Where possible, a strategy must be determined. Each social medial page shall include an introductory statement that clearly specifies the purpose and scope of the agency’s presence on the website.
2. Where possible, the page(s) should link to the department’s official website.
3. Social media page(s) shall be designed for the target audience such as youth or potential recruits, etc.
4. All City of Peru social media sites or pages must be approved by the chief executive or his or her designee and shall be administered by the departmental information services section or as otherwise determined.
5. Where possible, social media pages shall clearly indicate they are maintained by the department and shall have department contact information prominently displayed.
6. Social media content shall adhere to applicable laws, regulations, and policies, including all information technology and records management policies.
a. Content is subject to public records laws. Relevant records retention schedules apply to social media content.
b. Content must be managed, stored, and retrieved to comply with open records and e-discovery laws and policies.
7. Where possible, social media pages should state the opinions expressed by visitors to the page(s) which do not reflect the opinions of the department.
a. Pages shall clearly indicate that posted comments will be monitored and that the department reserves the right to remove obscenities, off-topic comments, and personal attacks.
b. Pages shall clearly indicate that any content posted or submitted for posting is subject to public disclosure.
(b) City-sanctioned use.
1. City personnel representing a city department via social media outlets shall do the following:
a. Conduct themselves at all times as representative of the department, and accordingly, shall adhere to all department standards of conduct and observe conventionally accepted protocols and proper decorum;
b. Identify themselves as a member of the department;
c. Not make statements about the guilt or innocence of any suspect or arrestee, or comments concerning pending prosecutions, nor post, transmit, or otherwise disseminate confidential information, including photographs or videos, related to the department training, activities, or work related assignments without express written permission; and
d. Not conduct political activities or private business.
2. The use of department computers by city personnel to access social media is prohibited without authorization.
3. City personnel use of personally owned devices to manage the department’s social media activities or in the course of official duties is prohibited without express written permission.
4. Employees shall observe and abide by all copyright, trademark, and service mark restrictions in posting materials to electronic media.
(3) Potential uses.
(a) Social media is a valuable investigative tool when seeking evidence or information about:
1. Missing persons;
2. Wanted persons;
3. Gang participation;
4. Crimes perpetrated online (cyberbullying, cyberstalking); and
5. Photos or videos of a crime posted by a participant or observer.
(b) Social media can be used for community outreach and engagement by:
1. Providing crime prevention tips;
2. Offering online reporting opportunities;
3. Sharing maps and data; and
4. Soliciting tips about unsolved crimes (crimestoppers, text-a-tip).
(c) Social media can be used to make time sensitive notifications related to:
1. Road closures;
2. Special events;
3. Weather emergencies; and
4. Missing or endangered persons.
(d) Persons seeking employment and volunteer positions use the Internet to search for opportunities, and social media can be a valuable recruitment mechanism.
(e) The city has an obligation to include Internet based content when conducting background investigations of job candidates.
(f) Searches could be conducted by a non-decision maker. Information pertaining to protected classes shall be filtered out prior to sharing information found online with decision makers.
(g) Persons authorized to search Internet based content should be deemed as holding a sensitive position.
(h) Search methods shall not involve techniques that are a violation of existing law.
(i) Vetting techniques shall be applied uniformly to all candidates.
(j) Every effort must be made to validate Internet based information considered during the hiring process.
(4) Personal uses; precautions and prohibitions. Barring state law, department personnel shall abide by the following when using social media.
(a) City personnel are free to express themselves as private citizens on social media sites to the degree that their speech does not impair working relationships of their department for which loyalty and confidentiality are important, impede the performance of duties, impair discipline and harmony among coworkers, or negatively affect the public perception of the department.
(b) As public employees, city personnel are cautioned that speech on or off duty, made pursuant to their official duties – that is, that owes its existence to the employee’s professional duties and responsibilities – is not protected speech under the First Amendment and may form the basis for discipline if deemed detrimental to the city. City personnel should assume that their speech and related activity on social media sites will reflect upon their office and their department.
(c) City personnel shall not post, transmit, or otherwise disseminate any information to which they have access as a result of their employment without written permission from the chief executive or his or her designee.
(d) For safety and security reasons, city personnel are cautioned not to disclose their employment with their departments nor shall they post information pertaining to any other member of the city without their permission. As such, city personnel are cautioned not to do the following:
1. Display city or department logos, uniforms, or similar identifying items on personal web pages; or
2. Post personal photographs or provide similar means of personal recognition that may cause them to be identified as a member of their departments.
(e) When using social media, city personnel should be mindful that their speech becomes of the worldwide electronic domain. Therefore, adherence to the city’s or department’s code of conduct is required in the personal use of social media. In particular, city personnel are prohibited from the following:
1. Speech containing obscene or sexually explicit language, images, or acts and statement or other forms of speech that ridicule, malign, disparage, or otherwise express bias against any race, any religion, or any protected class of individuals; and
2. Speech involving themselves or other city personnel reflecting behavior that would reasonably be considered reckless or irresponsible.
(f) Engaging in prohibited speech noted herein, may provide grounds for undermining or impeaching a police officer’s testimony in criminal proceedings. Police department personnel thus sanctioned are subject to discipline up to and including termination of office.
(g) City personnel may not divulge information gained by reason of their authority; make any statements, speeches, appearances, and endorsements; or public material that could reasonably be considered to represent the views or positions of the city without express authorization.
(h) City personnel should be aware that they may be subject to civil litigation for:
1. Publishing or posting false information that harms the reputation of another person, group, or organization (defamation);
2. Publishing or posting private facts and personal information about someone without their permission that has not been previously revealed to the public, is not of legitimate public concern, and would be offensive to a reasonable person;
3. Using someone else’s name, likeness, or other personal attributes without that person’s permission for an exploitative purpose; or
4. Publishing the creative work of another, trademarks, or certain confidential business information without the permission of the owner.
(i) City personnel should be aware that privacy settings and social media sites are constantly in flux, and they should never assume that personal information posted on such sites is protected
(j) City personnel should expect that any information created, transmitted, downloaded, exchanged, or discussed in a public online forum may be accessed by the city at any time without prior notice
(k) Reporting violations. Any employee becoming aware of or having knowledge of a posting or any website or web page in violation of the provision of this policy shall notify his or her supervisor immediately for follow up action.
(Ord. 19, 2015, passed 5-4-15)