"Responsible
computer user declaration""Responsible
computer user declaration"I hereby declare to act as a responsible user of the computer system at the School of Physics and Engineering Physics (hereafter the School), Chalmers University of Technology. I am aware of the rules stated below and I am aware that the rules and explanations mentioned can not cover all practical situations that might occur. I will therefore do my best to interpret the rules in the right spirit, i.e. in the way I believe a responsible user will act. If in doubt, I will consult the system administration staff.
I am aware that my userid (username/password) is strictly personal and may not be lent nor given away to any other individual under any circumstances. The choice of a good password is vital for the security of the whole system, so I shall not choose a password that would be too easy to guess (e.g., words that are contained in any dictionary of words of any language; proper nouns, including names of "famous" real or fictitious characters; common acronyms; simple variations of first/last names or keys on keyboard). I will never write the password down nor leave any clear text username/password information in files on any computer nor send it over e-mail. I will never leave a login session unattended. I will state when my assignment at the School is finished, so that my userid could be disabled and removed from the system.
Only persons with a valid userid, or with legal access to a personal computer or terminal in the School, shall have access to the system. Guests only have access when accompanied by an employee of the School. The arrangement/connection of equipment in public terminal rooms must not be changed, it is also prohibited to turn off CPUs, printers, etc.. When leaving a workplace, log off all systems and make sure that next "login:" prompt shows up or remote terminal emulation program exits.
Most of the software installed in the system is subject to various license regulations which forbid the software to be copied or installed on other computers. Moreover, some of the installed software is licensed only to certain groups of users. Therefore, I will not try to access software that my affiliation unit is not entitled to access nor copy any of the installed software, even though it may be possible without breaking the security system. Data and programs that belong to the users are private. I will not try to gain access to private data files without prior permission from the owner of the data - even though this may be possible without breaking the security system.
All resources: CPU-capacity, primary memory, disk capacity, network bandwidth etc., are limited and shared between many users. I will respect other people's needs and behave cooperatively. I will do my best to avoid inhibiting others using the system, by hogging all (or even nearly all) available resources for my jobs. I will not use the facility for unauthorized purposes. Use of special facilities (e.g.: laser printer) beyond a reasonable amount, e.g. printout of manuals, may lead to demand for payment.
Through different networks, the computers are connected to other systems run by different organizations and institutions. I declare that I will only use the computers and networks to communicate with other systems through public services, such as anonymous FTP and electronic mail. I will not use any other systems (through terminal protocols, remote execution, etc.) without having a previous permission (a userid) from the organization involved. I will abstain from any kind of attempt at breaking any organizations' security systems.
As a part of the system administration, it may be necessary for the staff to access data or programs belonging to the users. This will only be done in case of technical problems or if safety precautions have to be taken (e.g., safety backup taken before software/hardware upgrades). This also includes cases of illegal usage of the systems. In such cases certain well known "dot-files" (e.g., .rhosts, .forward) can be examined and modification/creation dates of other files might be checked without prior notice. In all other respects this declaration is applicable to system administration staff just like to any other user of the system.
I am familiar with the fact that violation of these rules can cause suspension of my right to use the computer system. In extreme cases, exclusion from the University and/or notification to the police can be the consequence.