ICT code of conduct

Violation of one or more of the rules in this code of conduct may result in the user being denied access to HvAnet for a period determined by or on behalf of the Board. This period will be no longer than one year. The period may be extended in the event of repeated violations.

1. Keep your access codes confidential

• Access codes are strictly for personal use, and may not be lent out to others.
• System administrators are not allowed to ask you for your access codes under any circumstances.
• Lending out access codes to third parties is prohibited. Surfnet, HvA's parent network, prohibits the use of its network by third parties.

There is no need to lend out your access code to fellow students or colleagues: they have been issued their own access codes.

2. Regularly choose strong passwords

For example, choose a password made up of the first letters of a sentence you find easy to remember, and change one or two letters into characters. ‘I hardly ever eat cabbage anymore' would then become Ihe!ca. Keep in mind that specially designed software can be used to find out your password by means of password guessing if you choose anything obvious. Your username and password must always be different.

3. Rather save data on the server than on your pc

Saving your data on the server will limit damage to your files in the event of a major incident: backups are made of all files you save on the server, which is more effectively protected against viruses and other threats than your own computer.

4. Take precautions to prevent computer hacking

• Activate a password-protected screensaver on your computer.
• If possible, use a firewall on your pc at home, and regularly install updates of your operating system.
• Do not install or activate unnecessary software applications.
• Never engage in hacking, cracking, spoofing, defacing, cross-site scripting, portscans, sniffing and denial of service attacks.

5. Do not violate any law, including copyright law

AUAS employees and/or students may not use HvAnet to engage in activities that are in violation of any law.

AUAS employees have a relationship with the AUAS subject to employment law, and may be subject to additional rules on the basis of their collective labour agreement.

6. Do not distribute offensive material

In spite of freedom of expression, there are limits to what is deemed acceptable. Make sure to observe proper conduct. Try to keep in mind the old adage ‘do unto others as you would have them do unto you'.

7. Do not use illegal or undesirable software

This includes software for which the required licensing fees have not been paid and software that disrupts normal operation of the computer and/or HvAnet. Software applications such as BitTorrent are not illegal, but the consequences of their use almost always are.

8. Do not distribute computer viruses and the like

The term computer viruses should also be taken to include worms and Trojans etc. Be careful when opening attachments and programmes found on the Internet.

9. Do not send unsolicited emails

• Do not participate in ‘chain mails', no matter how valuable their message may seem. Peace on earth won't be achieved by bombarding others with e-mail messages.
• You may not send out anonymous e-mails or e-mails with an incorrect sender address (spam).

10. Do not use your HvAnet connection for commercial purposes

HvAnet is property of the AUAS. In the case of abuse, users may be denied access to ICT services, including HvAnet. Employees found guilty of abuse may be subject to dismissal.