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The White House isn’t the only government office whose employees use outside e-mail, messaging
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Going commercial
GCN recently surveyed readers on their use of commercial e-mail and messaging services. The charts below are drawn from the responses of 122 government employees.
How often at work do you use third-party e-mail clients, such as Gmail, Hotmail or AOL?
Never use: 49%
Use: 46%
Less than 1-2 hours per week: 28%
Less than 1 hour per day: 14%
1-2 hours per day: 2%
More than 2 hours per day: 2%
Other: 5%
How often do you use these services for work-related matters?
Never use: 74%
Use: 20%
Less than 1-2 hours per week: 15%
Less than 1 hour per day: 4%
1-2 hours per day: 0%
More than 2 hours per day: 1%
Other*: 6%
*Comments include:
“Once in a blue moon if my corporate system is down or if I can’t get a vital attachment through.”
“We only use these services to address emergencies when the federal system is unavailable.”
At work, do you use commercial instant-messaging services, such as AOL or Yahoo?
Yes: 10%
No: 90%
Do you find that you must turn to the use of commercial services because of the lack of IT support for these functions in-house?
No: 87%
Yes:* 13%
*Comments include:
“We have size restrictions on our mailboxes in-house. I often use my Yahoo account for large e-mails.”
“Don’t want personal e-mail subject to subpoena.”
“There is a clear need in our agency for these functions, however, IT steadfastly refuses to allow their use.”
“DOD e-mail system just cannot get to some e-mail addresses.”
The problem will persist because some workers will always find a way to access third-party e-mail and messaging services, whether they’re trying to circumvent official rules governing computer usage or merely using technology to perform their jobs in the best way they know how, experts say.
The controversy about White House aides using Republican National Committee e-mail servers for Bush administration official business “is a pretty good indicator of what other government agencies are experiencing,” said Dave Campbell, senior product marketing manager at information technology security vendor Symantec.
Within the government, “using personal e-mail accounts is almost a matter of routine, and it always will be,” said one former chief information officer of a Cabinet-level federal agency, who asked not to be identified. In fact, trying to prevent workers from using third-party systems can be counterproductive, the ex-CIO said. “It’s like saying you can only type a letter using the office typewriter.”
For practical reasons, administrators should let common sense and ethics guide how workers use external e-mail and messaging systems rather than banning them altogether, the ex-CIO said. It’s best, however, if agencies spell out what constitutes acceptable and ethical use of government computer equipment, he said.
Workers who occasionally use non-government equipment or services for official duties should be told, for example, to copy themselves on their messages using an official government e-mail address to meet government record-keeping rules, the former CIO said.
In addition, use of a third-party service provider won’t protect a dishonest worker who’s trying to hide his or her identity or circumvent government record-keeping rules. In cases where use of a third-party system falls into the categories of fraud, waste or abuse, “law enforcement can and has shown that it’s discoverable under subpoena,” the former CIO said.
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