A recent survey asked chief information officers to answer the question, “As social networking has become more of a business tool, how have you had to re-evaluate your IT polices surrounding its use by employees in your company?”

The survey found that 38 percent have tightened social networking polices. Twenty-three percent of employers are stricter with respect to personal use of social networking sites and 15 percent are stricter for business use. This number more than doubles the 17 percent who said they have relaxed polices. “Tweet this, but Not That: Many CIOs Establish Stricter Social Networking Policies, Survey Shows,” www.prnewswire.com (Apr. 13, 2010).

In the new era of communications via social networking sites, employers face a balancing act between obvious benefits and inherent risks associated with using the sites. As more organizations are using social networking to express ideas and promote products, social networking is becoming more “business mainstream.” The marketing value of social networking is tremendous especially for sales and marketing personnel staying in touch with their clients and picking up ideas for new products and services. Social networking groups are important for professionals to exchange ideas or to seek help with a particular problem…like a software glitch.

From a recruiting standpoint, social networking sites provide free job networking and provide insight into candidates, very important when determining whether an applicant is a good fit. Moreover, for new generations entering the job market, social networking is part of their fabric, like the cell phone for older generations, and many are reluctant to leave it at the door when they come to work. Employers that bar the use of social networking may unwittingly bar very talented young people from applying for or accepting employment.

On the flip side of these benefits, social networking sites bring risks of viruses and malware attacks on workplace networks. Hackers, thieves and cyberstalkers may pose additional threats for employers. The most obvious problem is that the sites can hurt productivity as employees cross the line between purely social and job-related networking. No matter where you are on this side of the debate, one fact remains: social networking sites are here to stay and will expand.

To receive the benefits of social networking without the cons, employers should use a scalpel rather than a cleaver when developing their social networking policies. Employers should implement computer usage policies, including the use of social networking sites, to address their organization’s specific needs. They should distinguish between employees that need to use social networking sites for their job (marketing, sales, IT) and determine how it should be used based on the value it brings to the organization (sales networking, software help boards e.g.). Then employers should carve out exceptions for appropriate social networking and other computer usage.

At the same time, employers should delineate specific rules that prohibit certain social networking use. For example, use of employer computers and networks to link to social networking sites for the purpose of looking for another job is an obvious exclusion. Employers should also strictly prohibit the downloading of attachments from social networking sites, the main carrier of computer malware and viruses, and delineate between personal and business use of social networking sites. “Business use” is often defined as any action that has the intent or purpose to further a business purpose or obtain a business goal.

Here are a few points to keep in mind when drafting a basic computer usage policy for your organization.

• Develop a computer usage policy that prohibits participation in pornographic activities, email theft, cyberstalking and all other illegal behavior.
• Prohibit the uploading of any attachment even from known persons until IT clears that attachment.
• Make certain that the policy eliminates any expectation of privacy by your employees.
• Train all supervisors to enforce the policy.
• Follow your policy and procedures and thoroughly investigate any complaints or reports of improper use.
• Periodically conduct random reviews of how employees are adhering to the policy.
• Consistently enforce your computer usage policy and report any knowledge of participation in illegal behavior to the appropriate authorities.

This informational piece is part of “The Loss Prevention Journal” published on May 3, 2010 and provided by Travelers Insurance Company.

During a recent investigation, an expert downloaded tens of thousands of documents from old copiers available for sale using a free forensic software program. One copier contained files from a police department sex crimes unit; one contained addresses and social security numbers along with $40,000 in copied checks; and yet another contained 300 pages of individual medical records from a health insurance company. Armen Keteyian, “Digital Photocopiers Loaded With Secrets,” www.cbsnews.com (Apr. 19, 2010).

As is the norm with these investigative journalism pieces, the video is very sensationalized. The dangers are real though and should be treated with respect.

This report reveals the risk employers face when getting rid of old copiers. For example, during hiring procedures, employers make copies of employees’ social security numbers, birth certificates, drivers’ licenses and other personal information. With hard drives storing this information, employers run a huge risk of inadvertently divulging personal data for identity theft and violating a person’s confidential information.

Health records present a particularly risky situation if they are divulged. Federal privacy laws including the Americans with Disabilities (ADA) require that employers keep employee health records private.

Some copier manufacturers offer security or encryption packages that automatically erase an image from the hard drive after it is copied. Another company has developed software that can scrub all the data from copier hard drives. Because the hard drives on copiers are actually computers, IT experts should make sure the hard drives are clean and safe before they are resold or thrown away.

Employers should also take steps to make certain that employees do not steal recorded data from copiers as well. Particularly vulnerable are employers that copy social security numbers and medical records.

I am at the Techassure conference today looking and listening to my colleagues and saying “Wow – Look at all the cool things that they are doing”. This is a truly inspiring group that is very smart and very good at executing good ideas. To be successful in this business does not require rocket science. Doing well means doing the right things now and doing them consistently until we get them right. It is more important to be moving in the right direction than to be perfect. These members of Techassure are certainly moving quickly in the right direction and getting more and more perfect as time goes on.

These ideas dovetail perfectly with Seth Godin’s writings and just today I saw a post distilling many of Seth Godin’s ideas down to a single page. You can find that link here.

Among the many ideas distilled from Seth are the following quotes as listed by J.D. Meier, the author of the Sources of Insights blog:

Top 10 Seth Godin Quotes
Here are my top 10 favorite quotes by Seth:

1. “Expectations are the engines of our perceptions.”
2. “Ideas in secret die. They need light and air or they starve to death.”
3. “Go ahead, do something impossible. “
4. “You can’t shrink your way to greatness! “
5. “I don’t know what the key to success is, but the key to failure is trying to please everyone.”
6. “Instead of wondering when your next vacation is, you ought to set up a life you don’t need to escape from.”
7. “Why waste a sentence saying nothing? “
8. “If you could do tomorrow over again, would you?”
9. “Change is not a threat, it’s an opportunity. Survival is not the goal, transformative success is.”
10. “Are you a serial idea-starting person? The goal is to be an idea-shipping person.”