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This e-mail is to remind you of a couple of important information security issues. Please read all of this mail.
Blue Tooth
Blue Tooth is a type of wireless connection that allows devices to communicate without being connected together with wires. Many phones, PDAs and laptops have Blue Tooth and it can be very useful for transferring phone numbers, photos and files between devices.
If you have a phone, laptop or any other device with Blue Tooth capability there are two ways that this could allow the introduction of malicious code such as viruses and worms to spread onto the Council's computers. This could stop computers working and destroy the information stored on them. Although the risk is small at the moment, the introduction of malicious code into the Council's computer network could have such a serious impact on Council services that the risk of this happening must be reduced as much as possible.
Firstly, if you have any device that is ever connected to the Council's computer network, the Blue Tooth capability must be switched off at all times unless you have explicit permission from ICT Services to use it. This is because the device could pick up malicious code from another Blue Tooth device which it connects to anywhere, inside or outside Council offices, and then transfer the malicious code to Council's computers when you connect to the Council's network. This includes PDAs.
Secondly, Blue Tooth must be switched off on all devices when you are in any of the Council's offices unless you have explicit permission from ICT Services to use it. This is because there are a small number of legitimate Blue Tooth users, which are carefully controlled. If your device has Blue Tooth switched on and contains malicious code, this could be transferred to the Council's computer network via one of the legitimate switched on Blue Tooth devices.
There is also the risk of someone being able to see any information stored on the device if you leave Blue Tooth switched on. This could lead to disclosure of personal, sensitive or confidential information.
And finally for Blue Tooth, thieves can check for active Blue Tooth devices in public places and this could increase the chances of devices being located and stolen. There are reports of this happening with laptops hidden in car boots, which highlights the need for these two rules: switch off Blue Tooth and never leave equipment in a unattended vehicle.
If you are not sure if your phone, PDA, laptop or other device has Blue Tooth or if you don't know how to ensure it is switched off, please check the manual. If the device was provided by ICT Services, they will be able to help you. ICT Services will be making routine checks for devices with Blue Tooth switched on. It is your responsibility to ensure the Blue Tooth is switched off on your devices unless you have explicit permission from ICT Services to use it.
