Information Technology

This content was published: June 28, 2022. Phone numbers, email addresses, and other information may have changed.

Personal Devices Vs. PCC-Managed Devices

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When setting up and maintaining a home office, how do PCC Employees get the resources needed to serve the community and help students succeed? The answer to this question has brought out the creativity of so many of us as we rise to the challenge. As PCC continues to innovate and uplift so many, we must account for the safety and well-being of our coworkers, faculty, and students. For this reason, Information Security wants to share that the use of personal devices poses a very large risk, if compromised it would jeopardize our mission and values.

At PCC, we have whole teams of professionals working to ensure that you get access to systems that are tested, updated, and secured. This way students’ private information, financial information, and other operational information is kept secure. We call this information Controlled Sensitive Data. This data includes all non-public information that PCC is obligated to protect by following regulatory standards and policy. It is everyone’s obligation to help keep Controlled Sensitive Data secure.

Using a personal device to handle Controlled Sensitive Data puts our community at risk. Personal devices, such as personally-owned laptops, tablets, cell phones, and other electronic devices do not have the protections that the IT department has carefully considered and put in place. These considerations are made to comply with legal regulations, and PCC policy, and to protect you and those whose information you’ve been trusted with.

Unauthorized use of personal devices to receive, send, or work on Controlled Sensitive Data may have legal repercussions for PCC as well as you individually. For these reasons and more, PCC’s Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) states:

Faculty and staff shall not perform PCC business on non-authorized personal devices. (PCC AUP, June 2022)

In order to succeed in the college’s mission, we must work together to create a culture that ensures students are protected from cyber threats. If you have any questions or concerns regarding this information or other issues that you would like to discuss with the Information Security team, feel free to reach us at infosec@pcc.edu.