University allowed to access IU email accounts

Any device with data from IU’s network, whether it is a personal laptop, tablet or smartphone, has the potential to be accessed by the University.

With about 330,000 online accounts, the Privacy of Electronic Information and Information Technology Resources Policy states “legitimate reasons exist for persons other than an authorized account holder to access computers, electronic files or data related to use of the University network.”

The policy outlines every reason a technician or administrator has to legally access someone’s IU email account.

Sophomores Ellicia Clark and Collin Schmidt both use IU’s email service as their primary accounts. Though they were required to accept the policy’s terms and conditions when creating their accounts, both quickly clicked past the actual policy and were not aware of its contents.

“It would make sense to access someone’s email if an administrator was suspicious of academic dishonesty or a related issue,” Schmidt said.

Clark said her email should be kept private.

“I keep my Facebook profile private, so that only people I allow can see my information,” Clark said. “My email should be the same way. But, I think it’s a good system for the University to uncover information about possible threats or illegal activity.” 

Schmidt said he accepts University access to email.

“IU shouldn’t notify people about accessing their account because anyone who was smart would just delete anything suspicious,” he said.

A technician or administrator may request authorization to access or permit access to specific electronic information for many reasons, including an internal audit, lawful demand, substantial University risks and even institutionally approved research.

Jonathan Sweeny, IU’s incident response manager, receives the request. Then, a network of people working with the University Information Policy Office reviews the request and determines its validity.

“One of the main reasons a student’s account is accessed is through a request from the Dean of Students,” Sweeny said in an email. 

According to Indiana’s open records law, personal emails are also subject to disclosure. This means an individual and administrator’s emails are subject to scrutiny because IU is a public institution.

IU’s information policy respects students’ privacy but ensures email access is available when necessary. The policy is available online at policies.iu.edu/policies/categories/index.shtml along with the office’s contact information.