Information about technology services may be found on the IT Services website.
The University of Chicago provides information technology for educational, research, and administrative applications by its students, faculty, and staff. Using the values of open discourse and institutional restraint as guideposts, the University's Acceptable Use Policy articulates and promotes the ethical, legal, and secure use of information technology by all members of the University of Chicago community and confirms the University’s responsibilities in connection with accessing such information.
Note that any violation of a University of Chicago IT policy may lead to disciplinary action, and in some cases, legal action. Please acquaint yourself with the policies governing the acceptable use of University IT resources.
Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) violations are a special case of Acceptable Use Policy violation. See the University’s File Sharing Policy.
The procedures for DMCA violations are as follows:
- The first time that IT Services receives a DMCA complaint for a student, IT Services notifies the student. A student who receives a violation notice must, within the period of time specified in the notice, acknowledge the notice, state that a copy of the DMCA complaint was received, and agree to abide by the EAUP in the future. If IT Services does not receive a response to its violation notice within the specified time, IT Services will suspend the student’s ability to connect a computer to the University network. The student is expected to rectify any problems outlined in the complaint and to cease using the University's network for purposes of copyright infringement.
- A second DMCA notice involving the same student results in more serious action. The University immediately suspends the student's network privileges pending a meeting with a representative of the Office of Campus and Student Life regarding the nature of the violations. The student's area Dean of Students may summon the student as well. At the meeting with the representative from the Office of Campus and Student Life, the student must agree not to repeat the violation.
- A third violation of the DMCA results in immediate suspension of network privileges pending student disciplinary action. Disciplinary action in the case of a third violation will be the convening of an Area Disciplinary Committee and the sanctions available to the Committee include suspension or expulsion from the University. The procedures for student discipline are described in the Student Manual of the University Policies & Regulations.
- Under the DMCA, copyright holders may file a lawsuit against the violators. If the University receives a valid subpoena seeking the identity of the offender for such a lawsuit, the University will comply with the subpoena. Please see DMCA website for information as it applies at the University. Also, keep in mind that laws, policies, and procedures change frequently in this domain, so please consult the DMCA website regularly for current policies and procedures.
Students residing in the residence halls should be aware of specific policies relating to computers and networking in University House System. In particular, residents are not permitted to install personal wireless network devices such as Wi-Fi routers or extenders, to the campus wired infrastructure. See the Network Access Instruction on the Housing & Residence Life website for more information.
Official communications from the University are sent via electronic mail (email) to each student's CNetID@uchicago.edu email account. Students are responsible for reading email sent to this official address. For information about email and forwarding options, please visit the IT Services website.