Welcome at the Department of Information Technology and Electrical Engineering!

Please read the text below carefully as we try to give you a condensed overview about the dos and don'ts while using our infrastructure!

We try to leave you as much freedom in using the EE infrastructure as possible. But there are some Rules wich you must follow. Below is a summary of the most important provisions from the ETH Zurich Acceptable Use Policy for Information andCommunications Technology (BOT [1]):

Using information and communications technology (ICT)

1. Access rights and identification methods, such as passwords, PINS and chip cards, are personal and therefore confidential; they may not be passed on or made accessible to third parties. (See Art. 2, para. 9 BOT [1])

2. Use of the ICT resources is permitted for the purposes for which they are made available to the users (intended use), specifically for carrying out activities at ETH Zurich.

3. Use of ETH Zurich’s ICT resources for private purposes is basically permitted, provided it is not excessive, does not conflict or interfere with the user’s work or study obligations, does not violate Swiss law or rights of third parties, is not of a commercial nature, and does not damage the reputation of ETH Zurich (Art. 8bis para. 1 BOT). Furthermore, this private use of ETH Zurich's ICT resources should not technically disrupt or impair their use for purposes appropriate to ETH Zurich’s statutory missions, or put excessive load or stress on the generally available resources (networks, internet access, storage capacities, etc.) (Art. 8bis para. 2 BOT [1]).

4. Software licenced to ETH Zurich may be used privately at home by students matriculated at ETH Zurich, if this is permitted by the relevant provider.

5. It is not permitted to make full or partial copies of software licenced to ETH Zurich (programmes and documentation), irrespective of its origin, unless this is expressly permitted in the licence terms or copyright law (Art. 12 BOT [1]).

6. All users shall be personally responsible for ensuring that their use of the ICT resources does not violate the provisions of the Acceptable Use Policy or of the applicable laws (e.g. criminal law, data protection regulations), or infringe third-party rights (e.g. copyrights, licence terms, personal rights) (Art. 16 BOT [1]).

7. All students are themselves responsible for their private devices that are connected to the network of ETH Zurich and, in particular, shall take the following security measures: Install and activate the latest antivirus software; install security updates for operating systems; regularly back up data as necessary; immediately notify IT Services or the CISO (Chief Information Security Officer) of any security problems, defects etc.

8. Users must exercise the requisite level of due care when using the ICT resources ETH Zurich has provided them. The technical and operating instructions issued by IT Services, the system administrator of the user units and the CISO strictly apply to all users All users must comply with these regulations (Art. 17 BOT [1]).

Consequences of gross negligence and abuse

1. In any case, users shall be liable for damages or technical disruptions in the ICT resources of ETH Zurich caused by their gross negligence or wilful misconduct. In case of non-intended use, the user concerned shall be liable also for slight negligence. In case of grossly negligent or intentional infringement of third-party rights (in particular copyrights and licence terms), the user shall also be liable for any claims eventually brought against ETH Zurich by third parties (Art. 17 BOT [1]).

2. Monitoring compliance with the provisions of this Acceptable Use Policy (Art. 18 BOT [1]: The ICT resources maintain log files of the most important activities they are used to perform. Upon instruction by the CISO, non-personally identifiable data contained in the log files may be viewed for spot checks to. To address detected or reasonably suspected abuses within the meaning of Art. 19 of the BOT, the CISO may analyse the personally identifiable data contained in the violators’ log files in accordance with the applicable principles set forth in the «Guidelines for Monitoring the Use of ICT Resources at ETH Zurich» in the Appendix of the BOT.

3. Any use of the ICT resources of ETH Zurich which disregards the provisions of this Acceptable Use Policy, or breaches applicable higher-level laws or infringes third-party rights constitutes an abuse. In particular, abuses include the conduct set out in Art. 19, para. 2 and are forbidden.

4. Should an abuse within the meaning of Art. 19 BOT be detected, the CISO may take measures such as blocking access to the ICT resources (Art. 20 BOT [1]).

5. In cases of serious abuse, disciplinary proceedings will be opened in all cases and, where necessary, civil proceedings or criminal complaints may be initiated Particularly serious offences may result in exclusion or dismissal from ETH Zurich. A serious abuse by students does not constitute a petty offence within the meaning of the Art. 8 of the ETH Zurich Disciplinary Code The Disciplinary Committee decides whether it will investigate the incident or refer it back to the Rector for further action.

Special regulations governing the use of educational computers

1. Students and PhD students matriculated at ETH Zurich as well as users from the University of Zurich participating in joint courses/seminars are entitled to use the educational computers.

2. All users of publicly accessible educational computers at ETH Zurich must present a valid ETH Card or personal ID upon request by lecturers, assistants, IT Services employees or the CISO.

If you have any questions regarding these rules or other topics related to the computers at the D-ITET, please contact us at support(at)ee.ethz.ch.

^[1] The german and english links to the ETH wide BOT can be found under https://computing.ee.ethz.ch/Workstations/UsagePolicy