UWF Policy

The following comes from the UWF Electronic Communications Policy - old (2019):

Electronic mail is an official means of communication with the University of West Florida. UWF provides electronic mail services and facilities to the campus community for the furthering of the University mission, which includes the support of instruction, scholarly research and other creative activities, public service and administrative activities of the University.

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The University’s email system exists primarily to accomplish the work of the University. Therefore, using it for personal communication should be done in a prudent and responsible manner.

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Users of the University electronic communication system should have no expectation of privacy, in that most email messages sent through a University of West Florida account are public records[...]  Although personal email unrelated to University business generally is not a public record, most email sent through the UWF email system is a public record, and may be publicly disclosed upon request in accordance with Florida’s public records law.

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University electronic mail services may not be used for [...] [c]ommercial purposes not under the auspices of the University [or] [p]ersonal financial gain (except as permitted under applicable policies)

Recommendations from the ITS Help Desk

• Use your UWF Gmail account for official UWF business only. 
• Avoid using your UWF Gmail account to sign up for third-party online accounts (such as social media and banking accounts).
  • The only major exception to this recommendation is if you're signing up with a reputable company that offers specific discounts for, or requires .edu email addresses (such as Amazon and GitHub). 
• Avoid setting your UWF Gmail account as the default account on your devices (such as smartphones and Chromebooks).
• Avoid using your UWF Gmail account to store personal data.  Only data related to official UWF business (such as student work) should be stored in UWF's Google Drives.

Please know that all UWF students and nearly all UWF employees do not have indefinite access to their UWF Gmail accounts.  All UWF students and nearly all UWF employees will eventually lose access to their UWF Gmail accounts at some point.  Please visit the Leaving UWF and ArgoNet Account Checklist for Students Leaving UWF webpages for additional details.