Government cautions its employees against using official e-mail to send derogatory mails

NEW DELHI: The government has cautioned its employees against using the official e-mail service for sending personal messages or any content involving language that is derogatory to religion, caste and ethnicity or against national interest as it can invite deactivation of the e-mail account as well as probing questions from investigating agencies.

While banning Gmail, Yahoo and other private e-mail services for official correspondence, as per a recent notification, the government has cited ten examples of “inappropriate use” of the official e-mail service that could invite action against an employee. “Any case of inappropriate use of email accounts shall be considered a violation of the policy and may result in deactivation of the account.

Further, such instances may also invite scrutiny by the investigating agencies depending on the nature of violation,” says the ‘E-mail Policy of the Government of India’ notified on February 18 and circulated to all the ministries.

It has been specified that the use of distribution lists for the purpose of sending e-mails that are personal in nature, “such as personal functions”, would qualify as an inappropriate use of the government’s e-mail service.