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Aussie PM Office Calls For Government Ban On Gmail, Hotmail

Posted by samzenpus on from the no-gmail-for-you dept.

aesoteric writes "The Australian National Audit Office has called on all Australian government agencies to block free web-based email services like Gmail and Hotmail to mitigate security and information integrity risks. The auditor noted that such public email services 'should be blocked on agency IT systems, as these can provide an easily accessible point of entry for an external attack and subject the agency to the potential for intended or unintended information disclosure.' Not surprisingly, the move is seen by some as an attempt to prevent a WikiLeaks-style disclosure from occurring."

3 of 178 comments (clear)

  1. Hyperbole much? by Leafheart · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Now seriously guys, there are bad titles, and there are pathetic ones. This takes the cake as the prime of the prime on the latter camp. You make it sound like they want to ban it on Australia as a whole, while the truth is much more simple and in fact, valid. They simply urged the agencies to not use those services. The puzzlement should come from why are they using it anyway?

    This was an audit performed on the security of Government data and not an exercise on quashing free speech. FFS aesoteric and samzepous, this was so pathetic that it wasn't even funny.

    --
    --- "When you gotta do something wrong. You gotta do it right. (Fighter)"
    1. Re:Hyperbole much? by aesoteric · · Score: 5, Interesting

      I actually agree. The title is inaccurate. It's also not the one that was submitted.

  2. Re:Waste of Time by Celarent+Darii · · Score: 5, Insightful

    True, but if someone needs gmail to do their government job, someone is not doing their job correctly.

    The real problem with gmail, yahoo, msn or whatever is that it isn't the government's server, and there are lots of requirements for archiving and providing an audit trail for government business that gmail cannot (and shouldn't) provide.

    IT is more than just putting up a webpage and sending messages, it is also insuring accountability and security. Free web mail is fine and even preferable for private stuff, but when it comes to government work we demand a certain accountability and security, and rightly so. Perhaps people do private messages at work, but this is damn hard to filter and in general on tax-payers time you have no right to be doing private correspondance on government payroll and equipment.

    From the workers point of view it might seem a hassle, but try to look at it from the administrator's point of view. Those blocks are there for a reason, and the audit trail is there for a reason. Remove the audit trail and it would be close to impossible to make any sort of investigation on who stole the last 10,000 $ from the government till, and who influenced who in the last bid, and who approved what by which contacts.

    People aren't perfect, company and government policies even less so, but there is often a reason for the policy even if it is implemented wrongly.

    Go and hug your IT admin today, you'll find it easier to get your job done :)