Longwood University     Chief Information, Technology, and Facilities Officer:     Information and Instructional Technology Services   201 High Street, Coyner 107, Farmville, VA  23909    Phone: 434.395.2034         Fax: 434.395.2035

 Policy 6124
WIRELESS COMMUNICATION POLICY

I.    PURPOSE

This policy prohibits access to Longwood University’s networks via unsecured wireless communication mechanisms. Only wireless systems that meet the criteria of this policy or have been granted an exclusive waiver, in writing, by the Information Security Office are approved for connectivity to Longwood's networks.

II.    DEFINITIONS

Access Point:  An access point is a piece of wireless communications hardware, which creates a central point of wireless connectivity.  Similar to a “hub” the access point is a common connection point for devices in a wireless network. Access points can be used to connect to segments of a LAN, using transmit and receive antennas instead of ports for access by multiple users of the wireless network.  Similar to standard wired “hubs,” access points are shared bandwidth devices and can be connected to the wired network allowing wireless access to the campus network.

III.    POLICY

This policy covers all wireless data communication devices (e.g., personal computers, cellular phones, PDAs, etc.) connected to any of Longwood University's networks. This includes any form of wireless communication device capable of transmitting packet data. Wireless devices and/or networks without any connectivity to Longwood University’s networks do not fall under the purview of this policy.

A.  Compliance:  To comply with this policy, wireless implementations must:

1.  Maintain point-to-point hardware encryption of at least 128 bits.

2.  Maintain a hardware address that can be registered and tracked, i.e., a MAC address.

3.  Use only IITS approved and installed hardware and/or software for wireless access points.

4.  Maintain physical protection of wireless access points to protect against theft or access to the data port.

5.  Not employ static Wired Equivalency Privacy (WEP) keys and Server Set Identifications (SSID) as security measures due their the inherent security weakness and lack of scalability. IITS will manage all SSIDs and WEP keys.

6.  Support the use of Longwood’s VPN technology. Further details may be found in the Virtual Private Network (VPN) Policy.

B.  Radio communication: Due to its dependence on a scarce and shared  resource, radio communication is subject to additional rules concerning interference and shared use.

1.  Interference or disruption of authorized wireless communications or unauthorized interception of any wireless communications is considered a violation of acceptable use and a violation of this policy.   

C. Violations:  The University regards any violation of this policy as a serious offense. Violators of this policy are subject to disciplinary action as prescribed in the Longwood University Honor Code, the Student Handbook and the Administrative Policies and Procedures Manual, in addition to possible cancellation of information technology resources and systems access privileges.  Users of information technology systems and resources at Longwood are subject to all applicable local, state and federal statutes. It should be understood that this policy does not preclude prosecution of criminal and civil cases under relevant local, state, federal, and international laws and regulations. 

Approved by the Board of Visitors, March 20, 2004.

Revised and approved by the Board of Visitors, September 14, 2006.

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