County IT official proposes banning Gmail/Hotmail on county devices to reduce cyber risk
Get AI-powered insights, summaries, and transcripts
Subscribe
Summary
A county IT official recommended prohibiting third-party webmail (Gmail, Hotmail, etc.) on county-owned devices and centralizing email on county addresses to reduce malware risk; commissioners asked staff to consult department heads and return with a proposed policy.
Freestone County Commissioners Court discussed a proposed cybersecurity policy that would prohibit use of third-party webmail (for example, Gmail and Hotmail) on county-owned devices and require county employees who need email to use county-provisioned addresses.
The county IT speaker described two recent security incidents linked to third-party webmail and said that when employees sign directly into personal Internet-based mail through a URL rather than routing through the county's firewall and email security, the county's protections can be bypassed. The speaker recommended that county email be centralized on Freestone County accounts and that employees not open personal third-party email on county devices. Where departments rely on shared third-party calendars or external collaboration, the IT official proposed using a separate device that does not connect to the county's internal environment.
Commissioners asked the IT official to consult with department heads to determine how many offices would be affected, noting that some departments share third-party calendars with outside contacts. The court directed the IT official to "circle with each" department head and return to the next commissioners court with a proposed policy for consideration.
No formal vote or ordinance was recorded in the transcript excerpt; commissioners agreed that the IT official should report back with department-level input and a draft policy.