An Email Policy for Your Employees

4. Receiving Emails

4.1 Set out who should read incoming emails.

• Generally, employees should read only their own emails (using their own passwords to access the system).
• Establish how you will handle emails sent to a general address you might have (eg This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ). Assign responsibility for dealing with such emails and set up your technology so that only the relevant people can read them.
• The policy should also cover how incoming emails are handled when employees are absent (eg on holiday). (See 5.4.)

4.2 Set out your security procedures for dealing with viruses.

• Employees should follow the procedure for dealing with attachments.

4.3 Set a response time.

• You might stipulate that all incoming emails should be replied to, or at least acknowledged, within 24 hours. If you have a permanent connection to the Internet, and contacts who are used to using email, you may find that a faster response time is more appropriate.
• Software can help you filter and prioritise emails.

4.4 Explain how emails should be handled when an employee is absent or leaves.

• A simple option is to use an auto-responder saying that the employee has left or how long the employee will be absent, and giving an alternative contact.
• If you choose a system where someone else checks the employee's emails, explain how personal emails will be handled.

4.5 Explain how unwelcome emails should be dealt with.

For example:

• Ask employees to tell friends not to send them inappropriate emails.
• Delete junk emails (spam). It is not usually a good idea to respond to spam, even just to ask to be taken off a mailing list. A response confirms that the email has been sent to a live address.

4.6 Set out your policy on storing incoming emails (see 3.8).