University considers opt-out option for Webmail info

By Laura Swan

Published Sept. 18, 2008

MU's Webmail can be useful for many things, including finding friends with impossible-to-remember pawprints and e-mailing listservs about selling football tickets. But the easy-to-access informational system can also allow personal information to fall into the wrong hands.

Missouri Students Association Vice President Chelsea Johnson said the organization was presented with a problem when Gary Allen, vice president of the Division of Information Technology, appealed to the Intercampus Student Council at the latest UM system Board of Curators meeting about stalkers at MU. He cited Webmail's global address list as a way for stalkers to locate and access people.

Department of Information Technology Director Terry Robb said the change is being discussed, but the university hasn't yet decided to make a change.

Robb said students only have the option to assert the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, which removes all information except the name and pawprint of the student. In order to utilize FERPA, students must go to the registrar's office and complete a form.

The information currently listed on the global list includes full name, phone number, year in school, campus and pawprint.

"There are students who approach us about people stalking them, and they want to hide their personal information while maintaining their school information in the global address list," Robb said. "If people are uncomfortable, now they'll have a means to prevent information from being published."

Johnson said these students have a couple of options.

"First, we can leave it the way it is and anyone can access anything," Johnson said. "Option two was an opt-out deal where everyone's information is shown as a default and students have the option to choose what will be shown. Option three is an opt-in setup."

When presented with these options, UM-Kansas City, UM-St. Louis and Missouri University of Science and Technology all preferred the opt-out system, Robb said.

Johnson said they have begun creating this option for students and faculty.

Robb said they would be communicating any changes to students as they occur.

"We're probably going to wait until it's up and running, and then anytime we talk to an organization we'll talk about it, put out press releases, any way we can get it out to the students," Johnson said.

There have been no reports of stalking this school year, MU police Capt. Brian Weimer said.