Legal Team
legal@diamond.ac.uk
The very nature of social media means that once you post information online, it is in the public domain, could reach a very wide audience and could stay there forever.
At Diamond, we encourage you to engage, collaborate and innovate, using the wealth of social media platforms that are available. These guidelines do not aim to control your use of social media, but have been created to help you better understand the opportunities and risks of social media platforms and to help protect you from potentially uncomfortable, compromising or illegal situations.
Your use of social media that does not discuss Diamond’s activities or your work at Diamond and which is purely about matters unrelated to Diamond would normally fall outside the scope of much of this guidance. You should however keep these guidelines in mind if you have a high-profile connection with Diamond or if your position in any other way leads people to associate you with Diamond.
Familiarise yourself with Diamond’s position on social media – Read through, and comply with, Diamond’s Social Media Policy and any guidelines and tips released by Diamond’s Communications Office.
Comply with our policies - If your post would contravene any of Diamond's policies in another forum, it will also do so in an online forum.
Posting social media content on behalf of Diamond – In the event that you would like to make business use of social media by posting content on any of Diamond’s official branded social media platforms, or if you would like to set up a new Diamond social media presence, you must first contact Diamond’s Head of Communications.
Your own views - Diamond has developed a fantastic reputation and we encourage you to let others know about your affiliation with Diamond. There have been instances where internet postings have damaged an organisation or brought it into disrepute and this is something that we want to avoid. Unless you are authorised to use social media platforms on Diamond’s behalf, you must make it clear that your social media comments and opinions are your own and do not necessarily represent the official views of Diamond. Where possible, you should include the following statement:
“The views expressed here are the author’s own and do not represent the views of Diamond Light Source Ltd.”
If you post regularly about Diamond or areas of interest that reflect on your professional role at Diamond, we would encourage you to add the above disclaimer as a fixed element to your social media presence.
Personal responsibility - Please keep in mind that you are personally responsible for the social media content which you publish.
Be engaging and interactive - Write in the first person and to the extent you feel comfortable in doing so, share information about yourself that others would find interesting in order to increase the appeal of your postings.
Always think before you post - Social media is a platform that is instantly available to you, making it easy for you to post immediately and limiting your time to reflect and think through the consequences. Consider the value of your contribution before you post it and take into account how your social media postings may reflect upon Diamond or the project, people or service with which you are associated at Diamond.
Don't be argumentative - Engaging in arguments and inflammatory debates can tarnish your credibility and reputation and by association that of Diamond. If you choose to disagree with others in a social media environment, do so respectfully and objectively.
Understand the line between what is appropriate and what is not - A good rule of thumb is not to write anything that you would not be happy seeing in a newspaper. If you are unsure whether content is appropriate or not, please contact Diamond’s Head of Communications.
Be respectful – You should not post anything that might be offensive to others.
Respond to your mistakes quickly - If you post something in error, act quickly to correct it.
Official Diamond reports or announcements - Your personal use of social media should not be the first point of publication for any official Diamond reports or announcements.
Keep legislation in mind - You might not think about the law when using social media, but it still applies to you. The key things to remember are:
Disclosure of confidential information and intellectual property - It is important to keep in mind any contractual obligation of confidentiality that you may have in place with Diamond. You may not post any confidential information or do anything that might jeopardise Diamond’s intellectual property, specifically including, but not limited to:
The following guidance related to using social media safely is general in nature, but we are sure that it will be of assistance to you:
Respect and comply with the terms of the websites you visit - Review the terms of use of all social media sites you visit and ensure your use complies with them.
Use strong passwords – It is important to protect your social media accounts from being compromised and it may be a good idea to consider changing your social media passwords regularly. Please remember not to use your FED ID password for social media accounts.
Check your privacy settings - Using the strongest privacy settings will help you keep your information safer. You should check these settings regularly.
Trust your instincts if something seems suspicious - Be alert to schemes that are designed to lead you to disclose information and which may defraud you.
Security Software – To help you stay safe online, ensure that you have up-to-date, reputable security software on every device you are using to connect to the internet.
If you have any questions about social media in general, Diamond’s Social Media Policy, these guidelines, or Diamond’s expectations, please contact Diamond’s Head of Communications.
If you have any questions relating to the IT policy or systems, please contact Diamond’s Business & Infrastructure IT Manager.
Updated on 5 June 2014.
Click here for a printable version of this Guideline.
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