THE WSG RECOMMENDS that,
whenever possible, you do not use personal email addresses on
your Web site (this recommendation does not apply to directory
listings). Instead, use non-personal, role-based email aliases.
An example of a non-personal, role-based email alias would be "webmaster@department.ucsb.edu" or "gradadvisor@department.ucsb.edu."
An email alias is not a real email account; instead, it is an
address that forwards all email it receives to another email
account. For example, a role-based email alias such as "accounting@department.ucsb.edu" might
forward (or "map") to "johnsmith@department.ucsb.edu," a
member of the department's accounting office. If John Smith leaves
his position, or if someone else takes on the responsibility
of answering accounting enquiries, that alias can be remapped
to a new email account.
Aliases are useful in several ways, including:
- To protect an individual department member's email address
from being vulnerable to spam or other unwanted email;
- To route general enquiries to one contact person in the department;
- To help keep a Web site updated. For example, if John Smith
leaves his position, the alias "accounting@department.ucsb.edu" can
be remapped to John Smith's replacement; the email alias address
iteself will not have to be changed anywhere on the Web site.
An alias may also map to multiple email accounts, which can be
useful for small email groups, or to direct enquiries to several
key members of a department.
Make sure to review Key Points on Use of E-mail at UCOP, a section
of the University of California Electronic Communications Policy.
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