An Acceptable Use Policy (AUP), also known as a fair use policy, is a set of rules that outlines what employees can and can’t do while utilizing the organization’s internet access, network, data, or a specific piece of technology. It also explains to consequences should an employee infringe those rules.

An AUP is needed since it gives employees guidelines on what they can and cannot access and share. It is also part of many compliance guidelines, like HIPAA, PCI, GDPR, and others.

If you don’t have an AUP in place yet, you can download our customizable AUP template. It is crucial that you review the template and make changes to it to fit your company’s needs. Once it is reviewed and approved, employees need to be able to review it and any points. AUPs should be reviewed on an annual basis to ensure it is up-to-date with your organization’s evolving use of technology.