The federal government is reportedly contemplating imposing a complete ban on the use of social media by government servants during work hours.
According to reports in the local media, this suggestion was put forth by the National Information Technology Board (NITB) officials during a meeting of National Assembly (NA) standing committee on Information and Technology.
Reports stated that not only would the use of social media applications or pages including Facebook and Whatsapp be banned during the office timings but officials would also be barred from bringing storage devices-USBs- to the offices. This recommendation was put forth to address concerns related to data theft. Recently, a spate of leaked notifications from government offices has sparked anger in power circles.
It has even led to the circulation of fake notifications on social media to discredit a particular governmental agency or official. The technology board has urged the government to act against this threat.
The committee was informed that a new local social network, modeled on WhatsApp, would be introduced into government offices to streamline communications.
E-offices will be established at every ministry, which will be interconnected.
“Any official information would be shared on the server after prior approval of the federal authorities.”
Moreso, it was recommended that government employees be barred from indulging in any part-time businesses.
Meanwhile, the board also advised that a separate authority be set up to combat the spread of fake news across the country.
