Safety Issues in ICT: Policies, Guidelines and Procedures

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Safety issues

The workplace can be a dangerous place.

Some precautions which can be taken to reduce the risk of accidents are:

• Ensure there are no trailing wires across or around the room which people could trip on

• Electrical sockets should not be overloaded

• Electrical equipment should be safety tested at least once a year

• There should be adequate space around desks for people to move

• Bags and obstacles should be stored out of the way so that people can't trip over them

• Food and drink should not be placed near a machine

• Heating and ventilation should be suitable for the working environment

• Work desks should be strong enough to support computers and equipment

• Staff should follow the safety regulations

• Fire extinguishers should be available, including specialist ones to deal with electrical fires.

• Fire exits should be clearly marked and free from clutter

Technology systems, especially those connected to the internet, are potentially at risk from security threats. These security threats are normally caused by malicious users who want to gain information from a computer in order to financially profit from it.

There have been laws put in place to help reduce these threats but they still exist and are a major cause for concern.

Example security issues include:

• Malware – Short for malicious software, malware are small programs that are designed to attack computer systems. Examples include viruses, spyware, worms & trojans. These attacks might be to prevent a system from working or possibly to steal data for identity theft and bank fraud. Methods for preventing this from impacting you include:
• - Using anti-virus and firewall software
• - Ensuring we don’t download any files we are not sure are safe

• Hacking – This is the gaining of unauthorised access to a technology system. Malicious users known as hackers will use a variety of techniques to force their way into a system so that they can read, alter, delete & steal information. Any data stolen can then be used for blackmail, identity theft and bank fraud. Methods for preventing this from impacting you include:
• - Use firewall software
• - Using sufficiently complicated passwords.

Workplace safety rules and general safety policies are necessary parts of a comprehensive safety program. In addition to general safety rules, job specific safety rules are needed to ensure task safety training addresses all hazards for each job.

Hazard Reporting

Identification and reporting of potentially unsafe or unhealthful working conditions is the responsibility of all employees. Employees should be encouraged to report unsafe or unhealthful working conditions to their immediate supervisor to promptly investigate the situation and take appropriate corrective actions. .

Signs and Tags

Signs and tags are not intended as substitutes for preferred abatement methods such as engineering controls, substitution, isolation, or safe work practices. Rather, they are additional safety guidance and increase the employee's awareness of potentially hazardous situations.
Tags are temporary means of warning all concerned of a hazardous conditions, defective equipment, etc. Tags are not to be considered as a complete warning method, but should only be used until a positive means can be employed to eliminate the hazard; for example, a "Do Not Start" tag is affixed to a machine and is used only until the machine can be locked out, de-energized, or inactivated.

Planned Work

Work shall be planned and supervised to prevent injuries in the handling of materials and in working together with equipment. Employees shall not enter manholes, underground vaults, chambers, tanks, silos, or other similar places that receive little ventilation unless it has been determined that it is safe to enter. Confined spaces can be quite hazardous from toxic fumes, gas, and other hazards can gather in the spaces creating a dangerous hazard.
Machine guards and other protective devices must be in their proper place before machinery and equipment is used and employees must report any deficiencies or hazards to the supervisor when they are detected. If the equipment is unsafe to operate, do not operate the equipment until it has been replaced or repaired.

Hazard Safety Control

Substitution. The risk of injury or illness may be reduced by replacement of an existing process, material, or equipment with a similar item having more limited hazard potential Some examples include: brush painting instead of spray painting to reduce inhalation hazards, welding instead of riveting to reduce noise levels, use of safety cans instead of bottles to store flammable liquids, etc. Care must be exercised in any substitution to ensure that the substitute materials are technically acceptable and to avoid introducing a new or unforeseen hazards.

Isolation. Hazards are controlled by isolation whenever an appropriate barrier or limiter is placed between the hazard and an individual who may be affected by the hazard. This isolation can be in the form of physical barriers, time separation, or distance. Examples include machine guards, electrical insulation, glove boxes, acoustical containment, and remote controlled equipment.

Ventilation. The control of a potentially hazardous airborne substance by ventilation can be accomplished by one or two methods: diluting the concentration of the substance by mixing with uncontaminated air or capturing and removing the substance at its source or point of generation. Local exhaust ventilation is generally the preferred and more economical method of hazard control. However, dilution ventilation can be very effective for the removal of large volumes of heated air or for the removal of low concentrations of non-toxic or low toxicity contaminants from minor and decentralized sources.

Administrative Control. This method of hazard mitigation depends on effective operating practices that reduce the exposure of individuals to chemical or physical hazards. These practices may take the form of limited access to high hazard areas, preventive maintenance programs to reduce the potential for leakage of hazardous substances, or adjusted work schedules which involve a regimen of work in high hazard and low hazard areas. Adjusted work schedules are appropriate only when the hazard is recognized as having a limit below which nearly all workers may be repeatedly exposed without adverse effect.

Personal Protective Equipment. This method of hazard control is least preferred because personal protective devices may reduce a worker's productivity, while affording less effective protection against the recognized hazard than other methods of control. Nevertheless, there are instances where adequate levels of risk reduction cannot be achieved through other methods, and personal protective devices must be used, either alone or in conjunction with other protective measures.