Access and UofT E-mail Systems

     This week’s discussion with Bobby Glushko and McKenzie's reading got me thinking about the UofT webmail system and the changes it suddenly implemented a few years back when I was an undergrad. I am concerned with the ownership of email systems such as UTORMail/outlook and their ability to access, alter, and upgrade my account without my consent. 

     In July 2011, the University of Toronto migrated its students from the old UTORMail email system to the new Microsoft Live UTMail+ system. Prior to the deadline for migration, students received a large number of emails from the university reminding them to transfer their accounts to the new system and warning them that it would not be possible to access email accounts in the old system once the deadline had passed and that any data stored in the old system would be lost. These emails not only left students with the impression that they had no say in the decision-making process for major policy decisions: most students found out about the impending migration from these emails, which made it clear that the decision had already been made. Moreover, some of the information provided to students appeared to be contradictory: students were informed that it was possible to opt out of the migration, but it was unclear how this would work if the old system was to be shut down. Finally, the information provided to students also turned out to be inaccurate: email accounts in the old system and the data stored in them remained accessible long after the migration. 

     While investigating the issue of the University of 2011 email migration,  I also began thinking about the role played in university policy decisions by the various corporate interests that interact with the university. Partnerships between the corporate world and academia have become increasingly important, and the University of Toronto has naturally followed this trend. Such partnerships are often presented to the student body as a fait accompli, however, with little communication as to how a particular partnership was formed and what the benefits (let alone the potential drawbacks) of the partnership are perceived to be. 
  
     Therefore, owning my email account in this context doesn't mean anything because it can be rendered useless or meaningless if it ceases to exist: the old email account can be acted upon and used to threaten me to comply to the new upgrade. Owning text such as personal emails, essays, drafts, campus work schedules doesn't mean anything if I am not able to freely access it. I know that the outcome after the deadline to upgrade passed was such that I was able to access (and still am able to access) my old account -- however, to be threatened that I may not be able to access this content makes me uncomfortable and makes me wonder exactly how much access UofT really has over this type of private space. 

     Some food for thought - [or questions I'm still debating]: What do I really own versus UofT the 'corporate institution'? How come professors didn't have to make the switch? What privacy concerns are seen as far more significant for professors compared to the student body?