Cisco updates its employee blogging policy - no more anonymity

The self-outing of the Patent Troll Tracker as Cisco employee and patent lawyer Rick Frenkel which was followed by the subsequent lawsuits against Frenkel and Cisco alleging defamation from two individuals in Texas, has led Cisco to revise its employee blogging policy. According to a blog post on its The Platform public mouthpiece Cisco says it is "committed to our policy of allowing our employees appropriate online expression," but staffers are now required to reveal their identity if they are blogging or commenting on Cisco business in which they are involved. Cisco employees are also barred from circulating postings they know to be written by another Cisco staffer without informing the recipient that the author of the posting is a Cisco worker. Staffers are also expected to post a disclaimer saying that the views are their own and not those of the company.

I applaud Cisco for updating its blog policy in this way, particularly with respect to requiring posters to include their identity - as long as this doesn't muffle the often strong views of some Cisco workers. As editor of the independent Cisco Subnet community, where Cisco employees are frequent bloggers and commentators including their identity with their postings helps readers put their views into perspective. I only wish other vendors' employees did the same.

Linda Leung - Cisco Subnet Editor

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