Well I can say this much and I agree that IT accountability is important and a must well at least it is now cause my neck is on the line day to day. I spent the first 6 months of my job 3 years ago locking down an un-documented network put together by some well paid consultant. Yes I'd call them back in because I could not follow the logic of 4 servers and 25 different ways of thinking. One area I see very lacking in professional behavior with many IT and they are sharp but young, they fail to understand business operations as in NO you cannot re-boot 3 servers fool around thinking it may work 50 people are on the system working, real basic stuff. IT people need a clear understanding of business operations they support. Is my network locked down and secure well today it was who knows what tomorrow brings. Best I ever got as accountability was the ok we will reduce that bill cause we didn't tell you nor fix it but after all we had to drive over to just look, it is called billable time when IT is driven by that it is quanity not quality that drives the person we all got bills to pay.

The largets accountability issue out here are the users, after all you can filter the email attachments at the firewall, yet a user can go to their web based email and inspite of several warnings skipped over cause they wanted to read the fun email first. IT security and secure networks are only as secure as the weakest chain the user and well some people really should not have a computer. So I'd say I'm accountable, and reality is that many schools IT depts opt to do what well the reason your at school for to learn to be accountable for your own actions. Is it the fault of IT for not having the latest and expensive virus scanner license or is it the user that ignores all the information and wants to look at snow white? I'm lucky I have good owner management support and any security issue explained in business terms i.e. if we do not implment this here are the risks here are the libilities, and this is how it effects your bottom line. Like the thread I started what does net admin really do, well it's not all on the boxes, so I'd suggest some business classes and at least a clear understanding of business operations. I'd love to hold the IT person that came in when I was on vacation that caused a loop back error on part of a unmanaged switch area, thing is he will stand fast in I think this worked until I cleared the parking lot to the next visit. Yes accountable we must be if your not you will like so many consultants never be called back, of if you are a user IT sets the rules for good reason those boxes pay your salery, or provide your edu stuff, so IT could not afford the $, and will spend more effort finding the person resonsable for the damage, I waste 1/2 my day scanning for the latest exploits, virus etc not to mention M$ patches, while to many moron users just sit clicking away cause they can point at it. So in what portions to we as professionals become responsable for? IT is professional though not always business like or even PR or HR like gotta work hard in those areas also, users well some have no ethics even know right from wrong, so throwing money only last so long if no money is spent on the weakest link the user that either uses the computer to be productive or distructive, distructive seems to rule things now days.