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Category: Higher Education

Tuesday, 6 September 2011 11:00 No Comments

Going back to school? Avoid these security mistakes.

Posted by Heather Howland in Higher Education, Security Intelligence

Over the past year or so, there has been increasing attention given to higher education security breaches, but is it legitimate? Are they really under targeted attack? In a recent Infosec Island post, it was suggested that the higher number of reported breaches might be due to less stringent security policies, thus leaving them more susceptible to breaches. The counter to this argument is the possibility that the University IT Security teams are catching most of the breaches and vulnerabilities before they progress into something more severe. This would potentially rack up more reported breaches, where each breach is perhaps less impactful.

That said, it certainly doesn’t mean students should assume the potential for identity theft, data loss, and overall computer security should be taken lightly. Q1 Labs’ Nate Labadie was interviewed last week by Security News Daily, and had a few tips for new and existing higher education students. Nate was once an IT security specialist at Wayne State University, so he is armed with a few things to say about this topic including the top three rookie security blunders by students:
  1. Leaving laptops/tablets/smartphones unattended. For the love of all things holy, never do this.
  2. Giving out passwords. Don’t share your passwords with friends – this is especially true if you share the same password over several services, which is another no-no.
  3. Not enabling anti-virus, anti-spyware, and firewalls. If the College/University IT organization recommends certain software to use, it’s in your best interest to listen and maintain a safe environment for your data.
Are you an IT professional at a college or university? A student? What do you think about the state of IT security at your school?

Read about how Texas A&M and Liberty University utilized security intelligence to combat advanced threats and enforce university network policies.