Announcing the launch of the Cybersecurity Hub! – 02/13/19
As part of our continued efforts to ensure the Mount Royal University community receives accurate, helpful and timely information on how to stay cybersafe, the IT Security website has been renamed and redesigned. We are delighted to introduce you to the brand new Cybersecurity Hub!
Along with a new design comes a new URL. You will still be able to use mru.ca/itsecurity to find it, however mru.ca/cybersecurity will also take you there. Let us know what you think of the new design, leave your comments below.
We have changed our name! – 02/11/19
We are always looking for ways to make the blog as helpful, useful and relevant as possible. As part of that we have decided to change it from the IT Security Blog to the Cybersecurity Blog.
By making the change we are hoping to clarify the purpose of the blog and make it easier for people to find it. The name of the blog isn’t all we are changing. The IT Security newsletter is also getting a new name and will now be called the Cybersecurity Newsletter.
The newsletter is also getting a slightly new look to bring it into line with our brand guidelines. You will now find the Mount Royal University logo on the left hand side.
Finally, we are also updating the IT Security website. We are changing the look, the name and expanding and reorganizing content. Look for an announcement coming soon.
Protecting yourself against cyber crime workshop scheduled for March – 01/29/19
Right now you are thinking, ya but they won’t want to go. They will think it’s lame. I have a solution…you register as well. You are cool (you have to be, you read this blog). If you register then everyone will because it’s something all the cool kids are doing. The best part is you get to grill me for 90 min and impress everyone with your extensive cyber security knowledge.
Cyber security lecture by Brigadier-General coming to MRU – 01/16/19
The John de Chastelain Peace Studies Initiative is presenting a public lecture called Cyber Security, Russia and Canadian Democracy on January 21 from 11:30 am to 1:00 pm on campus in room Y222. The presenters are:
- Brigadier-General Jay Janzen, CD Director General Military Strategic Communications
- Dr. Kari Roberts, Associate Professor, Political Science, Department of Economics, Justice, and Policy Studies.
With the upcoming election just around the corner, this should be a fascinating presentation. No registration is required and all are welcome to attend.
Do you know how much of your personal information is on the web? – 01/11/19
January 28th is Data Privacy Day. It is a day dedicated to taking a closer look at how much of your personal information is on the web. This is a great time to Google yourself and find out what shows up. As Google tailors your search results based on your previous activity, this exercise is more effective on a computer you haven’t used before. If you find the search results are showing more information about you than you are comfortable with, go into your accounts and change your privacy settings.
This exercise is also a great way to be reminded of old accounts that you have forgotten about and no longer use. As neglected accounts are more easily taken over by hackers, these accounts should be deleted. You may not need the account anymore, but I am pretty sure you wouldn’t want someone else using it to impersonate you. Things could get embarrassing or just plain awkward.
Although Data Privacy Day is a great time to check your online footprint. It is an exercise that you should do every few months. Those clever account providers are constantly changing their privacy settings. Each time they do, there is the possibility that something that was previously private is now public. By checking regularly you will make sure only the personal information that you want exposed is available to the public.
To help the Mount Royal Community out with their Data Privacy Day chores, I will be on Main Street January 31 from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm. Come down to see me and get googled on my computer. Everyone who does gets to spin the prize wheel and walk away with some swag. I will also be available to answer any questions that you have about privacy settings and minimizing your online footprint. See you there!!
The Golden Superhero Award gets upgraded AGAIN and finally presented – 12/13/18
The winners of October’s Cyber Security Challenge were the Facilities Management team. Unfortunately scheduling conflicts delayed the trophy presentation until today. In the meantime, the trophy sat in the IT reception area.
With the trophy on display for everyone to see, it became apparent that our little superhero did not really go with the rest of the trophy. It was a little bit like having a Lada badge on a Mercedes. A new super hero was ordered and today it was installed just before the presentation. Ladies and gentlemen, the new Golden Superhero Award…
Not only is this bad boy awesome to look at but every time someone walks by, it lights ups and the superhero turns!! No cooler trophy this side of Vegas exists.
Today it was presented to the Facilities Management team which consists of:
- Building operations
- Environmental services
- Grounds
- Planning & Project Delivery
- Security Services
- The Facilities Management Office
A big congratulations to them all! This untouchable trophy will be circulated among their different offices over the next year. Look for it on your next visit to the department. If you talk nice to them, maybe they will let you take a picture with it.
Don’t miss out on this once in a lifetime opportunity – 11/27/18
This is the last week to get in on this once in a lifetime opportunity. In the spirit of austerity I have collected all the swag I have accumulated over the last three years, added anything else I could get my hands on and put it all together in one exclusive package for you to win. Here it is…
How incredibly cool is that? Some of the amazing finds included are a Christmas ornament, safety whistle and the much coveted camera lenses for your smartphone. These rare and exclusive treasures will make you the coolest member of your department. Watch your social status climb as you share your bounty with colleagues. Alternatively you can increase your social capital at home by filling stockings with your newly acquired plunder. Either way, you come out a winner!!
All you have to do is take 4 min (I timed it) out of your very busy day to complete our super awesome survey by 4:30 Nov 30, 2018. Your input is vital to determining the direction of next year’s IT security awareness program and avoiding the tortuous repetition of the same campaigns again, again and again. Help me create an engaging, targeted, fresh program for 2019!! Complete the survey.
So sorry for the newsletter confusion – 11/23/18
This week we had a nice little glitch with the newsletter that saw the old weekly digest go out with a mishmash of last week’s and this week’s articles. This feature was turned off last week so I am not sure how that happened exactly. I am pretty sure Mercury in Retrograde had something to do with it. Another explanation could be that I forgot to leave the weekly offering to the tech Gods in the server room.
To prevent future occurrences, I have removed the suspect feature all together from the newsletter. I have also put an alarm on my phone so I don’t forget the offering. Making Mercury go direct is outside of my skill set so we will have to cross our fingers on that one. If the digest goes out again next week, I will be calling an exorcist. Thank you for your patience.
Complete the IT Security Awareness Survey and win a prize – 11/08/18
Yes it is that time of the year again. Time to find out how we have been doing over the past year and what we need to change. To do that we need your help as well as help from everyone you know at Mount Royal University. If you are a student, faculty member or employee of Mount Royal, we want to hear from you.
In exchange for taking 4 min of your precious time, everyone who completes the IT Security Awareness Survey has a chance to win a cool Mount Royal swag bag. It is full of goodies including a smartphone camera lens kit, a smartphone wallet stand, headphones, charging cables a Tshirt and more!!
This awesome deal is too good to keep to yourself! Share this post with MRU colleagues. They will thank you and so will we. The more data we have, the better we can make the security awareness program.
Unlike Google and Facebook, we won’t share the data we gather with anyone nor will we store respondents email addresses. You remain completely anonymous. So you can spread the news without fear of subjecting yourself or your colleagues to years of spam or creepy ads about cyber security. The only thing you will receive is a warm glowing feeling that you have done your part to make everyone safer from cyber attacks and the chance to win some awesome swag that will make your colleagues green with envy. So get out there and share the news!!
Cyber Security Challenge final results – 11/01/18
Congratulations to Facilities Management, this years winner of the the Cyber Security Challenge. They smashed the competition with 12% participation. Second place was Support Services with 2% and in third place was Academic administration with just under 2%. A special mention goes to the Faculty of Health, Community & Education who rose up the ranks from oblivion to 4th place with 0.79% participation in the last weeks of the competition.
The winners will be taking turns displaying the lovely Golden Superhero Award which has received a significant upgrade thanks to Building Operations. Look for it throughout Facilities Management, it lights up and turns!
The winner of the $250.00 Best Buy gift certificate was Paul Morin. His name was drawn from the 445 entries that were received. A big thank you to all who participated.
Regardless of whether you participated or not, please take the time to complete our short survey. Your responses will help make next year’s Challenge even better.