IS highlights from the past year and a note of gratitude
The following message is shared on behalf of Mur Muchane, vice president for information technology & CIO.
Dear Wake Forest Colleagues,
What A Year! If there is a silver lining in the daunting COVID-19 challenges, it certainly includes the all-hands-on-deck approach we adopted as a community to quickly transition to new mediums for course delivery, online learning for our students, and remote work for employees. Successfully responding to the pandemic required a significantly increased reliance on digital, technological, and network tools to sustain the mission, safety, and wellbeing of the University. Information Systems staff rose to the challenge and, in partnership with the faculty and staff, shaped new ways to engage with WFU students, the community, and each other.
The Information Systems Year in Review report focuses on just a few examples of the efforts put forth to provide the infrastructure, tools, knowledge, and support that enabled – and continue to enable – faculty, staff, and students to be successful in these challenging times. In some of the other projects highlighted in this report, I trust you will see the many ways in which information technology aligns with Wake Forest’s highest aspirations of exceptional teaching, research, and discovery.
As always, we are deeply grateful to you for your continued partnership.
Best, Mur Muchane
Vice President for Information Technology & CIO
Information Systems Department
Categories: Guest Post, Inside WFU
New extended hours at the IS Service Desk
The following message is shared on behalf of Mur Muchane, vice president for information technology & CIO.
Beginning this semester, the IS Service Desk is extending the hours of support as follows: 
- AskDeac, Email and Live Chat are available 8 a.m. – 9 p.m. Monday through Friday.
- Phone support is available 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.
- Walk-in support is available 8 a.m. – 9 p.m. Monday through Friday, 12 – 5 p.m. on Saturdays and 4 – 10 p.m. on Sundays. However, as we continue to socially distance, we encourage you to contact us first via one of the channels above to determine if you need to schedule a visit.
Hours may be affected by holidays and campus closings. Please visit the Service Desk page for the latest about updated hours for phone, walk-in, live chat and AskDeac support.
Our new evening time Service Desk Analyst will be available to assist you with account issues, Canvas questions, connectivity troubleshooting and more. Canvas users are also encouraged to continue to utilize our WFU-dedicated 24/7 Canvas Support line at 833.383.5792.
As a reminder, in the event of a system outage or maintenance, visit the Statuspage by navigating to:
- The top left of the IS website
- AskDeac website
- Status.is.wfu.edu
Please also consider opting-in to receive real-time outage alerts by selecting Subscribe to Updates on the Statuspage.
Best wishes for a Happy New Year and successful spring semester, Mur
Categories: Faculty News, Inside WFU, Staff News
Information Security: Protect yourself during election season
A message from Vice President for Information Technology & CIO Mur Muchane:
Dear Wake Forest community,
With early voting currently taking place in Forsyth County and the national election right around the corner, there may be a spike in attempts to disrupt our community and fan the flames of discord. According to national law enforcement officials, these attempts are most likely to occur through electronic means. Email messages sent to individuals and groups are the most difficult to guard against.
Our systems work to filter emails containing viruses and malware, but the threat landscape is constantly evolving. Be cautious when opening attachments or links sent to you by email. In particular, ensure the email has been sent from an address you recognize.
Please review the Security Essentials page of the Information Systems website to protect your data, your account and your identity. In addition, zoom bombings remain a risk on college campuses. Be sure to follow the privacy and security practices for teleconferencing to secure your online meetings.
While our information security systems help protect us from those attempting to harm us through technical means, our systems do not filter emails for content. Should you receive an email with threatening or offensive language, please follow the steps outlined in the policy for targeted biased, intimidating or harassing communications.
As we work together to protect ourselves and our community, I will remind you of the many sources of emotional support available to us, including the University Counseling Center (336.758.5273), the Chaplain’s Office (336.758.5210) and the Employee Assistance Program (336.716.5493).
If you have questions concerning this message or need assistance, please contact Information Security at infosec@wfu.edu.
Thank you for your heightened vigilance.
Categories: Faculty News, Inside WFU, Staff News
Come celebrate the grand opening of 'One Button Studio'
A guest post from Mur Muchane, Vice President for Information Technology & CIO
Please join us on Friday, September 7, from 1 p.m to 4 p.m., for the grand opening celebration of the One Button Studio, located behind the Information Systems Service Desk, in the Z. Smith Reynolds Library.
As 
part of Information Systems, Academic Technology facilitates the innovative and imaginative use of technologies to enhance and strengthen teaching and learning at Wake Forest. The introduction of the One Button Studio is another step forward in meeting the pedagogical needs of our campus community.
Throughout higher education, students are producing digital artifacts such as short documentaries and podcasts to either replace or support more traditional evidence of learning.
The One Button Studio is a simplified video recording setup that can be used without any previous video production experience. The design of the studio allows you to create high-quality and polished video projects without having to know anything about lights, microphones and cameras. You only need to bring your USB thumb drive and push a single button.
Categories: Inside WFU
Message from Information Systems regarding cybersecurity
This message was emailed to students, faculty and staff Aug. 16 by Mur Muchane, associate vice president for information technology and chief information officer:
As part of our ongoing efforts to improve the cybersecurity of campus technology services, Information Systems will implement Cisco Umbrella/OpenDNS on August 17, 2017. This new service provides an additional layer of protection for all your devices as they connect to the wired and wireless campus network. This includes devices connected via the campus Virtual Private Network (VPN).
Cisco Umbrella/OpenDNS works by determining if your device is trying to connect to a known malicious site and then automatically redirects your device to a warning page. The service will help protect devices and the campus network from:
- Ransomware – malware that encrypts computer files until a sum of money is paid
- Phishing – email that contains requests to visit malicious sites
- Botnets – software that makes your computer part of a network that can be activated to launch attacks
- Drive-by-downloads – a malware delivery mechanism that happens by simply clicking on a malicious banner or advertisement
Please visit our Cisco Umbrella webpage to learn more.
If you have questions concerning this message or need assistance, please contact the Information Systems Service Desk at help@wfu.edu or 336-758-4357 (HELP).
Categories: Inside WFU
