Message from Information Systems regarding cybersecurity

August 16, 2017

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).