Tag: Digital Hygiene

Here we are in November already…fall is here, the holidays are approaching, the semester is starting to wind down and we’re done with Cybersecurity Awareness Month! Prizes have been awarded for scavenger hunts and completing training (for students). We had 17 people complete the hunt and 33 others jump into hunting down clues and learning about cybersecurity at the same time. I hope everyone enjoyed the hunt.

Welcome to week three of Cybersecurity Awareness Month! As of the time this was written, only somewhere between a third and a quarter of faculty and staff had completed the required cybersecurity awareness training for fall 2025. The October 31st deadline will be here before you know it and reminder emails are going out already. Students, remember that I am bribing you with the possibility of winning a cool prize for finishing the training. You also only have until October 31st to complete the Cybersecurity Awareness Month scavenger hunt. Right now, those who have completed it have great odds for winning one of the prizes in the drawings. Get out there and hunt down those clues! But for a few more minutes, continue reading about our two topics for this week – keeping your software up to date and important guidelines on using your Berry email account for personal business.

It’s June again and SOAR sessions, camps, and all kinds of summer activities are in full swing, which is why this newsletter is so late in showing up. I assumed that few of you would have time to take a look at my monthly musings on cybersecurity awareness until things settle down a bit. June is rapidly passing by, almost half gone now (more by the time you read this), so here we go with another few hundred words about cybersecurity awareness training, phishing email attacks, separation of personal and work activity, sensitivity labels, generative AI fakes, and any other topic I can squeeze into a couple of paragraphs.

It’s May again, and (most of) the students have retreated to their homes until the fall. It is the time for many a project to take off running toward completion. This summer even brings with it a change in leadership for the college, which will no doubt cause many adjustments to everyone’s routine. I hope everyone’s projects and summer work go smoothly and are successful.

We’ve crossed the halfway mark for the year, and while the rest is technically “downhill”, it’s probably going to be a rough ride. Welcome to July! I know, we’re in week two and all of the festivities of the Fourth are over. I hope everyone had a great time relaxing in whatever way made you happy.

Welcome to nearly the end of June! I hope everyone is adjusting well to the summer temperatures. The newsletter has taken a back seat to a number of other initiatives in process and will be brief and to the point. As we approach the end of our fiscal year, there are many irons in the fire for everyone. I have two interesting points to make about phishing emails (what else?), a reminder about proper email hygiene, and a question about cybersecurity awareness training frequency and duration.

Happy July! I hope everyone enjoys their half-day Fridays! That’s about all the good news I have, unfortunately. Times of national (and international) upheaval, like the COVID pandemic, war in Europe, and the like are, similar to death and taxes – inevitable. What is also inevitable is that some people will use these times to prey on the fear, uncertainty and doubt in the minds of everyone else to try and take your money. “They” need your money RIGHT NOW to solve a problem, invest in the future, or fight back against a threat. They will email you, call you, even text you to solicit your money. The flood will be relentless…

and that’s just the politicians.