Cybersecurity Awareness a Priority for Higher Education

“The start of a new academic year is the worst possible time for phishing season. And, unfortunately, students are taking the bait!” This is how Rodney Petersen, EDUCAUSE government relations officer and Security Task Force coordinator, characterized one of the most high-risk exposures—a fraudulent online entity masking as a trusted one in order to trick people into providing user names, passwords, and other identity elements—that plague students and IT leaders who manage the campus networks they use.

Colleges and universities throughout the United States are gearing up education programs, publicity campaigns, hands-on hardware and software upgrades, and contests to promote sound security practices as part of National Cyber Security Awareness Month (NCSAM), which is held annually in October. EDUCAUSE, the higher education technology association, has produced an updated resource kit to make it easy for campuses to participate.

"The EDUCAUSE/Internet2 Computer and Network Security Task Force provides a focal point for the academic community to join together and strengthen the ability of the higher education sector to respond to growing threats to information security and to protect the privacy of our community members," commented Peter Siegel, vice provost for information and educational technology and CIO at the University of California, Davis. Siegel, who cochairs the Security Task Force, added, "Therefore, we invite partners from industry and government to join us to create a national cybersecurity awareness campaign to improve information security and privacy across the higher education sector."

The EDUCAUSE/Internet2 Computer and Network Security Task Force supports campus efforts by promoting best practices and organizing and sharing resources. One resource that has proven especially effective is the annual student video contest, jointly sponsored by the National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA), CyberWATCH, and the ResearchChannel, which provides cash awards to college and university students who produce award-winning short videos that can be used in campus training programs designed for students. Winning videos of previous years’ contests are available for streaming or downloading for free for campuses that want to use them in their educational efforts.

"There is a tendency to associate IT security with the safeguarding of computers and networks; however, it is imperative that we focus on ways to better manage data, given the high number of incidents of unauthorized data disclosures at colleges and universities," remarked Jodi Ito, information security officer for the University of Hawaii. Ito, who cochairs the awareness and training working group of the Security Task Force, suggested "National Cyber Security Awareness Month provides an excellent opportunity to emphasize the responsibilities of data stewards and IT staff to protect the data entrusted to them and reinforce to users of IT systems the importance of safe computing practices and identity protection."

Although awareness programs on campus occur throughout the year, October has been designated as National Cyber Security Awareness Month by the National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA), a public/private partnership between the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and partners from industry and academia. A national campaign, NCSAM is focused on educating the American public, businesses, schools, and government agencies about ways to secure their part of cyberspace, their computers, and the nation's critical infrastructure.

About EDUCAUSE

EDUCAUSE is a nonprofit association whose mission is to advance higher education by promoting the intelligent use of information technology. The current membership comprises more than 2,200 colleges, universities, and educational organizations, including 250 corporations, with 17,000 active members. Learn more about EDUCAUSE at www.educause.edu.

Led by more than 200 U.S. universities working with industry and government, Internet2 develops and deploys advanced network applications and technologies for research and higher education, accelerating the creation of tomorrow's Internet. Internet2 re-creates the partnerships among between academia, industry, andgovernment that helped foster today's Internet in its infancy. For more information, visit http://www.internet2.edu.

The National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA) is a collaborative effort among experts in the security, nonprofit, academic, and government fields to teach consumers, small businesses, and members of the education community about Internet security. The NCSA aims to increase awareness about the risks associated with using Internet technologies and how to help protect against them, while also providing free tips, checklists, and best practices for remaining safe while online. Through collaboration with the government, corporate, nonprofit, and academic sectors, the mission of the NCSA is to create a culture of cyber security and safety awareness by providing the knowledge and tools necessary to prevent cyber crime and attacks. For more information, visit www.staysafeonline.org.