Unlimited storage with University Google accounts

University Google accounts now have unlimited storage with Google Drive for Education. Drive for Education provides for unlimited storage and other enhancements to Google Drive, Gmail, and Google+ photos. You may store as many Google Drive files, Gmail messages, and Google+ photos as you need.

Phishing scams

Phishing (pronounced "fishing") is a type of scam that can lead to identity theft by stealing your personal data or information such as credit card numbers, account IDs and passwords, and other account data. It can also pose a risk to the University by providing access to University systems or data. Most often, phishing scams use email that entice people to provide their personal information on fraudulent web sites. There are also telephone scams and other email scams that work with Google calendar. If you receive email that appears to be a phishing scam, you can check the University’s phishing blog. If you receive a phishing email that is not listed on the blog, forward the message to phishing@umn.edu.

Problems with Firefox and PDF documents

There appears to be a problem with Firefox version 29 when viewing a PDF document within the browser. Firefox users who are not using version 29.0.1 may encounter issues. If you are not yet on this version and you experience problems, please contact your department's IT support team.

Don't forget to enroll for Duo Security

As previously mentioned in News & Notes, the Office of Information Technology (OIT) announced the University's transition to a new cloud-based, two-factor authentication solution, Duo Security. Please remember to set up your office telephone, cell phone, or another device to use Duo, or request a new Duo hardware token by Wednesday, May 21. For more information regarding this change, visit the News & Notes blog.

Internet Explorer threat

Microsoft recently announced a vulnerability that affects Microsoft Internet Explorer (IE) versions 6 through 11 and released an out-of-band security update for all affected versions of Internet Explorer. Users on Windows machines with automatic updates enabled will not need to take any action because protections will be downloaded and installed automatically. Users who do not have automatic updates enabled should consider doing so and should visit Automatic Updates on Microsoft's website. A security update for Windows XP has also been released. For more information, see the article on the Microsoft Security Response Center blog. (Thanks to Jeremy Todd in OCM for sharing this information.)

HeartBleed OpenSSL vulnerability

The following message was sent from the University's Chief Information Security Officer Brian Dahlin:

You have likely heard about the global HeartBleed OpenSSL vulnerability. The University has been actively involved in mitigation and response to this threat. You can learn more at heartbleed.com.

It's also a good idea to be aware of phishing by not clicking on links provided to you in any notification emails to change your password; there is potential for an increase in phishing scams based on this event. We recommend directly typing the URL (or using a bookmark you've previously saved), to help avoid potential phishing attacks.
For questions about Heartbleed, contact University Information Security at abuse@umn.edu.

Beware of malware

What do the terms "virus" or "worm" mean in terms of cyber security? The February issue of OUCH! explains what exactly malware is and how to protect yourself against it. Tip #1: educate yourself and be sure to invest in good anti-virus software.

New Google feature

Google's on the move again. Within the next few weeks, they will release a new feature that will automatically update University Calendar events when changes are made in associated Google Groups. For more information, check out Google Group changes.

IT@UMN Google group

Join the IT@UMN Google group to get updates on IT services (e.g., product rollouts, disruption notifications), information on current and emerging technologies, IT events, and more. IT@UMN is a system wide movement to build community among staff who work in IT and others who have an interest in IT at the U. The Google group is its established means of communication. To join, visit it.umn.edu and click Join the Google Group.

January data center outage

The annual primary data center maintenance and related service interruption is scheduled for Jan. 4-5, 2014. The outage is set for 6 a.m. Saturday, Jan. 4, with restoration beginning at 6 a.m. Sunday, Jan. 5. It is expected that all affected services will be restored by noon Sunday. For more information, see data center.

Beware of phishing

Phishing is a serious security problem that you should be aware of. If you're not already familiar, phishing is the practice of using fraudulent emails and copies of legitimate websites to obtain financial data from computer users for purposes of identity theft. U of M Information Security has established a phishing examples blog listing examples of phishing targeting the University community. Of particular importance are phishing schemes that exist to compromise accounts in order to target individual PeopleSoft self-service options.

Checking Gmail space

If you're wondering how much Gmail storage you have left in your account, take a look at the bottom left corner of your inbox screen. Google provides information on how much data storage you're using. For University accounts, it's typically noted as xx GB (xx%) of 30 GB used. You can use this to determine whether you need to free up some space in your account. Click here for more information about storage limits. (Thanks to Jeremy Todd in OCM for sharing this helpful tip.)

iPad training

Got an iPad but not quite sure of all the ins and outs? Technology Training and Usability Services offers iPad Learning Bytes. They're short, 30-minute sessions that show you how to use an iPad more effectively for taking notes, drawing sketches, making presentations, and more. Click here for more information.

Hangout from afar

Google came out with a new feature called Hangouts Remote Desktop. It lets you help others by controlling their computer remotely (with their permission, of course). And because you're both in a hangout, you can talk with and see each other during the session. To get started, just start a hangout, and click "View More Apps" and then "Add Apps" and "Hangouts Remote Desktop." (Thanks again to Jeremy Todd for letting us know about this cool new feature.)

New Google gadget

Post-it notes are great... until you realize you stuck them somewhere that you can't easily access while at work (uh, the refrigerator or the magazine lying on your coffee table). But, now, so long as you have an Android device or tablet, you can all but eliminate this pesky problem. Google recently created Google Keep, which stores notes and reminders in Google drive and syncs with all of your devices. (Thanks to Jeremy in OCM for sharing this cool new tool.)

ServiceNow conundrums

Has your unit just transitioned to ServiceNow or you still looking for some helpful hints? Check out the 43 service now tips and tricks.pdf cheat sheet we've got for you. It's chock full of 43 tips and tricks.

Tech trouble

If you use ServiceNow, customers may not be receiving the notification that you have resolved the ticket, unless you click the correct button. When resolving a ticket, be sure you click the "Resolve Incident" button and not "Save and Go." The "Save and Go" button should only be used if you're expecting a reply back.

Google cuts support for Internet Explorer 8

As of November 15, 2012, Google cut off support for Internet Explorer 8. After the "kill date," they expected some users in Internet Explorer 8 would have issues with features in various Google Apps (e.g., Calendar, Sites, Docs). Eventually, Google Apps will stop working entirely in that browser.

If this affects you, no worries! You can install Google Chrome or Firefox, and anyone using Windows 7 can install Internet Explorer 9 or 10, which are still supported by Google. (Thanks to Christa in ASR for this helpful info!)

Stay safe online

Be sure to stay safe online and to avoid scams. Threats exist that can cause serious harm to the university computers, and IT strives to minimize damage caused by compromised or infected systems. They do this to prevent cross infection, deny access to systems by attackers, and reduce the possibility of a data breach. If you discover a computer system is offline, contact 1-Help. (Thanks to Jeremy in OCM for passing along this very important info.)

Tech update

On Sunday, Jan. 13, the latest product release for ServiceNow will be installed. During the installation, which will occur between 7 and 8 a.m., ServiceNow will be unavailable for approximately 30 minutes. This isn't expected to cause any issues, but give 1-HELP a call if you notice anything amiss.