Cybersecurity Awareness Month: Don’t Make It Easy for Them

by Jacob Lee

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Cybersecurity Awareness Month: Don’t Make It Easy for Them

October is Cybersecurity Awareness Month, so it’s a good time for all of us at CACC to think about some of the small things we can do to keep our accounts, devices, and college systems secure.

Cybersecurity can get complicated, but most of the things we can do to protect ourselves really aren’t. A few good habits can go a long way.

Think Before You Click

We all get a lot of email, and phishing emails are getting harder to spot. Just because an email looks like it came from someone you know doesn’t necessarily mean it did.

Be especially careful with emails that:

• Ask you to click a link or open an unexpected attachment.
• Ask for money, gift cards, or an unusual purchase.
• Ask you to enter or provide your password.
• Create an unusual sense of urgency.
• Ask you to approve an MFA request you didn’t initiate.

If something feels off, take a minute and check it out before clicking anything. It’s always better to ask than to find out afterward that the email wasn’t legitimate.

Use Good Passwords

Your password is still one of the biggest things standing between someone else and your account.

Use a strong, unique password and avoid using the same password for multiple accounts. Also, never share your CACC password with anyone. IT will never need you to send us your password to help you with an issue.

Pay Attention to MFA

Multifactor authentication adds another layer of security to your account, but it only works if we pay attention to it.

If you get an MFA request that you didn’t initiate, don’t approve it.

It can be easy to hit Approve just to make the notification go away, especially if you’re busy. But an unexpected MFA request could mean that someone already has your password and is trying to get into your account.

If you’re getting MFA requests you didn’t initiate, let IT know.

Yes, Those Updates Matter

Nobody really wants to stop what they’re doing to install an update or restart their computer.

Unfortunately, those updates are important.

Updates often include security fixes for vulnerabilities that have been discovered in Windows, browsers, phones, and other software. Keeping your devices updated is one of the easiest things you can do to stay protected.

So when your computer asks you to update for the fifth time, it’s probably time to give in and let it happen.

We’re All Part of CACC’s Cybersecurity

IT can put security tools in place, monitor our systems, and work to keep the college protected, but technology can only do so much.

All of us play a part.

Use a good password. Pay attention to MFA. Think before you click. Keep your devices updated. And if something looks suspicious, let us know.

You don’t have to be a cybersecurity expert to make a difference.

You just have to make it a little harder for the bad guys.

Don’t make it easy for them.

Central Alabama Community College Information Technology Team

Learn How to Stay Secure

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