IT News for October, 2010

The international media have warned people not to fall for phishing scams. Yet, because they are often very convincing, these scams remain one of the largest threats to cyber security.

The classic phishing scam arrives in your email and tries to convince you to surrender too much personal information. Five years ago, these scams would ask you to reply with your Social Security Number, date of birth, and your bank or credit card account number. Most people now know not to respond to this kind of email.

However, too many people still fall for one of three variations.

Passwords keep your personal information, including your UD records, protected. Your passwords are the equivalent of the key to the lock for your virtual life. Because account names are often publicly available, using strong passwords and managing them wisely are the most important ways you can protect your information and others' information entrusted to you.

Never share your password or PIN with anyone; if you think someone knows your password or PIN, change it.

In addition to keeping your password private, you should also choose strong passwords. A recent study of 32,000,000 passwords revealed in a security breach at a social gaming Web site showed that over 290,000 of their clients had chosen "123456" as their password.

If you choose a strong password, you protect yourself against password-stealers. If you don't reveal your password to anyone, you make sure that no one else will accidentally reveal your password.

Because so many UD faculty, students, and staff follow IT's directions for keeping their computers clean and secure, UD has seen a reduction in the number of computers infected by viruses, spyware, and other malware.

However, each year, the number of software security vulnerabilities rises, and hacking tools available to exploit these vulnerabilities become more readily available and more hackers look for ways to access your computer and copy, steal or alter data you have stored.

Therefore, you have to be alert to new ways your computer can be attacked.