Cybersecurity is a team effortYou can increase the security of the University’s data by using available tools to defend against cybercriminals.

Team up to protect the network

Protecting the University’s network is a shared responsibility. University systems come under threat each day by cyber criminals. Employing defense measures which include using anti-virus applications, enabling operating system updates and enrolling university-owned devices in the device management program helps your device and personal information withstand attacks and protects the campus network and systems.

Taking these actions help harden the campus network from attackers. Learn how each one shields our campus from online criminals:

Endpoint protection software

Endpoint protection software, such as Windows Defender (currently used on your university-owned device), protects from external or online viruses looking to infect your device. The software scans your device for malicious software also known as malware that you may encounter by browsing the internet or using an internal drive, like a thumb drive. It disables and then deletes the malware from your device. Learn more about anti-virus for your university-owned computer.

Enable automatic updates

Enabling automatic updates on your operating system is one of the easiest ways to help protect it. These updates provide timely fixes to security vulnerabilities and performance issues from the software vendor. If the update pops up at an inconvenient moment, opt to have your device update later instead of ignoring it. When your operating system is updated, not only is it better protected, but it also offers better performance. Read more about protecting your computer.

Device management for University-owned devices

At the University of Windsor, Microsoft’s Intune with Azure Active Directory provides device and application management. This combination protects University data and provides sign-in access to UWindsor systems. A device management benefit is that it provides you with support from IT Services in deploying security fixes and patches directly to your workstation. Visit myaccount.microsoft.com and look under the Devices section to see if your device is enrolled. Submit a request if you notice your University-owned device is not enrolled in device management.

The campus community can help increase the protection and security of the University’s data by ensuring that they use the tools available to defend against cybercriminals. Along with the University’s firewalls, these security tools team up to collaboratively protect our network and data from attackers.

Find more helpful resources on how you can be a team player in safeguarding the campus network at uwindsor.ca/cybersecurity.

Led by IT Services, Cybersecurity Awareness Month efforts highlight cybersecurity issues relevant to the UWindsor community.