We use the Internet at work, home, for enjoyment, and to connect with those close to us. However, being constantly connected brings increased risk of theft, fraud, and abuse. Universities, which are characterized by their openness based on academic freedom, are among the most widely attacked targets. The University takes steps to ensure the security of our infrastructure and systems, but cybersecurity is a shared responsibility, and everyone can take a few simple steps to make the Internet more secure!
Kicking Off National Cybersecurity Awareness Month
October is National Cyber Security Awareness Month (NCSAM) and we are celebrating for our fifth year at UCSB.
NCSAM aims to promote awareness about cybersecurity by educating faculty, staff, students, and other members of our community about ways to protect themselves and the campus. Hackers continuously bombard UCSB with cyberattacks.
This year, the Systemwide Security Awareness Team has created over two dozen remote events during October to help create awareness for you and your colleagues.
Security For Faculty & Staff
Find more information for important security topics such as data backups and storage, phishing scams and information technology security best practices specifically relevant to faculty and staff at UC Santa Barbara.
Security For Students
Discover relevant security information for topics such as social media and password management best practices to help you be safe and prepared to handle IT security situations as a UC Santa Barbara student.
General Security Resources
Find information about identifying and avoiding phishing scams, managing passwords, or tips to secure your personal information.
Report a Security Incident
Information Security encourages UCSB computer and network users to report all email abuses as well as computer intrusions and other hostile activity to our Network Security Team. With your help we can better mitigate the security risks around campus.
Report Harassing or Unwanted Email
We encourage UCSB computer and network users to report email abuses as well as computer intrusions and other hostile activity.
Report Scanning, Hacking, and Other Hostile Activity
We take matters of hacking and other hostile activity seriously and will investigate all reports of abusive activity.
Report Lost or Stolen Computer Device
Complete this form to report your lost or stolen device to the Network Security Team. If this is an emergency, please contact the local authority.
News & Events
Beware of COVID-19-Related Phishing Emails
Any time you see an email related to COVID-19, take extra precautions. Look carefully at the source. Is it a real address or something designed to mislead you into thinking it's real?
Data Privacy and You
It is important to ensure that the digital “you” matches what you intend to share. It is also important to keep what’s private, private, for yourself and when you share about others. Owning your online presence will help to protect your identity, finances, and reputation – both now and in the future!
New Login Screen to Access Campus Resources
On March 7, 2020, UCSB Enterprise Technology Services (ETS) will release the upgraded Single Sign-On (SSO) service. SSO is the service that enables our community to log in to many campus systems including Electronic Timekeeping and UCPath. The SSO upgrade prepares the Identity infrastructure for future modernization.
Back to School Cybersecurity
Over 200,000 UC students will be starting classes over the next couple of months. The new school year is an exciting time for students, faculty, and staff. It’s also an exciting time for hackers, identity thieves, and other unscrupulous types who take advantage of people during this busy time of year.
Phishing for Gift Cards
In the past few weeks, the campus experienced a rash of phishing attacks. The most common form is a short message that starts with something like, "quick help needed," "are you in the office?," or "available?" - Anything to attract a response. The messages often appear to come from vice chancellors, deans, and department chairs.
Cyber-Smart Traveling
Traveling today is so much easier with technology -- whether it’s to the coffee shop around the corner or to a café in Paris. Unfortunately, traveling with devices can mean increased cyber risks for keeping your personal and University information private, as well as the potential for device theft.
Don't Take the Bait
Google incorporates user feedback to train its algorithms to recognize new phishing attacks. Both Horowitz and Lovan recommend reporting a message to Google if you suspect it is a phishing attack. You can do this directly from your online Gmail box.
Phishing Scams
They use clever techniques to induce a sense of urgency on your part so that you don't stop to think about whether they are legitimate or not. Some even target a select group of users and tend to be more specific and include information more detailed and familiar to the recipient.
Password Best Practices
Passwords are the key to almost everything you do online, and you probably have multiple passwords that you use throughout the day. Choosing hard-to-hack passwords and managing them securely can sometimes seem inconvenient.
Online Phishing and Scams
Spear phishing emails are a special type of phishing email targeted to a select group of users. These emails tend to be more specific than a regular phishing email, including information more detailed and familiar to the recipient.
Security Personnel On Campus
Information Security at UCSB is a distributed effort shared among IT teams and individuals across campus. You can find key resources in your divisions, departments, and in ETS. Here are some places to start.
Office of the CIO
Sam Horowitz, CISO samh@ucsb.edu
Core IT (Enterprise Technology Services)
Kevin Schmidt, SOC manager kps@ucsb.edu
Security Operations Center (SOC) security@ucsb.edu
Administrative and Residential IT (ARIT)
Kip Bates, Associate CISO kip.bates@ucsb.edu
Student Affairs, SIS&T
Tom Lawton, ISO thomas.lawton@sa.ucsb.edu
UCSB Cyber Security Checkup
What better way to make sure you're secure with a cyber security checkup? View the documents below to follow best practices for securing your devices on or off-campus.