Thank you for participating in Northeastern’s annual Cybersecurity Awareness Month! Throughout the month of October, the Office of Information Security (OIS) provided community members with resources and learning opportunities to think about how cybersecurity affects their daily lives and work.
As cyber threats continue to evolve, Cybersecurity Awareness Month helped raise awareness of emerging trends such as artificial intelligence (AI) and phishing. This campaign provided resources to better understand how to work securely, recognize and report data phishing, protect data, and preserve privacy from the threats of AI and chatbots, such as data leaks and skewed information.
The month began with a crash course on how to work securely. The first week covered topics like practicing good cyber hygiene, updating security settings, and safe web browsing.
The focus of weeks two and three was on data protection, and how to identify and report phishing attacks. From learning how to browse the internet safely to reviewing helpful resources like Northeastern’s Data Classification Guidelines, various tips, and best practices were provided to ensure your data is secure. Additionally, the Phish Bowl, a resource to help identify phishing attempts, was launched to help the Northeastern community avoid falling into a phishing trap. The next time you receive a suspicious email, go to the Phish Bowl to see if others have received it too!
Data Destruction Day was held at the Boston and Oakland campuses on Oct. 23. During this environmentally sustainable event, students, faculty, and staff were invited to bring their personal devices and paper materials to be safely and securely destroyed. By the end of the day, the campuses had 184 HDs, three bins of paper, 15 phones, and 4.5 boxes of e-waste!
The month wrapped up with the Compliance Colloquium “Is Privacy Dead – Risks and Challenges with AI,” hosted by the Office of the General Counsel. Attendees contributed to thoughtful conversations about the privacy and data security challenges that AI presents. Northeastern is currently working on administrative guidelines for the use of AI that will be shared at a later date.
After a full month of cybersecurity education, the Northeastern community is better equipped to practice safe and secure habits. Always remember, before connecting to the public Wi-Fi network at a café or leaving a laptop unattended for a brief moment, think twice about the various threats that exist in the digital world.
Thank you to Northeastern departments who collaborated with OIS and IT Services to make Cybersecurity Awareness Month a success: Facilities, NUPD, Office of the General Counsel, and College of Social Sciences and Humanities.
Join the rest of the Northeastern community in January for Data Privacy Week to expand your knowledge on cybersecurity even more!