Cyber security is something that not many people think about that often, but impacts our lives on a daily basis. With the increasing presence of technology in our society people are putting more and more personal information online, putting them at risk for scams and identity fraud. Cyber Security refers to a system of technological applications and processes that protects systems, networks, programs and devices from cyber security attacks. Cyber attacks can have great impacts on individuals, businesses, educational institutions, and even governments. Cyber terrorism attacks are used by governments to gain information on other countries and gain politically advantages.
Centre college takes several precautions to ensure the safety of personal information it has about students. Centre uses a Domain Name System (DNS) referred to as the Cisco Umbrella. The Cisco Umbrella protects the college internet 24/7 by blocking access to known malware transmitting websites. The Cisco Umbrella also blocks access to new websites due to their tendency of being bad actors, which is an entity that’s attempting to breach cybersecurity. Centre is also a member of the Shared Threat Intelligence for Network Gatekeeping and Automated Response (Stingar) Project from Duke University. Stingar shares information on known bad actors for the higher education community by sourcing real time data from the participant universities. Through the programs Centre College uses, the Department of Information Technology Services blocks on average 700,000 connection attempts per day from known bad actors. Centre College has never had a major cyber security breach.
Students can also actively protect themselves from cyber attacks. ITS recommends that students avoid answering suspicious emails from unknown sources. Students should also be conscious about what they post online and their “digital footprint”, the trail of data left behind when using the internet. For your security never share your passwords and online account information with anyone, even if it is someone you trust. Students that have questions and concerns about their cyber security are encouraged to reach out to the ITS department via email at helpdesk@centre.edu