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Issue Number 13

September 29, 2005

Data Exposure Incident Highlights Need to Implement IT Strategic Plan Recommendations

Since this is the first TechTalk for the academic year, let me greet all new members of our community and welcome all returning faculty, students and staff. Miami is a great place to live, learn and work and there are exciting things happening in information technology across our university.

I'd like to take a few moments to share a few clear successes that have occurred over the summer and early fall as well as to discuss the recently discovered data exposure incident and how the university is addressing it both short- and long-term.

Alert! New Policy to Delete "Sent" E-mail Older than 30 Days

Due to a huge increase in the number of e-mail messages stored in myMiami ”Sent”folders, a new deletion policy will go into effect on October 10, 2005. Email stored in the “Sent”e-mail folder that is more than thirty days old will be deleted. This will allow the university to recover over 660 gigabytes of e-mail storage space.

Update Your Desktop E-mail Application to Use SSL!

As of Spring 2005, Miami's incoming e-mail server began supporting SSL connections. SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) is a protocol that creates a secure connection between two computers and encrypts the data exchanged between the computers. SSL was put in place on Miami's incoming e-mail server so that the MUnet password would be encrypted when transmitted between the server and desktop e-mail applications (like Eudora, Outlook, Outlook Express, Mac OS X Mail, etc.)

New Credit Card Payment Feature Available on Miami's Pay Online Service

By Karen McIntyre, Assistant to Bursar, Office of the Bursar

As of July, 2005, Miami University began accepting MasterCard, Discover, and American Express payments for tuition and fees through our secured web-based payment service. This service is provided through CASHNet, an Alameda, California, company that has provided Miami University’s cashiering system since 1999.

FY06 Operational Plan and Portfolio Rebalancing

IT Services recently finalized the FY06 Operational Plan. This plan was developed through the first IT Services’ project planning cycle that included a university-wide nomination process.

Lights, Camera, Action!
"Loaner" Digital Camcorders now available from the Gaskill LTC

The Gaskill Learning Technologies Center (LTC) in 200 Gaskill Hall recently acquired four new Canon camcorders for student use. Currently enrolled students can borrow these digital video-cameras for up to 2 days. To use the camera, students must have a mini-DV tape which can be purchased from the Bookstore or off-campus.

E-mail Tip: Using Spam Scoring to Filter Junk E-mail

Miami’s incoming e-mail server uses a spam scoring system that provides the option of configuring e-mail applications (myMiami, Outlook, Eudora, etc.) to filter e-mail identified as spam, so it is not delivered to the in box.

Information Security Series: Are You Harboring a Bot?

A bot (short for robot) is a program that is placed on a computer without the knowledge of the computer owner and is used by a hacker to launch attacks on other computers. For instance, on June 16, 2004, a large network of botnets attacked several major web sites (Google, Yahoo, Microsoft and Apple Computer) by blocking access to their sites.

Miami Notifying Students, Alumni of Data Exposure Incident

Miami University is notifying all students who attended Miami during the fall 2002 semester that a report containing their names, Social Security numbers and grades had been inadvertently placed in a file accessible through the Internet. (See full press release.)

Making Yours

Over this past summer, IT Services enhanced both the myMiami portal and Blackboard. Changes were made in May and again in August that merged myMiami and Blackboard into one easy-to-use application with new functionality and many new, client customizable features.

Wireless Available Everywhere (Almost) on Miami’s Campuses!

As of Fall 2005, Miami’s students, faculty, and staff have access to Miami’s wireless data network, known as MU Wireless, in every building on all four of Miami’s campuses. Wireless coverage is also available in popular outdoor areas on the Oxford, Hamilton and Middletown campuses. Outdoor coverage maps can be found on the MU Wireless web site at http://www.muohio.edu/wireless.

38 Classrooms Receive Upgraded Presentation Equipment During Summer '05

Between May and August 2005, Classroom Services upgraded the electronic presentation equipment in 38 classrooms to the Standard Technology level. The 38 classrooms were selected by the Classroom Enhancement Council and include 27 classrooms on the Oxford campus, 8 on the Middletown campus, and 3 on the Hamilton campus.

IT Services Wants to Hear from You!

This October, IT Services will be seeking feedback on the state of IT at Miami and we want to hear from you. As part of our annual IT Strategic Plan renewal, we will be conducting forums and an online survey to gather valuable feedback and your input is important to us.

Laptops & iPods: the Fine Arts Mobile Community

By Brad Myers, Computer Services Coordinator, School of Fine Arts

Over 3 years ago, student-owned laptops & iPods invaded Architecture & Interior Design and the mobile community never looked back! Was it innovation at its best? Almost! The program was actually adopted to compensate for diminishing equipment budgets…crunches we’ve all had to deal with.

Update on Peer-to-Peer File Sharing

Miami implemented a ban on Peer-to-Peer (P2P) file sharing applications in spring of 2004, due to the virus activity on ports used by P2P applications.

I Wish I Knew: Student Voices of Experience

Who knows best what students need to know about technology to survive and thrive? Students, of course!

During spring 2005, IT Services asked students what technology advice they felt would be most valuable to other students. We received lots of great responses which we'll be sharing in TechTalk.

Hardware Repair Service Brought In-House

In March 2005, IT Services began performing hardware repair services for university-owned computers. Bringing the hardware repair operation in-house has doubled the resources for this service while lowering the cost to the University.

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