Did you know…. The US industry sector with the highest number of security breaches is the higher education sector. Since 2005, US higher education institutions have been the victim of 539 breaches involving nearly 13 million known records. The average cost of a data breach for US higher education institutions is $225 per breach, with a total average cost is $6.5 million.

 

Although security breaches within the Australian Higher Education and Research Sector are not as high as the US counterpart, the Australian Higher education sector is considered one of the world’s highest user of technology in the classroom with 81 % of Students using at least one form of computing device. 

 

There are a few things you can do each day that will help keep our IT systems and information held within them safe:

 

 

 

•  Activate the computer’s screen lock when not in use (CTRL+ALT+DELETE, Lock).
• Do not share your password with others. If they need access, ask IT Services about how to grant this, or provide delegation rights for the relevant system/application.
• Change your password regularly and ensure it meets the password minimum requirements (length/complexity), this can be done at any time.
• Do not select links in dodgy emails; forward any suspicious emails, as an attachment, onto IT Security or spam.report@murdoch.edu.au for review.
• Do not reply to, or forward spam emails to others. Mark them as Junk to avoid receiving them again.
• Do not store credit/debit card information in documents or in emails; this makes it too easy for sticky finger hackers.
• Be careful when visiting websites where sensitive information is shared, such as your name, address, date of birth, contact details and/or financial information. Ensure the site is secure before proceeding.
• Try to store files and documents on a Murdoch supplied network file, OneDrive or SharePoint.

 

 

Help us to keep our University safe by following these few things and by adhering to the University`s IT Security Policy and Standard.

 

 

You can also keep us informed of any potential breaches of our Security policies/procedures by emailing IT Security.

 

 

External References:

https://www.universitybusiness.com/article/0816-wisp

https://www.cso.com.au/article/628951/protecting-australia-schools-from-cyber-attack/