October marks the sixth annual National Cybersecurity Awareness Month (NCSAM) sponsored by the Department of Homeland Security. The theme for 2009 is “Our Shared Responsibility” to reinforce the message that all computer users, not just your IT support staff or industry and government, have a responsibility to protect themselves, their colleagues, family members, and K-State’s valuable information and technology resources.
Even though it’s late in the month, familiarizing oneself with cybersecurity risks and best practices is something everyone needs to do continually, not just one time a year. In conjunction with NCSAM, K-State’s IT security team hosted a Regents-wide IT security training event Oct. 5 in the K-State Student Union. PowerPoints from the presentations are available on the event website. Most presentations apply directly to K-State, so visit the website to learn about a variety of topics with offerings for both less technical and more technical audiences.
Also for the more technical users, SANS is publishing one article each day during October in its Internet Storm Center Handler’s Diary covering security risks of common protocols, ports, services, and applications. For example, Day 17 discussed Secure Shell (ssh) and Day 9 assessed Remote Desktop (RDP), both commonly used at K-State for remote access to K-State computers.
Other resources related to National Cybersecurity Awareness Month include:
- K-State’s IT Security website contains a wealth of information directly relevant to K-Staters
- EDUCAUSE’s NCSAM Resource Kit
- Department of Homeland Security’s information about NCSAM
- National Cyber Security Alliances’ StaySafeOnline.org NCSAM information
- DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano’s webcast on Security America Against the Threat of Cyber Attack
- President Obama’s NCSAM address
Do your part of “our shared responsibility” by using these resources to educate yourself and stay safe online.
