Information Security

Mission Statement

The Information Security Office is committed to lowering the risk profile of the University’s electronic information by implementing industry best practices to protect the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of student, faculty, and staff information. We uphold the University’s compliance obligations by developing information security policies, providing security awareness training, and overseeing the implementation of strategic information security initiatives.

Scam of the Week

Don't Let These Utility Scams Leave You out in the Cold

In this week’s scam, you receive a text message from your utility provider that says power outages are expected in your area due to freezing temperatures. The message contains a link that supposedly leads to an outage map, showing areas that will be without power. If you are currently experiencing severe winter weather in your area, you may be tempted to select the link to see if your home will be affected.

However, this is actually a text message scam, or “smishing” scam. Cybercriminals hope you’ll be afraid of losing power during severe weather and will select the link. If you select it, they could install malware on your device. Or you could be directed to a fake website that prompts you to enter your personal information so cybercriminals can steal it!

Follow these tips to avoid falling victim to this smishing scam:

If you have questions about a power outage, always visit your utility provider's official website or mobile app. You should never select a link in a text message.
Remember, scammers often use fear tactics to trick you into selecting links or acting impulsively. Always stop and think before taking action, especially if you have received an unexpected text message.
Real utility companies will not send you a text with a clickable link. They will communicate outage information using official channels, such as their website or mobile app.

Time It Takes a Hacker to Brute Force Your Password in 2025
Hardware: 12 x RTX 5090 | Password hash: bcrypt(10)

Number of Characters	Number Only	Lowercase Letters	Upper and Lower Case Letters	Numbers, Upper and Lowercase Letters	Numbers, Upper and Lowercase Letters, Symbols
4	Instantly	Instantly	Instantly	Instantly	Instantly
5	Instantly	Instantly	57 minutes	2 hours	4 hours
6	Instantly	46 minutes	2 days	6 Days	2 weeks
7	Instantly	20 hours	4 months	1 year	2 years
8	Instantly	3 weeks	15 years	62 years	164 years
9	2 hours	2 years	791 years	3k years	11k years
10	1 day	40 years	41k years	238k years	803k years
11	1 week	1k years	2m years	14m years	56m years
12	3 months	27k years	111m years	917m years	3bn years
13	3 years	705k years	5bn years	56bn years	275bn years
14	28 years	18m years	300bn years	3tn years	19tn years
15	284 years	477m years	15tn years	218tn years	1qd years
16	2k years	12bn years	812tn years	13qd years	94qd years
17	28k years	322bn years	42qd years	840qd years	6qn years
18	284k years	8tn years	2qn years	52qn years	463qn years