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

You've Been Served...a Scam!

In this week’s scam, you receive a text message that claims you have an unpaid traffic toll that needs to be paid immediately. The message includes an image of what appears to be an official court summons, which has a court seal, a case number, and a QR code. It warns that if you don't pay the fine, you could face serious consequences, including being arrested. It then instructs you to scan the QR code to pay the money that you owe.

However, there isn’t actually a toll violation on your record, or a fine for you to pay. The text message you received was actually sent by cybercriminals! If you scan or select the QR code, you won’t be directed to a real government website. Instead, you’ll be sent to a fake payment webpage designed to steal your financial information and money!

Follow these tips to avoid falling victim to this text message scam:

Remember that real legal documents are typically sent by mail or delivered in person, and not by text message.
Just like malicious links, QR codes can easily direct you to dangerous websites. You should never scan a QR code from an unknown source.
If you are concerned you missed a toll payment or have a traffic ticket, look up the official phone number or website for your local court or toll agency. Contact them directly to check your status.

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