Amherst CyberSecurity Training with KnowBe4

​Amherst College IT Support Services has recently sent out email invitations to complete the required annual CyberSecurity training using the KnowBe4 training platform.

You will have received an email to your Amherst, Five College, Emily Dickinson, or Folger email address as applicable with the training information.

This training is designed to inform you of the steps you can take to protect yourself, your family, and our organization from malicious cyber activity. Completing the training promptly fulfills the requirements of Amherst College's Security Awareness Program Policy.

Go to knowbe4.com to access the training and login as prompted with your Amherst username and password login credentials.

We recommend that you: 1) Temporarily disable your browser's pop-up blocker while you participate in this training program to enable the training site to function properly and 2) temporarily bookmark the training site, so you may return to it at your convenience until you complete the training.  

Details on ways to disable pop-up blockers is available in the KnowBe4 Support portal at https://www.knowbe4.com/disabling-pop-up-blocker-guide/ (no login required)

If you have any questions, please contact us at AskIT@amherst.edu.

IT Support Services Staffing Changes

IT is sorry to announce the retirement of several members of our Services Support team. While it’s a bittersweet time for us all, we’re happy for each of them. Altogether, they have given the college 128 years of service.

 

Reminder: Log into Zoom before Meetings

If you are hosting a Zoom meeting, be sure to log into your device’s Zoom client first using the SSO option, to ensure you have host privileges. The client should be running with your active login before you start or join a meeting for which you are a host. Alternatively, you may also log into https://amherstcollege.zoom.us. 

Please contact AskIT@amherst.edu if you have any questions about Zoom.

Seeley Mudd and IT help desk Open for In-Person Support

Beginning Monday, August 2nd, Seeley Mudd and the IT help desk will be open for In-person Support from 9am to 5pm Monday thru Friday. Please use our scheduling system to assure someone is available to assist you using the link below. You must be approved to be on campus and have your ID card to enter the building.

Student Strategies for Learning Remotely During COVID-19

We would like to understand the technology needs you may have while you are learning remotely. We highly encourage you to review the student strategies page and the contact us so we can learn about and assist with your specific needs.

Google Hangouts Migrating to Google Chat on December 14, 2020

December 1, 2020

On December 14, 2020 the chat functionality built into Gmail, known as “Hangouts”, will be replaced with a new, modern chat service called Google Chat. If you used classic Hangouts previously, you will be able to continue recent 1:1 direct messages from classic Hangouts in Google Chat, and all previous chat history from classic Hangouts will be accessible in Gmail under the "Chat" label.

Adobe Creative Cloud Temporary Access Due to COVID-19

As a result of campus closure, student access to Adobe Creative Cloud in labs and classrooms is not available. Adobe has provided temporary at-home access for impacted students, so that they can continue their work remotely. Please follow the instructions below to enable access to Creative Cloud Desktop Apps on your computer.

Ongoing network work June 4-5

On Thursday and Friday, June 4 and 5, IT will be finalizing its upgrade of the campus connection to the Internet.  While we don’t expect any significant network outage during this update window, there is a potential for several brief interruptions of Internet connectivity. Such interruptions will be momentary and you should be able to re-establish connectivity relatively quickly by trying to access the same resource.  All of the work will be done in Webster Hall and Converse Hall.  

Network maintenance postponed

All planned network maintenance scheduled for the next several weeks has been postponed until after the semester ends.

We will announce the dates of future maintenance as they are determined.

Videoconferencing options

IT offers three options for videoconferencing: Zoom, Meet, and Slack. 

Zoom

Zoom is the preferred video conferencing system on campus, and the one that most faculty have settled upon as the best platform to offer courses remotely. All students, faculty, and staff should create a Zoom account by logging in at this address:

https://amherstcollege.zoom.us

Timeline adjustment for migration to new campus network

December 24, 2019 - Since the network outage we experienced in February, we have been implementing the new network design slowly, being careful not to disrupt department and programming needs. The slow rollout resulted in a long project timeline, with the old network susceptible to disruptive events like the one we experienced last week. As of today, we have only been able to migrate eight of sixty-eight buildings to the new network.

Intermittent Network and Single Sign-On issues

Dec 17: 7:00am -  Although we are experiencing a reduced frequency of symptoms and impact, we continue to experience periods of instability on the campus network. Symptoms include slow Internet access and the inability to login to certain Amherst College websites. We will continue to post messages on this page until the issue is fully resolved.

Gift card season phishing alert

Beware of the latest round of innocuous emails that appear to be from campus colleagues.  The messages appear to be innocent requests for help, but can lead you into phishing scams where you are lured to buy iTunes, Amazon, or other gift cards to send to thieves. Responding to the message could compromise your Amherst login credentials, credit card accounts, and purchasing cards.

Use common sense; don't respond to such emails.. Instead, forward them to phishing@amherst.edu before deleting them.

Network upgrade in Seeley Mudd, October 26

The network in Seeley Mudd will be upgraded on Saturday, October 26, 7am-noon.  This is the next significant step in the major network upgrade project now in progress.  While the actual switchover should be unnoticeable to users, as with any technology project, there is always some chance of a brief service outage.  Any such outage should affect only those working in Seeley Mudd during the upgrade. As always, if you have any questions about this maintenance, please contact AskIT@amherst.edu.