New security features to make yourself digitally secure

As we increasingly conduct our working days in digital spaces, the Computing Services Department is implementing new security features to protect the University’s people and data.

Phishing attempts, where criminals try to get to your personal information, data or money, are becoming more sophisticated. Sometimes it’s really difficult to tell if an email is genuine or not.

As such, CSD will apply a new security banner to all emails sent from external email accounts to University email accounts.

The message, which is designed to alert all staff and students that the sender is external to the University, will help to identify messages that may be fraudulent. The message reads:

This alert will accompany all external email from Monday, 3 June 2019. However, it’s important to remember that if you ever question the authenticity of an email, or you just feel like something’s not right about it, always contact CSD for advice before clicking on any links or taking any action.

Two-factor authentication

As part of ongoing developments to secure our digital environments, CSD is introducing a new way to log in to your University accounts. Two-factor authentication (2FA) is a security feature that protects accounts from being compromised due to password reuse or phishing. It’s quite simple:  You simply use your phone or other personal device to verify yourself as the account holder when logging in to a service.

CSD is currently testing 2FA in various settings, with a view to rolling this feature out across a number of University services in the coming months. This will provide greater security against fraudulent access to our systems which protect a wealth of data.

If you have any queries or concerns, please feel free to contact the Service Desk: servicedesk.liverpool.ac.uk