As hackers inflict increasing damage on websites and data systems, Brock University officials are warning campus email users about opening attachments or clicking on ads and links from unfamiliar sources.<\/p>\n
The caution comes amid a global surge of malicious software \u2014 or malware \u2014 hits on companies and institutions, from the Wendy\u2019s fast-food chain to a serious attack that forced the University of Calgary to pay a ransom in order to regain control of its email system.<\/p>\n
David Cullum, Brock\u2019s Associate Vice-President of IT, said no university or business is immune to attacks, but the Brock community can reduce the risk by being aware of how fraudsters and data thieves get into seemingly secure systems.<\/p>\n
An alert issued by ITS<\/a> encourages faculty and staff to educate themselves on how malware gets into systems when people open ads or click on links on websites or in fraudulent emails that purport to come from banks, security companies or even from Brock\u2019s own ITS department.<\/p>\n \u201cEducation is everything,\u201d said Cullum. \u201cWe can have all the firewall technology you want, but all it takes is one person to click on a fake ad, and you\u2019ve let malicious people into our system.\u201d<\/p>\n If an email or website seems suspicious or not legitimate, don\u2019t click on it. When in doubt, he said, seek advice from\u00a0the ITS Help Desk\u00a0at ext 4357 or helpdesk@brocku.ca<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cRemember, Brock ITS will never, ever send out emails asking for peoples\u2019 usernames or passwords.\u201d<\/p>\n