This paper should be of interest to the readers of this journal because it addresses a subject that has received little scholarly attention; namely, local government cybersecurity. The U.S. has over 90,000 units of local government, of which almost 39,000 are "general purpose" units (i.e., municipalities, counties, towns and townships).…

Organizations face many cybersecurity threats. Among those threats, social engineering attacks such as phishing stand out as a constant and costly struggle. The primary tools for combating social engineering are information security policy (ISP) and security awareness training (SAT), which seek to inform users of the threat of social engineering,…

With the recent proliferation of information technology, almost all users of technology, no matter the field, profession, or status, have experienced a commensurate increase in information security threats. This, in turn, creates a significant concern in higher institutions of public learning. Information Security Officers in public higher…

Although the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) was enacted 20 years ago, the recently updated General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) has renewed public interest in privacy policies. Under both COPPA and GDPR, companies must abide by strict regulations protecting children's personal data. Lengthy and oftentimes ambiguous policies…

M-learning has enhanced the e-learning by making the learning process learner-centered. However, enforcing exam security in open environments where each student has his/her own mobile/tablet device connected to a Wi-Fi network through which it is further connected to the Internet can be one of the most challenging tasks. In such environments,…

While the growing popularity of social media has brought many benefits to society, it has also resulted in privacy and security threats. The authors assessed the security and vulnerability of 50 social media sites. The findings indicate that most sites (a) posted privacy and security policies but only a minority stated clearly their execution of…

It's a dangerous world out there, with IT shops hard pressed to protect their institutions and users. "Campus Technology" looks at the 4 biggest security worries--and how IT can fight back. In 2012, 61 educational institutions reported data breaches, involving more than 2 million records, according to the nonprofit Identity Theft…

Why is Information Privacy the focus of the January-February 2013 issue of "EDUCAUSE Review" and "EDUCAUSE Review Online"? Results from the 2012 annual survey of the International Association of Privacy Professionals (IAPP) indicate that "meeting regulatory compliance requirements continues to be the top perceived driver…

Whenever thousands of users need to connect seamlessly to a vast number of online resources, identity management (IDM) becomes a critical capability. Although several products on the market can deliver a robust identity management solution, there is no one-size-fits-all. Identity management requires business processes and a supporting…

Almost everyone uses social networking sites like Facebook, MySpace, and LinkedIn. Since Facebook is the most popular site in the history of the Internet, this article will focus on how one can protect his/her personal information and how that extends to protecting the private information of others.

For some colleges and professors, classified research promises prestige and money. Powerhouses like the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and the Johns Hopkins University have for decades run large classified laboratories. But most other universities either do not allow such research or conduct it quietly, and in small doses. The…

Recent meta-analyses indicate that bully prevention programs produce minimal change in student behavior. This study examined 66 high school teachers' perceptions regarding the effect of cyberbullying on students, which intervening strategies teachers would use when dealing with cyberbullying, and which prevention strategies would assist in…

Technology has changed the school yard or neighborhood bully. It no longer requires physical intimidation to be a bully. In fact, bullying can be done anonymously, on or off campus, and physical size does not enter into the scenario. Every year headlines identify children who take their own lives as a result of being victims of various forms of…

As more people seek the benefits of going online, more people are exposed to privacy risks from their time online. With a largely unregulated Internet, self-determination about privacy risks must be feasible for people from all walks of life. Yet in many cases decisions are either not obvious or not accessible. As one example, privacy policies are…

Whether for an entire district, a single campus, or one classroom, allowing authorized access to a computer network can be fraught with challenges. The login process should be fairly seamless to approved users, giving them speedy access to approved Web sites, databases, and other sources of information. It also should be tough on unauthorized…