Welcome to CITES Security

Secure computing is everyone's responsibility. The information on these pages can help ensure that your computer will be free from hackers, viruses, and spyware, and the skills you learn will enable you to stay a step ahead of tomorrow's threats.

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Message of the Month

Learn To Spot Phishing Attempts

One of the most common tactics used by identity thieves to get information is phishing. The process of phishing is pretty simple. A fake email or website is sent to an individual, prompting the person to voluntarily give over sensitive information such as credit card and bank account details, or account usernames and passwords. Phishing attempts can be very sloppy and easy to spot, or they can be very sophisticated and look like official communications from your bank, for example. Learning how to spot the telltale signs of phishing attempts is the key to not getting fooled. CITES provieds online assistance to help you spot phishing attempts from a mile away.

To learn more about phishing, please visit: http://www.cites.illinois.edu/security/idtheft/phishing

Basics and Essentials

Learn what basic actions you can take to secure your computer and your information. The documents in this section are written with the assumption that the reader does not have any background in secure computing.

Beyond the Basics

The following documents are for anyone who wants more in-depth information about security topics. The documents in this section are written with the assumption that the reader has a little background in the topic.

Emergency!

Don't panic - we're here to help!

Advanced Topics

If you do not need step-by-step guidance, but want to make sure you are following best practices and are keeping up to date, this section is for you. The documents in this section are written with the assumption that the reader has an extensive background in computing and security.

News & Events

Learn about the latest news and events from the Security group. This is also the place to find archives of presentations and materials you can print and display.