The original item was published from 11/21/2017 11:14:27 AM to 7/12/2019 12:00:12 AM.

News Flash

Information Technology - Change Management

Posted on: November 20, 2017

[ARCHIVED] Information Technology reminds employees to avoid cyber scams and malware during holiday season

Nov. 20, 2017 - The city’s Information Technology staff reminds employees to stay cyber safe this holiday season. This includes avoiding holiday scams and malware, and using city email and internet properly. Leslie Fuentes, director of Information Technology, said the goal is to “keep you and the city safe as well as use our technology resources wisely.”

During the holiday season, Information Technology will be monitoring internet usage as usual and paying special attention to suspicious usage or traffic spikes. Here are some common questions about internet usage at work and at home.

Q: When and how should I use the city employee email distribution list?

A: The list should not be used to disseminate or advertise non-city information or events. Messages should be approved by your department head before being sent.

Q: What about internet shopping at work or at home?

A: City computers are primarily for business use. Excessive non-business use of computers could also be interpreted as an abuse of time on the job. Whether at work or at home, you also need to be especially careful on the Internet this time of year. Computer fraud and hackers actively seek personal information during the holidays. Remember, never share your password with anyone and don’t respond to unsolicited emails with personal information.

Q: What about using my personal device at work to play music and videos online?

A: Our costs for city internet bandwidth continues to rise as more employees and city processes go online. We have five times the capacity than we did just two y ears ago and we still continue to see high rates of growth in internet usage. Please help keep costs down by not using the city’s network or public wi-fi for personal reasons such as shopping, file downloads or online streaming of music and videos.

You can go online to read the complete list of questions and answers. You can also learn more about the city's intranet security online.

Fuentes said the U.S. Computer Emergency Readiness Team, a part of Homeland Security, urges us to avoid following unsolicited links or downloading attachments from unknown sources. U.S.-CERT suggested these websites to learn more about:

if you think you are a victim of a holiday phishing scam or malware campaign at home, U.S.-CERT recommends you file a complaint with the FBI’s Internet Crime Complain Center, report the attack to the police and file a report with the Federal Trade Commission.