Hello UMBC Community!

The Cybersecurity Assurance and Digital Trust Department in the Division of Information Technology has some tips for you to stay safe from financial scams that have recently taken place.

Attackers send phishing emails to trick unsuspecting victims into providing their user ID, password, and multifactor codes. Often, these phishing lures contain a link that redirects the user to a login page.

DoIT has observed cases where the attackers are mirroring legitimate login screens to capture credentials and multifactor authentication (MFA) codes in real time. The only indicator that something is amiss is the URL in the address bar.

Follow these general tips to safeguard your financial data and funds:

1. Use Strong & Unique Passwords: Never reuse your UMBC password on other platforms — including financial services such as BankMobile. Create unique passwords for each separate account.
2. Periodically Verify Your Personal Information: Log into your accounts and make sure all your information, such as linked financial accounts, billing address, phone number, and email addresses are correct.
3. Check the Link: Look over URLs and ensure you are accessing a trusted service. If you see a login page but the URL does not look legitimate, do not provide your password or MFA codes. It is best practice to bookmark trusted services to navigate to them directly.
4. Don't Give Away Your Secrets: UMBC and your financial institutions will never call, email, or text you to ask for your password or MFA codes.

If you give someone your password and MFA codes, you are handing them the keys to your account. This could result in financial loss or unauthorized activity for which you may be held responsible.

If you see something, say something! Report all phishing emails to security@umbc.edu.

Stay smart, stay safe!

The Human Research Protections & Integrity (HRPI) team has released the Fall 2025 IRB Newsletter — check out their upcoming webinar series and important reminders for student and faculty PIs!

IRB Support Webinar Series

• Faculty Advisor Essentials: Supporting Student PIs of Human Subjects Research
  Monday, Nov 3 | 12 – 1 PM | Register Here

• Student PIs Conducting Human Subjects Research
  Friday, Nov 14 | 12 – 1 PM | Register Here

Reminder: UMBC's IRB reviews social-behavioral-educational research only — clinical trial projects must go through a clinical site's IRB.

We'd Love to Visit!
Invite HRPI staff to your faculty meeting or research class to learn about human subjects research protections. Email IRB@umbc.edu to schedule a visit!

Learn More: research.umbc.edu/institutional-review-board-human-subjects

Download the flyer below for all of the info!

Hello UMBC Community!

Join us today from 12:00 to 1:00 pm in the breezeway near the Commons to learn more and receive giveaways! We have a f(ph)ishing game and Swedish fish.

As part of Cybersecurity Awareness Month, we want to highlight a new tactic cybercriminals are using called ClickFix. This attack disguises itself as an error message or system alert that looks like it comes from your operating system. The message then instructs you to copy and paste a command into your terminal or command prompt.

Please remember:

1. Never copy or paste commands from a pop-up window or website.
2. If you see a suspicious alert, close the window or browser tab immediately.
3. Report the incident to security@umbc.edu right away so we can investigate.
4. If you have already entered a command, disconnect from the internet and stop using your device until security reviews it.

ClickFix relies on tricking users into taking action. By staying cautious and reporting anything unusual, you help protect both yourself and our organization.

Report the event to the security team at security@umbc.edu. Your report helps protect everyone!

Thank you for staying vigilant and keeping security a priority.

10/22 Update 1:45 pm: 

Amazon has fixed the AWS outage issue. Most systems are working normally with only a few systems with updates still in progress. If you are having any technical difficulties, please contact our Technology Support Center. 

10/20 Update 1:45 pm: 

We are continuing to monitor the situation. The following is an updated list of the services impacted by the AWS outage: 

• Adobe
• Ally
• Blackboard
• Confluence
• CourseArc
• DocuSign
• Panopto
• Pantheon
• Poll Everywhere
• Publisher Integrations in Blackboard
• Respondus Lockdown Browser & Monitor
• Smartsheet
• UMBC's PAW Procurement System
• UMBC Request Tracker (RT) System
• UMBC Travel System
• UMBC Technology Support Center phone system
• YuJA
• Zoom

For more information, please see the Vendor Status Dashboard.

10/20 Update 10:40 am: 

UMBC is currently experiencing impacts on the following platforms: 

• Ally
• Blackboard
• Confluence
• CourseArc
• Panopto
• Poll Everywhere
• Publisher Integrations in Blackboard

10/20 Update 10:04 am:

This morning an Amazon Web Services (AWS) outage is causing global disruptions, impacting many platforms. As of 8:30 am, Amazon has resolved the issue but there may be impacts to other systems. 

The Division of Information Technology will continue to monitor the situation. Timely updates will be shared on AWS Health Dashboard. 

Join us for Good Afternoon Commuters!

Enjoy lunch with other UMBC commuters and get connected with on-campus resources! 

GAC will be hosted on October 21, 2025 from 12:00 pm to 2:00 pm. It is complimentary with your Commuter Gold Card.

Gold Cards are a one-time per academic year purchase and are available to be purchased at every GMC and GAC with cash only.

Gold Cards at $5 for Commuters

$10 for Residential & Graduate Students

Join us to enjoy a movie night — we're watching Matilda!

Join GEARS and OGSL for a cozy Movie Night filled with free popcorn, pizza, and a bike giveaway!n To enter, just follow OGSL and GEARS on myUMBC and attend Movie Night for your chance to win.

Location: Lecture Hall 1
Date & Time: Friday, October 17 | 6–9 PM