Author: Shadi Tafaroji

ITS is required to encrypt the local hard drives of university-owned computers in order to maintain compliance with state-mandated security procedures. This has been the standard practice for Windows computers and also needs to be implemented on university-owned Apple computers.

If you are using a university-owned Apple computer, that device will need to be encrypted in order to stay in compliance. To do this, you will be required to enable FileVault on your Apple computer using JAMF/Self Service by Sept. 15.

Failure to comply will result in your device automatically being disabled and locked after Sept. 15.

Instructions for how to encrypt your university-owned Apple computer can be found on the ITS Help Desk webpage under “Additional Resources.”

If you have issues encrypting your computer or to unlock it after Sept. 15, submit a ticket or contact ITS Help Desk at 316-978-4357, option one.

Due to the State of Kansas policy requirements, a screen lock policy will be rolling out to all university-owned computers on Friday, Aug. 5. With the exception of master classrooms and labs, all Wichita State University-owned computers will automatically lock after 15 minutes of inactivity.

This policy will provide data security and prevent unwanted users from accessing the data on the computer. The state of Kansas has made a Screen Lock Policy a requirement among institutions and agencies. Instituting this policy helps to ensure we meet compliance obligations undertaken by many areas of the university.

For questions, please contact the Help Desk at 978-4357, option 1.

As part of our campus-wide migration to using Microsoft Defender, Information Technology Services is scheduling a process to remove the old platform (Sophos) from Windows computers at 5:30 p.m. Friday, July 8. If necessary to address any remaining installations, maintenance will continue at noon on three consecutive Tuesdays on July 12, July 19, and July 26.

The removal will be executed in the background. Faculty and staff will still be able to continue working during the uninstall process. However, after the removal of Sophos, the computer will need to be rebooted. There will be a pop-up message alerting members to reboot with a delay of 15 minutes. It is highly recommended that members save and close their work prior to restarting to prevent data loss during the reboot.

To receive this update, please leave the office computer powered on and connected to the network, with the screen locked.  If the computer is off-campus, members must have it powered on and connected to the network and VPN.

As part of our campus-wide migration to using Microsoft Defender, Information Technology Services (ITS) is scheduling a process to remove the old platform (Sophos) from Windows computers beginning at 11 p.m. May 6.This will continue until May 10 until Sophos is uninstalled from all machines.

The removal will be executed in the background. Faculty and staff will still be able to continue working while the uninstall process happens.  However, after the removal of Sophos, the computer will still need to be rebooted. There will be a pop-up message alerting members to reboot, with a delay of 15 minutes. It is highly recommended that members save and close their work at the end of the day to prevent data loss during the reboot.

To receive this update, please leave office computer powered on and connected to the network, with the screen locked.  If the computer is off-campus, members must have it powered on and connected to the network and VPN.

For more information, contact the ITS Help Desk at 316-978-Help, Option 1.

Need to make a computer purchase? Visit the ITS Procurement website. The website provides faculty and staff an easier way to view ITS standard hardware configurations and end-user software catalog and provides an easier way to make requests for hardware and software quotes and purchases.

The website also offers more information on ITS, what they do, their policies, and their services. Faculty and staff are encouraged to visit the website to submit any computer hardware and software requests.

For more information about the computer hardware policy, please view  WSU Policies and Procedure: 19.17

Information Technology Services (ITS) is migrating the Wichita State antivirus platform from Sophos to Microsoft Windows Defender March 17. ITS has successfully tested the Windows Defender deployment with multiple pilot groups and is ready to deploy it to the rest of the campus.

WSU Employees should not notice any impact on computer performance, as the deployment will be executed in the background. During this process, Sophos will still be the active antivirus for a brief period until we are confident that the Windows Defender service has been successfully deployed.

For more information, contact the ITS Help Desk at 316-978-Help, Option 1.