Latest News

Registration opens for expanded June 2017 Information Security Symposium

Registration is now open for the 2017 Information Security Symposium, which will again deliver two days of labs, talks and workshops on cybersecurity in higher education.

Because the last few conferences have sold out, this year’s event has room for 450 people, or about one-third more than two years ago. The conference occurs every other year, and this year the semi-annual UC Cybersecurity Summit has been added to the lineup.

SmartSite project sites can continue past June; guidance will be available

If you own a project site in SmartSite and wonder what to do with it now that the service is going away, we have updates.

The first is that project sites can continue in SmartSite past spring quarter—but please notice the key phrase, “project sites.” As previously announced, the capability for teaching with SmartSite will conclude after June.

The second update is that Information and Educational Technology is assembling a team to help project site owners identify new locations for the project work they’ve been housing in SmartSite.

New report highlights advances in campus IT, from research support to drama

The new 2017 Technology Highlights report presents stories about a few key developments in UC Davis IT, involving such areas as support for research, wireless access, and new approaches to information security.

If you enjoy the report’s online bonus game too, so much the better. It’s just in there to show that reports about technology don’t have to be dense.

They want a copy of your W-2 tax form? Who’s asking?

Tax-fraud season is like the flu. It comes around each year, and you need to take extra precautions when the risk is high.

From now through the tax-filing deadline in April, the risk is high.

“We don’t know what the scams are going to look like this year,” says an advisory from the University of California Systemwide Information Security Office, “but expect attackers will only get craftier.”

As more faculty adopt UC Davis Canvas, fewer students use SmartSite

The campus is three-fourths of the way home. Seventy-five percent of instructors who are teaching with a learning management system (LMS) this term are using UC Davis Canvas.

That’s up from 60 percent last fall, and explains a major change in LMS use among students. Last autumn, almost all students had at least one class apiece in Canvas and SmartSite, and so they used both systems. Now so many instructors have adopted Canvas that about 10,000 students don’t need to use SmartSite this term.

On Feb. 6, learn more about who’s collecting your data

Want to get savvier about online snooping?

Come to the free showing of the 2013 documentary film “Terms and Conditions May Apply” in room D of the Student Community Center from noon to 1 p.m. Monday, Feb. 6. Faculty, staff, students, alumni, and campus visitors are all welcome. You can enjoy free snacks while you watch.

72 percent of winter courses are using UC Davis Canvas, up significantly from fall

As of Jan. 9, the first day of instruction, 72 percent of winter term instructors and courses using a learning management system have chosen to use UC Davis Canvas. The other 28 percent continue to use SmartSite.

The numbers are based on the 1,500 winter quarter course sites that UC Davis instructors have published so far, and could change slightly as the remaining winter sites are published. The results depict a solid advance from fall 2016, when 57 percent of courses and 60 percent of instructors used Canvas.

First notices on UC’s required cyber-awareness refresher training will go out soon

Remember the required UC cyber-awareness training you finished several months back? If you completed it about a year ago, then it’s nearly time to take the short, online refresher. Look for an email with details by January.

Since late 2015, the University of California Office of the President has required all new UC faculty, staff and student employees to complete the training, then take an update course each year. Taking about 30 minutes, the refresher is 15 to 30 minutes shorter than the introductory session, and includes updated information.

Check out Box’s improved search and other upgrades, starting Tuesday

Beginning on Tuesday, Nov. 8, faculty, staff and students at UC Davis who use the Box cloud storage service can try out its new features and cleaner look.

According to Jeremy Phillips, who directs information technology for the Division of Social Sciences and helps oversees Box at UC Davis, the revision creates a “more streamlined and capable version of the web interface,” including:

New topics added to series of UC Davis Canvas workshops for faculty, TAs

As instructors gain experience using UC Davis Canvas, many want to learn about more than its core features. A new series of workshops will help satisfy that interest. 

Information and Educational Technology has announced a set of UC Davis Canvas workshops for faculty and TAs through summer 2017 that will cover topics ranging from modules and rubrics to group work and mobile apps.

UC Davis Canvas is replacing SmartSite. Most instructors are already using Canvas, although SmartSite will be available for teaching through spring term.

Ransomware targets everyone … but you don’t have to be everyone

Related topic: An FBI agent will discuss cybersecurity at a free lunch talk on campus from noon to 1 p.m. 10/26 in TC 3. See details.

“Ransomware” is malicious code that hackers install on your computer to encrypt and lock up your files. Then they tell you to send them money if you want your data back.

The volume of attacks has risen sharply, and although anyone can be a victim, education is a top target. But you can take some fairly simple steps to protect yourself.

SiteFarm, a new campus resource for creating websites, moves to beta

SiteFarm, UC Davis’ modern web publishing platform, will be available to early adopters in a beta release starting October 19.

Developers and communicators can use SiteFarm to build and manage websites. SiteFarm is a central service available at no cost to campus units, and includes cloud hosting. Cascade, a content management system (CMS) adopted by the campus several years ago, continues to be available.

Some of the features and benefits of SiteFarm are: