Good morning!

“June is bustin’ out all over!!!!”  Anyone else a big musical fan, or am I in my own little corner over here? If you are a musical fan, feel free to reply to me, and name that show! If you’re not a fan, then you can just ignore the previous three sentences, and we can find other things to agree on. 😊 Either way, summer is coming! 

Now, on to the updates! Today I have several ransomware related updates to share with you as TSS has been making a lot of great progress around campus. 

Network Update 

TSS has made great progress in the process of rebuilding a secure and robust network. A huge thanks to TSS for the many, many hours put into the ongoing work on this project! 

HVAC and Environmental Controls 

The ransomware incident impacted all aspects of our network, which included the environmental controls and HVAC system. For the past couple of months, we have had to manually make adjustments. However, I am happy to report that those controls are now completely up and online again.  

Extra Help! 

We are in the final stages of engaging MoxFive, an outside contractor who will be working with TSS directly to assist with the rebuild of Shoreline’s systems. This will allow the process to move much faster so you will continue to see a lot of great progress happening throughout the summer. 

New Telephone System Coming Soon to an Office Near You 

Prior to the ransomware incident, TSS was working to finalize a plan for a more modern phone solution thus removing our current antiquated phones. This system would be replaced by Microsoft Teams. This process had to be put on hold as we worked through the initial stages of the ransomware incident and the recovery process. However, we are now ready to move forward again, so you will be receiving more information and a timeline for implementation soon. 

Password Reset 

As part of our new security measures, TSS will be rolling out a process for more frequent password updates for Shoreline faculty, staff, and students. However, so as not to disrupt the Spring quarter currently in progress, this will not happen until after the quarter has ended.  You will be receiving more information on this in the coming weeks, but we wanted to give you a heads-up that this will be coming in the near future. 

Ransomware Investigation Update 

Last week we were able to share that the identity of the threat actor organization is Royal.  We have also received several questions from the community about the ransom amount. As a reminder, this is an amount covered by our insurance, but we can now share that the amount was $228,000. It is important to note that this amount was reached through extensive negotiation. This was a difficult decision, but enabled Shoreline to keep the information from our campus community safe and helped to expedite our recovery process. 

That’s all I have for today. Enjoy your afternoon! 

Cat 

Good morning,

It has been brought to our attention that some individuals may have received a text message recently claiming to be from the President Kahn making a special request, in this case, a gift card purchase.  

Please be advised that this is a common phishing scam message that is not legitimate. Please note that there is no standard procedure for making these types of requests.  We do, however, realize that these types of messages can vary, and sometimes be quite persuasive.  If you receive a text or email message such as this, it is always a good practice to verify the validity of the message prior to taking any action.  Some good steps to take include:

• Ask yourself, are you the person that would typically perform these duties in your role, and is this the correct procedure in which this would be performed?
• Did this request come from a valid phone number/email that belongs to the person making the request?
• Follow up with the person via a phone call or email to validate the request prior to taking action (use a direct contact number/email as opposed to replying to the original message).
• In the event you can’t reach the person making the request, seek a second opinion from someone else in this person’s department to validate the request.

With today’s reliance on technology, scams like this are very common and impossible to avoid.  However, if we all remain aware of these types of tactics, we can avoid becoming a victim.  We will continue to send updates for any new potential threats as they emerge. 

Have a great day!

Jason Brandon

Executive Director of TSS.