Mobile Security at NC State

One of the biggest security challenges for NC State University is cybercrime — especially when malicious hackers target our mobile devices. 

What’s a Mobile Device?

Mobile devices — which include not only smartphones but also smart watches, tablets, notebooks, and laptop — are any portable electronic equipment that can connect to the internet.

What the Pack Can Do

NC State needs every one of us to secure all our mobile devices regardless of who owns them.

NC State’s Office of Information Technology requires minimum security controls, and although critical, they are not always enough. Without securing our mobile devices, cybercriminals are afforded countless opportunities to routinely hack into enterprise systems by exploiting the users who fail to comply with specific cybersecurity requirements — which can result in data breaches that leak sensitive information belonging to you and others, and subsequent substantial fines and legal costs to the university.

The cybersecurity team at NC State University has researched and assembled the most effective procedures known to protect your data from malicious hackers.  To create and maintain a truly secure mobile device — one that protects you and the pack from cybercrime — you can invest a relatively small amount of time to prevent catastrophic loss to you and the pack.

What You Need to Know

 


Urgent — Lost or Stolen Mobile Devices

If your mobile device is lost or stolen, use Find My Device (for Android) or Find My iPhone (for Apple).

light bulbTipSearch find my device or find my iPhone in your browser.

If concerned you cannot recover your device:

NC State University Police badge

  1. Report loss or theft of your mobile device (regardless of ownership) to your department and wireless carrier (if applicable).
  2. Report lost or theft of NC State property immediately to Campus Police and submit a completed State Property Incident Report.
  3. Immediately change any passwords saved on the device unless stored in a secure password manager.

 


Passwords

Having strong passwords is one of your best defenses against malicious hackers.

  • Use password protection on all mobile devices.
  • Consider using passphrases instead of passwords, per se.
  • Follow the guidelines for establishing passwords as allowed by your device.
  • Configure devices to require a password for access after power-on prior to initial use, and again after a short period of inactivity.
  • Configure devices to lock out further access after a number of failed password attempts.
  • Change your mobile device password at least once a year.
  • Use Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) on the device if available.
  • When an application requests permission to use features or data on your device, consider whether or not that application should have those permissions before granting them. This will help protect your device from malware.

 


Detailed Procedures

Click the icon that best represents your device for detailed procedures:

Link to Android Procedures   Link to iPhone or iOS Procedures   Coming Soon:  Detailed procedures for macOS   Coming Soon:  Detailed procedures for Windows 10

NOTE:  Procedural details and screenshots may vary among devices, Operating System (OS) versions, and system updates.