Campus Technology Services

Since the original partnership, SUNY Oswego has been enjoying the unlimited storage Google has provided to higher education institutions at no cost. Users have been archiving emails in Gmail, creating, communicating and collaborating in Google Drive, and storing photos in the Photos app without too much concern about space. In 2021, Google re-evaluated the unlimited storage use across their qualifying customers, and has since announced they would be ending unlimited storage.

Implementation of Google storage limits

With Google’s revised storage, all higher education institutions are allocated a specific amount of space to be enforced in November 2024. SUNY Oswego has an allocated 238 terabytes (TB) for the university's domain. Google changed its offering to promote a fair distribution of storage resources across institutions. Likewise, while SUNY Oswego’s current domain usage is under the allocated amount (193 TB), the university needs to plan for future growth and ensure space is used equitably.

Therefore, effective Feb. 17, 2025, each user will have a storage limit (quota) as outlined below.

1. It is recommended department, club, and organization accounts utilize a shared drive for document sharing.
2. Retirees can review the Retiree Account FAQs for more information.
3. Alumni will no longer be able to store files and web pages in Drive, Photos, and Sites. A separate communication will be sent to those groups to assist in moving existing files.

Can I move files to Microsoft OneDrive?

While Microsoft Office365 offers storage through its OneDrive application, the same quota limits for Google are applied to OneDrive and are already in effect.

What happens if I don’t get my storage under the quota limit?

If your account is not under the respective quota by the deadline, you will be unable to create or modify files in Drive, Photos and Classroom.

Where can I get more information?

The following resources are available for more information:

• Google storage limits policy
• Managing your Google storage quota

If you have any questions about the policy or need assistance checking or reducing your storage, please contact the CTS Help Desk.

As part of National Cybersecurity Awareness Month (NCSAM), Campus Technology Services (CTS) is focusing this week on multi-factor authentication (MFA) Fraud.

MFA is an excellent tool used to protect accounts from compromise, but like with passphrases, malicious actors try to find ways to circumvent MFA in an attempt to access accounts. By keeping the following things in mind you can help protect your account from MFA fraud:

1. Don’t share MFA codes: If the MFA method you are using is reliant on entering a code after you first authenticate, only enter the code on the website/app the account is related to. Always verify that you are on the real website or using the services’ official app. If a malicious actor gains access to your current MFA code, they can use it to try and generate more codes that will allow access to your account.
2. Be vigilant with authentication requests: Some MFA methods utilize a push notification to your device that will ask you if you want to approve or deny the request. Always ask yourself why you would be receiving the request. Is this something you are trying to access? If you don’t know why you are receiving the request, always deny it and change your account passphrase immediately as it may be compromised, and report what happened to the CTS Help Desk immediately.
3. Malicious actors will ask for access: If you are ever contacted by someone via email or text message asking you to provide a MFA code or approve a MFA request on your phone immediately, treat it with suspicion. This is a common method malicious actors will use to access your account if they already have your credentials and realize you have MFA enabled. If this happens to you, disengage with the individual contacting you and change your passphrase immediately.

By following these guidelines and tips you can help prevent MFA fraud from happening to you. If you believe you are being targeted by MFA fraud or have provided your MFA information to someone you didn’t recognize, contact CTS immediately for assistance by submitting a ticket via email at [email protected] or calling (315) 312-3456 during business hours.

October is National Cybersecurity Awareness Month (NCSAM)

This year, SUNY Oswego has specific initiatives to help protect your SUNY Oswego account including 16-character passwords and a phishing identification contest.

New 16-character passwords

Passwords with at least 16 characters and a mix of alphanumeric and special characters have become best practice as they are harder to hack. Campus Technology Services (CTS) will require 16-character passwords starting today, Oct. 1.

To get started, visit the CTS account management page. Please make your new SUNY Oswego password different from any other password you use online. Have your password changed by the end of the month, Oct. 31.

Phishing awareness

Starting today, Oct. 1, CTS wants to hear from you on the phishing scams you receive in your inbox.

Google does a great job filtering out many phishing emails, but some do end up coming through. Use one or more of the following ways to participate and you’ll be entered into a contest for one of three $25 College Store gift cards.

Ways to enter the contest:

• Forward a phishing email received in your SUNY Oswego inbox (not the spam folder) to [email protected].
• Take our phishing quiz and see how good you are at identifying harder than usual phishing scams. Send your results to [email protected].
• Take an 8 minute LinkedIn Learning course on Identifying Phishing Attacks and learn how to stay safe online. Let CTS know you completed the course by sending an email to [email protected] with the subject line "Phishing Course Completed".

Starting on Friday, Sept. 13 in the evening, a phishing scam started circulating posing as “SUNY Oswego IT Administration” coming from various SUNY Oswego email addresses.

The following are the characteristics of the email:

• It has a subject containing: “Urgent: Verify Your School Portal Login Credentials”
• The greeting starts off as “Dear Student”
• The first paragraph of the message starts with: “SUNY Oswego Admin has detected irregular activity with your School portal login credentials, particularly with the Office 365 system.”
• The second paragraph asks to verify your account by clicking on a link to a Google Doc.
• The message is signed by “SUNY Oswego IT Administration”

In addition to email, text messages with similar content are being sent.

• The content of the text messages mention suspension of your account if you don’t reply in 24 hours.
• It is also signed by “SUNY Oswego Admin.”
• It may also ask you to open up Gmail and type in a number, which is the number needed for multi-factor authentication (MFA).

If you received one of these emails or text messages, it is safe to delete it and report it as a phish within Gmail. If you clicked on any links, submitted information into the linked Google Doc, received/replied to the text message to enter a code and/or entered the code, immediately change your password.

If you replied to the email or text message and are suddenly signed out/can't get back into your account, contact Campus Technology Services (CTS) immediately.

In general, emails asking you to provide and/or verify your login credentials, especially “urgent” ones, are a sign of a phishing scam. Unsolicited job offers and the purchase of gift cards are also generally phishing scams.  

If you are ever in doubt of whether an email is legitimate, please contact CTS.

Any further information related to this phishing scam, will be posted on the CTS status page.

To expand access and support student success, Penfield Library now offers longer loan periods for laptops for students. Week-long loans of laptops and Macbooks as well as three-hour loans (in-library use only) for Chromebooks are now available to all students.

A limited number of laptops and Macbooks are available to students for a semester-length loan period. Due to the limited number available, semester-length loans require approval from the Office of the Dean of Students. To take advantage of these laptops, students should contact the Office of the Dean of Students directly to say they are interested in a semester-length loan laptop from Penfield. Once approved, students can pick up their laptop or Macbook at Penfield Library.

Students will be prioritized in this program. In lower student demand times, faculty and staff may be able to borrow the equipment if there is available equipment. Contact Penfield Library Check-Out desk.

When picking up a laptop from Penfield, please allow five to 10 minutes to check the item out, to allow Penfield staff to prepare the laptop for your use.