Posted Monday, September 28, 2026
Information Technology Services (ITS) is observing Cybersecurity Awareness Month in October with daily Instagram posts and events to promote online safety and security.
The National Cybersecurity Alliance, which sponsors the annual observance with the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA), is encouraging people to make life hard for cybercriminals by building safe consistent online habits daily. Those habits make it harder for cybercriminals to access personal data and compromise accounts.
ITS encourages users to recognize that each person is responsible for protecting their personal data and George Mason’s IT systems and assets. To promote online safety and security, ITS has events planned to share information that helps people stay safe and take precautions online.
Cybersecurity Awareness Month plans are:
- Daily Instagram Tips: Each day during the month, ITS will provide a tip about online safety and security.
- IT Security Trivia: The ITS Cybersecurity Operations team will host a trivia contest from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the Johnson Center, Kiosk B. Prizes will be awarded for correctly answering cybersecurity-related questions.
- Ask Me Anything Reddit Thread: From 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Thursday, October 15, ITS will host a Reddit Thread where Cybersecurity Operations staff will answer cybersecurity questions.
- This is How We Do IT — Cybersecurity at George Mason University: 2 p.m. Tuesday, October 20, Johnson Center, Room C. Cybersecurity Operations team members will participate in a panel discussion about IT Security at George Mason, what they do to keep George Mason safe, and what interested them in IT Security. The panel discussion will be hybrid, with an option to attend via MS Teams.
ITS continually takes steps to raise awareness about the importance of cybersecurity. Among the ways ITS is helping community members stay safe are:
- Providing alerts about phishing attempts. When ITS receives phishing email reports, it posts an alert on the ITS website and notifies recipients. Find phishing alerts at
- Making it easier to report phishing. Employees can report phishing emails directly from an Outlook inbox.
- Annual training. Each year, employees must complete IT Security Awareness Training that helps them recognize phishing emails, follow safe online practices, and avoid scams.
Adopting safe and secure online behavior can help you protect your information and George Mason’s IT systems. And yes, it can make it harder for cybercriminals to scam you.