The following information is intended to provide faculty, staff, and students with information about the upcoming expansion and changes to the Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) program at Mason.
Background
George Mason University remains committed to your security and keeping your information protected. One way we achieve this is by using Two-Factor Authentication (2FA) with many of the university’s applications that may contain sensitive information. 2FA and your Patriot Pass Password are #Better2gether.
Building on the work completed during the 2019-2020 academic year, throughout academic year 2020-2021, ITS will continue to expand the use of 2FA to better protect personal information and Mason resources wherever you use your Mason NetID and Patriot Pass Password. To accomplish this, ITS will be:
The following is an overview of what’s come.
Protecting Additional Applications
To best protect your personal information and Mason’s resources, 2FA will ultimately be used everywhere you use Mason Credentials (NetID and Patriot Pass Password).
Coming Soon:
- Office 365 (Required): Email, calendar, OneDrive for Business, MS Teams, and more
- For more information about 2FA for Office 365, see 2FA for Office 365 Tips
- Blackboard will be added at a later time (Expected: TBD)
Already Using 2FA:
- Virtual Private Network (VPN)
- Patriot Web and more than 100 other applications that use Mason’s Central Authentication Services (CAS) or Shibboleth such as the Travel Request and Parking Services, LinkedIn Learning, Qualtrics, and more
- Office 365/ADFS: Email, calendar, OneDrive for Business, MS Teams and more for all employees as well as Zoom meetings
Expanding Student Enrollment
All students are now able and encouraged to enroll in 2FA.
- Open Enrollment: Students may enroll in 2FA today and get protected
See: Get Started With 2FA Checklist - Protect your personal information in Patriot Web and other Mason applications
- Students will be required to enroll in 2FA the next time they need to change their Patriot Pass Password (Expected: TBD)
2FA will be required for students to have Direct Deposit in Patriot Web.
Timeline
| What's Happening | When to Expect It | Status | |
| Summer 2019 | Retire voice callback and SMS text for NEW enrollees | July 23, 2019 | Complete |
| Open enrollment for students | July 23, 2019 | Complete | |
| Fall 2019 | Retire voice callback and SMS text | November 19, 2019 | Complete |
| Spring 2020 | Windows 7 End of Service Life | January 14, 2020 | Complete |
| Implement unified login experience | March 8, 2020 | Complete | |
| Release 2FA for additional applications | March 8, 2020 | Complete | |
| Summer 2020 | Complete Release of 2FA for Office 365 | August 15, 2020 | In Process |
| Voluntary Student Enrollment in 2FA | On-going | On-going | |
| Fall 2020 | Begin Student Enrollment Requirement | TBD | Pending |
Current Status (Updated: July 13, 2020)
- 2FA for Office 365 is available for all employees upon request; most employees already enrolled via weekly enrollment process that will continue throughout July and August 2020
- All new employee accounts are 2FA required at time of creation as of March 2020
- All Office 365 accounts to be 2FA enabled by early fall
Key Tasks Recently Completed
- Weekly mandatory enrollments of employees began the week of June 1 and have continued each week