News Archive

April 18, 2011

SOM Information Services is currently rolling out Microsoft System Center Configuration Manager (SCCM) to machines supported by the SOM IS Helpdesk. SCCM is a replacement to the LANDesk application that was previously used by SOM IS. SCCM will help SOM IS and its customers with software and hardware inventory management, security patch deployment, application deployment, and remote helpdesk administration. A small client will be distributed mostly undetected to machines to provide the above functionality over the coming weeks. The LANDesk client will also be removed from machines. Should you have any questions, concerns or issues, please contact the SOM IS Helpdesk at help@som.umaryland.edu or x63998.

March, 2011

See our Service page for a link to a new password management application. This application offers staff who have a SOM network account* the ability to create a profile that can be used to manage a password and keep the information in the Campus Global Address List (GAL) up to date.

* SOM network accounts are issued for @SOM.umaryland.edu email accounts, file shares on Information Services hosted servers, SOM VPN which allows access to resources from off campus, Ektron web content management system, BRAAN, WebRPR, and numerous internal applications.  

September 20, 2010

In an effort to better secure and protect the SOM Network and the data we all create, a strengthening of the SOM Domain Password Policy and a SOM Domain Password Protected Screensaver Policy will become effective on Monday, September 20, 2010. These policies are consistent with the UMB IT Password Management Policy, the UMB Computer Workstation Security Policy and general industry best practices.

For the SOM Domain Password Policy, the following password requirements will be enforced when passwords are changed or created on every SOM Domain Account password starting Monday, September 20, 2010:

1. Minimum Password Length: 8 characters
2. Maximum Password Age: 120 days
3. Account Lockout Threshold: 5 invalid logon attempts
4. Enforce Password History: 20 passwords remembered
5. Passwords Must Not Contain: The user's account name or parts of the user's full name that exceed two consecutive characters
6. Passwords Must Meet 3 of the 4 below Complexity Requirements:
   1. English uppercase characters (A through Z)
   2. English lowercase characters (a through z)
   3. Base 10 digits (0 through 9)
   4. Non-alphabetic characters (for example, !, $, #, %)
    

For the SOM Domain Password Protected Screensaver Policy, all computers on the SOM Domain with a SOM Domain User logged on will have a screensaver enabled after 15 minutes of inactivity starting Monday, September 20, 2010. To access the computer after the screensaver is enacted, a username and password will have to be correctly entered.

Moreover, there are SOM computers on campus that are not connected to the SOM Domain for various reasons, but, access SOM IT systems, please also configure these campus systems under your control to follow the above policies.

Thank you all for helping better secure our network and its contents. If you have any questions about these policies or any other IT-related topic, please feel free to contact the SOM Help Desk at anytime using the below contact information.

SOM Help Desk
University of Maryland School of Medicine
Department of Information Services
100 N. Greene Street, 2nd Floor
Baltimore, MD 21201
410-706-3998
help@som.umaryland.edu