Confused about 16-digit numbers on new ID cards?
by E. Unger, Vice Provost for Academic Services and Technology,
and C. Johnson, K-State ID Center
published Sept. 27, 2005
Much confusion surrounds the new K-State ID
cards and the numbers printed on those cards. A
previous article in
InfoTech Tuesday explained the reason for changing the ID number,
which was usually a Social Security number (SSN).
The process of moving away from displaying SSNs
on ID cards began with new student enrollment
in June. Every K-Stater will receive a new ID card from the
K-State ID Center.
In November, current faculty/staff will begin the process of getting new cards. Current students
will begin the process in April 2006.
What is this new 16-digit number?
The card numbers are 16-digit
ISO (International Standardization Organization) format. The first
digits identify that the card holder is associated with K-State. The remaining numbers are
different for every K-Stater.
Is my student identification number changing? Will I no longer
need to use my Social Security number?
Your student identification number will not change; it is just not printed on the
Wildcat card anymore.
Your SSN will still be needed for financial aid, completing Scantron forms, and related academic needs.
Why is this change being made?
For security reasons.
The new ISO number does not correspond to anything related to academics or a student identifier.
This allows the K-State ID Center to deactivate and issue a new number should the card become
lost or stolen.
Is there a charge for this new ID card?
There is no cost to students, staff, or faculty for the first issue of
their new ID card. There is a $15 charge to replace a lost or stolen card.
Which units on campus will use the 16-digit numbers?
They include:
- Housing and Dining Services, for door access and meal plans
- Commuter Meal Plan in the K-State Student Union
- Campus locations that accept Cat Cash as payment
- Recreation Complex, for building access
- Athletic Ticket Office, during pickup of season athletic tickets
- Hale Library, for materials checkout
What number do I put on my Scantron form?
You continue to use your student identification number, which in most cases is your SSN.
E-mail greeting cards used to spread botnets
by B. Edwards, J. Ballard, Computing and Network Services
published Sept. 27, 2005
K-Staters recently began receiving fake greeting-card e-mails
from "member of family". These likely contain a false link that actually
downloads a botnet program. The best approach is
to simply delete this e-mail and then empty your Trash folder.
Typically, clicking on a link in the e-mail will download a botnet program,
but nothing happens until you're asked if you want to run the
program -- and you click OK. The botnet will take control
of your computer and give it to someone else. The only
solution is to reformat your hard drive to erase everything, then
start over and reinstall all software, including the operating system,
security patches, and all your programs.
Latest Mozilla web browser is safe, Netscape not
by T. Ramsey, Computing and Network Services
published Sept. 27, 2005
Several remotely exploitable vulnerabilities were recently discovered in Mozilla-based web
browsers: Mozilla, Firefox, and Netscape 8 and earlier versions.
(For that matter, Netscape 4 has old vulnerabilities that have never been fixed.)
Just visiting a hostile or compromised website may be enough to infect your computer.
Fixed versions of Mozilla 1.7.12 and
Firefox 1.0.7 are available
and are safe from all known risks.
Since Netscape has not released any fixes, K-Staters are encouraged to switch to another
web browser (such as Internet Explorer, Mozilla, or Firefox).
Before uninstalling any Netscape version, check with your desktop support staff first.
TechBytes Sept. 30: What is Instant Messaging?
by C. Rodriguez, Information Technology Assistance Center
published Sept. 27, 2005
You've been trying to get hold of your boss for hours. You know they're in the office,
but that's in another building! Their phone has been busy all morning and you know they
haven't touched their e-mail yet! You just need one little piece of information to finish
your report. What do you do? Instant Messaging to the rescue! Instant Messaging is another
communication tool that allows you to have a real-time conversation (chat session) with
your co-workers, friends, or family. Come and learn about the features and how-to's of
instant messaging!
TechBytes seminars are 1:15 p.m. Fridays in 501 Hale Library and are
open to the K-State community. To learn more about the series or the
sessions, visit the TechBytes website.
About those K-State IT projects (Part 5)
by B. Edwards, Computing and Network Services
published Sept. 27, 2005
This is the fifth and last of a five-part series on K-State's summer IT projects.
For convenience, the complete series has been compiled into a new
projects summary webpage.
- Develop procedures for cleaning drives on computers before disposal.
This is a SIRT project expected to
be completed during fall 2005 semester.
- Renovation of the CNS Data Center for future NOC.
A Network Operations Center (NOC) is being created on the Manhattan
campus to provide centralized monitoring of K-State's IT infrastructure,
including networks, servers, and many IT services. A completion date has
not been set. Details are in the June 7
NOC article.
- Operation PC for residence-hall students.
This 3-day security event occurs the weekend before fall classes
start, and targets students' computers moving into the
residence halls. This fall, K-State IT staff did security cleanup
and installs on 2,889 computers. See the
Operation PC website, and the
July 26
and
Aug. 23 news.
- Research for campus groupware collaboration suite.
A university committee has been meeting since last winter to find a software
suite that enhances communication and collaboration on projects.
Committee recommendations were made this summer. No schedule has been set
to act on those recommendations.
- Upgrades to university computing labs and InfoCommons.
Every summer, these central facilities undergo hardware upgrades
and installation of new software. Details are in the July 19
Labs and
InfoCommons upgrade article.
- More enhancements on central e-mail system.
Additional e-mail features are being planned and developed,
including vacation notices, e-mail archiving, mail receipt,
mail-filtering options, and a "dropbox". No release dates have been
finalized, but vacation notices and e-mail archiving are at the top of the
list.
- Release of the K-State portal.
"K-State Connection" is the university's new web portal at
connect.k-state.edu.
It went live Aug. 18. See the Aug. 23
portal article.
- Renovation of McCain 324.
This classroom was renovated over the summer to become a
high-tech music studio. It was finished Aug. 19. See the Aug. 23
McCain article.
- Upgrades to technology classrooms.
Three new departmental technology classrooms were created this
summer.
Brighter projectors were put in several existing high-tech classrooms.
Upgrades will continue through the fall semester and be announced in
InfoTech Tuesday.
- Reengineering of the IT website.
This project is reorganizing IT services from a
customer perspective. The IT homepage was
redesigned
in August to a "content-driven format" based on feedback from user groups.
During the next year, the IT site will be restructured and updated
to emphasize services instead of service providers.
| Q/A: IT questions from K-Staters |
by the editors, InfoTech Tuesday
published Sept. 27, 2005
What happens when the new ID numbers won't fit on 9-digit Scantron forms?
The new 16-digit ID numbers and the 9-digit student identification numbers are unrelated.
Students still need to use their student identification number (in most cases, their SSN)
on their Scantron test-scoring forms.
Have a question or comment?
TellTuesday@ksu.edu.
|
| Web watch |
National Hurricane Center
by the editors, InfoTech Tuesday
published Sept. 27, 2005
Who has a handle on hurricanes? The National Hurricane Center at
www.nhc.noaa.gov.
Find a good site? TellTuesday@ksu.edu.
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