On Thursday, May 11, Pitt IT will activate two new security features for desktop users of LastPass — the provider for the University’s Password Manager and vault service — Dark Web Monitoring and increased Password Iterations. Dark Web Monitoring watches the LastPass account to see if there is any activity on the Dark Web for the user’s email address. Password Iterations improve the password strengthening algorithm used to customize a login encryption key, making it more difficult for unauthorized users to determine a master password.

For Dark Web Monitoring, the email address used to set up an account is now monitored and checked against security breaches. If an account is at risk, the user receives an email that identifies the potentially compromised website and provides additional, preventative security recommendations. Pitt IT Security recommends that users change the passwords for any accounts shown in such a report.

For Password Iterations, LastPass uses a password algorithm to turn the password into an encryption key. The result is compared with information stored in LastPass to verify that the correct master password has been entered for the user account.

No action is required for users to activate either of these features. Users may need to sign in to LastPass once the features have been enabled. At any time, users can also turn off the Dark Web Monitoring feature or customize the number of password iterations.

Visit the LastPass website for additional information about Dark Web Monitoring and Password Iterations. Please contact the Technology Help Desk at +1-412-624-HELP (4357) if you have any questions about this announcement.

On Friday, April 21, changes will be made to PittSFTP giving users more time to review, adjust content, and when necessary, re-submit Accounts Payable (AP) and General Ledger (GL) files with corrected data before being imported into PRISM for processing. AP and GL files put in PittSFTP directories will remain there until 15 minutes before the respective PRISM import job is scheduled to run. At those times, AP and GL files will be pulled into PRISM for import and processing and no longer be visible. These changes will apply to AP and GL data file types only. All other data file types will continue to be synchronized every 5 minutes.   

• GL files will be pulled from PittSFTP for import and processing every Monday through Friday at 7:15 a.m., 10:45 a.m., and 2:15 p.m. PRISM GL import jobs will continue to run at 7:30 a.m., 11 a.m., and 2:30 p.m. 
• AP files will be pulled from PittSFTP for import and processing every Monday through Friday at 7 a.m. and 1 p.m. PRISM AP import jobs will continue to run at 7:15 a.m. and 1:15 p.m. 

As part of the December 2022 upgrade, PittSFTP became the new server used for importing data into PRISM, the University’s enterprise financial system.  

Please take note of the following: 

• Files should be placed in the root of your PittSFTP directory. 
• A copy of each file pulled to PRISM for import and processing will be put into the /processed folder in your PittSFTP directory and appended with “.pulled_for_processing.” 
  Example:{filename}.pulled_for_processing.    

Please contact the Technology Help Desk at +1-412-624-HELP (4357) if you have any questions regarding this announcement. 

Pitt Information Technology is aware of another variation of the job opportunity phishing scams targeting the University of Pittsburgh community. The latest version of the scam appears to originate from a pitt.edu address and advertises a fictitious job as a study assistant with the Department of Psychology. The message may use a variety of subjects and asks recipients to reply with their name, email address, and other details to begin the application process. Below is a sample of the scam:

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Subject: PITT Hiring

Are you searching for a job with flexible hours as a graduate or undergraduate student so you can balance working around your classes?

The Psychology Department at the University of Pittsburgh is seeking volunteers to serve as weekly paid study assistants who will work remotely.

You are free to set your own hours and work from home whenever it suits you. Students from any educational district/department are eligible for the position.

For the position description and other requirements, text Professor [name redacted] at [number redacted] with your full name, email address, department, and year of study. This will begin the application process.

With regards.

[name and signature redacted]

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If you received this message (or any message similar to it), please report it as a phishing scam by forwarding the email message as an attachment to phish@pitt.edu. Detailed instructions on reporting scams are available at http://technology.pitt.edu/phishingscams.

Pitt IT strongly recommends that you do not reply to unsolicited emails or emails from unverifiable sources. If you were not expecting to receive such an email, confirm with the sender prior to interacting with the message. If you must interact with the message, avoid clicking on links contained in such emails. These may lead to sites that contain malicious software, or sites that attempt to steal your credentials. If a link looks suspicious, you can hover over the link with your mouse to preview the URL without clicking on it.

In addition, Pitt IT recommends that all students, faculty, and staff install Antivirus and Anti-Malware (Malwarebytes) Protection. Departments can submit a help request to obtain Malwarebytes for multiple machines.

Please contact the Technology Help Desk at +1-412-624-HELP (4357) if you have any questions regarding this announcement.

Panopto, the vendor behind Pitt’s Lecture Capture system used for Canvas instructional recordings, as well as the default solution for saving Zoom meeting and webinar recordings, recently ended unlimited storage for all customers. Therefore, while Pitt Information Technology (IT) remains committed to allowing generous storage for instructional content, please be aware of the following changes that will occur later this year.

Zoom Instructional Recordings in Canvas

Effective July 1, 2023, unviewed instructional videos will be deleted after 30 months. Unviewed videos will first be archived after 18 months. Once archived, recordings will remain available for an additional 12 months. Recordings that have not been viewed or restored after the combined 30-month period are permanently deleted.

• This policy applies to all recordings in Panopto, created by Zoom, Canvas, or the Panopto recorder.
• All Zoom instructional recordings in Canvas continue to be saved to Lecture Capture (Panopto).
• Any instructional video in use will remain available indefinitely — until 18 months after it is last viewed.
• Archived recordings can still be accessed within the 12-month archive period but may take up to 48 hours to be restored.
• Any viewing of a recording within 30 months of its previous viewing will restart the 30-month clock.
• All recordings last viewed on or before January 1, 2022, will be archived on July 1, 2023, and deleted on July 1, 2024.

Example: A video last viewed on March 15, 2023, will be archived on Sept. 15, 2025, and purged on Sept. 15, 2026.

Pitt IT recommends storing the recording somewhere else if there may be long periods of time between viewings, such as a course taught every three years. This storage limit for Panopto has no impact on recordings moved to other systems, such as your PC, OneDrive, SharePoint, or a website.

Zoom Meeting and Webinar Recordings

Also beginning on July 1, 2023, Zoom meeting and webinar recordings made outside of Canvas will be stored in Zoom instead of Panopto. After 30 days, recordings stored in Zoom will automatically be moved to the Trash, where they will be held for an additional 30 days before they are permanently deleted.

• Recordings in Zoom trash can be recovered until the end of the 30-day period. Users will receive a warning message seven days before the recording is purged.
• Zoom meeting and webinar recordings saved on or before June 30, 2023, will remain in Panopto.
• Beginning July 1, 2023, users who wish to continue storing Zoom webinar and meeting recordings in Panopto may opt in to do so. Pitt IT will provide additional information about the opt in process in a subsequent message. Users may also download recordings to your device or cloud storage, such as OneDrive.
• Any Zoom webinar and meeting recordings that remain in Panopto after July 1, 2023, are subject to the changes above.

Example: A Zoom meeting that is recorded on June 1, 2023, from outside Canvas, will be moved to the trash folder on July 1, 2023, and purged on July 31, 2023.

Removing Unwanted Recordings

Pitt IT encourages users to delete any recorded Panopto content that they no longer need. Reviewing the recordings available in your Panopto folders makes them easier for you and others who you share them with to locate and use, as well as reduces future expenses associated with storing unused content.

• Users can find them by logging into Panopto directly or through myPitt (my.pitt.edu) and clicking the My Folder link on the left side of the page once in Panopto.
• Users can also take advantage of the Browse menu option, then select the My Folders tab to search for files and other file locations, such as course folders.

Pitt IT will share the information about these changes with impacted students, faculty, and staff. Please contact the Technology Help Desk at +1-412-624-HELP (4357) if you have any questions about this announcement.