Nearly half of us will be hitting the road or taking the skies for the upcoming holidays, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. Here are some tips to help avoid a few common, and potentially devastating events that could derail your holiday cheer. 

Public Wi-Fi: Whether at the airport, hotel, or just a quick stop on the way, free Wi-Fi is everywhere. Unfortunately, there’s no simple way to ensure that hotspot is secure and not a scheme to steal your information. Avoid connecting if you can and confirm connection information with the property owner if you must connect.  

Social media oversharing: We love to post photos of friends and family as soon as they are taken but consider holding off until you return home. Those photos can share a lot of information, such as the fact that you’re not home, or even in the state. Alternatively, confirm your social media privacy settings are locked down to only share posts with the people that you know and trust. 

Tech gifts: Giving and receiving gadgets is fun, but make sure you also know the proper safety measures to set them up – if there are any! Smart devices like watches, speakers, doorbells, thermostats, locks, etc. are among the top gifts this year, but take some time to research those that offer the best privacy and safety features-especially if it’s going in your home! 

Tech & travel: It’s never in our travel plans to have a device lost or stolen, but just in case it happens, be sure any confidential information is kept safe. Always use a PIN, pattern lock, or preferably, a password to secure your device. Never bring a laptop with you that you aren’t willing to lose or have damaged or confiscated. 

While the items above present problems off campus, email-based threats are still the greatest threat on campus. ITS continues to simulate phishing attacks will assign training to individuals who are routinely susceptible. For more information on how to report phishing emails, see Reporting a Phishing Message (How-to). 

— Peter Lundstedt, ITS 

The University Bookstore has extended its hours for finals week (Dec. 9–14). Hours of operation are:

Monday–Tuesday: 9 a.m. –6 p.m.
Wednesday–Thursday: 8 a.m.–7 p.m.
Friday: 8 a.m.–5:30 p.m.
Saturday: 9 a.m.–5:30 p.m.

Rental books are due back Dec. 13.

— Katie Wilz, University Bookstore

Building schedules will change for the holiday break. Following graduation, we will adopt “administrative hours” for most campus buildings, while classes are not in session. This means buildings will be open on weekdays from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Doors will be locked for winter break from Dec. 23 to Jan. 4. Faculty and staff will still be able to utilize their authorized access plans (for example, 24/7 access to their office buildings), but extended hour student plans will be shut off during this time. Regular building hours and extended student access will resume at the start of J-Term (Jan. 6).

View Cowles Library open hours/after-hours

Please contact Public Safety (515-271-2222) if you have a door access emergency during this time, or contact the Student Services Center (515-271-2000 or studentservices@drake.edu) if you have a general card access question or concern.

— Sara Heijerman, Student Services Center

Parking Announcement: On Thursday, Dec. 5, we expect a large influx of visitors as a result of the annual Pack the Knapp Women’s Basketball game, which starts at 11 a.m.  The vast majority of our visitors will be arriving by bus. Buses will drop students off at the back of the Knapp Center as well as in front on Forest avenue. Once buses unload they will be directed to park in the Tennis Lot (lot #4), but some visitors may park in lot 1 as that is where they are used to going for night and weekend games. Drake Public Safety strongly recommends that students, faculty, and staff who normally park in lot 1, 2 or 4, plan accordingly. We apologize for any inconvenience that this may cause.

— Scott Law, Director, Public Safety & Operational Services

Single sign-on (SSO) for Blackboard is coming Dec. 19. After the change, you will sign in using the standard Drake login page rather than the current Blackboard login screen.

SSO is an authentication process that allows a user to access multiple applications with one set of credentials and a single login instance. Once a user logs in once, they gain access to different Drake applications, without the need to re-enter login credentials for each application.

Example: You log into myDrake first thing in the morning to check your email. While reading your email, you see that you need to check your Blackboard courses for upcoming assignments. Since you already logged into myDrake from checking your email, you can access Blackboard without being prompted to re-enter your Drake credentials.

Learn more about SSO and the additional systems Drake ITS is working on integrating with it by reading Single Sign On (SSO) and Drake applications (FAQ).

— Carla Herling, ITS