October is Cybersecurity Awareness Month, a time to focus on protecting our digital community. At Rogue Community College, every employee and student shares responsibility for safeguarding personally identifiable information (PII) — data that can identify an individual, such as Social Security numbers, student IDs, home addresses or dates of birth.
Think Before You Send
Never send PII — such as Social Security numbers, full birth dates, or financial data — through email or chat. Even internal emails can be accidentally forwarded or misdirected. If you must share sensitive information, use approved secure systems or encrypted file transfer methods.
Store Smart
Store PII only on college-approved, secure systems. Avoid saving sensitive data on personal computers, USB drives, or third-party cloud storage that isn’t authorized by RCC IT. When working with personal data, use password protection and limit access to only those who need it.
Pause Before You Post or Forward
Before forwarding messages, attaching files or sharing screenshots, review content carefully for PII. Remove or redact unnecessary personal identifiers. A moment’s caution can prevent an accidental data exposure.
PII and Public Records Requests
When responding to public records requests, it’s essential to balance transparency with privacy protection. Public records may be subject to disclosure, but personally identifiable information must still be protected under federal and state privacy laws.
Do not release PII unless it’s been reviewed and approved through the appropriate RCC administrative process.
Consult with your supervisor or the Records Officer before sending any files or emails that might contain personal data.
Redact PII (such as student numbers, addresses and SSNs) before documents are shared publicly or with external requesters.
Secure Your Access
Always lock your workstation when away and never share your login credentials. Use strong, unique passwords and enable multi-factor authentication (MFA) to add an extra layer of protection.
Need Guidance?
If you’re unsure how to handle sensitive information or respond to a records request safely, contact ITHELPME.
Together, we can help protect our students, colleagues and community — one secure decision at a time.
For more information, please contact Richard Plott by email or on Teams.