IT has implemented security procedures for International Travel by faculty, staff and students. If the traveler is on CUI or export-controlled projects, IT will provide a loaner laptop. If the traveler is not on CUI or export-controlled projects, then the traveler may take a loaner laptop or their S&T managed laptop. The loaner and the S&T managed laptops will be updated prior to the trip to reduce security vulnerabilities.
Who is affected?
All Faculty, Staff and Students traveling abroad for S&T university reasons.
Why is this happening?
The need for security updates on a laptop for international travel is to:
Protect university data and research during the travel.
Protect Intellectual Property (IP), proposals, instructor materials, etc.
Protect the campus community network and computers upon a traveler’s return to campus.
What is changing?
The following three technology categories for your trip are used to make computer and data preparations before you depart on your trip.
- Traveler is not on an export controlled or Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) project and is not going to a Travel Advisory Level 3 or Level 4 country as defined by the US Department of State. https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/traveladvisories/traveladvisories.html/
- Traveler is going to a Travel Advisory Level 3 or Level 4 country as defined by the US Department of State. https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/traveladvisories/traveladvisories.html/
- Traveler is on an export-controlled or Controlled Unclassified Information project and going to any country with a travel advisory of Level 1 through Level 4.
Please review the UM System Information Security Travel Standard, https://www.umsystem.edu/ums/is/infosec/standards-travel
IT Desktop Support will contact you to discuss your computer and data needs for your upcoming international trip.
Technology Needs Category A:
If you have a need to take an S&T managed computer on your trip, you have the option to take a loaner laptop provided by S&T IT instead of taking your S&T managed computer on your trip. If you do not need to take an S&T computer or equipment with you, then you do not need to get a loaner laptop. This process does not apply to personal laptops with personal data. However, you are required to not store campus data on personal devices beyond data stored in communication tools (https://www.umsystem.edu/ums/is/infosec/sections-mobile).
A good data security practice is to have the traveler and their department review the laptop contents to make sure there is no sensitive data on the laptop to be taken on the travel. Do not put any sensitive data on the laptop.
The IT Desktop Support will do the following required items to be ready to travel with your S&T managed laptop or a loaner laptop.
- Configure Microsoft BitLocker on the laptop.
- Onboard your loaner laptop or your campus laptop into our Windows Defender security protection and monitoring system.
- Update your software to be brought to the most recent patch levels to mitigate possible vulnerabilities.
- Transfer only data needed for the trip onto a loaner laptop, if a loaner is used.
Use OpenVPN, https://it.mst.edu/services/vpn/ to connect to the campus network any time you are working on the computer until you return to campus.
Upon return to campus the following items are required if you used an S&T loaner or your S&T managed laptop:
- Do not connect the laptop or your computer to the campus network until you have had the IT Help Desk check your laptop for security vulnerabilities.
- Return the loaner laptop to the IT Help Desk or take your S&T managed laptop to the IT Help Desk.
- The IT Help Desk will run the virus checker, Windows Defender, on the loaner or your S&T managed laptop.
- After the IT Help Desk confirms that the laptop is not infected with viruses, malware or other security vulnerabilities, you may then request the IT Help Desk to transfer any data that you want to keep from a loaner laptop to your S&T managed laptop.
Technology Needs Categories B and C:
It is required to temporarily exchange your S&T managed computer for a loaner laptop provided by S&T IT that does not contain sensitive information for your use during the trip. If you do not need to take an S&T computer or equipment with you, then you do not need to get a loaner laptop. This process does not apply to personal laptops with personal data. However, you are required to not store campus data on personal devices beyond data stored in communication tools (https://www.umsystem.edu/ums/is/infosec/sections-mobile).
The IT Desktop Support will do the following required items on the loaner laptop to be ready for travel:
- Configure Microsoft BitLocker on the loaner laptop.
- Onboard your loaner laptop into our Windows Defender security protection and monitoring system.
- Update software to be brought to the most recent patch levels.
- Assist with transferring only data needed for the trip. Do not put any sensitive data on the laptop.
A good data security practice is to have the traveler, and their department review the loaner laptop contents to make sure there is no sensitive data on the loaner laptop to be taken on the travel. Do not put any sensitive data on the laptop.
Upon return to campus, it is required to return the loaner laptop to the help desk before connecting the loaner laptop to the campus network to properly sanitize the laptop.
If you have any questions, please contact the IT Help Desk or send an email to ithelp@mst.edu.
More information:
Please contact the S&T IT Help Desk by chatting at helpdesk.mst.edu or submit a ticket at help.mst.edu.