Information Technology Services has changed the way students and community members access Lobo-WiFi.
Users now need to download a one-time policy key and use their NetID and password to connect.
Jane McGuire, IT strategic planner, said the policy key and a student’s NetID will give the user credibility to use the Internet.
“The combination of that policy key and your NetID … allows us to know who is on the network and that it’s UNM people using the network, because we’re not Starbuck’s,”
she said. “We have sensitive information like your grades out there, and we need to protect our information. That’s why the network access control is taking a step toward securing the network.”
The technology used to verify users is called Network Access Control, McGuire said. Guest users without NetIDs still have limited access to the Internet.
Student Kellie Knapp said logging in each time to use the computer takes a little longer, but the added security is good because it deters community users.
“I think it’s effective for keeping people who just come on campus to use the Wi-Fi off campus, so it kind of reduces the traffic, but I also think it’s a little bit of a hassle for students trying to get online really quick to get information for a class or something like that,” Knapp said. “It kind of takes up a little extra time, but overall I think it’s a good idea.”
Vernie Emerson, a CNM student, said she hasn’t noticed a difference in her Internet access.
Emerson said she uses the computers at UNM about three times a week. She said there is usually a wait to access the computers if you’re not a student.
“Sometimes there’s a long line of people waiting to use a computer,” she said.
“During the day there isn’t a wait, but at night there are usually a lot more people, but (the library staff) are good about making sure everyone gets time on the computers.”
McGuire said even with the increased security, IT has no intention of monitoring what students are viewing through their laptops.
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“There’s 65,000 active NetIDs at UNM, so we don’t have the resources to monitor what everyone is doing, nor do we have the interest,” she said. “This is a university, a much more open environment.”
McGuire said these additional security measures are needed to protect the network connections from hackers.
“As network technology improves, people who hack the network also get smarter, and so we have to use more advanced technologies to secure the network,” she said.
In addition to the increased security, McGuire said Lobo-WiFi is more comprehensive throughout campus.
McGuire said 80 percent of classrooms on campus now have wireless access to the Internet. She said this is a part of the classroom modernization project, which is using $12 million to renovate classrooms and improve technology used in those classrooms.
In addition to this, the IT Department has also purchased licenses for all UNM community members to download antivirus systems onto their laptops, McGuire said.
“We want to make sure that the machines that are accessing the network don’t have viruses on them and we don’t spread viruses through the network,” she said. “So we’re not passing viruses internally.”
