How do I report a suspicious email?
If you receive a suspicious email at work that encourages you to click a link or open an attachment, you can report it with the following process:
- On the email itself, next to the ‘Forward’ button, you have the option to “forward as an attachment” click this (it may be under a "More" or "..." menu).
- Send this to is.helpline@ed.ac.uk
- You will receive an automated email back with guidance on what to do if you have clicked a link or opened an attachment from the suspicious email.
Doing this helps to collate any phishing items with other reports of the same attack.
Please do not send a screenshot or forwarded copy of the email, as it does not give us this data.
How do I encrypt my laptop?
Encrypting your device is a great way to protect your data if the device is stolen. We have several quick guides on how to facilitate this:
Encrypting a computer or laptop
How do I install an antimalware? Is there an antimalware tool I can get from the University?
The university does not provide antimalware for unsupported machines.
For more information on malware please refer to:
Where can I find the Information Security Policy?
The Information Security Policy and Computing Acceptable Use Policy can both be accessed from the Information Security webpages:
For information on Data Protection and the UK General Data Protection Regulation, please see the data protection pages:
How do I take the Information Security Essentials awareness course?
The guide for how to sign up for Information Security Essentials can be found at:
How can I detect phishing/scam emails?
Ask yourself the following questions when you receive an unsolicited email:
- Am I expecting an email from this person?
- Do any links go where I am expecting them to? (hold your mouse over them and examine the actual destination)
- Do I know how the sender is likely to have obtained my details?
- Is the email written and formatted correctly for who it claims to be from?
- Is it asking me to share information the recipient should already have or doesn’t need to know?
For further information see:
I have received a phone call about my computer, what should I do?
If the phone call claims to be from Microsoft, your Internet Service Provider, or some other large organisation then it is very likely that it is a scam. Microsoft will never call you about a problem with your computer. It's also very unlikely that your ISP, the FBI, the Police or HMRC will call you about a problem with your computer. These are usually scams where someone will try and get you to install remote access software on your computer so that they can 'fix' something - but they are actually installing malware, copying your data, finding passwords, and so on. Our advice is to hang up.
Always remember - how long have you spend on hold trying to get hold of any of these companies or organisations when you actually need help? How likely is it that they would call you up out of the blue because they've "detected a problem"?
If the call is about your work computer and claims to be from the ISG Helpline or your local support team and you have any doubts at all then we would suggest ending the call and then calling back on the official number for the Helpline or team in question.
How do I recycle old devices?
Please see the Waste Services webpages for this information.
What can I use to encrypt an individual file/folder?
There are a number of programs you can use to encrypt at the folder/file level. The ones available on the supported desktops and laptops here at the University are 7Zip for Windows, iZip for Mac and Veracrypt.