Restricting removable media storage use to help protect you and Rowan

Please see our update on removable media restrictions for Rowan workstations​

---

Removable media storage devices can serve as hosts for ransomware, which recently shut down a major U.S. pipeline and stopped classes at a prominent university, and can lead to data loss in the event of theft, damage or failure. To help protect you, your department and your university, Information Resources & Technology will be restricting  the use of removable media storage on Rowan-managed workstations. 

This effort is one part of a larger project to harden Rowan University’s defenses against ransomware and data loss and follows best practices recommended by federal cybersecurity experts. For more information, visit go.rowan.edu/workstation


What’s changing, and when?
 

We will begin restricting access to removable media storage by department this fall, and we are targeting to complete this project by the end of the semester. Once this change is in place on your computer,  you will be unable to use removable media storage, including USB flash drives, CDs, DVDs and external hard drives, to view, edit or copy files unless you have received an exception or purchased a University-approved storage device. 

We will directly notify employees when removable media storage will be restricted on computers in their department. We will also post our schedule at go.rowan.edu/workstation

This change will not affect access to standard USB devices, such as keyboards, mice, microphones, web cameras or other peripheral devices that you may connect to your computer. If you experience an issue with a non-standard USB device, we will work with you to address the problem as soon as possible. 

This change will also not affect your ability to charge your mobile phone from your computer, but you will not be able to move files or photos from your phone to your computer. 


What do you need to do now? 

  1. Stop using removable media storage. If you are currently using — or have data archived on — USB flash drives, CDs, DVDs or external hard drives, move your data to an application like Google Drive
  2. Back up your data. You should be regularly backing up your data to give yourself a better chance of restoring valuable information if it’s lost or stolen. We encourage you to use Google Drive, the University’s preferred storage solution, for your data storage needs, but there are other backup and storage options available to you
  3. Request an exception, if needed. If you believe you will need to use removable media storage when this change is rolled out to your computer, submit an exception request

 
Where can you get more information? 

Visit go.rowan.edu/workstation for our latest updates on this project. Visit go.rowan.edu/google for more information about Google Drive at Rowan. 

If you have any other questions, please contact the Technology Support Center at 856-256-4400, or submit a ticket in the Rowan Support Portal.