Webster University Help Desk

Tips

When asked, provide a complete description of your problem. This is especially important when reporting a problem online or via email.
When reporting a problem online or via email, be sure to include your contact information.
When a technician needs to come to you to fix your technology problem, give them a variety of times that you will be available to meet them.
Backup your data in more than one place on reliable media or a network drive.
Write down error messages exactly as they appear for future reference and troubleshooting.
It is best to be at your computer when phoning in a problem as the Help Desk agents might ask you to walk through some troubleshooting steps.
Make sure to tell the Help Desk what you were doing when the problem occured, what programs you have running, and if you are using a PC or a Mac.
Remember to let the Help Desk know when you call if your contact information has changed.

Never give out financial information such as bank account numbers or credit card numbers via email.
If you suspect you have a virus on your computer, call the Help Desk right away.
If you think you have received a virus in your email, do not open it; Call the Help Desk right away.
Do not open attachments from anyone you don't know.
Do not download programs on your computer from "questionable" sites.
Do not give out your passwords via email or phone to anyone claiming to be a company representative.
Backup your data often on reliable media or a network drive so that if your computer is corrupted or crashes it can be restored.
Use "good" passwords, not ones easily guessed or hacked. Use numbers, letters, and other characters in your password and keep it secret. Do not write it down and leave it near your workstation.
When you are shopping on the Internet, you should only deal with web sites which are supported by SSL technology. A small lock or key will show in the bottom of your browser window if its SSL encrypted. This will help protect all data that is transmitted and processed.

Never use your primary email address on public websites; Use an alias or free email account for such purposes.
Never pass on email that makes a request for you to send it to everyone you know.
Always review a web site's privacy policy before doing business online. Make sure they will not share your email address, or opt out if you can.
Use email filters to delete the message before it is ever viewed. For instructions on setting up filters, you can visit the following link: http://www.webster.edu/depts/acs/kb/filter.html.

Backup your files often. We recommend backing up to at least 2 locations.
We do not recommend saving files on floppy disks as they are unreliable and easily corrupted.
Backup your email files as well as documents in case of virus corruption.