{"id":708,"date":"2025-10-20T08:00:05","date_gmt":"2025-10-20T12:00:05","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/phish-files\/?p=708"},"modified":"2026-02-16T16:09:51","modified_gmt":"2026-02-16T21:09:51","slug":"the-cyber-incident-protocol","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/phish-files\/2025\/10\/20\/the-cyber-incident-protocol\/","title":{"rendered":"NCSAM 2025 &#8211; If You See Something, Report It \u2013 The Cyber Incident Protocol"},"content":{"rendered":"<p data-start=\"252\" data-end=\"369\"><strong data-start=\"322\" data-end=\"369\">Mission Objective: Report. Respond. Resist.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p data-start=\"371\" data-end=\"668\">Congratulations, Agent.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"371\" data-end=\"668\">You\u2019ve made it to the final transmission in our Cybersecurity Awareness Month series. If you\u2019ve been following along, you now know how to recognize dangerous downloads, avoid alien artifacts, stay off the satellite radar, and think critically before sharing intel online.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"670\" data-end=\"717\">But here\u2019s the most important directive of all:<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"719\" data-end=\"768\"><strong data-start=\"722\" data-end=\"765\">REPORT SUSPICIOUS ACTIVITY IMMEDIATELY.<\/strong><\/p>\n<hr data-start=\"770\" data-end=\"773\" \/>\n<h2 data-start=\"775\" data-end=\"810\">Why Timely Reporting Matters<\/h2>\n<p data-start=\"812\" data-end=\"969\">Every second counts when facing a cyber threat. The faster it\u2019s reported, the faster the response\u2014and the fewer systems or people get pulled into the breach.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"971\" data-end=\"1000\">Waiting to report could mean:<\/p>\n<ul data-start=\"1002\" data-end=\"1142\">\n<li data-start=\"1002\" data-end=\"1031\">\n<p data-start=\"1004\" data-end=\"1031\">More accounts compromised<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"1032\" data-end=\"1053\">\n<p data-start=\"1034\" data-end=\"1053\">More data exposed<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"1054\" data-end=\"1095\">\n<p data-start=\"1056\" data-end=\"1095\">More time for attackers to dig deeper<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li data-start=\"1096\" data-end=\"1142\">\n<p data-start=\"1098\" data-end=\"1142\">Delayed protection for others on the network<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p data-start=\"1144\" data-end=\"1189\">In short: <strong>your vigilance protects <em data-start=\"1178\" data-end=\"1188\">everyone<\/em><\/strong>.<\/p>\n<hr data-start=\"1191\" data-end=\"1194\" \/>\n<h2 data-start=\"1196\" data-end=\"1254\">Guide to Spot &amp; Report Cyber Threats<\/h2>\n<h3 data-start=\"1256\" data-end=\"1282\"><strong data-start=\"1259\" data-end=\"1280\">Suspicious Email?<\/strong><\/h3>\n<ul data-start=\"1283\" data-end=\"1457\">\n<li data-start=\"1283\" data-end=\"1367\">\n<p data-start=\"1285\" data-end=\"1367\">Look for urgent or unexpected messages, strange links, or fake sender addresses.<\/p>\n<ul data-start=\"1283\" data-end=\"1457\">\n<li data-start=\"1368\" data-end=\"1457\">\n<p data-start=\"1370\" data-end=\"1457\"><strong data-start=\"1370\" data-end=\"1381\">Action:<\/strong> Use the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/information-technology\/security\/pab\/\">PAB<\/a> or forward it to <a href=\"mailto:phishfiles@montclair.edu\">phishfiles@montclair.edu<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 data-start=\"1459\" data-end=\"1500\"><strong data-start=\"1462\" data-end=\"1498\">Accidental Click or File Opened?<\/strong><\/h3>\n<ul data-start=\"1501\" data-end=\"1635\">\n<li data-start=\"1501\" data-end=\"1540\">\n<p data-start=\"1503\" data-end=\"1540\">Don\u2019t panic. But don\u2019t cover it up.<\/p>\n<ul data-start=\"1501\" data-end=\"1635\">\n<li data-start=\"1541\" data-end=\"1635\">\n<p data-start=\"1543\" data-end=\"1635\"><strong data-start=\"1543\" data-end=\"1554\">Action:<\/strong> Immediately report what happened\u2014time, device, and details help us respond fast.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 data-start=\"1637\" data-end=\"1681\"><strong data-start=\"1640\" data-end=\"1679\">Scam Message or Social Media Trick?<\/strong><\/h3>\n<ul data-start=\"1682\" data-end=\"1849\">\n<li data-start=\"1682\" data-end=\"1767\">\n<p data-start=\"1684\" data-end=\"1767\">If someone is pretending to be IT, financial aid, or even <em data-start=\"1742\" data-end=\"1747\">you<\/em>, it\u2019s a red flag.<\/p>\n<ul data-start=\"1682\" data-end=\"1849\">\n<li data-start=\"1768\" data-end=\"1849\">\n<p data-start=\"1770\" data-end=\"1849\"><strong data-start=\"1770\" data-end=\"1781\">Action:<\/strong> Screenshot and send it in. The more we know, the more we can block.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 data-start=\"1851\" data-end=\"1885\"><strong data-start=\"1854\" data-end=\"1883\">Unusual Account Activity?<\/strong><\/h3>\n<ul data-start=\"1886\" data-end=\"2068\">\n<li data-start=\"1886\" data-end=\"1971\">\n<p data-start=\"1888\" data-end=\"1971\">Password changed? Logins from strange locations? MFA requests you didn\u2019t approve?<\/p>\n<ul data-start=\"1886\" data-end=\"2068\">\n<li data-start=\"1972\" data-end=\"2068\">\n<p data-start=\"1974\" data-end=\"2068\"><strong data-start=\"1974\" data-end=\"1985\">Action:<\/strong> Report it via the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/information-technology\/security\/pab\/\">PAB<\/a> or email it to <a href=\"mailto:phishfiles@montclair.edu\">phishfiles@montclair.edu<\/a>. Don\u2019t wait to \u201csee what happens.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<hr data-start=\"2387\" data-end=\"2390\" \/>\n<h2 data-start=\"2392\" data-end=\"2416\">Remember, Agent:<\/h2>\n<p data-start=\"2418\" data-end=\"2597\"><strong data-start=\"2418\" data-end=\"2477\">Cybersecurity isn\u2019t just an IT job\u2014it\u2019s a team mission.<\/strong><br data-start=\"2477\" data-end=\"2480\" \/>Your quick action might be the reason a major breach never happens. Stay alert. Stay vocal. And when in doubt\u2014report.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2599\" data-end=\"2689\">This concludes your Cybersecurity Awareness Month briefing. You\u2019ve trained well, Agent.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"2691\" data-end=\"2744\"><strong data-start=\"2691\" data-end=\"2744\">They\u2019re always watching. Good thing\u2014you are, too.<\/strong><\/p>\n<hr data-start=\"2387\" data-end=\"2390\" \/>\n<h2 data-start=\"2691\" data-end=\"2744\">Want to Learn More?<\/h2>\n<p>CrowdStrike | <a href=\"https:\/\/www.crowdstrike.com\/en-us\/cybersecurity-101\/social-engineering\/phishing-attack\/\">Introduction to Phishing<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Liberty Technology | <a href=\"https:\/\/www.libertytech.net\/how-to-report-a-phishing-attack-and-why-its-so-important\/\">How to Report a Phishing Attack and Why It\u2019s So Important<\/a><\/p>\n<p>ScienceDirect | <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sciencedirect.com\/science\/article\/pii\/S0747563224001420\">Scamming higher ed: An analysis of phishing content and trends<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Association for Computing Machinery | <a href=\"https:\/\/dl.acm.org\/doi\/fullHtml\/10.1145\/3678890.3678926\">From Victims to Defenders: An Exploration of the Phishing Attack Reporting Ecosystem<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Google | <a href=\"https:\/\/cloud.google.com\/blog\/topics\/threat-intelligence\/phishing-targeting-higher-education\">Phishing Campaigns Targeting Higher Education Institutions<\/a><\/p>\n<p>Cyber Degrees | <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cyberdegrees.org\/resources\/internet-safety-for-college-students\/\">Internet Safety and Cybersecurity Awareness for College Students<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Mission Objective: Report. Respond. Resist. Congratulations, Agent. You\u2019ve made it to the final transmission in our Cybersecurity Awareness Month series. If you\u2019ve been following along, you now know how to recognize dangerous downloads, avoid alien artifacts, stay off the satellite radar, and think critically before sharing intel online. But here\u2019s the most important directive of [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":349,"featured_media":920,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-708","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/phish-files\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/708","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/phish-files\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/phish-files\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/phish-files\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/349"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/phish-files\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=708"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/phish-files\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/708\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1106,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/phish-files\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/708\/revisions\/1106"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/phish-files\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/920"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/phish-files\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=708"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/phish-files\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=708"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.montclair.edu\/phish-files\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=708"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}