News

Baylor will restore access to the Canvas system at 1:00 p.m. CT today (Friday, May 8). Instructure restored the Canvas system for Baylor and other colleges and universities nationwide to operating condition overnight. Final exams currently scheduled for today will be conducted on Thursday, May 14, and all will be administered online. (Clarification: Final exams originally scheduled for today will be conducted online on Thursday, May 14. All remaining exams will continue as scheduled.) Please pay close attention to the information and instructions below. 

After careful consideration of the circumstances, we have decided to delay final exams tomorrow, Friday, May 8th. 

Canvas is currently unavailable university-wide. This is a nationwide issue. Users should not attempt to engage with or respond within the Canvas system until further notice. Our teams are actively monitoring the situation and working with the vendor toward resolution. Additional updates and communications will be shared as more information becomes available. Visit systemstatus.baylor.edu for updates.

Microsoft has announced upcoming changes to how Copilot Chat is accessed across its Microsoft 365 productivity suite. These changes will take effect on Wednesday, April 15, 2026, and will impact how Copilot Chat appears within certain Office applications.

The BaylorITS Research Technology team highlights the exceptional use of research technology among the talented research community at Baylor University through Computing Catalyst feature articles. In this fourth edition of Computing Catalyst, we explore the answers to the deepest questions of the cosmos with researchers from Baylor's High Energy Physics lab.

Data Privacy Week, an annual cybersecurity awareness campaign coordinated by the National Cybersecurity Alliance, encourages individuals to manage their privacy settings, measure the tradeoff between privacy and convenience when using apps, and remain aware of data exposure through online platforms. The initiative also educates businesses on data collection best practices that respect data privacy and promote transparency.

The BaylorITS Research Technology team highlights the exceptional use of research technology among the talented research community at Baylor University through Computing Catalyst feature articles. In this third edition of Computing Catalyst, we shake the cosmic dust covering the pioneering work of Dr. Lorin Swint Matthews, Professor and Chair of the Baylor University Department of Physics and Astronomy, and Associate Director of the Baylor University CASPER Lab.

Cloudflare experienced a major outage early this morning, disrupting Baylor's website and other online services worldwide after a configuration file unexpectedly grew too large. The company confirmed the issue was not a cyberattack and restored service by 9:00 a.m.

The BaylorITS Research Technology team highlights the exceptional use of research technology among the talented research community at Baylor University through Computing Catalyst feature articles. In this second edition of Computing Catalyst, we highlight the groundbreaking work of Dr. Keith Schubert, Professor of Electrical & Computer Engineering and Graduate Program Director at Baylor University. 

The BaylorITS Research Technology team highlights the exceptional use of research technology among the talented research community at Baylor University through “Computing Catalyst” feature articles. To highlight your use of Baylor’s Kodiak cluster or other research technology, contact research_technology@baylor.edu.

Each year Baylor partners with the National Cybersecurity Alliance and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency to encourage our community to remain diligent about observing best practices in cybersecurity—or to stay BearAware.

Baylor's high-performance computing system received substantial enhancements over the summer, including an updated operating system, expanded network transport capacity, increased security, enhanced Open Message Passing Interface (MPI), and improved job scheduling. These new features are available to Baylor researchers today!

A phishing scheme was detected overnight on June 11, 2025, that targets Baylor faculty or teachers of record.

BaylorITS presents a series of Apple Workshops this spring for students, staff, and faculty where you can earn badges toward an Apple micro-credential and enhance productivity using iPad.

Back by popular demand! BaylorITS and Box present another session of Box Essentials Training along with a new Advanced Box Skills course!

BaylorITS Research Technology encourages researchers, educators, and students to leverage the National Science Foundation’s Advanced Cyberinfrastructure Coordination Ecosystem: Services & Support (ACCESS) program. NSF ACCESS coordinates access to advanced computing systems and services ranging from supercomputers, data storage, scientific applications, expert training, and workshops at no cost.

Data Privacy Week is an annual expanded effort from Data Privacy Day -- taking place from January 27 - 31, 2025. The goal of Data Privacy Week is to spread awareness about online privacy among individuals and organizations. 

The BaylorITS Research Technology team proudly announces the launch of a new area of the BaylorITS website dedicated to guiding researchers to technology resources essential to research, especially grant-funded research. Research Technology connects researchers to consultants, software, services, guides, and additional resources designed to empower R1-level research across the university.

BaylorITS presents an Apple Workshop, “Start Your Education Learning Journey with iPad” on November 20, 2024, at 11:30 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. that offers students, faculty, and staff the opportunity to earn the first badge toward an Apple Teacher micro-certification while enhancing their productivity with iPad. 

On Wednesday, November 13, and Tuesday, November 19, 2024, BaylorITS will offer two virtual Box Essentials training sessions to help Baylor faculty, staff, and students quickly and easily integrate Box into their everyday workflow.

Apple representatives invite you to an iPad workshop on Thursday, October 24, 2024, in the Schumacher Flex Commons on the main floor of Moody Memorial Library at 11:30 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. Bring your iPad to follow along and ask questions!

The Office of the Provost and the School of Engineering and Computer Science at Baylor University proudly present AI Week from October 14-16, 2024.

During October’s National Cybersecurity Awareness Month, Baylor Information Technology Services reminds students, faculty, and staff to stay BearAware by following cybersecurity best practices. This year’s pop princess-powered BearAware campaign includes encouragements to “really, really, really wanna” use two-factor authentication, “please, please, please” keep software up to date, and more. Cybersecurity training will be required for Baylor faculty and staff, BaylorITS will enhance password security, and the School of Engineering and Computer Science will host several cybersecurity events.

On Monday afternoon, the Baylor network experienced a disruption focused on Microsoft and Google-based resources. As of 9:30 a.m. on Tuesday, August 20, all network services were restored.

A security update deployed to client systems by the cybersecurity company Crowdstrike has not significantly affected Baylor University operations or systems, but some of the university's third-party vendors have been impacted.

Karla Garrett Smith, CPA, director of Payment Services at Baylor University, will succeed Ralph Sherman as the Business Officer for Information Technology Services, University Libraries, Mayborn Museum, and Baylor University Press on May 1. Sherman will retire from Baylor after 22 years of service with the university.

Baylor has joined the REDCap Consortium to enhance access to research technology tools available to Baylor University researchers. REDCap, which is short for Research Electronic Data Capture, is a secure web application for building and managing advanced online surveys and databases that supports online and offline data capture for research studies and operations. Baylor researchers can access REDCap on a fee-for-service usage basis.

On January 7, BaylorITS and the Baylor Department of Public Safety launched the new Baylor Digital ID that enables students living in Baylor’s on-campus residential halls to unlock their rooms, enter dining halls, make retail dining purchases, check out library materials, and access other campus services with the tap of a personal mobile device.

On January 3, BaylorITS will make the New Microsoft Teams available to students, faculty, and staff. The New Teams is twice as fast, uses 50% fewer resources, has a more polished and responsive interface, is smarter, and more flexible. On February 20, New Teams became the default for all Teams users at Baylor. Classic Teams is still available at the flip of a switch, but Microsoft will force all users to New Teams prior to March 31, 2024.

Baylor University Information Technology Services invites all faculty and staff to explore the new Bing Chat Enterprise service, which is powered by Microsoft and most easily accessible using Microsoft’s Edge web browser.

This October marks the 20th year of Cybersecurity Awareness Month and Baylor University proudly reaffirms its commitment as a champion for this national initiative. As part of the celebration, Baylor Information Technology Services is launching an awareness campaign that encourages everyone to "be real" about cybersecurity.

Beginning Tuesday, September 26, 2023, Microsoft 365 users will experience a very minor change when using Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and other Microsoft apps in a web-browser environment.

Central Texas Cyber Range, a $3.5 million partnership between Baylor University and McLennan Community College, is designed to address current and future cybersecurity needs

Cybersecurity experts warn that an exploit discovered in Microsoft Teams allows external users to send files and join Teams Chat conversations, creating the possibility for phishing style cyberattacks. BaylorITS encourages everyone in the Baylor community to be #BearAware by applying the same scrutiny to Teams messages as to "phishy" email or text messages.

On July 3, 2023, Dr. Joshua Kissee will begin with Baylor Information Technology Services in the newly created role of Assistant Vice President for Research Technology.

A Christmas thank you message from Baylor ITS to the Baylor community.

A Christmas thank you message from Baylor ITS to the Baylor community.

On Tuesday, November 8, the HelpDesk+ online experience made the move to Baylor’s new Drupal environment. HelpDesk+ looks the same with a few small user interface differences, enhanced accessibility, and a better experience for mobile users. As you experience the site, you may encounter some issues. We hope that you enjoy this refreshed HelpDesk+ experience.

On Tuesday, November 15, Duo is getting a new look and some new functionality. The new look is streamlined and provides a simplified user experience. As part of the update, we are adding Verified Duo Push when accessing Baylor's Microsoft 365, Ignite, and BearWeb services. With Verified Duo Push, after you Accept a push notification from these systems, you will receive a 6-digit code that must then be entered to verify that the person requesting access is actually logging into the system. To learn more about these changes, visit baylor.edu/helpdesk/duo

On Tuesday, November 15, Duo is getting a new look and some new functionality. The new look is streamlined and provides a simplified user experience. As part of the update, we are adding Verified Duo Push when accessing Baylor's Microsoft 365, Ignite, and BearWeb services. With Verified Duo Push, after you Accept a push notification from these systems, you will receive a 6-digit code that must then be entered to verify that the person requesting access is actually logging into the system. To learn more about these changes, visit baylor.edu/helpdesk/duo

Jon Allen, chief information officer and chief information security officer at Baylor University, has been honored by the inaugural EdScoop 50 Awards as one of select higher education executives named IT Executive of the Year. The award honors "the most influential people in the higher education technology community, along with the most innovative projects that make a positive impact across universities."

Access to Webex and BigBlueButton within Canvas will end at the end of the spring term. Microsoft Teams and Zoom will serve as Baylor's videoconferencing solutions moving forward.

Access to Webex and BigBlueButton within Canvas will end at the end of the spring term. Microsoft Teams and Zoom will serve as Baylor's videoconferencing solutions moving forward.

The global non-profit Anti-Phishing Working Group released its Q4 report in late February, finding that phishing, spearing, and ransomware attacks have reached record levels.

The global non-profit Anti-Phishing Working Group released its Q4 report in late February, finding that phishing, spearing, and ransomware attacks have reached record levels.

This past weekend the Baylor community experienced a series of email phishing attacks. DUO two-factor authentication provides a barrier of protection for the university against phishing attacks and other outside access to Baylor information systems. Only approve DUO pushes, phone calls, and use tokens that you know you have requested, and report emails that appear "phishy"

This past weekend the Baylor community experienced a series of email phishing attacks. DUO two-factor authentication provides a barrier of protection for the university against phishing attacks and other outside access to Baylor information systems. Only approve DUO pushes, phone calls, and use tokens that you know you have requested, and report emails that appear "phishy."

While some faculty members said they have experienced difficulties following the transition from traditional landlines to the Microsoft Teams Call platform last semester, Jon Allen, chief information officer and chief information security officer, said via email the vast majority of feedback he has received has been positive.

While some faculty members said they have experienced difficulties following the transition from traditional landlines to the Microsoft Teams Call platform last semester, Jon Allen, chief information officer and chief information security officer, said via email the vast majority of feedback he has received has been positive.

After an extensive period of testing, Baylor ITS approved the latest edition of Apple's Monterey operating system (12.2) for use on Baylor-owned devices.

After an extensive period of testing, Baylor ITS approved the latest edition of Apple's Monterey operating system (12.2) for use on Baylor-owned devices.

Baylor has contracted with StatusHub to provide 24/7 real-time information about the status of its technology systems. Everyone in the Baylor community and beyond can visit systemstatus.baylor.edu today to see the current status of AirBear, Canvas, Ignite, BearWeb, Duo, Microsoft 365, and much more.

Baylor has contracted with StatusHub to provide 24/7 real-time information about the status of its technology systems. Everyone in the Baylor community and beyond can visit systemstatus.baylor.edu today to see the current status of AirBear, Canvas, Ignite, BearWeb, Duo, Microsoft 365, and much more.

This week Microsoft released a series of system patches as part of its regular "Update Tuesday." One of these patches addresses a very serious vulnerability (CVE-2022-21907) that allows attackers to target networked computers and execute code on the system without requiring any permissions.

This week Microsoft released a series of system patches as part of its regular "Update Tuesday." One of these patches addresses a very serious vulnerability (CVE-2022-21907) that allows attackers to target networked computers and execute code on the system without requiring any permissions.

On December 7, 2021, and again this morning, issues within the Amazon Web Services (AWS) server eco-system disrupted some of Baylor's technology resources.

On December 7, 2021, and again this morning, issues within the Amazon Web Services (AWS) server eco-system disrupted some of Baylor's technology resources.

"Mother of the Internet" Radia Perlman will speak on the campus of Baylor University on Wednesday, December 8, at 9 a.m. on the fifth floor of the Cashion Academic Center (Room 506). The lecture is presented by the School of Computer Science and Engineering and Baylor Information Technology Services, and is open to all Baylor faculty and students. 

"Mother of the Internet" Radia Perlman will speak on the campus of Baylor University on Wednesday, December 8, at 9 a.m. on the fifth floor of the Cashion Academic Center (Room 506). The lecture is presented by the School of Computer Science and Engineering and Baylor Information Technology Services, and is open to all Baylor faculty and students. Breakfast is provided.

Baylor Information Technology Services launched a new website today, built on the university's new Drupal framework. The new online experience, available at its.web.baylor.edu, highlights the people and collaborative partnerships that drive technologies to empower the university in its mission.

Baylor Information Technology Services launched a new website today, built on the university's new Drupal framework. The new online experience, available at its.web.baylor.edu, highlights the people and collaborative partnerships that drive technologies to empower the university in its mission.

Tonight at 9:00 p.m. CST, the Baylor website (baylor.edu) will undergo maintenance and all baylor.edu-based web resources will be offline. Off-campus visitors to baylor.edu will receive a maintenance message featuring links to important campus resources that are hosted beyond Baylor's web domain. However, students, faculty, and staff using AirBear or the Baylor campus wired network will receive an error page.

Baylor is making an ambitious move to Microsoft Teams Calls between now and the end of December.

Even though National Cybersecurity Awareness Month is over, we should all continue to be #BearAware. Since 2007, Baylor ITS has been a champion for this nationwide effort. This year's public awareness campaign focuses on eight best practices that are encouraged within the Baylor community and among all technology users.

As Baylor makes the moves to Microsoft Teams Calls between now and the end of December, Baylor ITS is offering two virtual information sessions to introduce our community to the Teams Calls platform.

On October 5, Microsoft officially released Windows 11 for download and installation. Baylor ITS is currently testing this next-generation Windows operating system to ensure that it is compatible with university systems and software.