- Home
- Student Technology Collaborative
- Pantheon
- Privacy and Security
Pantheon Privacy and Security
The Pantheon consists of multi-user computers which can support several thousand simultaneous users, and it is home to thousands of users at Yale. All users should be concerned with the security of their email and other data.
All Yale-affiliated students, faculty, receive an series of initials and a number known as a NetID. NetIDs and their associated passwords must be protected because they are used to access many confidential resources at Yale. If the security of your NetID is compromised, not only is your personal privacy affected but also the privacy of others on the Pantheon.
If you need further assistance, please request help from a Student Tech.
General Security Information
- ITS Information Security Office
- Protecting Your NetID and Password - This page includes guidelines on choosing a good password.
- Changing Your NetID Password - You are advised to change your password every two months.
If you believe someone has been using your account or have questions, please contact Information Security (information.security@yale.edu).
Password Security
File Security
To ensure your files are being transferred securely, you are advised to use one of the programs in the menu to the left: Fugu for OSX, or SSH Secure Shell for Windows. Both programs can be downloaded from the Yale Software Library.
Privacy
Using the Privacy Command
To prevent other users from using finger to learn from where you are accessing the Pantheon, you can use the privacy command in the terminal. Simply type privacy on at the Pantheon prompt. To disable privacy, type privacy off. Typing privacy alone will allow you to determine what your current setting is. Note that privacy does not completely protect you from very determined people, but it should thwart the casual stalker.
Prevent Users from Sending Messages to You
You can prevent other users from sending you "write" or "talk" requests using the mesg command. Type mesg n at a Pantheon prompt. To re-enable write and talk requests, type mesg y at a Pantheon prompt.
Note that this setting will only last for your current session. The next time you log in, people will be able to message you again. To permanently enable this feature, you have to edit your .login file with a text editor such as Pico and add mesg n at the bottom of the file.
