Increased Microsoft security – Multi-factor authentication is coming

The University will add an extra layer of online security to all Microsoft 365 (M365) services including email and Teams from 12 April (Easter vacation). Some staff will be contacted to set this up on their accounts earlier than this date.

All staff will be enrolled onto multi-factor authentication (MFA), which adds a level of increased security when using online tools and is especially important now as many staff are working from home (99.9% reduction in compromised accounts).

As the name suggests, MFA uses multiple methods to identify that you are who you say you are. You may be familiar with this type of security which is commonly used for online banking, shopping and PayPal.

What this means  

When MFA has been added to your M365 account there will be an extra authentication step for you to complete before gaining access to M365 services from off-campus. There will be a number of options available for you to authenticate yourself, details of which will be provided.

Next steps 

We will contact all staff with further details about enrolment onto MFA later this term. If you have any questions, please get in touch with IT Service Desk.