Important information about the University's new email security system
By: Sean Armstrong
Last updated: Friday, 16 August 2019
You may have recently received emails from the Sussex Postmaster (postmaster@sussex.ac.uk) with the subject line:
‘You have new held messages’
As we have already let you know, these are from the University’s new email security system Mimecast, which is using new processes and technologies to protect everyone at Sussex from malicious emails. The system was launched two weeks ago, and so far it has rejected 1.2 million emails as spam or malware (approximately 83% of the total volume of email received). This huge number is proof the software is working to make our email even more secure.
Even though the software was launched very recently, we have already had some positive feedback from colleagues about the benefits this change has made – with several staff contacting ITS to say they are receiving much less spam in their inboxes, including this tweet:
"Well done @ITServices @SussexUni for developing an effective spam email trapping system. Finally, no more ‘Greetings!’ from the Lithuanian Journal of Agriculture asking for my ‘esteemed’ work in the field."
The system also gives you more control over which emails are kept and which are rejected as malicious or spam. It will send you an email if it intercepts a suspicious message that has been sent to you. When you receive an email from Mimecast you can decide whether to:
- ‘Release’ the email
- ‘Permit’ the sender to send you other emails in future (i.e. it is a sender you trust)
- or ‘Block’ (it is spam and you want to block this sender).
You can also follow the link within the email to your Personal Portal in Mimecast and manage your held messages there.
It is important to remember that these “You have new held messages” notification emails are not spam and to always check the content.
If you would like any more details about the new email security system, please see the ITS website.