March 2026
Spring is here, and while you’re thinking about tidying up your home or office, it’s the perfect time to give your digital life a good scrub. Over time, we accumulate "digital clutter". Old files, outdated apps, and unnecessary data can slow us down and, more importantly, create risks for our campus cybersecurity.
Review & Purge Your Digital Storage:
Just like that junk drawer in your kitchen, our workstations and cloud accounts (like Google Drive or Box) tend to collect things "just in case."
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Look through your files and folders. If you no longer need it, delete it.
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Empty the Trash. "Deleted" items often remain in the trash folder; make sure to empty it to permanently remove the data.
Tidy Your Workstation & Apps
Check your computer for programs you no longer use. Outdated software can have security holes that hackers love to exploit.
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Update applications and operating systems.
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Review Permissions: Take a moment to look at which apps have access to your accounts or location and revoke access for anything that seems unnecessary.
Scrub Your Inbox
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Unsubscribe: Unsubscribe from promotional emails you never read to reduce inbox clutter, and so you can spot phishing attempts more easily.
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Archive vs. Delete: If you don't need a conversation for record-keeping, delete it.
Learn more here: How to Declutter Your Digital Space