Do you use a mobile device to access your email?

Information Technology
Mobile devices and M365
Mobile devices introduce vulnerabilities that can lead to security threats. To mitigate some of the risks, the University is adopting a Mobile Device Management (MDM) approach. This will entail downloading an app onto University-issued and personal mobile devices.

Support staff and professors who wish to maintain mobile device access to Office 365 applications and associated data, including uOttawa email and calendar, will be affected by this security endeavour. The project team will be contacting faculties and services in waves starting this summer

Mobile Device Management enhances your safe access to resources

Every day more people are using mobile devices in their daily lives. Certainly, since the pandemic, usage has increased for work. While these devices offer flexibility and convenience, they also open the door to malicious IT threats that can result in stolen or destroyed data. Depending on the nature of the incident, it can take time for the University to recover from a security breach.

With this in mind, the University is deploying a Mobile Device Management (MDM) approach that will protect the University from threats and you from losing important data. We will start onboarding employees this summer and will have more information available to you.

What is Mobile Device Management?

A new MDM tool will allow the University to shield its resources from potential threats posed by mobile devices. In scope are smartphones and tablets that have access to uOttawa’s Microsoft 365 applications and their related data, including email and calendar.

What does this mean for your access to uOttawa resources?

If you use your personal smartphone or tablet to access your work email and calendar, and want to be able to continue doing so, you must enroll into MDM. If you are using a University-issued mobile device, including those who have a personal device yet receive a stipend from the University, you must enroll into MDM.

In both cases, if you do not enroll the mobile device, you will no longer be able to access Microsoft 365 resources like email or calendar. Consult the list of the apps impacted by this MDM initiative.

Your privacy is important

While the safety of the University’s resources is important to us, your privacy is too. We are committed to protecting your privacy and the confidentiality. The app protects uOttawa from potential threats. It does not collect or monitor your usage or personal data, like your call or web history, emails, calendar appointments, messages, contacts, pictures, videos, calendar, location or any other files.

Interested in learning more? Check out the MDM project website.