Report Incident

Close-up image of a caucasian hand holding a mobile device with a Security Breach message displayed over a padlock and shield with a red background.

Overview

According to the Information Classification and Protection Policy: All faculty, staff, and students shall immediately report inappropriate disclosure or suspected loss of Confidential or Restricted information to their supervisor or the Pepperdine University Information Security Office.

Suspected Data Breach or Information Disclosure

Immediately contact the Information Security Office (ISO) by phone at 310.506.4040.

How to Report a Suspected Breach

Call 310.506.4040 (DO NOT rely solely on email).
- The person who discovers/suspects the breach should report it directly to ISO or to their supervisor.
Follow up by email using iso@pepperdine.edu.
VITAL: If you reach the ISO voicemail box when reporting a breach, listen and follow the message instructions to have ISO paged any time, 24/7/365.

What to Report

Please prepare the following information for the Information Security Office:

Your name, job title, a call-back time, and a direct phone number.
Brief details of the information exposed or breached, including:
- The nature of the information in general. Specifically, what information may have been disclosed or breached?
- The online address or physical location where the suspected exposure/breach/disclosure is taking place.

You will receive a return call from the Information Security Office to follow up.

Digital Security Incidents & What to Do

Common types of digital security incidents include, but are not limited to, the following:

Incident Type	Definition	Action(s)
Credential Theft	Stealing user names and passwords to gain access to sensitive information.	Report Suspected Breach to ISO.
Distributed Denial of Service	Attacking a network and disrupting normal business operations.	Report Suspected Security Incident to ISO.
Malware	Any malicious software designed to operate on your computer without your consent.	Contact Tech Central at 310.506.4357.
Phishing	A messaging technique for attempting to induce action or disclosure, through a fraudulent solicitation in which the perpetrator masquerades as a legitimate business or reputable person.	Do NOT forward suspected phishing messages. Follow the Phishing Guide and use the Phish Alert Button. Only report an information security breach to ISO if you shared confidential or RESTRICTED University information to the malicious actor/entity, such as your University account credentials.
Ransomware	A malware that encrypts and/or locks data files, often after stealing copies of them.	Report Suspected Breach to ISO.