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my.unomaha.eduInformation Services

It's Here! - gmav Student E-mail at UNO!

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gmav Update

Some students who have changed their name with the registrar's office, but did not change their Net ID, have reported problems with gmav. Please change your Net ID to match your name change with the registrar's office.

Students are also reporting some official UNO e-mail is going directly to the gmav spam folder. Please review your spam folder and move those messages to your inbox by selecting the message and clicking 'Not Spam'.

Gmav, UNO's implementation of Google Apps for Education, is ready for use. Initial services at UNO will include the e-mail and calendar features. Google Docs and Chat will be implemented during Fall semester. Learn more about these services on the Google Apps For Education web page.

Security/Privacy with gmav

During initial research on a new student e-mail system for UNO (Fall 2008), Information Technology Services (ITS) thoroughly researched the security aspect of e-mail systems that UNO could move to.  A new e-mail system had to conform to university/governmental security, privacy, compliance, and confidentiality policies.   Google Gmail passed this litmus test.  

The following are answers to a few questions you may have related to gmav security and privacy:

Who owns the data?

A clause in the Google contract defines who owns the data.   The following is an excerpt from that contract:

"7.1 Intellectual Property Rights.  Except as expressly set forth herein, this Agreement does not grant either party any rights, implied or otherwise, to the other's content or any of the other's intellectual property.  As between the parties, Customer owns all Intellectual Property Rights in Customer Data, and Google owns all Intellectual Property Rights in the Services."

Google's   FAQ also discusses data ownership. http://www.google.com/support/a/bin/answer.py?answer=106876.

"To put it simply, Google does not own your data. We do not take a position on whether the data belongs to the institution signing up for Apps, or the individual user (that's between the two of you), but we know it doesn't belong to us!

The data, which you put into our systems, is yours, and we believe it should stay that way. "

Is my password safe?

Yes, because Google provides a method for UNO to integrate our security and authentication methodologies.  When entering your password to access gmav it is done on UNO servers and the password is never passed to Google.  Google Apps provides this option using an industry standard SAML 2.0.  When you reset your password this action is completed on UNO servers.  However, in order to use Google Talk, POP3/IMAP, or Google Sites, it is required that a password be stored on Google servers, in which case UNO recommends that this not be set to the same password as your UNO NetID.   

Who are the system administrators of gmav?

UNO employees are the system administrators for gmav.   If there is a need to access a person's e-mail, UNO system administrators must contact you and have the password changed before accessing.   In the case of a court order, this contact is not required.

Does Google read and data-mine the content stored in my gmav account?

Google's servers will automatically process all content in order to index the data for faster searches.  Google will not use the data for advertising, profiling, or anything other than indexing.

Are we adhering to UNO's Privacy policy with the change to gmav?

Yes, you can read UNO's Privacy Policy and University of Nebraska Policy for Responsible Use of University Computers and Information Systems.   Here is a link to Google's Privacy Policy.  Google also ensures that the privacy policy will not be altered in any potentially damaging way without express written consent from the customer and/or user.

Does UNO's mass e-mail policy change with the change to gmav?

Yes, and you can read that policy here.

Can I better secure my connection to gmav?

Here are a few items that can help. 

  • Make a setting change in gmav so you are accessing the site via an https secure connection.
  • To do this:
    1. Click Settings (Upper Right hand corner by your e-mail address)
    2. Scroll to the bottom of the screen and look for the Browser Connection option
    3. Click Always use https
    4. Click the Save Changes button
  • Never give your password to anyone.
  • Periodically change your password.
  • Never use the same password for multiple accounts.
Is my data safe with Google?

Yes, Google has secure servers and facilities along with good protection against malicious attacks and hackers.  Google has completed an independent third party audit and auditor issued an unqualified SAS70 Type II certification.   SAS 70 Type II audit is a widely recognized auditing standard developed by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA).  The audit includes information technology and related processes.