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Questions
Q1. What’s the difference between BeyondTrust and Zoom/Skype?
Q2. How do I request remote support?
Q3. Will I need to give my IT support representative any of my passwords?
Q4. Does an IT support representative have full access to my computer?
Q5. Can an IT support representative access my computer at any time using BeyondTrust?
Q6. Can I stop a support session in progress?
Q7. Once a Remote Support session is over, is anything left on my computer?
Q8. Can a Remote Support session be conducted off-campus?
Q9. Who is allowed to use Remote Support?
Q10. Are my support sessions being recorded?
Q11. How is my privacy protected?
Q12. I’m not sure I’m comfortable with someone being able to see my screen and move my mouse from another location. Is it really necessary?
Q13. Can Remote Support be used on any device?
Answers
Q1 - What’s the difference between BeyondTrust and Zoom/Skype?
A: BeyondTrust is used exclusively by IT support representatives to facilitate remote support and administration of endpoints and servers. Zoom and other conferencing services are designed for general use to conduct meetings or give presentations.
Q2 - How do I request remote support?
A: After contacting your IT support representative, you can begin a support session by navigating to one of two support portals (help.nebraska.edu or help-confidential.nebraska.edu) and select the name of your support representative or enter a Session Key provided by your IT support representative. If your University computer is managed by Information Technology Services, a BeyondTrust jump client may already be installed to provide you with quick and straightforward support. After requesting support, an IT support representative will prompt you on your computer to start a remote session.
Q3 - Will I need to give my IT support representative any of my passwords?
A: No. A University of Nebraska IT support representative will never ask you for your personal password. If at any time a password is required to facilitate support, you will be instructed to type your password in the appropriate field on your device.
Q4 - Does an IT support representative have full access to my computer?
A: No. Access to content requiring a password on your device will be inaccessible to an IT support representative unless you elevate access, requiring you to type in your password. If you are using a University issued device, the representative may already have local administrative access that they can use to elevate access.
You and the representative share the same screen, control of your mouse and keyboard during a support session.
Before you accept the BeyondTrust invitation to share your screen, we strongly recommend that you close any open documents which contain personal, confidential or regulated data, or that are not related to the issue at hand.
Before your remote session starts, you may request that some applications not be visually shared with your IT support representative, this must be configured before starting the remote session. For more information about selective application sharing, see Application Sharing: Limit What the Representative Can See.
In some situations, a representative may request access to utilities such as the command line interface, registry, file system, or system information. These actions may not be visible to you during a support session. All actions taken by a support representative are automatically logged for training and quality assurance. Session recordings and logs are retained for 90 days.
Q5 - Can an IT support representative access my computer at any time using BeyondTrust?
A: Personal computers cannot be accessed by an IT support representative using BeyondTrust without the user first initiating a support request through the support portal. Only on University issued computers may an IT support representative be able to start a remote session if a BeyondTrust jump client is pre-installed. On a private institutional computer, user consent is required before an IT support representative can begin remote support and control. Any time a support session is active the BeyondTrust chat window is visible.
Q6 - Can I stop a support session in progress?
A: Yes. At any time you may terminate the support session by clicking on the STOP SHARING text at the upper right corner of the chat window.
Q7 - Once a Remote Support session is over, is anything left on my computer?
A: If your support session was initiated using a support portal (help.nebraska.edu or help-confidential.nebraska.edu), the installed client will automatically remove itself at the end of the session. Some University issued computers will have the BeyondTrust jump client pre-installed installed to provide quick and simple support, without the need to install a one-time use client.
Q8 - Can a Remote Support session be conducted off-campus?
A: Yes. A Remote Support session can be conducted at any location, as long as your device has an internet connection. The BeyondTrust service utilizes built-in security for remote sessions, no VPN is required to receive support.
Q9 - Who is allowed to use Remote Support?
A: Remote Support representative access is limited to University employees in an IT support or administration role. BeyondTrust is not available for end users or technicians wanting remote access to their office computers.
Q10 - Are my support sessions being recorded?
A: Yes. BeyondTrust automatically records all support sessions into a log for training and quality control purposes. The log for each support session includes meta-data about the support session, a transcript of chat activity, command line activity, registry activity, file transfer activity, and system information data. There are two possible deviations to this procedure.
- Logs for remote sessions that were conducted through help.nebraska.edu also include a video of any screen activity, including who was in control of the input devices when an action was taken. This includes sessions initiated by an IT support representative on private institutional computers.
- Logs for remote sessions that were conducted through help-confidential.nebraska.edu do not include a video of screen activity to protect confidential or regulated data.
The support representative, his/her supervisor, ITS Endpoint Management, ITS Security, and the Internal Audit office have access to this information for quality control, security, and auditing purposes. The log is kept for 90 days.
If your device is known to contain confidential or regulated information, your support session will be conducted through a special confidential support channel, which does not capture a video of screen activity for the log. All other information listed above will be collected for quality control, security, and auditing purposes.
Q11 - How is my privacy protected?
A: Policies are in place to protect both the end-user and IT support representatives against breaches of privacy and to define the appropriate use of technology. These policies apply to all IT services and activities including remote assistance using BeyondTrust or any other remote assistance tool.
Q12 - I’m not sure I’m comfortable with someone being able to see my screen and move my mouse from another location. Is it really necessary?
A: Necessary? Maybe not, but it’s very helpful in reducing costs and improving response time. Remote assistance is a valuable tool for quickly identifying and solving problems. It avoids the need to wait for an IT support representative to come to your location, or the cumbersome phone calls where you try to describe exactly what you’re seeing and the IT support representative tries to describe exactly the steps they want you to take. Many businesses, organizations, and universities are using BeyondTrust or similar tools. If you are ever uncomfortable about actions that were taken during a remote session, please contact your local IT support director/manager or Phil Redfern.
Q13 - Can Remote Support be used on any device?
A: The BeyondTrust Jump Client can be installed on common desktop operating systems, including Windows, macOS, and Linux. Additionally, a BeyondTrust app can be installed on mobile operating systems such as iOS, Android and Chrome OS to enable a representative to remotely view your device for support.