Shell access to CAMK


The main way to access CAMK computers is using the address  ssh.camk.edu.pl. Using any unix machine, one can access CAMK using:
 

ssh camkuser@ssh.camk.edu.pl
 

Currently the use of passwords are discuraged.
 

Generating ssh keys


Generating ssh keys depend on the operating system. With unix-based system (Linux or Mac), it is as easy as two commands:
 

ssh-keygen
ssh-copy-id camkuser@ssh.camk.edu.pl
 

Please, do not generate keys with empty passphrases
 

On Windows, using ssh requires installing the generator. There is detailed instruction. Once the key is generated, you can manually add it to the text file /home/camkuser/.ssh/authorized_keys or ask CAMK administrators for help.
 

Security considerations


Using passwords to access CAMK network is strongly discouraged. Passwords are simply unsafe. Having said that, using the ssh keys without passwords is even worse! Once the key is stolen, one can easily use it. If you suspect your keys are stolen (for instance as installed on stolen laptop), please tell us immediately.

 

 

Email at CAMK

 

At CAMK we use email as username@camk.edu.pl or FirstName.Lastname@camk.edu.pl, where the username is the name of the user in our main network (and the very same in the cluster). You can use any mail user agent. We support the free agent Thunderbird but you can use any modern other email agent. See Configuration.

 

Rules on email

The email system at CAMK is one of the most critical systems. We all depend on its working condition. Also your email is the central authorization point for many services. If anybody gets your email password, he or she can easily reset other systems and make an intrusion to CAMK. Keep your password safe and never ever use your password on other systems than CAMK. Especially never use it in social websites and other external websites.

CAMK administrators NEVER ASK ANYBODY FOR A PASSWORD and never ask to type in CAMK password with one notable exception, the page https://webmail.camk.edu.pl

 

Spam, Scam, and Phishing

While reading the email you're exposed to several hazards, let's delve in them to make them clear:

 

Unsolicited Advertisements also knowns as SPAM.

You won't see too many SPAM-s at CAMK because we filter them out and keep in the folder SPAM in our IMAP folder system. Sometimes the advertisement is actually necessary or even waited and sometimes it is mistakenly classified as SPAM. It is nice to check the SPAM folder and if there is something that is classified as a spam but shouldn't be you're adviced to move it to main INBOX folder. On the other hand, if an unsolicited advertisement went to your INBOX unclassified as SPAM please move it to SPAM folder.

By moving messages between INBOX and SPAM folders you teach our spam filter to better recognize such messages. You help yourself and others at CAMK. Never ever move to SPAM any legitimate mail just because you don't want to read it.

 

Scam

While this is not SPAM it is more dangerous. It's an attempt to defraud a person or group after first gaining their trust. It usually reports you as fake lottery winner, sometimes even with absurdly high prices like millions of dollars or being a heir of multibillion heritage. They were usually very obvious but with the advent of Artificial Intelligence methods they sometimes look very similar to legitimate mails.

They sometimes require to reveal CAMK secrets like someones salary or account number pretending to be someone from CAMK. Again, emails written by tools based on Artificial Intelligence make very difficult to distinguish between legitimate email and fake. It's generally below the current possibilities of spam or scam filters to scan and classify such mails. Just don't send anything confidential by email unless you are very sure such action is required.

 

Phishing

This is another form of social engineering and scam where a person attacks by deceiving CAMK users into revealing sensitive information or installing sofware, useally a malware.

From time to time we receive an email claiming that the mail system account is being blocked and require immediate action like typing your password into an external page.

Again: we never, never ask anybody to reveal the password. We never keep anything outside the domain camk.edu.pl. If we really had an issue with your account we would ask secretary to contact you directly or by phone.

 

What we should do with email?

It depends on a threat. In case of plain spam just move the mail to SPAM folder. In case of scam and phishing you can either move it to SPAM because they're unwanted anyway or if you think the threat is serious, let us know via adm@camk.edu.pl. Please never copy the unwanted emails to adm list or any other list. It's better to let us know by phone (161 or 162) than to send anything to adm. You'll risk immediate blocking your email if the system recognizes you as a spammer.

 

Configuration {#configuration}

Webmail

The easiest way to use your email is using our web-based mail system at [https://webmail.camk.edu.pl]. While you can use any decent browser for it, keep in mind to keep the password safe. There is not really safe method to read your email from foreign system. If you absolutely must use our email from the computer that you don't own or you don't have the exclusive access, make it in private window and let us know immediately by sending a note to [adm@camk.edu.pl].

 

Password change.

If you have the access to ssh, the safest way to change the password is to enter the command passwd from the command line. Please see [Access to CAMK][https://www.camk.edu.pl/en/camknet/access/) for details.

Also it is possible to change the password using our webmail system

 

Thunderbird configuration

Thunderbird configuration is pretty straightforward. You just need to type in you full name and your email in the form of username@camk.edu.pl and the program will correctly find the server parameters.

 

Other program configurations

Our email is based on IMAP protocol and SMTP(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simple_Mail_Transfer_Protocol). We do not support older protocols like POP3.

The configuration parameters. Unless you MUA automatically find the necessary parameters you can provide the following:

Parameter Host Port Remarks
Submission smtp.camk.edu.pl 587 Use STARTTLS
IMAP imap.camk.edu.pl 143