When possible, travelers must avoid taking university issued electronic devices, including but not limited to, laptops and tablets.

If an electronic device is required for international travel, TAMUK employees must request a loaner device from Information Technology Services (ITS). Only TAMUK loaner devices from ITS will be allowed to be carried internationally.

Requests for ITS loaner devices must be made at least two (2) weeks before international travel.

Travelers must utilize the TAMUK Virtual Private Network (VPN) connection at all times while in a foreign country. The VPN requires the use of DUO 2-factor authentication.

Electronic devices must be hand carried along with completed Export Control forms during travel.

If electronic devices, technology, and/or information are stolen while traveling abroad, travelers shall promptly contact the Office of Compliance (361- 593-4758; ExportControls@tamuk.edu).

While traveling, carrying the loaner laptops could fall under the temporary license exclusion known as the “tools of the trade” exclusion. EAR makes an exception to licensing requirements for the temporary export or re–export of certain items, technology, or software for professional use as long as the criteria below are met. The exception does not apply to any EAR satellite or space–related equipment, components, or software, or to any technology associated with high–level encryption products. In addition, this exception does not apply to items, technology, data, or software regulated by the ITAR. Note that this license exception is not available for equipment, components, or software designed for use in/by/with most satellites or spacecraft. “Effective control” means retaining physical possession of an item or maintaining it in a secure environment.

Temporary exports under the “tools of the trade” license exception (as defined in Appendix B) apply when the laptop, PDA, cell phone, data storage devices, and encrypted software are:

• hand–carried with the individual while traveling;
• carried in the luggage or baggage that travels with the individual; or
• shipped no more than thirty days prior to the individual’s departure or may be shipped to the individual at any time while the individual is outside the country.

Generally, no government export license is required so long as an individual:

• retains their laptop computer, PDA, cell phone, data storage devices, and/or encrypted software under their personal custody and effective control for the duration of travel;
• does not intend to keep these items in these countries for longer than 1 year; and
• is not traveling to an embargoed country.

TAMUK employees are ultimately individually responsible for ensuring compliance with U.S. export controls regulations, as well as System policies and regulations, and must conduct their affairs in accordance. All employees are also required to complete “Export Controls and Embargo training” at least once every two years. This training (course number 2111212) can be completed via TrainTraq, which is accessible by logging into SSO.

Malicious software threatens the integrity of Texas A&M University-Kingsville (TAMUK) data and computing resources. Malicious software can allow attackers to bypass defense to conduct data harvesting, espionage, ransomware, and severe data breaches. For this reason, Information Technology Services (ITS) prohibits software that has been identified as malicious and software that is prohibited by state or federal regulation.

The criteria in this document identify malicious software that may not be installed or run on university devices under
any circumstances. IT professionals and information resource custodians may use these criteria to assess the status of installed software and to explain to users why specific software is prohibited.

Software meeting ANY of the following conditions is prohibited on TAMUK devices:

• Software that is no longer supported by the vendor and no longer receives security updates. See the TAMUK Security Controls Catalog and the Vulnerability Management Standard (29.01.99.K1.235).
• Software that is made by a developer, subsidiary, or affiliate of any entity listed on the Texas DIR Prohibited Technologies website.
• Software that contains or relies on kernel-level access, unless explicitly approved by TAMUK ITS. See the
  Administrative Access Standard Administrative Procedure (29.01.99.K1.030).
• Software that captures indiscriminate input from a human interface device such as a keyboard, commonly referred to as a keylogger. See the Antivirus Standard (29.01.99.K1.220) and the Acceptable Use Policy.
• Software that alters or monitors network configurations, including VPN and network overlay software,
  unless explicitly approved by TAMUK ITS. See the Network Access Standard (29.01.99.K1.100), the Network Configuration Procedure (29.01.99.K1.110), and the Wireless Access Procedure (29.01.99.K1.290). Approved VPN access is requested through the ITS Support (Help Desk) page.
• Software that must communicate with a TAMUS Blocked Country in order to function or to receive software updates.
• Software classified as malicious by MITRE or CISA.
• Software that is determined by TAMUK ITS to threaten the integrity of TAMUK data, networks, or
  information resources.

TAMUK ITS monitors software installed on university devices and may instruct departmental IT staff to remove certain software or applications. Before purchasing or installing new software for university business, employees must submit a Software Approval Request form, which is available on the ITS Support (Help Desk) page. Questions may be directed to the ITS Help Desk at (361) 593-HELP (4357) or helpdesk@tamuk.edu.

Helpful Links

TAMUK rules, controls, and standards:
● IT Standard Administrative Procedures
● TAMUK Security Controls Catalog
● Information Security
● Acceptable Use Policy
● Data Classification Standard
● Texas A&M University System Security Control Standards Catalog: https://cyber.tamus.edu/catalog/

TAMUK ITS resources:
● ITS Support (Help Desk)
● Hardware Purchase
● System Status
● Information Security Services
● Software Approval Request form

Sites to aid in determining whether software is malware:
● MITRE ATT&CK: https://attack.mitre.org/software/
● VirusTotal: https://www.virustotal.com/
● Polyswarm: https://polyswarm.network/scan
● ANY.RUN: https://app.any.run/

Sites to aid in determining whether software is still vendor-supported:
● https://endoflife.date/
● https://www.upcomingeol.com/

Additional Information
Information technology professionals and members of the university community may contact TAMUK ITS to ask questions or to request additional information.
● Online: itsupport.tamuk.edu
● Email: helpdesk@tamuk.edu
● Phone: (361) 593-HELP (4357)
● In person: Jernigan Library, Library Commons
● Suspicious email messages should be forwarded to verify.email@tamuk.edu.