- Cybersecurity Awareness Training

In this article:

McGill-managed training
Free online cybersecurity training
Canadian Centre for Cyber Security training for:
- - Researchers
  - Social media creators and administrators

McGill-managed training

Stay (cyber) safe on the go

Whether you’re planning to travel for study, research, work or fun, we recommend you first watch our virtual session: Stay (cyber) safe on the go.mp4.

Currently only available in English

Course duration: 12:26 minutes total

If you are not already logged in to McGill systems, you will be prompted to login with your McGill Username and Password

Phishing 101

If something feels off, it probably is. Strengthen your scam-spotting skills by exploring our Phishing 101 page. You’ll learn to spot subtle red flags, uncover common tricks, and gain the tools and confidence to protect yourself from threats – both online and offline.

Explore Phishing 101 and start spotting the signs.

Specialized cybersecurity training (by request)

On request we offer:

Tailored in-person and virtual training and interactive “test your knowledge” activities, including deep dives into specific cybersecurity risks that departments, faculties and groups may face.
General awareness materials that you can integrate into your communications and events.

Please contact us by submitting a General request ticket to the IT Service Desk with the subject line “Specialized cybersecurity training request”. This lets us review the request and propose options with as few delays as possible.

To help us assess the request, please let us know:

Prospective audience size
If the audience have access to personal and health information (PI, PHI), of others, or McGill financial and other regulated data.
If your request is in response to a security incident that occurred, or are trying to address a situation that you believe has a high probability of leading to security incident.

Notice

As of June 30, 2026, Terranova will no longer be used as our cybersecurity training provider. Replacement training options for McGill students, staff, faculty, and researchers are listed below.

McGill faculty, staff, researchers, and students have access to online cybersecurity awareness training through the Terranova platform.

The courses listed below are available to a general audience. Additional courses may be available to you depending on your department, faculty, or role.

Faculty, staff, and researchers:

Cybersecurity Essentials

Course duration: 20-30 minutes

Topics addressed include protecting data, how to detect phishing and scams, online meeting risks, file sharing, and more! Each section of the course lasts a few minutes, so you can easily finish it all at once or in several sessions.

The course is offered in English and French, and each module has an accessible and interactive mode.

Students:

Stay safe while you study, stream, and share

Course duration: 10-15 minutes

Topics addressed include phishing, Wi-Fi security, social engineering, ransomware, and more! The course is offered in English and French, and each module has an accessible and interactive mode.

Free online cybersecurity training

Cyber101 is a free online cybersecurity awareness course created by Montrealers that’s available to anyone – so you can share it with friends and family!

Available in English and French
Composed of 9 modules between 2-4 minutes each (about 30 minutes total)

Things to know before you start:

McGill has no control over the course content, or the site.
If proof of completion is needed, we recommend taking a screenshot of the final completion screen (showing date and time) and sharing it with your supervisor, instead of registering with the site.
Not all advice in the course matches McGill's policies and best practices. We have compiled a brief clarification list, but when in doubt, please search for and follow McGill-provided guidance.
If you fail a quiz (3/5 or less), you will have to rewatch the module before retrying.

McGill-specific clarifications to the course modules

Always report phishing, and follow the steps listed in our article if you think your McGill account is compromised.
Never share multi-factor authentication (2FA/MFA) codes with anyone.
Report McGill IT security incidents as soon as possible instead of attempting to resolve them on your own.
Make sure you’re familiar with McGill’s policies and guidance on the use of McGill-provided IT services and data. This information can be found on the IT Services website and in Knowledge Base articles under the policies, regulations & directives category. If you have a cybersafety related question that you can’t find the answer to, don’t hesitate to reach out by submitting a General request ticket to the IT Service Desk.

The Canadian Centre for Cyber Security training

The Canadian Centre for Cyber Security training offers a selection of online training courses for public sector employees, educators, and researchers.

To access these courses, you will need to create an account on their site. Make sure to create a unique password for your account, and please do not reuse your McGill password.

Researchers:

Introduction to research security

Course duration: 40 minutes

This course is offered by the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security in collaboration with Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED) Canada. It explains why protecting research is important and how to spot risks that could put it in danger. You’ll learn to recognize common threats, identify vulnerabilities in your own research, and explore ways to reduce those risks. The course also shows how to work in partnership with research support staff and other experts to build strong strategies for keeping research safe.

Cyber security for researchers

Course duration: 50 minutes

This course can be taken on its own, but it is recommended to first take "Introduction to research security", listed above.

This course is offered by the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security in collaboration with Innovation, Science and Economic Development (ISED) Canada. It will teach you to recognize the risks and consequences of cyber attacks, understand who might be targeting your research and why, and explore the methods threat actors use. The course also helps you ask the right questions to assess your own cyber risk and take steps to ensure sensitive research and data is safely handled, stored, and shared, and disposed of.

Social media creators and administrators

Cyber security considerations for social media account management

Course Duration: 30-45 minutes

This course explores the cybersecurity risks linked to social media and how organizations can protect themselves from them. You'll learn to recognize common threats, understand how to keep social media accounts secure, and apply cyber safety practices across devices and apps used for posting. The course also covers best practices for reviewing and approving content before it's published, and how to respond effectively if a security incident occurs.