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April 2021 Technology Newsletter
By: Michael Kealy
Please Welcome William Stamberg To The Technology Department
Reminder: Website creation in classic Google Sites will no longer be available starting May 15, 2021
What’s changing
As Google announced, they are replacing classic Sites with new Sites. All Google Workspace customers will have until the end of 2021 to complete this transition.
We’d like to remind you that starting May 15, 2021, users will no longer be able to create new websites in classic Google Sites.
Note that the timeline for this transition varies for users with personal Google accounts — see the “Getting Started” section below for more details.
Who’s impacted
Admins and end users
Why it’s important
If you want your organization’s classic Sites content to continue to be viewable without interruption, make sure all of your existing classic Sites are migrated by December 31, 2021.
- Starting May 15, 2021: New website creation will no longer be available in classic Sites. This means that any new websites created in your organization will only be in new Sites.
- Starting December 1, 2021: Editing of any remaining classic Sites will be disabled.
- Starting January 1, 2022: When users try to visit a classic Site, they will no longer see the website content. Any remaining classic Sites will automatically be:
- Downloaded as an archive and saved to the website owner’s Google Drive.
- Replaced with a draft in the new Google Sites for site owners to review and publish.
If you don’t take any action, the changes outlined in the transition timeline above will automatically be applied.. Use our Help Center to learn more about the transition from classic Sites to new Sites.
Getting started
- Google Workspace end users: Users need to transition from classic to new Sites according to the timeline outlined above. Learn more about how to use the Classic Sites Manager tool, or visit our Help Center to learn how to convert a classic Site to a new Site.
- End users with personal Google accounts: Visit the Help Center to learn more about the transition timeline from classic Sites to new Sites.
Resources
- Google Workspace Admin Help: Manage users’ access in Sites
- Google Workspace Admin Help: Transition from classic Sites to new Sites
- Google Workspace Admin Help: Disable creating classic Sites
- Classic Sites Manager
- Google Sites Migration Guide
- Google Workspace Updates Blog: Timelines and tools for transition from classic to new Google Sites
Google Maps adding new features, including augmented reality
E-Sports Coming To Wappingers Falls
IRS Phishing Scam Targeting Education Institutions
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has reported on a phishing scam that impersonates the IRS and is targeting educational institutions. Emails may contain an IRS logo and have subject lines like, “Tax Refund Payment” or “Recalculation of your Tax Refund Payment.” The phishing email encourages the victim to “click a link and submit a form to claim their refund.” Once a victim clicks the link, they are redirected to a phony IRS landing page that asks them to provide sensitive information, including their “Driver’s license number and Electronic Filing PIN.”
While the IRS notice states the scam is primarily targeting “.edu” addresses, the emails have been sent to a variety of higher ed institutions. If you receive this phishing email do not click anything and report the email to the IRS at phishing@irs.gov. Information on how to safely report this scam email and additional details about this phishing campaign can be found on this IRS News Release page.