September ’21 Newsletter

Welcome to JumpCloud’s September Newsletter.

While the transition to Autumn brings with it significant change, some things hold constant. And nothing is more unmoving and steadfast than JumpCloud’s vision to Make (Remote) Work Happen. The latest funding announcement and recap of our recent momentum has further cemented our objectives, and brings acceleration and a renewed energy to our mission to deliver a comprehensive, secure cloud directory platform.

Read on to learn more about some of the notable releases of the past month.

JumpCloud Protect™ Now Supports TOTP

With the recent release of time-based one-time passwords (TOTP) as a second factor through JumpCloud Protect, your end users will no longer need to use a third-party authenticator app to support their MFA needs to access their IT resources.

Within the JumpCloud ecosystem, TOTP through JumpCloud Protect can be used to protect the User and Admin Portals, cloud applications, Windows, Mac and Linux devices, and network access through RADIUS. Additionally, TOTP through JumpCloud Protect can be used to protect any IT (or personal) resource that natively supports this factor.

This functionality is available for free for all JumpCloud Protect users as an update through the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.

Enhancements to Policies Governing Windows Patching

There is a lot of fanfare in the world of operating systems this year, with both Apple and Microsoft delivering major OS upgrades this fall. While the new features and enhanced UX is an exciting experience for some end users, others may not enjoy the disruption to their established flow, and others still may find certain applications now incompatible or performance issues.

With new and advanced policy capabilities for Windows, admins can block users from upgrading to Windows 11 on their own, and prevent users from delaying any critical Windows updates across any major version. A new policy category structure was created to enhance the way administrators search and configure policies.

Introducing: Skill Badges in JumpCloud University

Taking a course through JumpCloud University (JCU) or earning your JumpCloud Core Certification is a great accomplishment that adds to your repertoire of IT knowledge and your resume. However, this certification (like others of similar weight) can feel like a big undertaking.

For those of you interested in developing specific skills leading up to your Core Certification, we are piloting a new program that allows you to earn skill badges after completing certain courses. Rather than waiting to celebrate and share your success of earning your official Core Certification, you can gain different skills and share your expertise along the way!

Our first course that provides a skill badge is called Foundations of Cloud Directory.

Manager Attribute for User Profiles

Sometimes a small addition to the platform can have an outsized impact on those who use it. This month, JumpCloud released a native attribute within the User Profile to associate a Manager, allowing admins to set one user as the manager of another without the need for a custom attribute. 

In doing so, JumpCloud can more easily serve as the source of truth for directory information, as Manager is commonly utilized in downstream integrations, such as Google, and informs access for many applications. This makes it easier for admins to deliver the right level of access seamlessly.

What To Read Next

• Coming Soon: macOS 12 Monterey: Apple has announced macOS 12 Monterey will be released this fall as a free upgrade for all Mac users worldwide. However, to ensure it does not break any policies, third party applications, or your end users’ focus, use JumpCloud to block upgrades until you’ve had time to test it. Find out how here.
• JumpCloud Named Leader in SSO, IAM, Cloud Directory, and More in G2 Vendor Evaluations: More than 800 JumpCloud user reviews informed the G2 Crowd Fall 2021 Reports, which named JumpCloud as a leader and/or high performer in a total of 44 reports. Read more to see where JumpCloud was nominated and awarded.
• Choice Is An Illusion: Use An IT Priority Matrix: Daily life in IT can be a lengthy exercise in determining priorities; who needs your help the most, which project needs to be completed first. Read how this simple tool can help make that task a no-brainer.
• How Effective is Multi-Factor Authentication at Securing an Organization? Compromised credentials are one of the most common attack vectors used by hackers to infiltrate an organization; unfortunately 61% of people reuse passwords across both work and personal accounts. Read how MFA plays a critical role in reducing exposure to data breaches.

Other Things You Should Know

• Notification Policies for Windows: You can now customize the notifications your users receive with new Windows policies.
• Updates Language for Password Status. The ‘inactive’ password status is now referred to as ‘password pending’. A password status of ‘suspended’ is no longer one of the password statuses. It is now a user state. Read more about password status. 
• Resolving Secure Token Issues on macOS Devices. You can recover a macOS device that has a problem with a JumpCloud Service Account by fixing issues with secure tokens. There are different ways to address this issue depending upon the current status of the device.

Find a more technical breakdown of our recent releases in our September release notes.