Drexel Connect is a single-sign-on site for Drexel web applications. It's like "Login with Facebook," but with your DrexelOne user ID and password. A "connected" browser is able to access any service protected by DrexelConnect – including DrexelOne, Blackboard Learn, and BannerWeb – without needing your password entered again.
Yes, all interactions with Drexel Connect use the same kind of encryption that's used for online banking and e-commerce sites.
Signing out ends your session, but leaves your browser connected. While connected, the browser can, without asking for your password, start new sessions with any of the web applications protected by Drexel Connect. Once you disconnect, new sessions cannot be started (without your password), but any existing connections are still valid.
In general, it's a good idea to sign out of a service when you are done working with it. When you are done working with a computer – particularly a computer in a public area – you should sign out of each service used and also disconnect. If you don't do both, an existing session or connection could still be available in an open browser, letting a stranger access systems that you signed in to.
If you consistently sign out and disconnect, you don't need to close your browser. However, we still recommend closing browser windows (and quitting the browser on a Mac) as an extra precaution against forgetting one of the other steps.
Contact Drexel IT at helpdesk@drexel.edu. We can discuss your potential participation in Drexel Connect and provide technical details about how the app may have to be changed to delegate authentication to Drexel Connect.