Data leak of over a million students due to cyberattack on the website of New York University:

More than one million students of New York University found themselves victims of a leak of personal data as a result of a hacking attack on the official website of the educational institution, which occurred this weekend.

An unknown hacker, who gained unauthorized access to NYU’s IT systems on March 22, replaced the main page of the site with graphics and links to databases containing information about students. The attacker published data that included names, addresses, contact numbers, e-mail addresses, grades and financial aid information of students and applicants, starting in 1989. As noted by cybersecurity expert Zach Ganot, the leak occurred due to incorrect editing of the data. In total, more than 1 million people were affected, although information on more than 3 million applicants was published.

• NYU spokesman John Beckman said the university’s IT department, along with cybersecurity consultants, managed to regain control of the system less than three hours after the intrusion was detected, and has already contacted law enforcement.
• The attack was claimed by the Computer Niggy Exploitation hacker group, which had previously set a precedent with a similar attack on the University of Minnesota, where information on 7 million social security numbers was made public. The attackers said their actions were a protest against the 2023 decision of the US Supreme Court, which overturned the policy of affirmative action when entering higher education institutions.

Despite the hackers’ intention to draw attention to possible discrimination during the admissions campaign, experts warn that such attacks have significant negative consequences for the security and privacy of students. A cybercrime of this magnitude highlights serious gaps in the cyber security of educational institutions and calls for increased measures.