Carnegie Mellon University reveals it suffered cyberattack over the summer
Carnegie Mellon University leaders said the institution was hit by a cyberattack over the summer that impacted more than 7,300 people.
The global research university, which is in Pittsburgh and has a student population of about 14,000, revealed the news in a statement last Friday.
In the statement, a spokesperson said the university suffered a data breach to its computer system last Aug. 25, potentially compromising the personal information of former and current students, employees, applicants and contractors. The spokesperson said there was no indication that the third party had used the university’s data maliciously.
“The university recently concluded its full investigation of the breach and sent notification to anyone whose information may have been compromised,” the statement from CMU read. “There is no evidence of fraud or inappropriate use of the information from those files.”
The spokesperson also said that those impacted were offered credit monitoring services through the credit bureau Experian.
“A total of 7,343 people received notifications,” the university’s statement read.
Higher education institutions continue to be among attackers’ favorite targets. Last week, a cyberattack disrupted operations at Kansas State University after the school discovered technical issues with its Canvas learning management system and Mediasite, a virtual classroom tool, as students returned for the spring semester.
