NYU website hijacked in protest of ‘affirmative action’ in admissions
A bad actor took over New York University’s website over the weekend, exposing the personal information of more than 3 million people who applied to the institution, dating back to 1989.
The attack, which took place over the course of two hours last Saturday, was followed by the website being restored around noon, Washington Square News reported.
The hackers replaced the website’s usual content with three charts that displayed what was purported to be NYU’s average admitted SAT scores, ACT scores and grade point averages for the 2024-2025 admissions cycle. A message accompanying the charts noted that affirmative action in college admissions had been ruled illegal but that NYU had continued the practice.
“The university reported the hack to law enforcement, is taking steps to make sure the attackers are out of our systems, and is reviewing the university’s systems to bolster their security,” NYU spokesperson John Beckman said.
