Personal data of students, staff exposed in Virginia Tech cybersecurity incident
Personal information of current and former university students and employees at Virginia Tech was posted online, the university announced this week.
The compromised files contained demographic data on current and former students and dining service employees at the university, according to a Virginia Tech press release. The files were stored on a computer workstation in the student affairs division that has since been removed from the network, the release said.
The university said it initially learned of the incident by an unauthorized party on Sept. 5 and reported it to law enforcement. Virginia Tech’s Information Technology Security Office is continuing to investigate the incident, and no other workstations or data appear to have been affected, the university said.
“The university has no reasonable belief that identity theft or fraud will occur,” the university said in the release. “However, for notified individuals impacted, it is recommended as a continued security and precautionary measure that you vigilant monitor your personal information for any anomalous or suspicious activities.”
The university encouraged those affected to change their passwords on accounts and systems affiliated with Virginia Tech.
According to a report by Check Point Software, education and research is the most targeted industry globally when it comes to cyberattacks, with an average of nearly 2,300 attacks against organizations each week, an increase of more than 40% from 2021 to 2022.
