Vanderbilt University is facing an active cybersecurity threat. A ransomware group is claiming credit for the breach – saying it has access to over a million Social Security numbers, full names and email addresses in the university’s network.
The school’s Information Technology department is investigating the breach and directed students and faculty to shut down university devices and turn off their WiFi. University officials announced the incident Thursday morning and said that cloud-based services may also be impacted.
Aminat Rosenje, a junior from Chicago, told WPLN News that she was surprised to hear about Vanderbilt’s systems being compromised.
“I found out while I was in class. In the middle of it, one of the IT members came in and told us to disconnect from the Wi-Fi and to not open any emails or click any links because we were under a cybersecurity attack.”
She’s been using personal hotspots to connect to the Internet. Julia Jordan, a spokesperson for Vanderbilt, said classes are expected to continue as normal. However, some faculty opted to cancel class on Tuesday, according to the campus newspaper,The Vanderbilt Hustler.
The student-led paper also shared a link to the live website of BYOB ransomware – the group claiming responsibility for the attack.
The site included the following message: “If you could not tell already, your databases are locked. You know where to find us (contact tab). We will take you down when communication has been established between our team and yours.”
Vanderbilt’s IT team said faculty and students should report suspicious activity like unusual requests to enter passwords, files that have randomly moved, unfamiliar messages, or unexpected pop-ups.
One student received a message on their laptop stating the group had all of their data and warning them “to not try to fight it.”
“We’ve done our research on you,” the note continued. “It’s much more appreciated if you were to reach out to us and make a decision off the grid, it makes everyone’s lives easier.”
The school’s IT department is directing the Vanderbilt community to not click on any unfamiliar prompts or try troubleshooting any issues on their own. Rather, they should contact the IT service desk immediately using a separate device or telephone to report the incident.
The university provided an update Monday evening stating that campus Wi-Fi is now available, but access to most Vanderbilt systems and applications remains restricted. The statement further provided that the university’s IT team is working with government agencies to manage the incident.
On Tuesday, Nov. 10, Vanderbilt University is scheduled to operate on a normal schedule. Students are directed to contact their instructors for further guidance, including flexibility on course work deadlines.
This story was updated at 9 p.m. on Monday to include new information from Vanderbilt University officials.
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