[BreachExchange] SFU hit by cyberattack involving personal data breach

[Destry Winant]

https://www.straight.com/tech/sfu-hit-by-cyberattack-

A post-secondary institution in Metro Vancouver has been hit by a
cyberattack, which could mean personal information may have been
compromised.

Simon Fraser University (SFU) issued a statement today (February 16)
to notify its community of a cyberattack on one of the school’s
server, which thereby exposed personal identifiable information, that
took place on February 5.

The university stated the server had spreadsheet data that contained
personal information for current and former students, faculty, staff,
and student applicants.

The information for each individual varied based on the type of
information stored on the spreadsheet. In most cases, the information
was the student or employee ID number and a minimum of one other data
element. Other data elements included:

- admission or academic standing information, including students who
applied for financial aid, academic probation, transcript requests,
and student honour awards;
- student group data, including Indigenous students and student athletes;
data about faculty active in 2018
- student course data, including courses for engineering science and
math, and pre-calculus and calculus;
- students with international characters in their names or addresses;

The information did not include banking details, social insurance
numbers, or passwords.

SFU states that “the risk of identity theft is low” but all of those
people who have been affected should monitor their personal accounts
for any unusual activity for the coming months. In addition to
possible identity theft, those affected may be at risk for receiving
unsolicited bulk or commercial email and third-party profile building.

SFU is directly contacting all affected individuals who have a current
email address on file.

Those who want to verify if their information was affected by the breach can:

- check online at the SFU cybersecurity webpage (with an SFU computing
ID and password);
- contact the SFU IT Services Help Desk by email or calling 778-782-8888;
- reviewing information at the SFU website.

SFU is continuing to conduct a forensic analysis and is working with
the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner for B.C.

A year ago, SFU had been hit by a ransomware attack on February 28,
2020, which also resulted in a privacy breach of personal data.

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