Hackers targeted leading Australian university, accessed student and staff data from 19-yrs past

The top research university in Australia known as Australian National University recently suffered a large-scale cyber assault by which an advanced threat actor managed seeing student as well as staff data in considerable volumes from the past twenty years.

The university declared June 4 that hackers penetrated its security software during late-2018 for garnering personal information of students, notably passport details and bank A/C numbers dating back almost 20-yrs. ANU stated the attack came to light May 17, 2019, over 6 months following its occurrence.

According to Brian Schmidt, vice-chancellor of Australian National University, hackers viewed data from as many as nineteen years back. The breach was the second one during not even one year. The hack in question was found 14 days back. Prof. Schmidt stated the data which might've gotten accessed comprised names, phone numbers, date-of-birth, addresses, emergency contact particulars, personal e-mail ids, passport details, bank account particulars, payroll info, and tax file details. The hackers also accessed academic records. www.afr.com posted this, June 4, 2019.

There was no breach of a separate computer, which had in store medical records, travel information, credit card particulars, performance records, workers' compensation, police checks, and registration numbers of vehicles, the university stated.

As per World University Rankings, Australian National University is the top university in Australia, with graduates from there, in good numbers, getting into senior government posts a fact that magnifies the data hack's security sensitivities. The university as well runs the Crawford School of Public Policy and School of Strategic and Defence Studies, both influential in their own right and maintaining close connections with agencies as well as departments of the government. www.theguardian.com posted this, June 6, 2019.

And after the university disclosed the hack, a confirmation followed from the Australian Cyber Security Centre that the centre was helping ANU strengthen its networks' security, safeguard end-users while investigate the compromise in its full extent. An investigation by the cyber intelligence agency of Australia too was ongoing to determine the culprit, the agency said.

Several cyber attacks hit Australia's government too during recent years, with a few attributed to China although the latter denied the charges.

» SPAMfighter News - 6/14/2019