The University of Pennsylvania has reported a massive data breach to the Federal Bureau of Investigation involving 1.2 million lines of data including information on Penn donors, alumni and students, as well as internal university memos and banking information.
Some of the information is believed to date back decades. The hacker, who appeared to be partly political motivated, also sent vulgar mass emails to Penn students and alumni last week accusing the Ivy League school of being “woke” and loving “legacies, donors and unqualified affirmative action admits.”
The breach followed similar hacks within the past year at New York University and Columbia. The Columbia breach resulted in the disclosure that Zohran Mamdani, the Democratic candidate in the New York City mayoral race, identified himself as both Asian and Black or African American when he applied to the school in 2009.
The University of Pennsylvania breach was previously reported by The Daily Pennsylvanian, the student newspaper, as well as by technology sites.
Penn officials, who initially said “fraudulent” emails were sent to the Penn community, were expected to release additional information on Tuesday.
Already, a Penn alumnus from the Chicago area, Christopher Kelly, has filed a class lawsuit against the university seeking compensation for damages incurred as a result of the disclosures. William B. Federman, a lawyer who is representing Mr. Kelly, said that Penn had “no excuse” for being hacked.
“What’s interesting is that, unlike the small sectarian colleges that are struggling, Penn has an enormous amount of money. They have the sophistication. It’s unforgivable that they would keep 40- and 50-year-old data of this type accessible,” said Mr. Federman, whose firm specializes in data breach litigation.
The Verge, a technology publication, reported that the Penn hacker, despite making political statements in his emails, was not primarily politically motivated, but planned to sell some of the data before releasing it. Samples of the material had been released on the website.
Among the documents contained in the breach, according to The Verge, was personal information about President Joe Biden, whose granddaughter studied at Penn. The university also hosts the Penn Biden Center, a think tank.
Also included are talking points used to prepare M. Elizabeth Magill, then the university’s president, for her congressional testimony on campus antisemitism in December 2023; she would ultimately resign.
Some of the information on Ms. Magill’s preparation was posted on another site, LeakForum.
Stephanie Saul reports on colleges and universities, with a recent focus on the dramatic changes in college admissions and the debate around diversity, equity and inclusion in higher education.
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