One of the hundreds of organizations targeted by a nationwide cyberattack, the UC released updates on the incident and guidelines for its community to protect personal information. 

Universities, government institutions and private companies alike are among the approximately 300 organizations that have been affected by the attack, which targeted Accellion’s File Transfer Appliance, a vendor service used to transfer sensitive information, according to a UCnet press release. As of press time, it is believed that the stolen information includes names, birth dates, social security numbers and bank account information. 

Along with local and federal law enforcement and third-party vendors, the UC is investigating the incident to assess and limit the release of stolen information, the press release reads.

To protect personal and financial information, the UC community should sign up for credit monitoring and identity theft protection, which the university is offering for free for one year, according to the press release.

Further ways to safeguard information include activating bank account alerts and searching for suspicious transactions, as well as placing a fraud alert on credit files as this ensures verification steps must be taken before extending new credit. 

As the perpetrators may send threatening mass emails to gain money, any recipient of such email should avoid engagement and either forward it to their local information security office or delete it, according to the press release.

“We regard the privacy of all of our community members with the utmost seriousness,” the press release reads. “We will keep the UC community updated as we learn more and are able to share additional information.”