University of Manchester announces cyber incident, says data ‘likely’ copied

The University of Manchester, one of the largest universities in the United Kingdom by enrollment, announced on Friday that it was the victim of a cyber incident and that the hackers had accessed and “likely” copied data.

“We know this will cause concern to members of our community and we are very sorry for this,” the university said in an official notice to students.

The university’s internal team, alongside an unidentified company providing external support, have not yet established what data was accessed. It pledged to inform students as more information became available.

On an FAQ page regarding the incident, the university said it discovered the incident earlier this week, stating: “It has been confirmed that some of our systems have been accessed by an unauthorized party and data have likely been copied.”

The university’s more than 40,000 students have been warned to be vigilant for phishing emails. The institution also employs more than 12,000 staff whose data may equally be affected.

The university did not describe the incident as a ransomware attack. It said it was “still investigating” who was behind it, and was “working with the authorities to identify the perpetrators.”

It is not known whether the attackers were seeking to collect data to hold the institution to ransom, or if the attackers were attempting to steal sensitive research.

A “Highly Restricted Data Service” (HRDS) was launched earlier this year to “support researchers working with commercially sensitive, restricted and/or highly restricted data by keeping their data safe, in particular when it is subject to contractual or regulatory requirements.”

It is not known whether any of the HRDS data was accessed by the hackers.

According to the university’s statement, the incident was “promptly reported” to the Information Commissioner’s Office, the Office for Students, the National Cyber Security Centre, and the National Crime Agency.

“We will continue to work closely with all parties on this,” the university added.