Data of 180,000 exposed in South Korean university hack, including ex-president
Former President Park Geun-hye appears to be among those affected.
Image via Temple University
- Sogang University said hackers exposed data of nearly 180,000 students, alumni, and staff.
- Leaked details included names, IDs, affiliations, emails, phone numbers, and encrypted login passwords.
- The university said resident registration numbers, financial account numbers, and other sensitive data were not affected.
- Former President Park Geun-hye appears affected, raising concerns about phishing risks for current and former university members.
Key Takeaways by nexos.ai, reviewed by Cybernews staff.
A cyberattack hit Sogang University in Seoul, exposing the personal information of nearly 180,000 students, alumni, and staff. Former President Park Geun-hye was reported to be among those affected.
The university posted a "Notice and Apology Regarding Personal Information Breach Incident" on Saturday, saying: "It has been confirmed that some personal information related to integrated login account credentials was leaked due to an external attack by unidentified parties."
It added that hackers accessed user ID numbers, names, affiliations, email addresses, mobile phone numbers, and encrypted passwords for the university's integrated login system.
The university said that no resident registration numbers or other sensitive personal data, including financial account numbers, had been affected.
The breach was detected on August 14th but started three days earlier, on August 11th, when an attacker accessed the university’s systems from overseas.
After detecting the breach, the university blocked the malicious IP address, restricted access to the affected service, and isolated the network.
“Emergency response measures have been completed, and we are currently inspecting internal server vulnerabilities. We are also working with external security specialists to strengthen monitoring systems and develop additional measures to prevent further damage,” a university official said.
All students, staff, and alumni are urged to change their passwords since the encrypted login passwords were affected.
Additionally, affected individuals should watch out for suspicious phone calls, emails, or text messages, as malicious actors could use the stolen information for phishing or other scams.
There are also concerns that the breach may have affected people who are no longer at Sogang University. This includes former President Park Geun-hye, who entered Sogang University's electronics engineering department in 1970 and appears to be among those affected.
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According to local media, entering her name and student ID number into the university's breach verification service returns a notice saying that "personal information items have been confirmed as leaked."
The university has sent out apology letters to its students and staff and plans to issue additional guidance.
"We are taking this matter very seriously and will fundamentally review and strengthen our systems to prevent similar incidents from happening again," the university said.
