Recent data breaches at some of America’s largest higher education institutions are highlighting the vulnerability of students’ and faculty’s private information — and the constant threat universities across the country face, the News Record reports.
“Unfortunately, every organization in the world is vulnerable and is at a risk of being breached by a hacker or group of hackers,” said Bogdan Vykhovanyuk, associate director of UCIT information security.
At the University of Cincinnati, private information — including students’ names, social security numbers, addresses, dates-of-birth, phone numbers and Bearcat Card information — are in danger of being illegally accessed on a daily basis.
Everyday, UCIT security systems intercept 1.5 million threats from entering the university’s network, Vykhovanyuk said. He and four other specialists are tasked with preventing potential breaches.
“The UCIT office of information security focuses on protecting the data, as well as planning for cyber incident response focused on identification, containment and eradication of a real or potential information security breaches. Information security is not only about protecting the data, but also about being ready to respond and minimize exposure when a data breach occurs.”
