HackingEducationEducationCapture Stored DataData ExfiltratedCustomer Data InvolvedGovernment IDIdentity (basic)EducationFinancial accountHealth (basic)MediumContained

Columbia University

bd_82648491a36c0afc · schema v1 · pii pii-v1

Severity

Medium

Discovered

Jun 24, 2025

Filed

Aug 7, 2025

To disclose

6 weeks

Affected

Not disclosed

Linked

15 filings

Confidence

64%

Full breach record for Columbia University →7 incidents on file

Columbia University experienced a cyber incident where an unauthorized third party gained access to its network on or about May 16, 2025, and exfiltrated files. The university discovered the incident on June 24, 2025, following a technical outage. Affected data includes names, dates of birth, Social Security numbers, contact details, demographic information, academic history, financial aid information, and health information. The university engaged external cybersecurity experts, reported to law enforcement, implemented security safeguards, and is offering two years of credit monitoring and identity restoration services through Kroll.

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Incident timeline

undetected · 39 days

discovery → filing · 6 weeks / 44 days

May 16, 2025

Begins

Jun 24, 2025

Discovered

Aug 7, 2025

Filed

vs. sector median

2 wks faster

This filing is one of 15 about the same incident.View merged incident

Linked disclosures

Why this link?

Regulatory filings (10) · sorted by filing gap

Maine State AGbd_07533b0c85ac791c2025-08-07Candidate
Massachusetts State AGbd_0e780a9cd65865c92025-08-07Verified
Washington State AGbd_2c8504262b9c10eb2025-08-07Verified
Indiana State AGbd_44bbed6c166a9c6d2025-08-07Verified

Show 6 more filings ↓up to 19d gap

Nebraska State AGbd_4af6126d602d67a62025-08-07Verified
Montana State AGbd_88b5b3d68c5a023a2025-08-07Verified
Vermont State AGbd_9b1ee72034df1e552025-08-07Verified
Iowa State AGbd_2337be0c0546ca352025-08-08 · +1dVerified
New Hampshire State AGbd_1de0d58aeabac3772025-08-12 · +5dVerified
Rhode Island State AGbd_d3027779956216f92025-08-26 · +19dVerified

Showing first 10 of 14 linked disclosures.

Name: Columbia University
norm: columbia university

Name: Columbia University
norm: columbia university
Industry: Educationllm

Discovered: Jun 24, 2025
Breach occurred: May 16, 2025
Undetected for: 39 daysoccurrence → discovery
Materiality determined: —
Notification sent: —
Affected individuals: Not disclosed
Data types: Identity (basic)Government IDEducationFinancial accountHealth (basic)
Data elements: Social Security numberDate of birth
Attack vector: Unauthorized Access
MITRE ATT&CK: T1078 Valid AccountsT1041 Exfiltration Over C2 Channel
Threat actor: External
Regulator citations: Reported the incident to law enforcement

During the incident: Activated our response process
Launched an investigation with the support of external cybersecurity experts
Reported the incident to law enforcement
Implemented a number of safeguards across our systems to enhance our security
Offering two years of complimentary credit monitoring and identity restoration services through Kroll
Changes made: Implemented a number of safeguards across our systems to enhance our security
Examining what additional steps we can take and additional safeguards we can implement to prevent something like this from happening again
Source: Quoted from the filing itself, not independently verified.

Time to disclose: 6 weeks(44 days from discovery to filing)
Compliance flags: — (clock not assessable for this source)

Status: No extraction artifact recorded for this disclosure.

Filing propagation · 11 filings · 11 states

View merged incident ↗

Maine State AGAug 7 · first

Massachusetts State AGAug 7 · first

Washington State AGAug 7 · first

Indiana State AGAug 7 · first

Nebraska State AGAug 7 · first

Montana State AGAug 7 · first

Vermont State AGAug 7 · first

Delaware State AGAug 7 · first · this page

Iowa State AG+1d

New Hampshire State AG+5d

Rhode Island State AG+19d

Pattern: first filing Aug 7 (ME), last Aug 26 (RI) — a 19-day rolling notification. Rolling spreads often mean counsel is filing as thresholds trip per state. Why this link?

Cascade drawn from the first 10 linked disclosures of 14 — the full spread may be wider.

Evidence ladder

Leak-site claim

Attacker assertion only. Establishes: claim date, group, alleged victim.

Press / market report

Unlocks: incident narrative, operational impact. Still no compliance clock.

State AG / regulator filingThis record

Unlocks: discovery date, data types, affected count, compliance clock.

SEC 8-K / victim statement

Unlocks: materiality, stated response, full audit trail. Ceiling removed.

Source URL: https://attorneygeneral.delaware.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2026/01/Columbia_Sample-of-the-Notice-to-Affected-Persons.pdf
DisclosureLens links to the originating regulator URL — full filing bodies are not redistributed from public surfaces (§4.5).
Filed at: Aug 7, 2025
Raw hash: 6bb8a21b51b65dd3ab9ce1e44baa9e2df5dcbcb1148214e3cbcfbf71563d704d

Linked disclosures

Regulatory filings (10) · sorted by filing gap

Reporting entityColumbia University

Victim entityColumbia University

Incidentdiscovered Jun 24, 2025

Stated responseActivated our response process

Complianceclock not assessable

Extraction provenanceno artifact recorded

Source provenanceattorneygeneral.delaware.gov