On May 30^th of this year cyber attackers gained access to Clearinghouse MOVEit managed file transfer (MFT). They stole files containing a broad amount of personal information. The National Student Clearinghouse said “After learning of the issue, we promptly initiated an investigation with the support of leading cybersecurity experts. We have also coordinated with law enforcement.” A variety of information was collected by the attackers including names, birth dates, contact information, Social Security numbers, student ID numbers and school-related records. The amount of data exposed for each person can vary on a person-to-person basis. Organizations affected are listed here.

It has been determined that the Clop ransomware gang is behind the attacks and initiated them on the 27^th of May. By the 15^th of June, the criminals began the extortion of the organizations on their dark web data leak site. It is expected to impact organizations across the globe, many of which have already started notifying customers who may have been affected the past four months. It is believed that the Clop gang will receive anywhere from $75-100 million due to their lofty demands.

The National Student Clearinghouse has issued their own statement and information page about the attack which can be found here. They have been working with experts in cybersecurity to determine the impact of the attack. There have been reports that some U.S. Federal agencies and two U.S. Department of Energy entities have been affected by these attacks as well.

Cyber-attacks can happen to anyone. Make sure to practice cybersecurity safety when using the internet. If you think there is ransomware on your computer, give us a call. Our team’s knowledge, paired with specialized tools can clean your PC and get it running like new. Get in touch with us and we can put you back on the right track!