Let's look at examples of incidents that have occurred in the Education industry.

• Incident 1

University of Washington Medicine Phishing Attack. In October 2013, an employee of University of Washington Medicine was sent a phishing email that triggered a malware download, giving the attacker access to the data of 90,000 patients. The HIPAA violations uncovered that contributed to the success of the attack were resolved with OCR for $750,000.

• Incident 2

Cape Cod Community College. Hackers launched a phishing attack on Cape Cod Community College, stealing over $800,000 from the institution's financial accounts, according to The Boston Globe. On December 7, President John Cox of Cape Cod Community College disclosed the cyber attack and monetary theft in an email to staff and faculty members, as reported by various sources. In collaboration with banking authorities, the college in West Barnstable, Massachusetts, managed to recover approximately $300,000 of the stolen funds.

• Incident 3

University of Wisconsin-parkside. In 2019, the University of Wisconsin-Parkside received notice from a bank regarding a new account that had been receiving payments from the university. The bank flagged the transfer for investigation due to the unusual nature of the receiving account and the amount of the payments. The losses amounted to approximately $315,000. This incident was the result of a phishing attack, in which an individual used an employee's credentials to alter the banking account routing numbers of two UW entities. As a result, payments intended for the university were sent to the attacker's account.

• Incident 4

Spotsylvania County Public Schools became victims of a scam that resulted in a loss of over $600,000. The school officials believed they were making a partial payment for the new, vibrant blue football field at the high school, but unknowingly transferred funds to a fraudulent account posing as a contractor who installed the field. The money, which was generated from a county bond approved by voters for the project, was intended to pay the contractor who completed the strikingly blue football field. However, scammers managed to deceive the school officials by sending an email that appeared to be from the legitimate contractor requesting a partial payment. Unfortunately, the school district transferred more than $600,000 to the fraudulent account.

If an educational organization is hacked using phishing, several serious consequences could occur:

• Data Breach: Phishing attacks often target sensitive information such as student and staff personal data, academic records, financial information, and login credentials. A successful breach could lead to the exposure of this information, resulting in identity theft, fraud, and financial losses for both the institution and individuals affected.

• Academic Integrity Compromised: Hackers might manipulate grades, alter academic records, or gain unauthorized access to exam materials. This could lead to academic fraud, unfair advantages for certain students, and damage to the integrity of the institution's academic programs.

• Disruption of Operations: Phishing attacks can provide hackers with access to the educational organization's internal systems and networks. Once inside, they could install malware, ransomware, or other malicious software, leading to disruptions in online learning platforms, administrative systems, or communication networks.

• Financial Losses: Educational institutions may face financial losses due to the costs associated with investigating and mitigating the breach, implementing security measures to prevent future attacks, potential lawsuits from affected parties, and loss of revenue or funding due to reputational damage.

• Reputational Damage: A data breach resulting from a phishing attack can severely damage the reputation of an educational institution. This loss of trust from students, parents, staff, and the community can lead to decreased enrollment, loss of donors or funding, and long-term damage to the institution's standing in the education sector.

https://www.hipaaguide.net/examples-of-phishing-attacks/

https://www.msspalert.com/news/hackers-steal-800000-from-college

https://www.cbs58.com/news/uw-parkside-falls-victim-to-bank-fraud-initial-losses-total-315-000

https://wjla.com/news/local/email-scam-costs-spotsylvania-schools-600000