The University of Hawaiʻi Cancer Center recently disclosed that a ransomware attack exposed the Social Security numbers of approximately 1.15 million individuals. In response, the university is providing one year of credit monitoring and identity theft insurance to those whose personal data was compromised during the breach.
A ransomware attack on the University of Hawaiʻi Cancer Center has put the personal information of 1.15 million people at risk, according to a detailed report from the institution. The breach primarily impacted the Multiethnic Cohort Study, a long-term research project involving 215,000 participants from five major racial and ethnic groups. To notify those affected, the university has mailed letters to nearly 87,500 research subjects and sent emails to an additional 900,000 individuals whose data was stored within the compromised systems.
The vulnerability originated from historical records used to recruit study participants, specifically Hawaiʻi driver’s license and Honolulu voter registration data that previously included Social Security numbers. While 104,000 of the participants resided in Hawaiʻi and the remainder in California, the stolen files also included information from various other studies focused on diet and exercise. The university clarified that the breach did not extend to patient care records, clinical trials, or general student data.
The cyberattack occurred in August when hackers successfully encrypted files on the center's servers after gaining the ability to steal them. Upon discovery, the university collaborated with law enforcement and cybersecurity specialists to obtain a decryption tool. These experts also sought confirmation from the hackers that the stolen data had been destroyed. Currently, officials state there is no evidence that any of the compromised information has been sold, published, or otherwise misused by third parties.
Following the incident, the university has implemented significant security upgrades to prevent future occurrences. These measures include a complete redesign of the center’s network, the deployment of continuous endpoint monitoring, and the establishment of stricter access controls for sensitive information. New oversight panels have also been formed to manage cybersecurity protocols specifically related to research data and general operations at the cancer center.
University President Wendy Hensel has initiated a systemwide review of information technology across all ten campuses to identify and correct potential weaknesses. She emphasized that protecting the data entrusted to the university is a fundamental responsibility to the public and essential to their research mission. The university remains committed to strengthening its defenses as part of a comprehensive response to the evolving threat of cyberattacks.
Source: UH Cyber Hack Exposed Social Security Numbers Of Up To 1.15 Million People