Eindhoven University of Technology yet to recover from last week's cyber attack

Leading Dutch institution Eindhoven University of Technology says it has been unable to resume normal operations and classes after it suffered a significant cyber attack over the weekend.

In a data breach notice published on its website, Eindhoven University of Technology said that on January 12, it experienced a cyber attack that affected its internal network. The University immediately launched an investigation, with assistance from external cyber security experts, to determine the nature and scope of the incident.

The university, also known as TU/e, added that all “network-bound systems are or will become inaccessible for users for the time being and there will be no lectures and other educational activities, at least up to and including Monday.”

“Students and employees can come to campus, but they cannot use network-bound facilities, such as e-mail, Wi-Fi, Canvas and Teams,” TU/e added.

In a recent update, TU/e said that its recovery process and investigation are still ongoing and classes have been cancelled.
 
In a statement shared with the media, Patrick Groothuis, Vice President of the University said, “We are working methodically with all our might to get the TU/e’s network back secure and eventually bring it back online, step by step, with the utmost care. The education systems have the highest priority in this regard.

“We understand that this has a major impact on everyone in our community. We are touched by the resilience of students and staff and by all the messages of support and help offered.”

The university said its preliminary investigation did not uncover any evidence of data being stolen and it hasn’t been able to identify who is responsible for the attack, nor has it been contacted by anyone. TU/e has set up a helpdesk which employees and students can reach out to via messaging service WhatsApp to get their queries resolved.