Western Sydney University (WSU) has been hit by another major data breach, with thousands of current and former students receiving fraudulent emails claiming their degrees had been “revoked”.
Many WSU students were sent into a panic on Monday night after receiving emails, to their personal email accounts, saying they had been “excluded” from the University.
“We regret to inform you that, following a thorough review, the decision has been made to permanently exclude you from any further study at Western Sydney University,” the email read.
“As a result, any existing certificates or awards previously issued to you are hereby revoked.
“This action has been taken in accordance with the Western Sydney University Act 1997, the Western Sydney University By-Law 2017, and the relevant policies outlined on the Policy DDS platform.”
A WSU spokesperson responded to the fraudulent email breach, confirming they have contacted NSW Police regarding the matter.
“Western Sydney University is aware of fraudulent emails sent to students and graduates, with some falsely claiming that they have been excluded from the University or that their qualifications have been revoked,” a spokesperson for WSU said.
“These emails are not legitimate and were not issued by the University.
“We are reaching out to inform people that the email is fraudulent and have informed NSW Police. As this is part of an ongoing police investigation, we are unable to provide further comment at this time.
“We sincerely apologise for any concern this may have caused.”
This breach is just one in a series of cyber attacks the University has dealt with over recent years.
A former student is currently facing the courts after being charged over a series of cyber-attacks on the university spanning over a four-year period.
WSU is investigating whether the incident is linked with former cyber-attacks.
