While students were enjoying their spring break, a hacker took over NYU’s homepage for more than two hours, leaking the names, hometowns, GPAs, test scores as well as personal information related to family members and citizenship status of over 3 million applicants — dating back to at least 1978 across all schools. The hacker also displayed three charts with what they claimed to be the university’s average admitted SAT scores, ACT scores and GPAs for the 2024-25 admissions cycle. They argued that NYU has continued to use race-sensitive admissions, despite the Supreme Court’s takedown of affirmative action in 2023, and showed that the average scores for Asian and white applicants were allegedly higher than those who identify as Hispanic or Black. In every universitywide communication about the breach, NYU failed to address the attack’s racially targeted nature or inform the overwhelming majority of individuals affected that their privacy had been egregiously invaded.
In a statement to WSN a few hours after the site’s restoration, an NYU spokesperson said the university’s IT team reported the hack to law enforcement, and was taking steps to bolster security — a commitment Executive Vice President Martin Dorph reiterated in an email to the NYU community later that day. Five days later, Dorph sent another message characterizing the charts included on the university’s website as “inaccurate and misleading,” and that NYU “scrupulously complies with the law” as it pertains to the 2023 ruling on race-sensitive admissions. The ambiguous message did not clarify what about the graphs or information the hacker presented was inaccurate despite a WSN investigation that confirmed over 100 consenting applicants’ leaked information.
It has been over three weeks since the hack, and the university has yet to notify the millions of applicants whose personal details were leaked that their information had been compromised. The at least 10 class action lawsuits filed against NYU make similar claims, each accusing the university of mishandling the applicants’ personal information and failing to meet national cybersecurity standards. The data breach exposed the university’s incompetence and negligence as it pertains to the privacy and security of its applicants and student body. Prompt and accurate reassurance and candor with affected parties is what is most vital in an attack as anxiety-inducing as this.
The same can be said about NYU’s failure to meaningfully address the hacker targeting underrepresented minority groups in its slam against the university’s alleged continuation of affirmative action. The Black Student Union at NYU openly condemned the university’s inadequate response to the hack, adding that the incident was particularly concerning amid the Trump administration’s crackdown on diversity, equity and inclusion programs across the country. Given the complexity of the data in the attack, the university failing to immediately comment on the extensive and disproportionate targeting of Black and Hispanic students is not altogether unsurprising. However, for Dorph to merely assert that NYU does not consider race in its admissions without committing to the protection of its minority community — especially considering that NYU continues to tout itself for diversity and inclusion — is not only disappointing, but concerning, frightening and deceitful.
NYU only committing to bolstering security and preventing a breach of this level from happening again simply isn’t enough. Just last week, a Muslim prayer room was desecrated in Bobst Library, with President Linda Mills issuing a statement condemning the incident three days after it had taken place. This past week, the NYU College Republicans promoted an event titled “Immigrant Invasion” with a xenophobic AI-generated poster depicting Black men carrying knives and reading, immigrants “don’t have to go home,” but they “can’t stay here.” NYU didn’t cancel this event for its white supremacist and neo-Nazi rhetoric, but because a scheduled panelist publicly requested “armed security.” The United States is facing a devastating crusade against DEI at the hands of the Trump administration, and NYU has a moral obligation to uphold its values and assert its commitment to protecting its community.
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