The University of Cambridge encountered a significant disruption on Monday due to a distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attack, causing server flooding and impairing internet connectivity and essential services like Moodle and CamSIS. Students were notified of the attack via email, which severely hampered access to crucial educational platforms and student information systems. Despite the attack’s severity, it remains uncertain whether it served as a cover for data theft, as multiple universities reported similar malicious disruptions around the same time, affecting internet access and various online services.
Efforts to restore services are underway, with the University’s Clinical School Computing Service collaborating with Joint Information Systems Committee (Jisc) to mitigate the impact of the attack. While disruptions have subsided as of Tuesday morning, services like Moodle and Panopto lecture capture remain degraded. Moreover, the incident extended beyond Cambridge University, affecting other educational institutions utilizing the JANET academic backbone network operated by Jisc, including the University of Manchester.
The hacking group Anonymous Sudan has claimed responsibility for the attacks on Cambridge and Manchester universities, citing the UK’s support for Israel as motivation. Despite its name, analysts suspect Anonymous Sudan to be a Russian entity, engaging in hacktivist activities purportedly in support of Muslim causes. This revelation highlights the complexity and geopolitical implications of cyber attacks, underscoring the need for heightened cybersecurity measures in educational institutions and beyond to safeguard against such disruptions and protect sensitive data from malicious actors.
