Dear Ms. Rossie,
As part of the Georgia State University Foundation’s steadfast commitment to being exemplary stewards of the resources it’s been entrusted with, and out of an abundance of caution, I am writing to let you know about a data security incident that occurred with one of our third-party service providers.
In mid-July, we were notified by a third-party vendor, Blackbaud, of a ransomware attack they discovered and stopped earlier this year. Please note that the cybercriminals did not access your credit card information, bank account information or social security number and no action is needed by you at this time.
A brief summary of the incident is as follows:
Upon discovering the ransomware attack, which occurred between Feb. 7, 2020 and May 20, 2020, Blackbaud’s cyber security team worked with independent forensics experts and law enforcement to successfully expel and lock the cybercriminal out, but not before a copy of a file containing some of your personal information had been removed. The third-party provider then paid the criminal’s demand, with confirmation that the copy of the file they had removed had been destroyed.
The cybercriminals were not able to access your credit card information, bank account information or social security number. The file they removed contained some personal information, such as your name, address, telephone numbers, and email address. Based on the nature of the incident and law enforcement’s investigation, we have been assured that there is no reason to believe that any data went beyond the cybercriminal who perpetrated the attack or will be misused or disseminated in the future. For more details on the situation, you can visit blackbaud.com/securityincident.
Again, we wanted to make you aware of this incident out of an abundance of caution and out of respect for the trust placed in us by our students, alumni, donors, supporters, faculty, staff and friends. While you don’t need to take any action at this time, we recommend you remain vigilant in reporting any suspicious activity or identity theft to your local law enforcement authorities and contact the credit reporting agencies, Equifax, Experian and TransUnion if you detect any fraudulent activity. If you have further questions concerning this incident, please email us at blackbaud@gsu.edu.
The Georgia State Foundation deeply appreciates all the ways your support helps Panther students from all backgrounds succeed at the same high levels. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause you, and be assured that the university, its leadership and its cyber security team are reviewing the incident to ensure best practices are followed internally and by our partners to avoid future incidences.
On a personal note, I regret that these are the circumstances under which many of you are first hearing from me. In the two months since I have joined the Panther family, I have been deeply impressed with the total commitment to the university’s mission and the success of its students shared by everyone at Georgia State.
Thank you for all you do for Georgia State, |
Jay Kahn
Vice President for Development & Alumni Affairs
President of the Georgia State University Foundation |
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