Columbia University Data Breach
NOTICE: If you received a NOTICE OF DATA BREACH letter from Columbia University, contact the Arnold Law Firm at (916) 777-7777 to discuss your legal options, or submit a confidential Case Evaluation form here.
On August 7, 2025, Columbia University (“Columbia”) disclosed a significant cybersecurity incident (the “Data Breach”) in breach notification filings with Attorneys General’s Offices in Maine and California. The breach was first detected on June 24, 2025, after a technical outage disrupted various university systems. The investigation determined that, on or about May 16, 2025, an unauthorized actor accessed Columbia’s network and exfiltrated files. The Data Breach affected approximately 868,969 individuals, including current students, former students, applicants, and some employees.
Recently, Columbia has begun notifying affected individuals, offering two years of complimentary credit monitoring and identity protection services through Kroll. If you received a data breach notification letter from Columbia, it indicates that you were affected by the data breach.
Founded in 1754 and located in New York City, Columbia University is an Ivy League research institution with an annual budget exceeding $6.6 billion, more than 20,000 employees, approximately 4,700 academic staff, and over 35,000 students across 19 colleges, programs, and schools.
WHAT INFORMATION IS INVOLVED IN THE COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY DATA BREACH?
The type of compromised information included:
- Names,
- Dates of birth,
- Social Security numbers,
- Contact information,
- Demographic data
- Academic history and admissions records,
- Financial aid-related information
- Insurance-related information and certain health information.
This information is called your Personally Identifiable Information (“PII”). It tells others about you and is considered part of your identity. Businesses are required to secure this information or risk facing statutory penalties, among other legal penalties. Stolen PII can be used by identity thieves to engage in fraudulent activity using your identity.
Personal medical information (a specific type of PII) is referred to as Protected Health Information (“PHI”). It is protected under both state and federal law. Healthcare providers and other businesses who handle PHI are required to protect that information. Like stolen PII, stolen PHI can be used by identity thieves to engage in fraudulent activity using your identity. Quite often, PII and PHI are used in conjunction by hackers.
The best way to protect yourself after a data breach is to sign up for credit and identity protection services as soon as possible.
NOTICE: If you received a NOTICE OF DATA BREACH letter from Columbia University, contact the Arnold Law Firm at (916) 777-7777 to discuss your legal options, or submit a confidential Case Evaluation form here.