After the network outage at Baruch College in December 2024, students were given scarce details of the network outage and the damage done.

The security breach is reminiscent of a previous incident that occurred in September 2023, making students wonder why more precaution and security measures weren’t implemented.

A Campus Announcement email providing an update was sent to the Baruch community on March 6, more than two months after the outage.

“Out of an abundance of caution, we have decided to notify Baruch current and former students and faculty and family members because their information is or has been processed by Baruch. Therefore, we cannot rule out the possibility that their sensitive personal information may have been involved in the incident.”

The message later revealed that the information leaked could include one’s “social security number; driver’s license number or government issued identification number, credit or debit card number; financial account number; medical or health information, or information provided as part of disability services or counseling center services.”

The uncertainty and vague details of who and what were impacted are alarming to the Baruch community. Students and faculty worry that personal information may have been leaked, and the lack of clarity surrounding the extent of the damage only worsens these anxieties.

The email also said that “Baruch is offering two years of free credit monitoring and identity theft protection services to all potentially impacted individuals.”

Instead of trying to compensate students, Baruch’s main priorities should be to figure out who committed this crime, make sure this doesn’t happen again and inform students of the developing situation. Concealing specific details creates a distrustful environment between students and the administration.

In addition, the message emphasized that it is the responsibility of the victims to be on the lookout over an error that the school caused, a hypocritical remark to an already frustrated population.

Students and faculty have already voiced their concerns on Reddit. A user named u/Previous-Dare1409 posted “Hello, Baruch College staff here! I am posting because since the Baruch data breach I have had two cases of identity theft under my name.”

After the network outage in September 2023, Baruch President S. David Wu stated in his letter to the Baruch community that “The security precautions we take together now will ensure that we return to a more resilient and secure IT environment tomorrow.”

Unfortunately, the recent attack brought concerns over whether Baruch’s security software is effective at all.

Not only are these attacks proof that the students’ information is vulnerable, but they have also been disruptive during finals week when students and professors needed to connect to Wi-Fi and print on campus.

Baruch should have taken more preventative measures, especially after the previous attack. Students deserve more information and compensation regarding the data breach.