Cyber Incident Victim: Cincinnati State Technical and Community College
Date:
Nov 2022
Location:
United States of America
Summary
A ransomware attack claimed by the Vice Society group disrupted operations at Cincinnati State Technical and Community College, compromising systems and leaking stolen documents containing personally identifiable information. The attackers publicly released files allegedly exfiltrated from the institution, impacting approximately 10,000 students and 1,000 staff members. While partial restoration of on-campus networks, email, and classroom computers occurred, critical services including voicemail, VPN access, shared drives, and online portals remained offline. Vice Society, known for targeting educational institutions with multiple ransomware variants like BlackCat and HelloKitty, has previously attacked entities such as the Los Angeles Unified school district, prompting FBI warnings about their focus on the education sector.
| CIA Posture | Motives | Tactics, Techniques & Procedures |
|---|---|---|
| Available to members | 2 motives | 1 technique |
| Threat Actor | Type | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 1 actor | Available to members | Available to members |
Description
On or around November 24, 2022, Vice Society ransomware operators claimed responsibility for a cyberattack against Cincinnati State Technical and Community College, subsequently leaking stolen data on their Tor leak site. The threat actors published a substantial volume of documents allegedly exfiltrated during the breach, with file dates spanning several years up to November 24, 2022. This temporal proximity to the leak date suggested potential persistent access to college systems, though investigators did not confirm this hypothesis. All leaked files contained personally identifiable information (PII) and were made freely accessible without restriction. The college had previously notified approximately 10,000 students and 1,000 staff members about an undisclosed cybersecurity incident occurring earlier in November 2022, advising stakeholders that full restoration of operations would require extended timeframes. Vice Society's public data release indicated failed ransom negotiations between the attackers and the institution.
By the Tuesday immediately preceding the November 25 article publication, Cincinnati State had partially restored critical infrastructure while significant systems remained offline. Operational recovery milestones included reactivation of on-campus networks, email services, limited internet connectivity, and classroom computer functionality. Unresolved outages persisted across voicemail systems, network printing capabilities, VPN access, shared network drives, intranet resources, and multiple online portals handling application submissions and registration processes. Microsoft researchers had previously documented Vice Society's operational pattern of deploying multiple ransomware variants against educational institutions, including BlackCat (ALPHV), QuantumLocker, Zeppelin, and RedAlert (N13V) strains, with BleepingComputer independently observing HelloKitty ransomware usage in other attacks. The group historically targeted academic organizations, as evidenced by prior compromises at the Los Angeles Unified School District and Austria's Medical University of Innsbruck, prompting FBI warnings about their disproportionate focus on education sector entities.